SERMON: ROOM FOR HIM

23 December 2012

 

I.  Introduction

      -- turn in Bibles to Luke 2:1-7

Luke 2:1-7 (NIV)

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 his 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 room for them in the inn.

      -- when I became a pastor, I assumed that everyone was familiar with the traditional Bible stories like the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden -- Noah and the Ark -- David and Goliath -- and Jesus walking on the water -- but I quickly found out that I was wrong, and I came to realize that many of the people who may be regular attendees at our church services were never taught these stories and don't know them

      -- but there are two stories that everyone seems to know -- regardless of whether they are regular church-goers or just casual visitors -- they know the story of Easter -- of Jesus' death and resurrection -- and they know this story -- the story of Jesus' birth -- the story of Mary's miraculous pregnancy -- of Joseph's display of faith shown in his willingness to remain engaged to Mary -- and the story of the couple travelling to Bethlehem where Jesus is born in a manger
      -- this is probably one of the most well known stories of all time -- we grew up knowing it, and we celebrate it in our churches during this season -- we relive it when we put up our nativity sets and we remember it again when we see Christmas pageants or the Christmas stories on TV
      -- because it is such a well-known story, you would think this story would grow dull in its telling -- after hearing it time and time again, you would think there would be nothing new to learn -- nothing new to experience
      -- I have probably read this passage of scripture hundreds of times -- I even have it memorized -- and because I'm so familiar with it -- because I know it so well, I never imagined that I might get anything new out of it
      -- but, as the Bible says, God's Word is living and active -- it speaks to our hearts and reveals new truths, even in familiar passages like this, if we but let the Holy Spirit speak to us
      -- I was recently reading this passage again in preparation for Christmas when God revealed something new to me -- something that I had never seen -- I'm sure others have seen it -- you might have reflected on it yourself -- but this was a new revelation for me

II.  The Nativity Story

      -- if you don't mind, let me spend just a minute here and recap the story of Mary and Joseph captured in the first couple of chapters of Luke
      -- Joseph and Mary are living in Nazareth -- they had been engaged to be married for some time when Mary was found to be pregnant -- she claimed that an angel from God came and told her that she would bear a child, the Son of God, even though she was a virgin
      -- Joseph wasn't sure what to do -- he wrestled with divorcing her or putting her away or even having her punished for being pregnant out of wedlock -- but God spoke to him in a dream and confirmed Mary's story, so Joseph remained faithful to her and trusted her even though no one else in Nazareth probably did
      -- as they are there in Nazareth -- waiting for their wedding -- waiting for the baby to be born -- the word comes that Caesar is requiring everyone to go to the town of their fathers to be registered -- to be counted in a new census -- probably so he could make sure everyone was being taxed correctly
      -- since Joseph was of the line of David, Joseph and Mary leave Nazareth and head out to Bethlehem
      -- this is a journey of about 100 miles -- and Luke doesn't give us a lot of details about it -- we do know that it would have been an arduous journey -- crossing deserts and treacherous terrain -- it would have been difficult for a healthy adult to do in a reasonable amount of time -- we can only imagine how difficult it was for Mary, because she was in her eighth or ninth month of pregnancy
      -- they eventually make it to Bethlehem -- they stumble into the village -- no doubt they were tired and worn out from their journeys -- Mary was probably in great discomfort from her travels -- and I'm sure they looked forward to getting a room at a local inn -- to spend the night inside for a change -- to be in a place that was warm and dry and comfortable -- not just a campsite by the road
      -- but Luke says that they couldn't find an inn that would take them -- there was no room for them -- so they were forced to stay in a stable, which was probably nothing more than a cave cut out of the solid rock -- there Mary gave birth to Jesus and laid Him in a manger -- the Lord God Almighty -- the Creator of the Universe -- the Bread of Life -- laying in a trough used to feed livestock

III.  No Room for Them

a.  No room for them

      -- now here's that part that I had never noticed before -- 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 room for them in the inn.

