SERMON: TREASURING JESUS AT CHRISTMAS

12 December 2010

I. Introduction
-- turn in Bibles to Luke 2

1 In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. 2 (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 And everyone went to their own town to register.
4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.
8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.


-- there's just something about a baby that draws people's attention, doesn't it? -- as we were boarding the plane for Atlanta on Friday morning, I couldn't help but notice that there was a mother with a very young baby getting on the plane ahead of me
-- now most of the time, people don't like to see babies getting on a plane -- everyone knows that a baby's ears are sensitive to pressure changes and the babies get disturbed by all the commotion on the plane and jerks and the bounces and so they spend the entire flight crying and screaming -- either because their ears are hurting or because they are just scared -- which causes the mother to get upset because she knows that everyone around her is irritated at the baby and at her for not being to keep the baby quiet
-- so, because of that, when people see a baby getting on a plane, most people glance at the baby and its mother with a sense of apprehension or irritation -- and, I have to confess, when I took my seat and found myself right across the aisle from the baby, I was a little concerned -- I was afraid I was going to spend the next two hours listening to a crying baby
-- but there was just something captivating about this particular child -- it was happy -- it was laughing -- and even though the flight was full and there was no baggage space in the overhead bins and everyone was getting a little grumpy about finding a space for their carryons -- I noticed that every single person who walked past this mother and her baby stopped and had a word to say to her
-- as the flight progressed, I overheard some of the conversation between the mother and the people who were sitting right next to her -- they were asking her how old her little girl was -- and the mother replied with pride that her baby was four months old -- "she's going to a big one -- her father is 6'5"," she said
-- and then she said something that really caught my attention -- she went on to say, "maybe she'll be a WNBA player when she grows up -- or, maybe she'll even be the president"
-- and, at that moment, it struck me why so many people were stopping to speak to that mother and her baby

-- everyone knows that we're going through some pretty dark days in our country -- we've been at war since the terrorist attacks of 9-11 -- our economy has taken a turn for the worse -- our unemployment rate is the highest it's been in decades -- people who once had stable jobs and good homes have now found themselves unable to pay their mortgage and out on the street looking for work
-- hope seems distant -- help seems far away -- no one seems able to fix what is wrong with our country -- not the president -- not congress -- no one
-- but when we see a baby with its mother, we are reminded that there is always a future -- that there is always a hope -- that there is always a promise of better days ahead
-- if you think about it, a baby has its whole life ahead of it -- its life at this point holds nothing but potential and promise -- it is a clean slate -- a new beginning -- a starting point -- and, as that young mother exclaimed on my flight, maybe, just maybe, this child will grow up and be something great
-- so I sat on that flight home on Friday, and listened as people stopped and spoke words of encouragement to that child and her mother, and watched as her mother treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart



II. Scripture Lesson (Luke 2:1-20)
-- Luke tells us a similar story here in this familiar passage about the birth of Jesus -- the Christmas story that we all celebrate every year -- this is a story that all of us have grown up knowing by heart -- the story of a baby being born in a manger -- of angels singing to shepherds on a cold winter's night -- of a star leading the wise men to worship the newborn King -- of a great light being born into a dark world to bring hope and life to us all
-- we celebrate this story every year as we put up a tree in our home and decorate with lights and with ornaments -- as we listen to Christmas carols and go to Christmas plays -- as we put up nativity sets -- and as we buy and exchange presents with those that we love and care about
-- but a lot of times, we get lost in the celebration and we forget what Christmas meant to those who first experienced it -- especially what Christmas meant to Mary -- in his gospel, Luke seemed to have a special place for women -- and I think he gives us a glimpse here in this passage of just what the birth of Jesus meant to Mary when he tells us in verse 19 that Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart

-- we tend to forget just how young Mary was when Jesus was born -- most scholars believe that Mary was only about 15 years old when the first Christmas occurred -- back in Luke 1 we read of the angel Gabriel appearing to this 15-year-old girl and telling her that she is going to be pregnant and is going to bear the Son of God -- can you imagine what was going through her mind? -- can you imagine the stress and worry that Mary felt at hearing that news?
-- when we hear of a young girl like this that becomes pregnant in our own day, we wonder, "What was she thinking? -- How can she be a mother while she's still a child? -- How will she be able to take care of this child"
-- those same thoughts probably ran through Mary's mind and through the minds of those in her small hometown as well -- how many people would believe her story of an angel appearing and telling her that she was pregnant by the Holy Spirit? -- can you imagine what life was like for Mary?
-- as she walked through the town and suffered the judgmental glances of the people, how many doubts rose in her mind? -- how many questions did she have? -- how many times did this young girl run to the arms of her betrothed and sob uncontrollably? -- how many tears did she shed?
-- we know that it must not have been easy for her -- in fact, it seems like her family sent her away to ease her pain to a place where questioning eyes would not watch her and where judgmental tongues would not wag
-- Luke tells us that shortly after Mary became pregnant, that she went to the village where her cousin Elizabeth lived, and stayed there with Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist, for several months

-- shortly before it was time for her to give birth, Luke tells us she returned home, and she and Joseph set out for Bethlehem in response to Caesar's call for a census
-- it was about 80 miles between Nazareth and Bethlehem -- and it couldn't have been an easy journey for Mary in her condition -- for days and days and days they traveled, until they finally made their way into Bethlehem -- exhausted -- worn out from their travels -- and when they got there, they couldn't find a place to stay -- Luke tells us that there was no room for them anywhere, so they had to take shelter in a stable

-- look back at verse 6

6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.

