The JOY of Christmas (Rev. Dr. Charley Reeb)
If any of you are country music fans, you may recognize the name Travis Tritt. Like many country music stars, Tritt spent many years playing in out-of-the-way beer joints before he made it big in the music industry. He reports that many of those bars were dangerous places, with drunk fans throwing punches all over the place.
But Tritt found a unique way to keep the peace in such situations. Anytime things would get too rowdy, he would begin singing “Silent Night.” Here is how he put it, “‘Silent Night’ proved to be my all-time lifesaver. Just when [bar fights] started getting out of hand, when bikers were reaching for their pool cues and rednecks were heading for the gun rack, I’d start playing ‘Silent Night.’ It could be the middle of July I didn’t care. Sometimes, I swear, they’d even start crying, standing there watching me sweat and play Christmas carols.”
There’s power in Christmas. It can bring peace and healing to the hardest of hearts. Why? At Christmas we celebrate the coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Christmas means that we don’t search for God; God searches for us. Christmas means that God put skin on to show us how much he cares for us. Christmas means that God became one of us in Christ so that we would understand the depth of his love and be changed by it. And that love is the greatest power in the world.
Getting Back to the Power of Christmas
This morning I want us to get back to power of Christmas and the joy it can bring to you and me. I want the message to penetrate our lives and change our hearts. I want us to look beyond the glitter and wrapping and get to the true joy of Christmas. I want us to throw away all of our pre-conceived notions about this time of year and be transformed by Christmas.
How do we do it? Our text in Luke gives us some clues. And it is all about the shepherds. I believe the shepherds in our text give us the key to finding the joy of Christmas.
Every time I read our gospel text for this week I think, “God could’ve used some help in the PR department.” Really! If God had asked you to help him spread the news that he was coming to visit the earth, what would you do? Buy television time, let the President know, post it all over social media, put it on bill boards, make a movie about it. Have the angels have a concert in a big arena and give out free tickets. God had every resource at his disposal to create the best campaign in the world. Instead, God sent his flock of angels not to religious leaders, world leaders, educators, or politicians. God sent his angels to the most rag tag people on earth – shepherds. I can imagine the angel Gabriel saying to God, “God, with all due respect, you want to think this through?”
Most depictions of the shepherds in the Christmas story make them look dignified. There appears to be a warm glow around them. The truth of the matter is that there was probably a stench emanating from them. At the time of Jesus’ birth, shepherds were the lowest people in society. They were outcasts and misfits. They never bothered to bathe and were considered untrustworthy. To the religious community, they were spiritually unclean and not allowed to participate in sacred ceremonies and holy days. And these are the ones God chose to announce the greatest event in history?
So, what is it about the shepherds that is so special?
God chose to reveal the gift of Christmas first to the shepherds because they were the most receptive to the message. They did not have anything to prove. They had no reputation to protect. They had no fear of being called crazy. More than anyone they were open to the impossible – God was being born among them!
So, this morning I want to break down what the shepherds possessed they made them the most receptive to the message of Christmas. And if we can learn from them we will find the true joy of Christmas.
The Shepherds Had Ears to Hear
The shepherds heard the angels speaking and singing, but not everyone heard it – just the shepherds. They were in the fields, far enough away from bustle of the city to hear the sacred sounds.
We live in a noisy world. Just stop for a moment during your day and listen to all the noise around you. We get so used to noise that we can’t stand silence. Most of the noise we hear drowns out the sacred sounds of God.
There is so much noise that we don’t hear very well. If we want to hear from God, we must find the silence that the shepherds found. God will not compete with noise.
I like the story about FDR. One day he was tired of all the small talk during receptions at the White House. So, one night as a long line of people were waiting to shake his hand he decided to say, “I killed my mother in law last night.” People did not hear it, walked by and said, “That’s nice.” Then a foreign diplomat came through and FDR said, “I killed my mother in law last night.” The diplomat replied, “And I am sure she deserved it!”
Did you know there is a little mechanism in our brain stem that is a filter for our brain? It allows us to filter through all the stimuli around us and receive only what is important to us. Some wives are very familiar with this mechanism in their husbands. They call it selective listening!
