Series Introduction
What songs do you have stuck in your head this season? What Christmas songs do you find yourself humming each day? What is your favorite? Christmas seems to be a special time for music and song. In fact, for some people, the season doesn’t seem right until they hear those songs playing. Try to go shopping today without hearing Christmas songs being played over a store’s sound system. Retailers know that if they can get you and me in the Christmas spirit, we will probably spend more in the store. So they pipe in the music hoping to get our hearts tuned toward their version of Christmas. And if you are like me, you will be humming some of those familiar melodies months after Christmas is over.
We begin a new series of messages for the Christmas season. We are going to look at some favorite Christmas songs. I hope to use those songs to help us get in tune with Christmas. In fact, I hope that you and I leave with songs stuck in our heads. In them, I hope to rediscover a deeper meaning of Christmas.
Today, we start with a classic made famous by Bing Crosby.
PLAY I’M DREAMING OF A WHITE CHRISTMAS.
Sermon Introduction
It happened the week before the Christmas pageant at church. A young girl was playing in her room while wearing her brand new, white Christmas dress. Not having a lot of money, Mom and Dad had scraped up enough to buy their daughter the dress. The dress had a special purpose. The little girl was supposed to sing “I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas” as a solo as part of the upcoming Christmas program at church.
But the young girl was so proud of her brand new dress that Mom and Dad allowed her to wear that dress to sing in the school program that night. Now home, they gave clear instructions that she was to change into other clothes. But like most little girls, she could not bear the thought of removing that gorgeous dress immediately; at least not until she saw how the dress looked on her with her fingernails painted a nice bright, Christmas red.
If you know children and Murphy’s Law, you know what happened. The girl spilled some of that bright red nail polish on her brand new, white dress. And try as she might to clean it off, the stain only grew in shape and size. Each hidden session of cleaning attempts only made her guilt that much worse. There was not hiding her disobedience; there was no removing the stain. Her heart was broken. How would she sing White Christmas with a bright read stain in her dress? Why hadn’t she listened to her parents?
As we look at our passage today, I want you to think about that brand new white dress. Life can be like that brand new white dress now stained. We didn’t mean it to happen, but it did. Think about this phrase. Fill in the blank in your own life.
I never expected to be ____________. How would you fill in the blank?
Divorced
An alcoholic or drug addict
Addicted to pornography
Angry all the time
Unloved by my children
Betraying someone with gossip
In prison
Unmarried and pregnant
It is amazing how quickly we can spill that red nail polish on the fabric of our own lives. what do we do about the stain? Is it possible to get rid of it? If so, how?
Text:
Isaiah 1:2-18
Context:
The book of Isaiah is one of the books known as the books of the Prophets. It is written to record the words that Isaiah shared with the nation of Israel. It was written during the reigns of Kings Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah.Within the book of Isaiah, we can see that the people of Judah exhibited an outward form of godliness, but their hearts had become corrupted. So God warns them through Isaiah, to come clean and purify themselves, or they will be taken into captivity by a foreign power.
Isaiah 1:2-4
2 Listen, O heavens! Pay attention, earth! This is what the LORD says: “The children I raised and cared for have rebelled against me. 3 Even an ox knows its owner, and a donkey recognizes its master’s care—but Israel doesn’t know its master. My people don’t recognize my care for them.” 4 Oh, what a sinful nation they are—loaded down with a burden of guilt. They are evil people, corrupt children who have rejected the LORD. They have despised the Holy One of Israel and turned their backs on him.
Stop here for a minute. Let’s make some observations. Did you hear in vs 2 that calls for the ears of both heaven and earth? As we read this I want you to picture God speaking as a judge. After He calls for the attention of Heaven and earth, He announces the disobedience of Judah. Why include heaven and earth in announcing his judgment? Here's what I think. I think he is speaking to heaven and earth in a peer sense. Heaven and earth is all of creation. And creation was cursed by mankind's disobedience. Creation knows the full weight of all of mankind's sin. So God calls in creation to bear witness. I think God is making a point before all creation that ...
The Stain of Sin
I. Sin is never a little matter.
The consequences of sin are never strictly personal. he curse of sin impacted not just man, but animals, and the ground, and the weather. Sin has a global impact. When you and I participate in sin, we have an impact on more than ourselves. We continue the curse on creation itself.
Listen to what the N.T. says.
Romans 8:20
20 For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God. We know that creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.
Creation is caused great pain by mankind’s disobedience. And don’t miss the words, liberated and bondage. “Liberated” and “bondage” are slavery kinds of words.
The Stain of Sin
II. Sin doesn’t just hurt creation; it enslaves it to corruption and decay.
People often wonder why there are tornadoes and earthquakes; why there is cancer and disease. One answer is that these things happen because of the curse of sin. The world doesn’t operate the way it should. Ever had a computer crash? Have you ever read the message “Corrupt file system”? Sin has corrupted the world’s operating system.
