Saturday, December 28, 2019

Sidney UMC - First Sunday after Christmas Day - 12/29/19 - Sermon - “Time to Move!”


Sunday 12/29/19 - Sidney UMC

Sermon Title:           “Time to Move!”

Old Testament Scripture: Isaiah 63:7-9
                                            
New Testament Scripture: Hebrews 2:10-18
                                                   
Gospel Lesson: Matthew 2:13-23

          Merry Christmas, as we continue this morning, moving through the twelve-day season of Christmas! While Christmas is on December 25th every year, the season of Christmas will continue through next Sunday, which is also Epiphany Sunday. So we can still say Merry Christmas, and we can still sing Christmas songs and hymns, as we are still in the season of Christmas. In fact, today is the fifth day of Christmas, so I think that someone here might be getting five golden rings. Good news for that person!
          This past Thursday, I was driving to visit one of our church members that recently had surgery. While I was on the way to this person’s house, I was listening to the radio in my car. As I was listening, I heard a news report that said that Thursday December 26th was the busiest travel day of this year, 2019, in the United States. This wasn’t the busiest travel day of the month according to this report, but the busiest travel day of the whole year.
          It would seem then that Christmas Eve and Christmas morning as far as being with family and friends doesn’t last. How do I know this? Well according to the news reports that I heard on the radio, Thursday December 26th was the busiest travel day this year in our country. It seems that people swooped home for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, and then swooped on out. Anyone here have people leave the day after Christmas? Or maybe they came and left before Christmas Day or on Christmas Eve?
          We might ask, well why can’t they just stay longer? Or some of you say, thank God they went back home! We all know the answers of why they left, work, family, other Christmas gatherings, being hopeful for another Sidney UMC Christmas Cantata, and etc. In the same way, the birth of Christ on Christmas Eve into Christmas morning didn’t stay that way for long. It was quick.
          By this I mean, the Wise Men, after giving the gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, then left and made the long journey back home. The shepherds also left, as the gospel of Luke says they did. The day after Christmas in Bethlehem, it would seem, wasn’t as exciting as Christmas Day. So the Christmas moment of the birth of Christ, didn’t last long. The Shepherds had to go back to shepherding there sheep, and the Wise Men needed to make the long journey back home. The day after that first Christmas in Bethlehem. I wonder if there was a similarity to Time Square in New York City the day after the New Year’s celebration. The day after New Year’s, Time Square just isn’t as exciting.
          So as I said, we are still in the season of Christmas, but the Christmas moment, the birth of Jesus, the climax, has past. Some of us are resting up, cleaning our houses, going through things, putting things away, returning things, and etc. The Christmas moment has passed, even though we are still in the twelve day season of Christmas.
          Still though, many of us love and are drawn to the Christmas moment of the birth of Christ. We are drawn to the Bethlehem Star in the sky, to the Wise Men, to the Shepherds, and to all of the others that probably came. What we often forget though, is that those folks left and returned home quickly.
          While they were honored, overwhelmed, and all changed by seeing baby Jesus, soon after they said that it was “Time to Move!” They couldn’t stay physically in the Christmas moment, as they had to do something with the Christmas moment. By this I mean, after what they saw and then experienced they then had to go and tell many. This wouldn’t have happened if they stayed with Joseph and Mary at the manger.
          I have also read articles about how some people are a little down or blue after Christmas and New Years. The reason for this, is that there was a big build up to that Christmas moment and then the New Year’s moment, and then things go right back down. We are called to keep the spirit of Christmas in us all year round, but the moment, the holiday itself, passes quickly. Some of your kids and grandkids then have to leave to go back to work, to other Christmas events, and etc. It then ended as quickly as it started, just like the birth of Christ. It ended, because it was “Time to move!” We can’t stay in the Christmas moment of the event of Christ’s birth forever, we need to leave the manger and be about God’s business and His calling on our lives.
          In our gospel of Matthew account for this morning, we have passed the birth account of Jesus, and we are told of the Wise Men that after they have just visited Jesus that:
“having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road” (Mt. 2:12, NRSV).

          In our gospel lesson for this morning once again, the angel of the Lord then appeared to Joseph in a dream that same night telling him:
“Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, “Out of Egypt I have called my son” (Mt. 2:13b-15, NRSV).

From this gospel lesson for this morning, this is where I got my sermon title, “Time to Move!” Joseph, Mary, and Jesus, right after the visit from the Wise Men had to move and go to Egypt for safety, the way many of us have had to leave and go to other places after Christmas.
Now before getting into the scriptures for this morning more, in the other birth account of Jesus in the gospel of Luke, Jesus is born and the angels appeared to the shepherds, and the shepherds went to behold Jesus in the manger (Lk. 2:1-20, NRSV).
In the gospel of Luke account of the birth of Christ, it then says this of baby Jesus in Luke 2:21:
“After eight days had passed, it was time to circumcise the child; and he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb” (Lk. 2:21, NRSV).