There are three types of information that get through our built-in filter: Things that are unique, things that we value, and things we find threatening. This means that to hear the joy of Christmas we must reprioritize what we value.
The great preacher James Moore remembers gathering with his large family at Christmas one year. He writes, “A month or so before Christmas that year, my sister had given birth to her third child. Most of the family were seeing the baby for the first time, and were so excited about this new addition to the family.
“Early in the evening they put the pack and play in the back bedroom of the house and put the baby to bed. All the travel and excitement had tired her out. She fell asleep almost immediately. They had their Christmas dinner and later exchanged gifts. Then people got involved in a variety of activities. Some were talking and visiting, others were playing electronic games, some were singing carols, and still others were watching a football game on television.
“There was a lot of noise. But in the midst of all the chaos, I noticed my sister quietly slip out of the room. Where do you think she was going? She was going to check on the baby. She heard the baby cry out.
“Isn’t that amazing? In all the commotion, no one else heard the baby, but she did… and you know why, don’t you? Because she was tuned in to hear the baby. She was listening for the baby. Her ears were trained to hear her baby’s cry. That was her number one priority.”
In the same way, the shepherds were ready to hear the joyous sounds of angels singing. Do you hear the sacred sounds of joy around you? Are you tuned in to hear from God? Above all the chaos, can you hear God? Is that a priority for you?
To experience the joy of Christmas we must have ears to hear, like the shepherds.
But also like the shepherds we must also have eyes to see.
The Shepherds Had Eyes to See
After the shepherds had heard from the angels, they said, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and SEE what has taken place…” They got there and saw the scene. It was not spectacular. Quite the opposite. It was a feeding trough with smelly animals. But the shepherds were amazed. They were able to see the Christ.
Most of us don’t see this well. We see what we want to see. We go about our lives passing by holy events and we don’t even notice. We rush through life and are unaware of where Christ is in our midst. We walk right by situations where God is active and working. We just don’t see it.
The great landscape artist Joseph Turner was known for painting very vivid landscapes. They were filled with color and imagery. They looked alive. One time an art critic approached Turner and said, “Your paintings are so vivid, but I have never seen landscapes look like that.” Turner replied, “Yes, but don’t you wish you could?”
I imagine that when the shepherds told some people about what they saw there were some who replied, “How could you see something like that? We have never seen anything like that!” Perhaps the shepherds said, “Don’t you wish you could?”
So often we miss the most important things in life. We just don’t see it.
Fred Craddock tells of a time when he and his wife had a guest in their home who was spending the night. As Fred read the paper, this guest played with their kids and taught them a new game. Fred thought to himself, “How long has it been since I [came] home from work, got down on the floor, and played with the kids and taught them a new game?” He felt himself judged by his guest’s actions.
Following dinner, the guest said to Mrs. Craddock, “I certainly appreciated the meal. That was just a wonderful meal.” Fred tried to remember when it was that he had said that to his wife following dinner. He thinks it was in 1949. And he was judged again.
The guest went out for a walk and came back in and said, “Oh, those are nice folks next door. I met Mr.Yung and his wife from Seoul. Very nice young couple.”
Fred says, “Well, I had heard some Koreans moved in down there, but I didn’t know. When he said their names, I was judged.”
Just a familiar pattern, says Fred Craddock. “Come home, read the paper, and eat supper. Then here comes someone strange. Everything looks different, and I think, ‘Where in the world have I been?’”
What are you missing? What are you not seeing that could bring you joy? A smile, a little baby laughing, a sunrise that brings you hope?
To experience joy this Christmas we must have eyes to see. But we must also have a heart to believe.
The Shepherds Had Hearts to Believe
Later in our passage the shepherds went back and praised God and told everyone what they had seen. The believed. They decided to proclaim at the risk of looking foolish. They decided to commit. They were so filled with joy they could not contain it. They had to share it.