      -- let me read one phrase for you again -- "because there was no room for them in the inn" -- did you catch what that said? -- this is what I had never seen before -- "there was no room -- for them"

      -- all my life I was under the impression that the reason Mary and Joseph ended up in the stable was because the inn was full -- that's exactly what we sing in our hymns and our Christmas songs -- that's exactly what we see in all of the movies about the birth of Christ

      -- when Joseph and Mary make it into Bethlehem, right at dark, she is having labor pains and they rush to the inn, but they are told, "There is no room -- the inn is full -- but you can stay in the stable out back"
      -- but, that's not what Luke says happened here -- he doesn't say the inn was full -- he just says that there was no room "for them"
      -- talk about your pregnant phrases -- what does that mean? -- "For them" -- what was it about this couple that made the innkeeper turn them away?

b.  Open Doors

     -- as I was meditating on this passage, I thought about a vision statement the Methodist Church used a few years ago while I was still a Methodist pastor -- "Open Hearts -- Open Minds -- Open Doors"
      -- out of all the slogans the Methodist Church came up with while I was with them -- out of all the vision statements they created as a way to reach people -- this was my favorite -- and it became part of the vision of Koinonia as we came together to form this church
      -- open hearts -- open minds -- open doors

      -- I guess it's obvious from even a casual reading of this passage from Luke that the little inn in Bethlehem didn't have open doors -- regardless of the great need, its doors weren't opened to receive this small family from Nazareth or the coming Messiah

      -- in Revelation 3:20, Jesus said, "Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me." -- I wonder if He thought back to that time in Bethlehem -- I wonder if He thought of the innkeeper as He said those words
     -- when Mary and Joseph showed up at the door of the inn with the Savior of the world and knocked, it remained closed to them -- but this shouldn't be a surprise to us -- in Jesus' time here on earth, many doors were closed to Him -- He knocked on the door of the synagogue in Nazareth and proclaimed the fulfillment of prophecy, and was thrown out -- He knocked on the doors of the temple and proclaimed His deity, and was crucified -- He knocked on the door of this world which He created and cried out to the people He had chosen, and He was rejected

     -- Jesus continues to knock on doors to this very day -- the doors of our lives -- seeking entrance as our Lord and Savior -- what happens when He stands at your door and knocks? -- is it like the inn at Bethlehem -- locked and closed to Him?
      -- do you turn Him away, telling Him that there is no room for Him in your life? -- "I'm sorry -- my life is already filled with family and friends -- with my job -- with my things -- with pleasure and the pursuit of happiness -- I just don't have room for you right now -- try again later"

      -- there's one thing about me that I don't know if I've ever shared with you or not -- when I go places, I like to stop and visit churches -- I like to visit these holy places -- to catch a glimpse and a vision of what God is doing in these places     -- almost everywhere I've been, I've gone and just dropped in to look around churches -- I've been in churches in Washington, D.C., and in Key West and in other places -- in fact, when we went on the cruise this past September, I went into a church in the Cayman Islands just to look around

      -- a few years ago I happened to go by a large Methodist church in our area -- and I thought to myself, "You know, I've never seen their sanctuary" -- I'd been in the church before, but never in the sanctuary -- and I just wanted to see what it was like -- so I climbed the steps up to the double doors that led to the place of worship, grabbed the handle, and pulled -- the door was locked tight -- no one was getting in there
      -- as I walked back down the steps, I glanced to my left and noticed the church had a banner right next to the entrance proclaiming the current slogan for the church: "Open hearts -- Open Minds -- Open Doors" -- but their doors were not open to all
      -- but to be honest, this isn't just a problem in this particular church -- we see the same thing in many churches today -- our doors may not always be physically shut to those who drop by to visit, but the doors to our hearts and to our lives and to true fellowship with others are closed and no one is allowed in

      -- the vision of "open doors" is a bold statement, and I like to think it applies to us here at Koinonia -- it is a declaration that our church is an open, receiving place where people like Mary and Joseph won't be turned away -- that our little congregation will be a place where people can find grace through the presence of the Lord