The gospel account of Luke, then says that Mary and Joseph present Jesus at the great Temple in Jerusalem, and offered either a pair of turtle doves or young pigeons as a sacrifice, as was the Jewish Law. (Lk. 2:22-24, NRSV).
The gospel of Luke then goes on to say in 2:39-40, that Mary and Joseph then take baby Jesus back to Nazareth to raise him into a man. This is why Jesus is often called Jesus of Nazareth, and we even have Nazareth College in Rochester, NY. Jesus is also called the Nazarene, as we have a Christian Denomination called the “Church of the Nazarene”.
So, some have asked me, “Pastor Paul, if the gospel of Matthew says that after the Wise Men left, that an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph and told him to get Mary and Jesus to safety in Egypt, then how come the gospel of Luke account says that Mary and Joseph had Jesus circumcised and presented at the great Temple in Jerusalem when he was eight days old?”
In fancy seminary language, we call this the “Synoptic Problem.” The first three gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke are considered to be the first three gospels written. They are often called the “Synoptic Gospels,” but how do we reconcile these differences in and around the two birth accounts of Christ in the gospel of Matthew and Luke?
This is what I think, I think all of these events happened, but maybe just not in the order that we believe that they did. Matthew and Luke had two different accounts of the birth narrative of Jesus. Both Matthew and Luke both have the birth itself, but the gospel of Luke has the angels and the shepherds. Matthew has the Wise Men and the part with King Herod, and Luke does not.
So what do I think happened? We let me read to you once again what Mathew 2:11-12 says about the visit of the three Wise Men:
“On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road” (Mt. 2:11-12, NRSV).

          So, the Wise Men, according to the only gospel of account of them in the gospel of Matthew, did not come to the manger where Jesus was born, instead the gospel says, “On entering the house”. Well what house, I thought that there was no room at the inn for Mary and Joseph?
Next Sunday, we celebrate Epiphany Sunday, which is a fancy title for the visit of the three Wise Men or Magi. Why would we have a special Sunday for their visit with gold, frankincense, and myrrh, at the end of the season of Christmas? I mean didn’t the three Wise Men show up when the shepherds and others did? The answer is, probably not.
So how then were Mary and Joseph in a house when the Wise Men came? The answer is, since Joseph came to Bethlehem with Mary to be registered in the Roman Emperor’s population census, Joseph probably had family there. I think that after Jesus was born, that Joseph tracked down his family members, and I think that Joseph, Mary, and Jesus stayed in the house of Joseph’s family members for a while. As the gospel of Luke says, I believe that Joseph and Mary had Jesus circumcised on the eight day of his life and had him presented at the temple.
Luke then says that Mary and Joseph then took Jesus to Nazareth to raise him. I think though that after Jesus being circumcised on his eight day, and being presented at the great Temple in Jerusalem, that Joseph, Mary, and Jesus went back to Joseph’s family’s house in Bethlehem. Bethlehem is only about six miles from Jerusalem.
I think then at some point, the Wise Men appeared, as they had journeyed a long distance, and they then came to that house that Joseph, Mary, and Jesus were staying in. They then gave Jesus the gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. The angel of Lord came to Joseph in a dream that night, and the family fled to safety to Egypt. Then as both of the gospels of Luke and Matthew say, Joseph and Mary took Jesus back to Nazareth in Israel, to raise Jesus of Nazareth.
So then one might ask, “But Pastor Paul, if time elapsed between the birth of Christ, and the shepherds, the angels, and others, then why didn’t King Herod just try to kill him immediately?” I think that King Herod may have been aware of Jesus’ birth on some lever, but maybe the Wise Men coming into Jerusalem with great pomp and splendor drove King Herod to the terrible genocide that we have in the gospel of Matthew from this morning. Let’s go through this morning’s gospel of Matthew account once again. Once again, this gospel account of Matthew 2:13-23 citing the Wise Men’s recent departure says:
“Now after they had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, “Out of Egypt I have called my son” (Mt. 2:13-15, NRSV).

          So in the gospel of Matthew account for this morning, the Wise Men have just let, or “Time to Move!” Joseph then takes Mary and Jesus to safety in Egypt. This was also prophesized in the Old Testament, as well.
          Now I think that after meeting with the Wise Men, that King Herod paid much more attention to this new child named Jesus. As a result of this, the gospel of Matthew lesson for this morning then says:
When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around Bethlehem who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had learned from the wise men. Then was fulfilled what had been spoken through the prophet Jeremiah: “A voice was heard in Ramah, wailing and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be consoled, because they are no more” (Mt. 2:16-18, NRSV).

          So King Herod’s massacre of all the children two and under in and around Bethlehem excluded Jesus, because Joseph and Mary got Jesus out. This was also predicted in the Old Testament. I also find it interesting that King Herod ordered that all children in and around Bethlehem who were two years old or under be killed. So how long did it take after Joseph and Mary got back with little Jesus from him being circumcised and presented at the temple, until the Wise Men came? Two weeks, a month, a year? We don’t really know, as the Wise Men came to the house, not the manger.
          Our gospel lesson for this morning once again ends like this:
When Herod died, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who were seeking the child’s life are dead.” Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel. But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And after being warned in a dream, he went away to the district of Galilee. There he made his home in a town called Nazareth, so that what had been spoken through the prophets might be fulfilled, “He will be called a Nazorean” (Mt. 2:19-23, NRSV),