So as this text opens, God calls Heaven and earth to the stand as peers; as witnesses to the devastating consequences of sin. In verse 3, then, God makes a claim of ownership on Judah. Do you hear it in the phrases? An ox knows its owner…A donkey knows its master
It sound strange, when we think of it is a commodity sense. But God is claiming another kind of "ownership." Let me illustrate.
Illustration
How many of you have children? How many of you have ever said, “That’s my son” or “That’s my daughter.” You do realize don’t you that by using the word “my” that you are claiming ownership (possession.) My is a possessive pronoun. But I hope you do not use it in the same way that you say “That’s my car.”
Instead, when we say, “That’s my son”…”That’s my daughter” we are claiming an attachment through relationship. I am attached to my kids and I certainly hope my kids know that I wouldn’t trade them for the world.
As God speaks through Isaiah, He is making a claim of ownership of Israel in a family sense. He calls Judah his children in verse 2. So he says, “These are my children but they have rejected me.”
Sometimes when we read the prophets, we can see a strict and angry God. We see a God ready to dole out some punishment. And we miss the relationship that God desires. As we read this in Isaiah, however, I hope that we can picture God as a deeply caring Father who has been rejected by his children.
In fact, in verses 3-4, he points to their foolishness.
He tells the people of Judah, the Ox knows its owner…the donkey knows its master. Animals can sense to whom they belong, but not you. We can almost read into this that God has said that his children aren’t even as bright as the animals. His children have experienced how God cares for them, yet they have rejected Him. Do you see the picture in the first 4 verses?
So God asks a question.
Isaiah 1:5
5 Why do you continue to invite punishment? Must you rebel forever? Your head is injured, and your heart is sick.
We read this and we can see that disobedience to God is more than a problem of a few bad choices. We see that ...
The Stain of Sin
III. Sin afflicts even the head and the heart – it stains our thoughts and our actions.
Our heads our injured; our hearts are sick. In essence sin stains us INSIDE and OUT!
It corrupts our whole being. And the sad part is that there is not turning the white dress inside out to hide the stain. It’s still visible; it’s still ugly.
Do you see the affliction? Like sin usually does, it has led to individual consequences. Listen to verse 6.
Isaiah 1:6
6 You are battered from head to foot—covered with bruises, welts, and infected wounds—without any soothing ointments or bandages.
There is no healing from the personal injuries. But sin also impacts on a corporate (or community) level. Look at the nation of Judah.
Isaiah 1:7-8
7 Your country lies in ruins, and your towns are burned. Foreigners plunder your fields before your eyes and destroy everything they see. 8 Beautiful Jerusalem stands abandoned like a watchman’s shelter in a vineyard, like a lean-to in a cucumber field after the harvest, like a helpless city under siege.
Jerusalem stands virtually empty. It’s one time glory now matches the glory of a fruit stand in winter. It is empty. In fact Isaiah says in verse 9
Isaiah 1:9
9 If the LORD of Heaven’s Armies had not spared a few of us, we would have been wiped out like Sodom, destroyed like Gomorrah.
Now Isaiah uses Sodom and Gomorrah for a specific purpose. I think it’s possible that Judah was looking at their sin and saying, “It’s not so bad.” So God has Isaiah point toward the history of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. The people of Judah would have understood the reference. Sodom and Gomorrah were cities that God destroyed with fire and brimstone because of their sinfulness.
Ezekiel 16:49-50
49 “‘Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy. 50 They were haughty and did detestable things before me.
Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed because of their flagrant disregard of mercy and justice. They overstuffed themselves with food while ignoring the poor and needy. They grew prideful in their disobedience toward God. Those who want to isolate one sin may need to reconsider your point of view. Homosexuality is NOT the complete picture of Sodom’s sin. The problem was deeper than that. And it was obviously widespread. In your personal study time this week, read Genesis 18-19. You will find that before the city of Sodom was destroyed, God allowed Abraham to search for 10 righteous men. 10 could not be found.
God then uses Sodom and Gomorrah to point out Judah’s sin.
Isaiah 1:10
10 Listen to the LORD, you leaders of “Sodom.” Listen to the law of our God, people of “Gomorrah.”
Do you see how “Sodom” and “Gomorrah” are in quotes in the NLT.
Those quotation marks indicate that he is not addressing Sodom of Gomorrah. What Isaiah is doing is addressing the nation of Judah like they are “Sodom” and “Gomorrah.” Their sinfulness rivaled those infamous cities. Their depravity was just as dark. Their sin stain was just as deeply set in. Apparently they had ignored the stain. They continued to pretend like nothing was wrong in their worship.
Listen to the questions God asks.