The shepherds had the same feeling when they found Jesus in the manger. Their hearts were filled with belief and hope. They believed and were willing to tell others about it. Take a look:
When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them…The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told. -Luke 2:17-18, 20
The Christmas story teaches us to believe the impossible – to believe that with God all things are possible – to open our hearts to the possibilities and ignore the cynics. After all, the angel did tell Mary, “With God all things are possible.”
Joey, age 8, was very sad. It was just a few days till Christmas and Joey was down in the dumps. His friend, Tommy, age 10,asked: “What’s wrong Joey? Why so sad?” Joey answered: “It’s Christmas… and I asked for a puppy, but my parents said ‘No!’”
Tommy said: “That’s no problem you just have to use the right strategy.” “Strategy? What do you mean?” Joey asked.
“Well, it’s really very simple,” said ten-year old Tommy. “If you really want a puppy, all you have to do is ask for a baby brother!”
Two days later Tommy saw Joey coming down the sidewalk with a huge smile. holding a soft brown puppy in his arms.
Sometimes I think we use the wrong approach. We go about life all wrong. We live each day with closed hearts, unwilling to believe that God can do far more than we are willing to believe – we are unwilling to see the good in people – we are unwilling to experience the joy God wants to give us.
Someone said, “If you don’t have Christmas in your heart, you will never find it under a tree.” Christmas is not so much about opening presents as opening our hearts to the miraculous power of God.
Why do we think the Grinch and Scrooge are key characters at Christmas? The truth is there is a Grinch or Scrooge in all of us. Too often our bitterness and cynicism get in the way of enjoying Christmas….
We don’t start off bitter and cynical. As children, Christmas was filled with wonder and delight. But something happens when we become adults. Life wears us out! It becomes exhausting. And it doesn’t take long for our hearts to become hardened to the life, joy and peace God wants to bring us. Many of us stop believing in what God can do.
Walter Connecticut wrote about the time when he took a group of young adults to a prison to lead a worship service for inmates. Of course, before the service, they handed out toiletries to the inmates, toothpaste, and all kinds of other items. As they were doing it, as they passed a particular cell, the inmate behind those bars began to scream out cuss words. Then he said this, “You tell me one thing that Jesus can do for my life.”
Well, of course, Connecticut was worried about the young adults. They were scared and he moved them along, but then Connecticut said something amazing happened. One young man in that group went towards those bars, towards that inmate, rolled up his sleeve and said to him, “You know where I got those scars, don’t you?” Inmate didn’t reply, because he knew he got those scars from shooting heroin. Then he buttoned up his sleeve and said, “You know what? Jesus Christ saved me from a cell just like this and from an addiction that was going to kill me, and he can do the same for you.”
Someone once said that God raises us up by meeting us at the bottom. I believe that. Now today, I don’t know how dark your life is but there’s one thing I do know. There is no place so low or so dark that God cannot find you and raise you up and bring you joy. That’s what Christmas is all about. At Christmas Jesus Christ comes to the very bottom, to the dark place in our lives to raise us up and give us joy. All we have to do is take his hand and believe.
And what does it mean to believe in Jesus, to trust in Jesus, to have faith in Jesus? Biblically, it means to put your whole weight upon Jesus. It is time to lean into Jesus and allow him to raise you up. It is then you will find the joy of Christmas.
Isn’t that what happened to the Grinch and Scrooge? They found the joy of Christmas. Toward the end of the story the Grinch’s heart was changed. Listen to what the story says:
And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice-cold in the snow,
Stood puzzling and puzzling: “How could it be so?”
“It came without ribbons! It came without tags!”
“It came without packages, boxes or bags!”
And he puzzled three hours, till his puzzler was sore.
Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before!
“Maybe Christmas,” he thought, “doesn’t come from a store.”
“Maybe Christmas. . . perhaps. . means a little bit more!”
“And what happened, then? Well, in Whoville they say – that the Grinch’s small heart grew three sizes that day. And then – the true meaning of Christmas came through, and the Grinch found the strength of ten Grinches, plus two!”
-Dr. Seuss
Christmas does mean more – so much more. Come to Jesus and He will give you back your joy. He will give you eyes to see, ears to hear and a heart to believe. It’s time for you to truly have a Merry Christmas.