          So both gospels say that Mary and Joseph then took Jesus to Nazareth and raised him there. Joseph and Mary were in Nazareth until the Roman Emperor ordered the population census, and this then sent Mary and Joseph to Bethlehem. Basically then, Mary, Joseph, and Jesus just came back to Nazareth a little later.
          Yet, as I have just laid out, we this “Synoptic Problem,” of differences and discrepancies in the gospel accounts. So is one gospel wrong? No, I don’t think so. I just think that the gospel writers had two different portions of the story of the birth and the early days of Jesus.
I also believe that we are the ones that have put them together the way that we have. Of course our nativity scenes have the shepherds and the wise men together, even though they probably weren’t there at the exact same time. This is part of the reason why we have Epiphany Sunday next Sunday, or the Sunday that celebrates the coming of the Wise Men. Is there anything wrong with putting these all together on Christmas? No, but it probably didn’t happen that way exactly.
          So again, I think all of these events happened, but maybe not the exact same way that we thought that they did.
I believe that the Bible is God’s inspired word, and I believe that what it says is the truth. With this said though, the Bible must be interpreted.
          Circling back, what does all of this have to with my sermon title, “Time to Move!”? Well, do all of our family members show up at the exact time every Christmas? For many of us the answer is no. Some come one day, and maybe some come another. Or maybe they all came the same day, likely not at the same exact time, but maybe they leave on different days. Maybe some of your family leave on Christmas Day, the day after, or maybe they stay to New Year’s.
          It’s not important that they all arrived at the same minute of the same day, or even when they left. What is important is that they came. I believe that all of the details of the birth and first days of Christ happened, but maybe not in the exact way that we think they did. What is certain though, is that for many of us, after that moment of Christmas, we have to go back to our homes and our lives. When Christmas is over, it’s “Time to Move!” Amen.

Monday, December 23, 2019

Sidney UMC - Christmas Eve - 7 pm/ 11 pm - 12/24/19 - Sermon - “God shows up when it's hard!” ("Why we need a little Christmas" - Series - Part 5 of 5)


Tuesday 12/24/19 - Sidney UMC –
Christmas Eve – 7:00 pm/11:00pm

Sermon Title:           “God shows up when it’s hard!”
                (“Why we need a little Christmas” Series – Part 5 of 5)