Isaiah 1:11
11 “What makes you think I want all your sacrifices?” says the LORD. “I am sick of your burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fattened cattle. I get no pleasure from the blood of bulls and lambs and goats. 12 When you come to worship me, who asked you to parade through my courts with all your ceremony? 13 Stop bringing me your meaningless gifts; the incense of your offerings disgusts me! As for your celebrations of the new moon and the Sabbath and your special days for fasting—they are all sinful and false. I want no more of your pious meetings.
14 I hate your new moon celebrations and your annual festivals. They are a burden to me. I cannot stand them! 15 When you lift up your hands in prayer, I will not look. Though you offer many prayers, I will not listen, for your hands are covered with the blood of innocent victims.
Ritual sacrifice and religious practice were not enough. God describes their "religious activity" as a burden, disgusting, meaningless, false. Catch what God is saying. God has said, “you can do things that are costly." In the O.T that would have been animal sacrifices. Today that would be tithes and offerings. He says, “You can dedicate time to me in your traditions and your ceremonies”; you can come to church every week; “You can even lift up your hands in prayer”; but in the end, your practice of rituals and religious activity makes no difference. In fact, they do just the opposite. They make God sick.
Now let me ask, “do you see the stain?” Do you see the size of the stain? It’s vivid; it’s deeply set in; it has afflicted not just the nation, but the world. And like that white Christmas dress, the stain won’t go away.
So what?
We learned as we started that it’s not just Judah who has the problem. We all carry the stain. Do you remember? We all have things in our lives where we have said, "I never expected that to be there." How did you fill in the blank, "I never expected to be ________"? Do you see how we all have bright red spots on the fabric of our lives. And no amount of religious practice will make it better. What do we do? Listen to what Isaiah says to Judah.
Isaiah 1:16-18a
16 Wash yourselves and be clean! Get your sins out of my sight. Give up your evil ways. 17 Learn to do good. Seek justice. Help the oppressed. Defend the cause of orphans. Fight for the rights of widows. 18 “Come now, let’s settle this,” says the LORD….
Dealing with The Stain:
I. He calls them to see how horrid the stain really looks.
Wash yourselves and be clean. Stop wallowing in the filth.
Illustration:
Have you ever worked at church camp with kids? It seems like it happens every year. There's almost always that one kid who wears the same clothes for three days; he doesn't bath. There's always that one kid who reeks before the week is over. And there is almost always a counselor who has to go tot hat kid and say, "Dude! You stink! You NEED to WASH YOURSELF and get clean! You need to change your clothes! God calls the nation of Judah to bath. He says, "You stink and you need a bath."
II. He (then) calls them to change their minds about sin.
God says, "Get your sins out of my sight. Give up your evil ways." How? By doing good, by seeking justice, by helping the oppressed, by defending the cause of orphans, by fighting for the rights of widows. Why does God say this. I suspect it is because by exposing our eyes to the horrible consequences that sin brings, that it will begin to change our hearts and our minds. Seeing the bright crimson stain on the fabric of the world can soften our own hearts toward sin.
Church, I would be willing to bet that there are some who are struggling with unrepentant sin. If we are struggling with repentance, perhaps part of our recovery should be seeking justice, helping the oppressed, defending the cause of orphans and widows. Get out and doing something good for someone enslaved by sins corruption. Expose your heart and your head to the evil that sin brings into the world. This is a positive first step in helping us change our minds about sin. It’s a first step in repentance.
When we begin the process of repentance, listen to what God says will take place.
Isaiah 1:18
…“Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool.
We wash. God removes the sin. He removes the sickening color of the stain. The stain isn't just faded, it is no longer there. There is no longer bright red nail polish on the fabric of our lives; the sin is gone. The fix was costly. The cleansing comes through Jesus. We find it in the Christmas story.
In the Christmas story, the angel Gabriel visits Joseph in a dream to tell him to take Mary as his wife. Joseph has found out that Mary is pregnant and he has decided to cut off the engagement because he knows the child isn’t his. Gabriel comes and tells Joseph that Mary has not been unfaithful, that the child inside Mary’s womb was conceived by the Holy Spirit, and that the child to be born would be special. Listen to how Gabriel describes the child.
Matthew 1:21
21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”
Jesus came to save people from their sins. Jesus came to remove the stain from the fabric of our lives. No matter what that stain looks like; no matter how big the stain is; no matter how long it has had to set, Jesus can remove it. Though your sins are like scarlet, Jesus will make you white as snow.
Conclusion
In our parable that started this message, we heard the story of a young girl with the crimson stained white Christmas dress. She made a decision. She swallowed her fear and she showed the now stained dress to her parents. She told the truth how she had stained it. And what do you think her parents did? They encouraged her to wear that dress on Christmas morning. They encouraged her to share the story of the stain and how all our lives are stained. here wasn't a dry eye in the house and she sang that famous song. As the Christ child was brought forward, they sang together those famous lyrics, may your days be merry and bright….and may all your Christmases be white.
