Born For A Purpose

 How much time in the month of December do we spend thinking about the birth of Jesus versus time spent shopping, wrapping presents, decorating, and going to and from Christmas parties and events? And every time, I think it's going to be different this year... I love Christmas, but I'm not a fan of all of the busyness that accompanies our modern celebration of it. I end up getting so exhausted from all the preparation and activity that I kind of look forward to when it's all done.

I'm relatively sure that that wasn't the feeling of those who were present that very first Christmas morning. I can't imagine how those shepherds must have felt! I'm guessing they would have wanted to linger in those moments forever... Hearing the angels, rushing to find Jesus, then sharing what they had seen with anyone who would listen! That's the feeling I want to have about Christmas!

There's nothing wrong with decorations or parties or even presents - as long as they point us to Jesus. If they become an end in themselves or distractions from Jesus - then we need to revaluate what's most important at Christmas. Our Christmas celebration should be all about Christ - and it's not too late to 're-center' ourselves...

And since Christmas is about Christ, I want to focus again on the 'why' behind His coming in the first place. So we need to go...

I. Back to the beginning

Today, I simply want to remind us again of the amazing facts of this narrative. I want us to start by looking at the familiar Christmas account from the Gospel of Luke...

Luke 2:8-20 (NIV)

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 of great joy that will be for all the people. (11) Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ 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, and on earth peace to men 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.

I just can't imagine what that experience was like! - Terrifying, exciting! This birth of the Christ Child publicly marked the end of 400 years of silence on the part of God and His prophets! And what a way to end that silence, with a great company of angels! We've read the traditional beginning of the Christmas story, but I also want us to go back even further to look at the actual start of the larger story.

Genesis 1:1-3 (NIV)

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. (2) Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. (3) And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light.

'God said' - God spoke creation into existence. I've always found it entertaining that scientists describe the beginning of our universe as 'the Big Bang'. They don't even know the half of it! And then the Apostle John explained how these two passages we just read are connected...

John 1:1-5 (NIV)

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (2) He was with God in the beginning. (3) Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. (4) In him was life, and that life was the light of men. (5) The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.

Let's jump a few verses ahead to continue the story in John 1:14-18 (NIV)...

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. (15) John testifies concerning him. He cries out, saying, "This was he of whom I said, 'He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.'"

(16) From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another. (17) For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. (18) No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father's side, has made him known.

The larger 'Christmas' story really starts way before many traditionally think of the beginning. The birth of Jesus may have been the beginning of what we could see, but it wasn't the beginning of the story. Jesus existed long before He came to earth as a baby. His physical birth wasn't an accident but something that God had planned since the beginning of time.

There was a reason that Jesus came to earth as one of us. There was something missing from our human experience that only Jesus could provide.

A. Jesus brought life

Jesus brought true life, the full real life that God had intended us to have ever since the perfection of the Garden of Eden. Jesus brought us life with the Father, a way to restore our relationship with God. Jesus brought life. Jesus is life. We see this in Romans 5:18-19 (NIV)...

Consequently, just as the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men, so also the result of one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for all men. (19) For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.

In this verse from Romans, there's something we might miss if we're not listening closely. When we read the phrase "through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous" - maybe we should be hearing, "through the death of Jesus - we will be made right with God". Jesus' obedience was coming to earth to die on a cross - and 'the many' is us! Christmas is all about the birth of Christ - but it's also a prelude to the death of Christ so that we can live. Christmas is really about life and death.

If we look at the very beginning, Jesus was born for a purpose, to bring life. We also see that...

B. Jesus brought grace

For us to have that life in Christ, we needed grace. Because you and I don't deserve life in Heaven, there had to be something that made it possible to receive that gift of life - that's grace! Let's look at another familiar part of the Christmas story...

Matthew 1:19-23 (NIV)

Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. (20) But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.

(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." (22) All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: (23) "The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel" - which means, "God with us."