Old Testament Scripture: Isaiah 9:2-7
                                            
New Testament Scripture: Titus 2:11-14
                                                   
Gospel Lesson: Luke 2:1-20

          I want to welcome you all again, on this our Christmas Eve, 2019! I don’t know about you, but this year for me, has just flown by. It is hard for me to believe that tonight is Christmas Eve, that tomorrow is Christmas, and that soon we will be in the year 2020.
          I have heard some people say recently though that they “will be glad when Christmas is over!” They have told me that there is so much work, so much preparation, and so much stress that goes into Christmas that they are looking forward to it just being over. Can anyone relate to this?
          You see, for many of us when we were little kids, which we have some of tonight, Christmas was a magical time. For many of us Christmas was a time of wonder, hope, joy, peace, and love. Some of us could hardly sleep on Christmas Eve, as we awaited Santa Claus coming. Some of us got excited about the Christmas tree, the cookies, the family time, going to the Christmas Eve service, and many other things.
          For most of us here though, we then grew up and became adults. The Millennial generation that I am part of, calls this “Adulting”. Basically, going from a kid to an adult. I think if we’re honest though, in this process, many of us have lost some of the wonder, joy, peace, hope, and love of Christmas that we had when we were kids.
          Anyone here not look at Christmas in the same way that you did when you were a kid? For some people they wonder if they can ever recapture the spirit and the hope of Christmas.
          Going to the Christmas Eve service, lighting the candles, singing Silent Night, it’s just something that many of us do. Yet, if we have lost some or all of the spirit of Christmas, then why do we come to Christmas Eve service at all?
          Well, I think we are here tonight for a few reasons, one our parents or grandparents are making us go. Two, we have the day off from work tomorrow, and we figured why not, everyone loves a new baby. Lastly, I believe, and I hope this applies to all of us, we came tonight, because somewhere deep down inside of ourselves, we want to recapture once again, the hope, love, joy, wonder, and peace of Christmas. We want to believe and to have the excitement that we once had, but might not have anymore.
          Throughout this season of Advent, culminating on this our Christmas Eve, I have preaching a sermon series called “Why we need a little Christmas.” I don’t think that it is a mistake that we have movies in our culture like “The Grinch who Stole Christmas,” “A Christmas Tale,” and it’s “A Wonderful Life.” In all of these movies some of the characters loose the spirit of Christmas.
          Friends, brothers and sisters in Christ, whether we want to admit it or not, I think all of us “Need a little Christmas.” I need a little Christmas. I need to rediscover on this night that journey to the manger in Bethlehem, to behold anew a child that will change the world forever. This Jesus, Immanuel, “God with us,” will transform our culture and our world forever, and as I said, everyone loves a baby!
          The season of Advent, Christmas Eve, and the 12-day season of Christmas exists solely because of Jesus Christ. We have this night of wonder, hope, peace, love, and joy, because of Jesus Christ. Since God sent his son to us on this night, born in a manger, in what was the equivalency of a cattle stall, we can have hope knowing that God is with us. Not far away, but right here with us.
We can live this hope out as Christians every day individually, and as a church community. As a church family we love our children, care for our sick, feed the hungry, and live as a vibrant and a loving community in Jesus Christ. There is always room for more, and we are growing here at the Sidney UMC, and God is building something great.
          So, I think, and I believe that we all “Need a little Christmas.” We need to rediscover the joy and the wonder of this time of the year anew.
          I know that I have mentioned this story a few times now, but I also know that we have some visitors tonight. So, I was at my parents’ house for Thanksgiving, and while I was there, my mother Susan asked me what I was preaching about in Advent and on Christmas Eve. I told my mother Susan that I was preaching a sermon series called “Why we need a little Christmas.” With this, my mom then immediately put on the song “We need a little Christmas,” and began singing it and dancing to it. Two things then happened for a moment inside of me, one I thought maybe I don’t need a little Christmas, and two I regretted telling my mom the title of my sermon series!
          In this sermon series, thus far, I have picked but a few ways that we can recapture some of what we may have lost around the hope and the spirit of Christmas.
          I don’t know about you, but for me, this has been another year of shootings, wars, political scandals, violence, drug overdoses, my Chicago Bears not making the playoffs, and etc. It is easy to become hopeless, cynical, and just check out. Yet, the world is burning, and Jesus is coming soon to show us a new and radical way to live and love. As Christians, we are called to have “Hope in Hopeless World.” Can we fix the whole world? No? Our faith and hope though can propel us every day to share the light, life, and love of God, so that the world will look better than when we started. We are people of resurrection, people of love and mercy, and we are called to have “Hope in Hopeless World.”
