Well, Christmas is only 7 days away. This year, it falls on a Sunday. That hasn’t happened since 1994. And yes, we will have a Christmas service at Life Church right here at 10 am. What better time to have a Christmas service then on Christmas? Christmas is about celebrating the birth of Jesus, not about trees, not about red suited men with white beards and reindeer, not about gift giving or even about time with your family. The true meaning of Christmas is about Jesus.
This year, the controversy about saying Merry Christmas versus Happy Holidays has grown even more heated. Of course, the reason is that a small minority wants to remove every reference to Jesus from public view everywhere. We are supposed to be sensitive to those of different faiths. Schools in St Louis no longer can call a party a Christmas party, they must call it a Winter party. What muddle-headed thinking! Historically, Christmas did not begin to celebrate winter, it’s reason was to celebrate the birth of Christ, you can’t change that now.
Don’t hide the name of Jesus this Christmas, stand up for what you believe. Jesus was born, not to be ignored, but to rule and reign as a King. It’s time for believers to follow their King, not the culture of society. 740 years before the birth of Jesus, the Hebrew prophet Isaiah prophesied NIV Isaiah 9:6-7 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign forever. Isaiah prophesied that one day a child would be born to be king, but not just any king. This child would be king of a kingdom what would never end, an eternal kingdom.
Why did the wise men or magi come to see Jesus? NIV Matthew 2:1-2 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 come to worship him.” The magi came to worship Jesus, not as a baby but as a King. Jesus came to be king of a kingdom that would last forever. His kingdom is not a physical place it is the realm in which he reigns.
I’ve called today’s message “Jesus: The Reign of God.” What does the fact that Jesus came to be the king of an eternal kingdom have to do with you, living in St. Louis in the 21st century? It has a great deal to do with you, it has to do with the true meaning of Christmas. It has to do with how the true meaning of Christmas can guide and encourage you all year round. It means that you can have hope for a great future when you put your trust in the one that Christmas is all about. If you put your trust in the wrong place, your hope and your life will be shattered.
How can you have an unshakeable hope of a bright future? Only by putting your trust in something that is unshakeable, that will not disappoint you, that will not let you down. NIV Hebrews 12:28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe. The kingdom that Jesus reigns over cannot be shaken, it cannot be destroyed and it will not disappoint us. We can put our trust in Jesus and His kingdom and have lives filled with hope.
To hear more about this topic, listen to my December 18, 2005 message entitled Jesus – The Reign Of God