I MATTER
Merry Christmas!
Wow! What an awesome time of the year this is.
Let me ask you a question this evening. What does Christmas mean to you? Wait. Before you just shout it out for me, just think about what it means to you personally.
Now I know that some of you are thinking about presents. There isn’t a kid young or old who doesn’t look forward to presents under the Christmas tree. Other are thinking about food and how at the first of the year you’re going to commit to going on a diet. You may be thinking about family gatherings. There are parades, football, traveling, toys that need to e put together, and cards that need to mailed out. Many of you may even be thinking that Christmas is all about Jesus.
I’m going to get myself in trouble right here and now. Christmas is not about Jesus.
Life is about Jesus!
Christmas is one of the times of year that we, whether you’re Christian or not, celebrate him the most.
So today as we prepare for Christmas I want to talk about the real Christmas story and the real meaning of Christmas.
Inside your bulletins you’ll find the notes for this message and the first thing you’re going to notice is that at the top of the page are two long blank lines. I want you to use those lines to write down a sentence as we unpack this story.
Now this story may be familiar to some of you. Maybe you grew up in a Christian home or you remembering coming to another Christmas service sometime in your past or you might even remember part of this story from the Charlie Brown’s Christmas special that is on every year.
Now if you brought a Bible with you, I want you to turn to Matthew Chapter 2, starting in verse 1. “After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born King of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have some to worship him.””
The magi are a huge part of the Christmas story. If you’ve for a manger scene at home, chances are that there are three wise men or magi as part of that set. A sad reality is that set is Biblically incorrect. We see later in scripture that they come to the house where he is. Jesus is no longer in the manger when they arrive. We honestly don’t even know how many magi there were. Tradition tells us there were three only because they brought three gifts. In reality when they arrived they had this huge crowd traveling with them that attracted the attention of the locals.
More important than the mistakes we’ve placed on the Nativity scenes and the traditions is the reality that you and I are like the wise men. You and I have a lot we share in common with these people.
I want you to write this down on that very top line as we begin to put this sentence into words. “I matter.”
I matter. You matter. You and I matter to God. If you get nothing else out of today’s message. I want you to get this. You matter.
You’re important!
You want the true Christmas message? You want the real reason that Christmas exists? The truth is that Christmas exists because you and I matter to God. It’s not about presents, food, or even family. Christmas is about you and I being important to God.
Now there is a reason I wanted to use this particular portion of the Christmas story. Because we are, every single person in this room, is somehow like the wise men.
The wise men were searching. They knew that somehow there was something more out there than what they had right in front of them. And these men had everything. History tells us they were kings. They had wealth, just based on the gifts they brought. And something in them had caused them to start searching, to be looking for something more. We know they were looking at the stars to do. They even tell us that in verse two. “We saw his star in the east…”
It’s important that you see this. If you’ll look at the screens we’ve placed a map of the Middle East up there. Over here is where Israel is. For those of you who don’t know, the town of Bethlehem, where Jesus was born, is in Israel. Over here, on this side, are the cities of Tellar and Bagdhad. History and tradition tell us that this would be the area that the Magi would have come from. Now I know that there are a number people who that they came from China. Most scholars, however, think they actually came from Persia, which is modern day Iran and Iraq. Between Persia and Israel is about 1,000 miles.
There are a number of ways that you and I are similar to the wise men.
First, I want you to know that the wise men were separated from God physically. If you look back at the map, we already discussed how there is about 1,000 miles separating Persia from Israel. At this time, Israel was where God worship took place. The Israelites were the only people in the world worshipping one God. Over in Persia, they worshipped multiple deities.
In order for the wise men to worship God they had to travel all the way to Israel. This is where the story gets confusing. See, most people believe that based on nativity scenes the wise men were there the night Christ was born. This isn’t true. Most scholars believe that the trip from Persia to Israel took anywhere from six months to two years because the distance was so great.
Some of you have been separated from God physically as well. You live here in Burlingame or in one of the surrounding communities and you pass churches all the time. You might even slow down a little to read the sign out front. But you haven’t stepped foot inside a church in a while. For some of you it may have been a full year. For others it might be five or ten years. Some people here may never have set foot inside a church your entire lives. You’re just here to please a friend or to get them to leave you alone about the whole God thing. You’ve been physically separated from God.
Now I’m not saying a church is the only place where God is. He’s everywhere. But most people never begin to understand anything about God until they begin coming to church on a regular basis. That would be more than once a year.
Secondly, you and I are like the wise men because the wise men were spiritually separated from God. I just got done telling you that the Persian culture worshipped multiple deities. There was no connection with God. In Matthew 2:2 we’re told that they were looking at the star when they saw it shining in the east. They were actively searching for something that was missing in their hearts. They knew that there was something more out there they wanted to connect with.
Some of you may have that same feeling. There is an emptiness in your life that you can’t explain. Sometimes when you’re out in God’s creation, out enjoying nature, you catch a glimpse of it. There is that moment when you know that nothing around you happened by accident. Then as quickly as it comes along it’s gone again and you’re left wondering what could possibly be missing. You’re spiritually separated from God.
Finally, the wise men were relationally separated from God. They didn’t have a personal relationship with him. They didn’t even know anything about him. In fact, the first place they went when they arrived in Jerusalem was to the Jewish leaders. They believed that this newborn king would be among the leaders. They didn’t know any better. They didn’t know how to relate to who God is.