To reclaim the spirit and the hope of Christmas, we also need to realize that “God can use even us.” No matter how young, old, weak, or strong that we are, God can use us. We don’t all have to be pastors or priests, we just have to want to live and love like Jesus. The caring and the compassion that exists in Advent and Christmas all systemically comes from the gospel of Jesus Christ. In our increasingly secular culture, we sometimes don’t even realize it. Yet during this time of the year, we are often kinder, more generous, and more forgiving. If Jesus hadn’t been born, then what would this month look like? I also know that Jesus was likely not born exactly of December 25th, but the church picked December 25th to celebrate his birthday centuries ago. So this is the month of Advent and Christmas. In this time of the year we share the love, the generosity, the caring, and the hope of Jesus Christ.
I remember once when I was a little boy at a Christmas Eve service. I sometimes got in trouble in church, and since God has a sense of humor, He called me to be a pastor. One Christmas Eve service I was being especially annoying, and my mom told me to behave and to be nice, because it was Christmas. “On Christmas, we are supposed to be kind, loving, and generous,” my mom said. Being the young inquisitive boy that I was though, I then asked my mom, “So I can been and annoying the day after Christmas?” My mom was really caught off-guard by this question. After a few seconds of confusion, my mom just said, “No Paul.”
          With all of this said though, for some of us, not only have we lost some of or all of the spirit of Christmas, but in addition to this some of us have become bitter or sorrowful. We have become like Ebenezer Scrooge, or the Grinch, and etc. Jesus tells us that if we come to him, and if we confess all of our sins and wrong doings to him, that he will forgive everything that we have ever done. He will make us a clean slate, a new creation, our past is gone, and our future is now with him. One of things that prevents us from experiencing the true forgiveness of Christmas though, is not that we don’t believe that God has forgiven us, but that we haven’t forgiven ourselves. Shepherds, Wise Men, and many others journey to the manger of Jesus, to be made new, and we can be to, but we also have to forgive ourselves. Friends, “We are never beyond redemption!” Brothers and sisters, you are good enough through Christ.
          Last Sunday, or two days ago, in this “Why we need a little Christmas” sermon series, I said that the birth of Christ is so significant in our culture, that it “brings families together!” Many of us have many extended family Christmases every year. Further, when some of us have had these Christmases, we didn’t even like all of our family members. Sure, we love them all, but we all have that aunt, that uncle, or that cousin. Other than the birth of Jesus Christ, what could possibly bring us all together? Christmas and the spirit of Christmas is real, because it “brings families together!” The likelihood of all of us getting together tonight, like we are right now would be highly unlikely without Christmas, without the birth of Christ.
          We do all this, Christmas Trees, Advent Wreaths, Christmas Stockings, cookies, fruit cake, and all those Christmas movies, because of the birth of Jesus Christ. Christmas is more than just a historical event, or the birth of a historical figure. It’s a day that millions and billions of people believe is day that changed the world forever. For in a weary and dying world, one has come to make things new. We can hope in him, and we can have “a little Christmas” anew.
          Many people that are people of faith therefore, don’t believe simply because we were told to, we believe, because we have experienced God and His grace and love for ourselves. Every Christmas card, phone call, e-mail, cookies, and so on that Melissa and I receive, we feel more and more in the spirit of Christmas. I worry though that in our culture we have begun to view God as a vending machine. Bad things happen, and then we wait for God to fix it all. Sometimes God does, but often he calls us to do the work, with Him working through us.
          In my experiences in life, “God shows us when it’s hard!” Does this mean that I have been visited by an angel of the Lord? No, I haven’t. It does mean though that in dark times in my life, God and His people showed up in droves. The love of God was so evident in the people that loved me that I knew without a shadow of a doubt that faith is real, that God is love, and that the birth of Christ has changed the world.
          According to many research statistics that I have read, we are living in a culture right now with some of the lowest level of happiness in years. We work hard, pay our bills, and watch Netflix. Yet many of us are hungry for relationships, community, and real people that care. I am honored and privileged to be a part of church like this, where the people love you with everything that they have.
          So many people I know are living lives with no joy, no love, and no hope. People are starving to be connected, to believe, and to hope. Friends if you are in a dark place are just going through the motions, you can life of victory. You can journey with me and many others to the manger in Bethlehem, and maybe, just maybe we will leave changed.
          The prophet Isaiah, hundreds of years before Jesus was born, told us of what this baby who is going to be born this night would be like. Once again our reading from Isaiah 9:2-7 for tonight says:
“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness—on them light has shined. You have multiplied the nation, you have increased its joy; they rejoice before you as with joy at the harvest, as people exult when dividing plunder. For the yoke of their burden, and the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor, you have broken as on the day of Midian. For all the boots of the tramping warriors and all the garments rolled in blood shall be burned as fuel for the fire. For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. His authority shall grow continually, and there shall be endless peace for the throne of David and his kingdom. He will establish and uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time onward and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this” (Isa. 9:2-7, NRSV).