-- I want you to notice something here in these verses -- Luke tells us that after Jesus was born, that Mary wrapped Him in cloths and laid Him in a manger -- Mary wrapped Him in cloths -- there was no midwife present -- there had been no one there with the couple to help them in the birth of their son -- just like it was in Nazareth, they found themselves alone again -- with no one to help
-- what was Mary thinking about that night? -- did she wonder why she was all alone? -- surely if this was the Messiah, then God would have sent help for her, wouldn't He? -- at least a midwife, if not an angel -- had she been mistaken? -- was this not the Son of God?

-- and while Mary was there resting in the stable with her newborn Son, all of a sudden, the door burst open and the room filled with shepherds -- dirty, smelly shepherds -- yelling and looking for her baby
-- what did Mary do when they burst into the room? -- what would you have done? -- did she grab up her son and hold him to her chest to protect Him? -- did she turn away or scream out in fright?
-- did Joseph jump up to defend her?

-- the shepherds burst in on them and told them a story that was hard to believe -- an angel had appeared to them and told them that the Savior had been born -- that the Messiah was here -- and that they would find Him wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger
-- keep in mind that neither Mary or Joseph had seen any angels -- they hadn't heard the song the angels sang or seen the glory of the Lord that night -- they had been by themselves in a stable -- all alone -- as Mary gave birth to her son
-- in fact, it had been over nine months since Gabriel first appeared to Mary -- over nine months since Joseph had his dream telling him that Mary was pregnant by the Holy Spirit and that he should not be afraid to take her home as his wife
-- for a long time, God had been silent -- for a long time, the couple had been living and surviving only on faith in the promises that they had received so many months ago
-- so as the shepherds shared their tale and left -- as the streets of Bethlehem were filled with celebration that night -- what was Mary's response?

-- skip over to verse 19

19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.

-- there are two important words in this verse -- treasured and pondered
-- the Greek word that we translate as "treasured" here means cherished -- it means protecting something of great value -- making it a part of you
-- the other word, "pondered," means to reflect deeply on a subject -- to turn the thought over in your heart -- to examine it from all sides -- to think prayerfully about the implications of something

-- Luke tells us that Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart -- but what does that really mean? -- as Mary sat in the silence of the stable in the aftermath of the shepherds, did she ponder the paths that led her to this point? -- did she feel again the hurt from the looks and whispers over the last nine months? -- did she wonder again at the message of the angel Gabriel? -- did she wonder about what life would be like as the mother of the Messiah? -- did she cry for Jesus that night, knowing that He had been born to die? -- did she cry for herself?
-- sometimes it's hard for us to picture Mary as who she really was -- a scared, lonely 15-year old girl who had been given the most important job in the world -- the job of raising the Messiah
-- is it any wonder that she spent time treasuring and pondering in her heart what this child would do and who this child would be?

III. Closing
-- Mark Lowrey wrote a Christmas song called, "Mary, Did You Know?" that speaks right to the heart of this verse
-- let me share with you a few of the lyrics:
-- "Mary, did you know that your Baby Boy would one day walk on water? -- Mary, did you know that your Baby Boy would save our sons and daughters? -- Did you know that your Baby Boy has come to make you new? -- That this Child that you delivered will soon deliver you?
-- "Mary, did you know that your Baby Boy will give sight to a blind man? -- Mary, did you know that your Baby Boy will calm the storm with His hand? -- Did you know that your Baby Boy has walked where angels trod and that when you kiss your little Baby you kissed the face of God?
-- Mary, did you know that your Baby Boy is Lord of all creation? -- Mary, did you know that your Baby Boy would one day rule the nations? -- Did you know that your Baby Boy is heaven's perfect Lamb and that the sleeping Child you're holding is the Great, I Am."
-- this passage is a wonderful reminder that there is more to Christmas than just trees and presents -- more than just lights and plays -- Christmas is a time of celebration -- but it should be more than just that
-- it should be a time of reflection -- a time of remembrance -- a time to treasure up and ponder the wonder of the gift that God gave us in Jesus just as Mary did on that first Christmas so long ago
-- so, as we close this morning -- we are going to do just that by joining together in the sacrament of Holy Communion