      -- when we started Koinonia, this was one of my first prayers and remains a continuing vision for us to this day -- I pray that we will be known as a welcoming sanctuary -- a place and a people whose doors are always open to those in need -- to those seeking rest -- to those seeking the Lord -- regardless of who they are

c.  Open Minds

      -- which brings us to our next point -- what about open minds? -- that is one thing the innkeeper certainly didn't have
      -- we don't know the real reason the inn was closed to Mary and Joseph -- why there was no room "for them" -- but we can guess that there was something about the couple that the innkeeper just didn't like and just didn't want around 
      -- what prejudice was displayed when he only offered up to them the stable in the back? -- who else had he rejected that night?
      -- were they turned away because of their appearance? -- because they weren't wearing fine clothes -- because the innkeeper thought they were too poor to have the money for a room?          -- or did he turn them away because he had heard their story? -- it is likely that others from Nazareth had made the journey to Bethlehem for the Roman census -- did they carry with them the gossip of the day? -- did they share with the innkeeper their suspicions that Mary had been unfaithful to Joseph and engaged in sexual relations before marriage? -- when they knocked on his door that night, did he recognize them and refuse them entry because she was a sinner and he didn't want that type of person mingling with his righteous guests?
      -- having an open mind means you accept all who come -- the rich and the poor -- the noble and the peasant -- the saved and the sinner -- without judgment or prejudice

      -- we sometimes forget the root meaning of that word prejudice -- it means to pre-judge someone -- it means we assume something about someone before we ever even meet them -- before we know anything about them -- and, truth be told, we do it all the time

      -- Max Lucado, the Christian author, writes in one of his books about the time he was at a service station when this family pulls up next to him -- they get out of the car and he immediately stereotypes them -- look at that man -- he's probably a work-a-holic with no time for his family -- and look at his wife -- another bleached-blonde trophy wife -- probably drinks during the day -- that son looks like a hoodlum -- probably on drugs -- and look at the daughter with her piercings and hair -- she's probably someone with a bad reputation at school
      -- and as he's thinking these thoughts -- as he's pre-judging them -- all of sudden, the mother looks over and sees him and says something to her family and they run over and surround him -- they start shaking his hand and saying, "We recognized you immediately from your books -- we just love your books -- we've studied several of them at church -- and we really wanted to come hear you speak in our sanctuary last month, but that was family night for us, and we never let anything come between us and the time we have carved out with our family" -- then they prayed with him and asked God to bless him and they left, waving through the windows as he stood there watching them drive away
      -- Lucado says he had committed the worst sin possible -- he had pre-judged these people and shut the door of grace to them in his heart

      -- the Bible tells us in Romans 3:23 that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God -- that none of us are righteous in His eyes - that all of us need a Savior

      -- the good news of Christmas is that the Savior accepts all who come to Him -- all who knock on the door and seek His face -- regardless of their situation -- regardless of where they are in their lives -- and He offers forgiveness and healing and salvation to all who come
      -- as it says in John 3:16, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish but have eternal life"
      -- when we say we are a church and a people with open minds that means that we believe that God accepts all -- it means that we believe in the power of God to heal and save all who come -- and it means that we trust in His power to bring eternity into the lives of those who need it most

d.  Open Hearts

      -- not having an open mind might explain one reason that the innkeeper didn't open his doors to Mary and Joseph on that winter night in Bethlehem so many years ago -- but there could be another -- to borrow from Dr. Seuss's story, "The Grinch Who Stole Christmas"
      -- "it could be perhaps that his shoes were too tight -- it could be his head wasn't screwed on just right -- but I think the most likely reason of all -- was that his heart was two sizes too small"
      -- why did the innkeeper close his door to Mary and Joseph and Jesus that night? -- it could be because his heart was not right

      -- in order to receive the Christ Child at Christmas -- in order to receive Jesus -- we have to have an open heart -- we have to answer that knock on the door of our life -- we have to hear His voice calling us to repentance and forgiveness -- we have to respond to His call to be our Lord and Savior