          Hope, Joy, peace, love, and wonder is among us, for Jesus is coming soon. Do we feel it a little more now?
          In our reading from Titus 2:11-14 from tonight we hear of this Jesus once again. Once again this scripture says:
For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all, training us to renounce impiety and worldly passions, and in the present age to live lives that are self-controlled, upright, and godly, while we wait for the blessed hope and the manifestation of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.  He it is who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purify for himself a people of his own who are zealous for good deeds”
(Tit. 2:11-14, NRSV).

          Friends, brothers and sisters, do you “Need a little Christmas?” I know that I do, and it we haven’t already, I pray that we find it again.
          In our gospel of Matthew lesson for tonight, we have one of the two gospel narratives of the birth of Jesus Christ. The gospel of Matthew account tells us of the census from the Roman Emperor Augustus, causing Mary and Joseph to head to Joseph’s place of birth, Bethlehem, to be counted. Mary and Joseph find that there is no room at the inn, and Mary gives birth to Jesus in a stable or perhaps a cave like structure. Mary wrapped Jesus in cloth and placed him in a manger, likely an animal feeding trough. The Shepherds came, were amazed, and left the manger changed forever (Lk. 2:1-20, NRSV).
          In the account of Jesus’ birth in the gospel of Luke however, we have the story of the Three Wise men who come to Jesus bringing Gold, Frankincense, and Myrrh. Before the Wise Men go to see Jesus, they meet up with and have dinner with King Herod first. King Herod though doesn’t go to Bethlehem, and instead tells the Wise Men to come and tell him if this Jesus was truly the Messiah.
          A pastor I know said this of King Herod’s choice. He said that King Herod probably didn’t go to Bethlehem, because deep down King Herod knew that if he truly saw the son of God and beheld him, that he himself would have to change. Instead then, King Herod stayed in his castle and never went to Bethlehem, because how could you possibly see Jesus and not be changed forever?
          A few weeks ago we had our monthly Sauce and Cross dinner and contemporary worship service here at the church. In this service, I challenged everyone in worship to try to remember what they gotten as gifts for Christmas from the age of 3-13. I encouraged them all to go home and to write down each year on a piece of paper, and then next to that year to write down the gifts that they received. Some of the people could remember some of the gifts that they received from 3-13, but none of them could remember all of them.
          What could they remember though? They remembered what happened at Christmas. They remembered their families time together, that crazy uncle, our traditions, and why Christmas is so important.
When it’s all said and done, Christmas is not about gifts, or wrapping paper, or cookies, it about Jesus Christ, what he is doing in us and through us, and how he bring us all together. Dear friends, if you have lost some of or all of the wonder and the spirit of Christmas, I pray that this night and tomorrow that you find it a new! Merry Christmas and God bless you all. Amen.

Thursday, December 19, 2019

Sidney UMC - Blue Christmas/Longest Night Service - 12/21/19 - Sermon - “Why We Gather Tonight"


Saturday 12/21/19 – Blue Christmas
/Longest Night Service - Sidney UMC


Sermon Title: “Why We Gather Tonight”

Old Testament Scripture: Psalm 80:1-7
                                            
New Testament Scripture: Hebrews 10:32-39
                                                   
Gospel Lesson: John 16:31-33

          Welcome again, to this our Blue Christmas or Longest Night Service. Who here has never been to a Blue Christmas or Longest Night Service?    
          Well let me read to you all a short explanation of what a Blue Christmas or Longest Night Service is. This description is taken from www.umcdiscipleship.org, and it says:
“Blue? Yes, blue as in the blues. As in "I am feeling blue." Not everyone is up and cheery for the Christmas holiday. Dealing with the death of a loved one, facing life after divorce or separation, coping with the loss of a job, living with cancer or some other dis-ease that puts a question mark over the future, and a number of other human situations make parties and joviality painful for many people in our congregations and communities. There is a growing attentiveness to the needs of people who are blue at Christmas. Increasing numbers of churches are creating sacred space for people living through dark times. Such services are reflective, accepting where we really are, and holding out healing and hope”. “Some churches hold a service of worship on the longest night of the year, which falls on or about December 21st, the Winter Solstice. There is an interesting convergence for this day as it is also the traditional feast day for Saint Thomas the Apostle. This linkage invites making some connections between Thomas's struggle to believe the tale of Jesus' resurrection, the long nights just before Christmas, and the struggle with darkness and grief faced by those living with loss” (https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/blue-christmaslongest-night-worship-with-those-who-mourn).