We think about the supernatural events of Jesus being born of a virgin, the angels announcing the coming of a Savior - but sometimes we forget the supernatural changes that Jesus makes in us through His grace! Jesus came to save His people from their sins. He gave up the glory of Heaven to come down to earth as a baby to grow up and give His life for ours so that we could receive God's grace and the gift of eternal life. That is what Christmas is all about - that is why we have a reason to celebrate!

Jesus came to this earth He created in pursuit of us. He was born in Bethlehem on a mission to find us, to redeem us - to bring us life and grace! There was a singular purpose in Christ's life that stretched from the manger all the way to the cross! That purpose was all about you! Jesus did what He did thousands of years before you were even born so that you could be saved from the despair of Hell and live with Him in Heaven! Now that's a pretty thoughtful Christmas present...

Since Jesus came to bring us life and grace...

II. What is our calling?

A calling is something to which you feel compelled. It's not something you do because of a paycheck or personal gain, but something you feel you have to do because of a deeply held belief. The only way to ignore a calling is to reject that belief. Keep that in mind as we read from Matthew 28:18-20 (NIV)...

Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. (19) Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, (20) and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

If we accept and believe that first part, that Jesus does have all authority in Heaven and earth, then we should feel called to do what He asks. And what is He asking? To do what He started that first Christmas morning...

A. Go bring life

He asks us to make disciples, to baptize people in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and to teach them to obey all of His commands.

After the shepherds found Jesus, they went and shared that news with others! Sharing what you know about Jesus is the first step in helping someone else become a follower of Jesus. - Maybe going out of your way to be a good friend or neighbor? - Inviting them over for a cup of coffee so they can see how your life has been changed by your relationship with Jesus? - Inviting them to a Church service to hear about Jesus?

Our Christmas Eve service is this Saturday at 6pm, maybe a great way to help someone without a Church home to celebrate Christmas this year; to introduce them to what Jesus is all about...?

Jesus calls us to GO bring life to others. He also calls us to...

B. Go show grace

It's one thing to talk about grace; it's another thing to show it; to live it. Many who believe in Jesus don't always act like Jesus. Jesus brought grace, but many of us aren't very good at doing the same. There's a delicate balance between grace and truth. I know I've missed the mark on a few occasions. Let's remind ourselves again why Jesus came in the first place.

John 12:46-48 (NIV)

I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness. (47) "As for the person who hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge him. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save it. (48) There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; that very word which I spoke will condemn him at the last day."

Jesus came to bring life, to bring grace, to save the world. If we are to follow Him, we, too, should show grace. Now that doesn't mean that we shouldn't call sin for what it is - 'sin'. Jesus Himself pointed out things that are sinful - things that are against God's will - but we have to be extremely careful not to misuse 'truth' as a weapon. I'm suggesting we need to be as gracious with others and their sins as Jesus has been with us and our sin.

Jesus came for those in our world who are mocking Biblical values, who are calling Christians all sorts of ugly names if we even speak about Biblical truth. Jesus came for the lost and the hurting and even those who deny that Christmas has anything to do with the birth of Jesus...

Jesus came to bring life and grace - to save the world - and He calls us to follow Him in seeking the lost.

So What?

The angels celebrated the birth of the Christ child by "praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men". History is measured in B.C. and A.D., before Christ and everything since Christ's birth. Modern scholars have replaced the 'B.C'. and 'A.D.' labels with 'B.C.E' and 'C.E.', meaning "before common era" and "common era,"- but there is no denying that Christ's entry into this world still split history in two! Nothing else even comes close to that in significance! That birth that we celebrate, that first 'Christmas day', it changed everything!

But don't forget, Jesus was born as a baby to grow up and give Himself as a sacrifice for your sins and mine. Christmas is all about Christ - but Jesus came for you! It's easy to love the image of little baby Jesus. As he lies there in the manger, we can sing about Him and celebrate - and He doesn't ask anything of us.

But Jesus came with a purpose - to save this world; to bring life, and hope and grace. And in order to fulfill that purpose - He had to grow up and become a man. Jesus, the man, calls us to leave everything and follow Him. Jesus came for you! Merry Christmas!