      -- and in order to be a person or a church who leads others to Christ, we have to have an open heart -- to receive them as they are -- to lead them to the cross -- and to point them to the Savior
      -- we can't reject people because of their status -- because of their wealth or lack of wealth -- because of their clothes -- we can't reject people because of their race -- or their sex -- or any other factor -- even because of their sins -- because the manger is big enough to take us all in -- the cross is big enough to cover all our sins -- and the Savior is big enough to save us all

IV.  Closing

      -- let me close by sharing with you a true story about the time a typical Christmas pageant at church turned magical -- Miss Lumbard was trying to assign all the children to their appropriate roles
      -- Wally wanted to be a shepherd and have a flute, but Miss Lumbard found a more important role for Wally -- He was about nine, and rather big for his age, but he was also rather slow -- Miss Lumbard thought his size would make the lines of the Inn Keeper more forceful -- also, this wasn't a big role and it shouldn't be hard for Wally to remember the lines
      -- on the night of the play, the usual crowd of parents and loved ones gathered for the church's program -- none of them more taken up by the story than Wally -- Wally stood in the wings fascinated and so caught up in the story that from time to time Miss Lumbard had to remind him not to wander on stage
      -- Then the time came -- Mary and Joseph made their way to Bethlehem and appeared slowly moving toward the inn -- Joseph knocked on the door and Wally the Innkeeper was there waiting -- "What do you want?" He said as he swung the door open. "We seek lodging"
      -- "Seek it elsewhere" Wally said looking straight ahead and speaking brusquely
      -- "Sir, we have asked everywhere in vain and we have traveled so far." -- "There is no room in the inn for you." -- Wally was playing his part well and looked properly stern to the couple who had showed up at his door
      -- "Please, Mr. Innkeeper, this is my wife -- she is heavy with child and we need a place to rest for the night"
      -- Now for the first time Wally relaxed -- He looked at Mary -- and with that there was a long pause
      -- The audience got a little bit tense and embarrassed -- they could tell something was wrong -- did Wally forget his part?
      --Miss Lumbard called out the next line from the side of the stage, "No, be gone!" -- and dutifully, Wally repeated, "No, be gone.!"
      -- Joseph placed his arm around Mary and walked sadly away -- The tired little mother of Jesus laid her head on his shoulder -- but, the innkeeper didn't return to his inn -- Wally stood there watching the forlorn couple walk away -- his mouth stood open, his brow was creased, his eyes began to fill with tears -- suddenly this Christmas pageant became different from all the others.
      -- "Don't go Joseph," Wally called out. "Bring Mary back". -- Wally's face grew into a beaming smile, "You can have my room."

     

     -- Open Hearts -- Open Minds -- Open Doors -- how few and far between those were on that original Christmas Eve in Bethlehem so many years ago -- and how few and far between do they seem in our day and time
      -- as we join together today on this last Sunday before Christmas -- as we join together to celebrate the coming birth of our Messiah -- may we reflect for a moment on what it means to truly have open hearts -- open minds -- and open doors -- not only for our family and friends -- not only for those who come to our services -- but also for Jesus Himself
      -- maybe some of you have never opened your hearts and your lives to Christ -- maybe there is no room for Him in your life -- but this morning, He is knocking -- this morning He is asking to be allowed in -- will you respond as the innkeeper or as Wally? -- will you open your heart to Him and receive Him as Lord and Savior -- or will you turn Him away?

      -- the good news of Christmas is as easy as A-B-C

      -- Admit that you are a sinner -- that you have done things that you shouldn't have done -- that you are not living the life you should
      -- Believe that Jesus is the Son of God -- that He died on the cross for our sins and rose from the dead on the third day to bring us eternal life
      -- and Confess with your lips that Jesus Christ is Lord and you will be saved

      -- if you have never done that before -- or if you're not sure of where you stand with God -- then Christ invites you to do so before you leave here today -- I will be happy to pray with you -- just come up and ask or catch me after the service

      -- for those of you who are saved -- who have received Christ into your life -- I urge you to leave here today with your hearts and your minds open to those around you -- open to those who need Jesus -- and I urge you to make sure the doors to our hearts are never closed to any who wish to come and share with us the joy of the Lord and true Koinonia with one another

      -- let us pray