          Tonight, December 21st, 2019, is the first day of the season of winter. This day is also the winter solstice. What is the winter solstice? Here is one explanation that I found:
“The winter solstice (or hibernal solstice), also known as midwinter, is an astronomical phenomenon marking the day with the shortest period of daylight and the longest night of the year” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winter_solstice).

          So tonight, on this the first day of the season of winter, or the winter solstice, we have the shortest day of daylight all year. Or another way to phrase it, is that tonight is the “Longest Night” of the year.
Since some are feeling “blue” or not overly cheery this time of the year, and since tonight is the “Longest Night” of the year, we gather to bring the light of Jesus Christ into the darkness. As my sermon title says this is “Why we gather tonight.”
When describing the nature of who God is. There are three words throughout the Bible that best describe God. These words are Life, Light, and Love. Once again these words are Life, Light, and Love. On this the Longest Night of the year, Jesus reminds us in John 8:12, when he says:
“I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life” (Jn. 8:12, NRSV).

          Tonight is the Longest Night, and a cold night, but Jesus Christ is the light of the world. As long as his light is in us, then the darkness will not overcome. He is also the source of Life and Love.
          In looking at our scripture reading from Psalm 80:1-7 for tonight, we hear that the people of Israel are crying out to God to restore them and to give them new hope (Ps. 80:1-7, NRSV). How many of us have every cried out to God for restoration and hope? I know that I have, and friends, as my sermon title for tonight says once again, this is “Why we gather tonight.”
          In our reading once again from the Apostle Paul’s Epistle or letter to the Hebrews for tonight, Paul writes in 10:32-39
But recall those earlier days when, after you had been enlightened, you endured a hard struggle with sufferings, sometimes being publicly exposed to abuse and persecution, and sometimes being partners with those so treated. For you had compassion for those who were in prison, and you cheerfully accepted the plundering of your possessions, knowing that you yourselves possessed something better and more lasting. Do not, therefore, abandon that confidence of yours; it brings a great reward.  For you need endurance, so that              when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised. For yet “in a very little while, the one who is coming will come and will not delay; but my righteous one will live by faith. My soul takes no pleasure in anyone who shrinks back.” But we are not among those who shrink back and so are lost, but among those who have faith and so are saved”                                  (Heb. 10:32-39, NRSV).
          The Apostle Paul reminds us that many people have suffered, and that many people have suffered for their faith in Christ. Whatever we are suffering or have suffered, God is with us. Jesus is with us, and He will be with us for eternity, if we place our trust in him.
          In our very short gospel lesson from John 16:31-33 for tonight, Jesus reminds us of suffering and persecution. Jesus once again tells us in this gospel lesson:
“Jesus answered them, “Do you now believe? The hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each one to his home, and you will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone because the Father is with me. I have said this to you, so that in me you may have peace. In the world you face persecution. But take courage; I have conquered the world!” (Jn. 16:31-33, NRSV).
          The promise of Jesus Christ is that he will always be with us. Yet Jesus doesn’t promise us that we won’t suffer, that won’t have hardship, or that we won’t struggle. Whatever we have faced or are facing, Jesus is with us, and we are with each other. Jesus, the light of the world, He is with us on this the Longest Night of the year.
          So we gather on this, the Longest Night of this year to declare that the light of Christ overcomes the darkness. We gather, amidst our fears, our troubles, and our sufferings, to comfort and love one another, to worship God, and to know that Christ is with us. This is “Why we gather tonight.”
          I would like to share a story with you all about suffering and bringing light into the darkness. This story is called “The Cave People,” by Rev. Max Lucado. Here is how it goes:
“LONG AGO, OR maybe not so long ago, there was a tribe in a dark, cold cavern. The cave dwellers would huddle together and cry against the chill. Loud and long they wailed. It was all they did. It was all they knew to do. The sounds in the cave were mournful, but the people didn't know it, for they had never known joy. The spirit in the cave was death, but the people didn't know it, for they had never known life. But then, one day, they heard a different voice. "I have heard your cries," it announced. "I have felt your chill and seen your darkness. I have come to help." The cave people grew quiet. They had never heard this voice. Hope sounded strange to their ears. "How can we know you have come to help?" "Trust me," he answered. "I have what you need." The cave people peered through the darkness at the figure of the stranger. He was stacking something, then stooping and stacking more.
"What are you doing?" one cried, nervous. The stranger didn't answer.
"What are you making?" one shouted even louder. Still no response.
"Tell us!" demanded a third. The visitor stood and spoke in the direction of the voices. "I have what you need." With that he turned to the pile at his feet and lit it. Wood ignited, flames erupted, and light filled the cavern.
The cave people turned away in fear. "Put it out!" they cried. "It hurts to see it." "Light always hurts before it helps," he answered. "Step closer. The pain will soon pass." "Not I," declared a voice. "Nor I," agreed a second. "Only a fool would risk exposing his eyes to such light." The stranger stood next to the fire. "Would you prefer the darkness? Would you prefer the cold? Don't consult your fears. Take a step of faith." For a long time no one spoke. The people hovered in groups covering their eyes. The fire builder stood next to the fire. "It's warm here," he invited. "He's right," one from behind him announced. "It's warmer." The stranger turned and saw a figure slowly stepping toward the fire. "I can open my eyes now," she proclaimed. "I can see." "Come closer," invited the fire builder. She did. She stepped into the ring of light. "It's so warm!" She extended her hands and sighed as her chill began to pass. "Come, everyone! Feel the warmth," she invited.
"Silence, woman!" cried one of the cave dwellers. "Dare you lead us into your folly? Leave us. Leave us and take your light with you." She turned to the stranger. "Why won't they come?" "They choose the chill, for though it's cold, it's what they know. They'd rather be cold than change."
"And live in the dark?" "And live in the dark." The now-warm woman stood silent. Looking first at the dark, then at the man. "Will you leave the fire?" he asked. She paused, then answered, "I cannot. I cannot bear the cold." Then she spoke again. "But nor can I bear the thought of my people in darkness."
"You don't have to," he responded, reaching into the fire and removing a stick. "Carry this to your people. Tell them the light is here, and the light is warm. Tell them the light is for all who desire it." And so she took the small flame and stepped into the shadows”.