Some of you are in this category right here. OK. Maybe you go to church every week and you have a decent knowledge of the Bible. But you don’t have a personal day to day relationship with God. There’s no connection there. You’re not even sure that you want to have a relationship with him. If you have a relationship with God that means that he might get involved in your life. He might even spend time with you.
But I’m here to tell you tonight, that the distance and seperation between God and ourselves can come to an end right here. You see, Christmas is a sign that you matter. The Magi mattered. Otherwise they wouldn’t have seen a star a thousand miles away and chosen to travel to where that star was. God put that star in the sky because they mattered to him.
He brought you here tonight because you matter to him. Christmas is ultimately a message that you matter to God.
Now here’s the second part of that sentence at the top of your page I want you to complete. “I matter…” You should already have that part. “to a savior.”
I matter to a savior.
What an awesome statement. I matter to a savior.
Let me ask you what’s the most popular verse in the Bible? Anybody?
Now I know somebody just thought of the Ten Commandments and I’d be willing to bet, based on prior experience that you may not even know where to find them.
Somebody got it. John 3:16. John 3:16 is probably the best know verse in the whole Bible. It says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son, so that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
Man I’ve been thinking about this verse a lot recently. You see, I’ve got some great kids. And I really had to think about what this verse really meant, not only to me but to God. He gave up his one and only son. Can you imagine that?
Now being a father myself, I’ve really pondered this one. You see, I love my kids with all my heart. Michael and Katy are two of the people that I hold most dear in my life. If God were to come to me and tell me that in order for people to be saved, in order for them to go to heaven I had to give up one of my children, I’m sorry to say this, but there’s no way. I love my kids. There’s no way I’d give them up for you. Someof you are thinking, "I can’t believe he just said that." Alright, let’s make it your kids and see if you’re willing to give them up. Chances are if you’re a parent, especially if you’re a mom you’re not going to give them up either.
Now I am sure that God loved his one and only son. And yet this same God was willing to give his own son for you and for me.
That’s why that next verse in your notes has two blank lines in it. Here’s what you need to do. The verse reads, “For God so loved blank.” Put your name in that blank. For God so loved Tim. For God so loved Bob. For God so loved Linda. For God so loved Keith. I honestly believe and I’ve believed this most of my life if there had been a need to save only one of those people God still would have given up his son. That’s how much God loves you and me. That if it had been only you Jesus still would have come. If it had been only me, he still would have died on a cross. He still would have been the savior to only one of us.
But the verse doesn’t end there, does it? It says, “For God so loved Tim that he gave his one and only son, that if…” Here’s the next blank and your name goes here too. That if Tim… That if Jeff… That if Storm… That if Becky.. “… that if Tim believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
You see we have a savior. He came for you and for me.
Now I want you to imagine this for just a moment. Jesus was in heaven. He knew the glory of his father because he was side by side with God all the time. The angels sang his praises. Everything Jesus wanted he had. He was surrounded completely by the wealth of heaven. Then one day he stood up and he started walking down the hallowed halls of heaven. Angels stopped him to ask him where he was going.
“To earth,” he replied.
“To show them your glory?” they asked.
“No,” he said.
“You going to show them how God wants them to behave?”
“No,” Jesus answered. “Not that either.”
“Are you going to be back for lunch, at least?”
“Not this time,” he said.
And he came to earth, born as a baby, living as a man, and dying on a cross. He did is for the wise men. He did it for you. And he did it for me.
Because you matter to a savior.
There’s only another small portion of that sentence that I want you to write down. It’s this, “I matter to a savior who is great and awesome.”
I matter to a savior who is great and awesome.
I told you very early into this message that the wise men had been looking at stars. They were looking for the answer to all of life’s questions. They were looking for what was missing in their lives. They too were looking for a savior.
The Bible tells us that Jesus was there in the creation of the world. He knew what happened. Over in Genesis chapter one it says, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”
One really only has to look around to see just how great and awesome God is.
During my lifetime I’ve traveled all over this country. I’ve seen God’s handy work. Take the Grand Canyon for example. He made that. I imagine that it was just a little twist of his pinky carving that deep hole. Then there are the oceans. The Pacific washing up on primarily sandy shores and the Atlantic with its small waves usually ending in rocky shoreline. There is the Aurora Borealis, the Northern Lights, in all their brilliant colors dancing across the sky. Sunsets. Sunrises. Animals too countless to number. Flowers of every color.
God made every single thing.
But it says he made the heavens too. Maybe that’s why the wise men were looking at the sky.
Just imagine what it would have been like if they had today’s technology. The ability to see not only the stars as little more than pinpoints in the sky but entire galaxies light years away. To see the details of the moon. To see comets as they leave their tails while racing across the sky.
Quite a few years ago I used to sing a lot of special music in the churches I grew up in. One of the songs that I loved to sing the most was called “He Grew The Tree.” That song still brings joy and awe to my heart when I think about the words. They said, “He molded and built a small lonely hill, that he knew would be called Calvary. He planted the seed that grew to be thorns that would make his son bleed. He made a green stem, sheltered it with moss, gave sunshine and rain. He made the tree that would be used to make an old rugged cross.”
He knew that the day was coming that his son would die on a cross for you and me. How great and awesome is that?
You see, the true message of Christmas isn’t about all the things we usually try to attach to it.
Christmas is about you and me. It’s because you matter to a savior who is great and awesome. It’s because I matter to a savior who is great and awesome.
I matter to a savior who is great and awesome!