          Tonight is the Longest Night of the year, and our Blue Christmas Service. Even though many of us have suffered, or are suffering, I can’t imagine what life would be like without the love of God, and the light of Jesus Christ. Imagine, like the story said, knowing only darkness, and no light or warmth. On this the Longest Night of year, this our Blue Christmas, the light of Christ will defeat the darkness. No matter how hurt, broken, or how much suffering we have endured, the light of Christ is with us tonight and for eternity.
          We are empowered then to leave here, like the story that I just read, and to bring light and warmth to the world through Jesus Christ. Despite all our wounds, our struggles, and our sufferings, this is “Why we gather tonight.” We gather to pray, to cry, to light candles, to comfort each other, to worship God, to cry out to Him, and to put our trust in Jesus Christ, the light of the world. This my friends, my brothers and sisters, is “Why we gather tonight.” Amen.     

Sidney UMC - Fourth Sunday of Advent - 12/22/19 - Sermon - “He brings families together!” ("Why we need a little Christmas" - Series - Part 4 of 5)


Sunday 12/22/19 - Sidney UMC

Sermon Title:            “He Brings Families Together!”
                       (“Why we need a little Christmas” Series – Part 4 of 5)

Old Testament Scripture: Isaiah 7:10-16
                                            
New Testament Scripture: Romans 1:1-7
                                                   
Gospel Lesson: Matthew 1:18-25

          Friends, brothers and sisters, welcome once again on this our Fourth Sunday of the Season of Advent. Four Sundays into this season of preparation for the birth of Christ, the return of Christ, and the renewal of Christ in our hearts.
          Two days from now is of course Christmas Eve. Once we hit 12:00 am, as Christmas Eve rolls into Christmas Day morning, we will leave the season of Advent, and enter into the twelve-day season of Christmas. Christmas will continue until Epiphany Sunday on Sunday January 5, 2020.
          With this said, so there I was, I was about 7-8 years old, and I heard my mom laughing hysterically. My older brother Ken calls this my mom’s “hyena laugh,” as she was really really laughing hard. She was laughing so hard that tears were on her cheeks.
          She was watching this movie called “National Lampoon’s: Christmas Vacation.” Has anyone here ever seen this movie “National Lampoon’s: Christmas Vacation?”
So as I began, as a little boy, to watch some of this movie with her, it did seem a little funny, the parts that I could understand anyway. Yet for my mom, she was laughing so hard!
          Why was my mom laughing so hard? Well in the movie “National Lampoon’s: Christmas Vacation,” the “Griswold family” invited there extended family to their house for Christmas. The father of family, “Clark Griswold” was determined to make the family Christmas perfect in every way. What makes this now classic American movie so funny, is that nothing, and I mean nothing goes as planned for poor “Clark Griswold!”
          Not only do bad things happen all throughout this movie, but the conflicts between family members are humorous as well. I mean all of these extended family members get together, and it would seem that they are not all happy to see each other. In fact, some of the characters in this movie view Christmas as something to survive, or an act of futility.
          The reason that my mom laughs so hard at this movie, and now Melissa and I do, is that we can relate to it. I bet if we are honest, some of us did not like having the whole extended family over for Christmas. In fact, maybe, maybe, we didn’t really like all of our family members. Sure we loved them, but many people had that uncle, that aunt, or that cousin that just got under their skin. You didn’t want to see them, but your parents said, “But this is Christmas, and it is what families do!” Does this sound familiar to anyone here?
          Christmas movies where things don’t go right, or where family members don’t agree or get along are funny, because so many of us can relate to these movies.
          The real question then is this, what causes families to gather together every year, despite all of these complications? The answer, whether we realize it or not, is Jesus Christ.
          As my sermon title says for this fourth installment of this “Why we need a little Christmas” sermon series, Jesus or “He brings families together!” Whether we realize it or not, the birth of Jesus Christ has so transformed the world and our entire culture that we gather together on Christmas. We even gather with people that we have no desire to gather with!
          Now we might gather on Thanksgiving or Easter, but I have always found that Christmas is truly the high water mark for family gatherings. It’s a holiday like no other. Christmas causes us to be more chartable, more loving, and it even causes us bring our “families together!” If it wasn’t for Christmas, I wonder how often we would see some of our family members?
          The birth of Jesus Christ, and the December 25th holiday of Christmas has so transformed our world and our culture that it is now a universal day of peace, hope, joy, and love in many cultures.
          I remember reading the story from World War I, and how in 1914 the German and French soldiers stopped fighting on December 25th. Soldiers literally came out of there trenches, sang Christmas carols, exchanged gifts, and even played soccer together. So transformative is the birth of Jesus Christ, that on December 25th, 1914 World War I stopped between France and Germany, as they celebrated the birth of Jesus Christ.
          How powerful, significant, and transformative is the birth of Jesus Christ? So much so that a World War can be stopped, for “He brings families together!” The power of Jesus Christ can stop a war, and it can bring your family together. I don’t anything else that can unite us like Jesus, his gospel, and his birth.
          So far in this “Why we need a little Christmas” sermon series, I have discussed how Jesus and his birth offers us “Hope in Hopeless World.” We have great reason to have peace, love, joy, and hope, and that reason is Jesus Christ. In this sermon series, I also talked about how “God can use even us.” No matter how young, old, weak, or strong that we are, God can use us. We can pray, and we can do so many things. Whatever we do for God, “God can use even us.”
          Last week I discussed that if Jesus truly came to make all things new, to forgive us all, and to make our sins as white as snow, then we should forgive ourselves. The damage of the sins and the harm that we have caused, may never be repaired, but God has forgiven us if we ask for forgiveness. If God has forgiven us, we must forgive ourselves, as “We are never beyond redemption!”
          This Jesus who is coming, to be born in a manger, will not only die for the sins of humanity, but he will also change the world. The most printed and distributed book in the history of the world is the Christian Bible. The first book ever printed when the printing press was invented, was the Christian Bible.
          I would argue that no figure has so transformed history like that of Jesus Christ. Given this, his birth, which ushers in a new era of hope is so transformative. It’s important to remember also that the Jews expected the Messiah, the Christ to come. The great prophets of old predicted it long before Jesus ever crossed the horizon of this world. Even though we didn’t fully understand Jesus when he was born, we were hungry for hope. We believe in the hope that we have through Jesus, and that this hope has transformed us and the world.
          This morning in our scripture reading from the prophet Isaiah once again, we have one of the many predictions of the birth of the Messiah, or Jesus Christ. Once again the prophet Isaiah says:
“Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz, saying, Ask a sign of the Lord your God; let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven.  But Ahaz said, I will not ask, and I will not put the Lord to the test. Then Isaiah said: “Hear then, O house of David!” “Is it too little for you to weary mortals, that you weary my God also? Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Look, the young woman is with child and shall bear a son, and shall name him Immanuel. He shall eat curds and honey by the time he knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good. For before the child knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land before whose two kings you are in dread will be deserted”
(Isa. 7:10-16, NRSV).

Hundreds of years before the birth Jesus, the Messiah, Immanuel, the prophet Isaiah said that this birth would occur. We would later call this Christmas Eve and then Christmas.
These predictions of Jesus’ birth are reinforced with our scripture reading from the book of Romans for this morning, which once again says:
“Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy scriptures, the gospel concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be Son of God with power according to the spirit of holiness by resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles for the sake of his name, including yourselves who are called to belong to Jesus Christ, To all God’s beloved in Rome, who are called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom. 1:1-7, NRSV).

          Paul is telling us, that Jesus was foretold by the prophets, is a decedent of King David, and is the Messiah, the savior, Emmanuel. This Jesus, is God in the flesh, whose birth and life will change the world forever. This Jesus will die for us, rise from the dead, and one day will return in glory.
          On this the Fourth Sunday in this the Holy Season of Advent, our gospel lesson for this morning offers us one of the two birth narratives of Jesus Christ. Of the four gospels, we find the story of Jesus’ birth only in Matthew and Luke. This morning once again, the gospel of Matthew says this of Jesus’ birth:
“Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet: “Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel,” which means, “God is with us.” When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife, but had no marital relations with her until she had borne a son; and he named him Jesus” (Mt. 1:18-25, NRSV).
          In this gospel lesson, we hear of the immaculate conception of Jesus, by Mary. The Son of God in her womb. We hear of how Joseph at first did not believe that her pregnancy was of God. In a dream however, God revealed to Joseph that Mary was indeed with child through God’s grace. The Lord told Joseph to take Mary as his wife. The Lord told Joseph that the child that Mary was carrying is a son, and that this son will be called Jesus. The gospel then references the Old Testament prophet Isaiah in 7:14, predicting the virgin birth of Christ centuries earlier.
So this Jesus, this “Emmanuel,” or “God is with us,” is coming to us soon in a manger in Bethlehem, in our hearts daily, and one day will be returning to earth in glory.
Due to all of this, our crazy and our wacky families gather on Christmas. Maybe some of your family members are coming into town soon, and maybe, just maybe, you are the lucky ones to host them all this year! The birth of Jesus Christ can stop a World War for a day, and it can unite us. All of this can and does happen, because the birth of Jesus Christ our Lord, “brings families together!” Amen.