Sermon Archives

December 26, 2010
Pastor Dan Selbo

"Back to Real Life"
Matthew 2:13-23

            It is good to be back with you here today, after having celebrated in such a big way on Christmas Eve. Many of you were here that night. (Some of us were here all night.) And we’re glad we were. It was a wonderful night, a beautiful night, a night to remember and to celebrate God’s entrance into our world through the person of Jesus Christ.

            But now, here we are, (only two days later), and the celebration is already beginning to wind down. (You know how that works.) It’s not, necessarily, what we want to happen. It just happens. Later this week is New Years. The week after, it’s back to work and to school.

            It’s a beautiful story. Christmas is a wonderful time of year. In many ways, (if nothing else), it’s a nice break from everything else that happens throughout the year.

            But does it really matter in life? (That’s the question we need to ask.) Does it make a difference in what we do in our day-to-day living? And does it fit and have something to offer when it comes to real life?

            I don’t how many of you remember the name of Mike Royko? Mike Royko was a columnist for three different Chicago newspapers for more than four decades. Before he died, he wrote about what (he called) “The Other Side of Christmas.”

            Two stories he shared in his column. The first was about a stranger who, (during the Christmas season), put $1,600 in gold coins in a Salvation Army kettle. (You know the ones – outside the grocery stores, the malls.) The person placing the gift did it quietly and anonymously. As a result, it was picked up by the local media and presented as one of the stories in which the true spirit of Christmas was found. Unfortunately, there was a follow-up story. As it turned out, the coins had actually been stolen. The thief, trying to get away from the police, had placed them there in an attempt to do away with the evidence. (Not quite the Christmas-spirit story they had thought.)

            The second was about a man driving home from work on Christmas Eve who saw a young boy fall through the ice in a nearby lake. The man stopped his car, jumped out, tore off his jacket and crawled out onto the ice. Somehow, he managed to save the boy before he drown. Happy ending, don’t you think? (Not quite.) Upon returning to his car, the man discovered that while he was risking his life to save the boy, one of the onlookers stole his jacket and the envelope that contained his Christmas bonus.

            And so it is we come to this first Sunday after Christmas, fresh on the heels of the baby in the manger. Hardly even a chance to let the wonder of the Christmas event settle in and take hold. And what do we find, but the story of a king, (King Herod), a cruel and a jealous king. So cruel and so jealous that not even the slaughter of innocent children would stand in his way.

            Matthew gives us quite the picture of what happened in those early months, if not those (early years) following Jesus’ birth. (It’s a different story than we find in Luke’s gospel.) Luke tells us about the shepherds and the angels. He tells about Bethlehem and about how Mary wrapped the baby in cloths and laid him in a manger. And it’s a beautiful story. It’s a story we read (and remember) and celebrate every year. But Matthew’s story is different. Matthew tells us not so much about the birth event itself, but about the world into which Jesus was born.

            We didn’t read the entire story this morning. And the New Testament doesn’t give us all of the detail. But some time after Jesus was born there was the visit of the wise men. (You know the story.) Men from the east (it says) who followed a star until they found Jesus. They searched for the Christ. And when they found him, they worshiped. And they gave him their gifts, the best of what they had to offer.

            Now, it’s not the story we read today, so it’s not where we’re focusing our attention. But do you want a good direction for your life in 2011? Do as the wise men did. Look for Jesus. Follow God’s lead in your life. Spend time in worship. Offer what you have to give. Not a bad way to approach the coming year. Not a bad way to approach every day.

            Matthew tells the story of the wise men, and of how King Herod, when he heard what was happening, began plotting to have Jesus put to death. But it didn’t happen (in the story), as Herod had planned, because what happened (in the story) was not his to plan. It was God’s plan, and it included the salvation of all people (including you and me). And so in a dream, the wise men were warned to go home by a different route. And they did. And Herod was furious. And that’s where today’s story begins.

            I don’t know about you, but I’m glad we have more than what Luke tells us. A baby in a manger, shepherds in the fields, a multitude of angels singing praises to God. Luke gives us a wonderful story. We hear it and we tell it every year.

            But I’m glad that’s not where it stops, because that’s not where life stops. After the tree comes down, the decorations get put away, the family and friends go home, life continues on. (Life continues on.) And so do the problems that come with life, the struggles and challenges we carry (and face) in life.

            Where do you want to start? Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the homeless people (we see and read about) living on the streets, hungry people looking for food, worries about health and about jobs, about family and about what’s coming next.

            What do we do in the days following Christmas? What do we do in a world in which life continues on? We start by doing what Joseph did. We start by trusting in God.

            Have you ever noticed in the story that Joseph never speaks? (It’s true.) Maybe it’s insignificant. I’ll let you be the judge. But Joseph never speaks.

            Now, obviously, he was able to speak. (And he must have spoken.) No one questions the fact that he could (and he did). But there’s nothing in the Bible recorded that he ever said. In scripture, we never hear a word. All we’re given is what he did. And what he did spoke volumes.

            Read through the story sometime. Go home today and read it through. Chapter one, there’s not a word (from Joseph), just a dream, and a message that Mary’s pregnant, and that the child is the Son of God. (And so what does he do?) He does what he’s told. He takes Mary as his wife, and he calls the baby Jesus.

            Chapter two, it’s the same thing. Another dream, and off into Egypt they go. And then, (still another), and this time they end up in Nazareth.

            Now, maybe it doesn’t matter. Maybe for some (here today), it’s premature. For others, perhaps, too late. But have you ever thought about how you’d like to be remembered in life? Have you ever considered what people might remember (about you and your life) when you’re no longer here?

            Walk through a cemetery sometime and read the headstones. You get a good picture of how people are remembered. Many of them are generic: “A Loving Father,” “A Beloved Mother,” Rest in Peace,” Sleep In Jesus.” More often than not, there isn’t much said. But once in a while, (Once in a while) there is: “He Loved His Lord,” He Understood Life,” “He Gave His All for God.”

            I wonder what it said on Joseph’s headstone? I wonder what people thought of when they remembered his life? “A Man of Few Words,” “His Actions Did the Talking,” “The Earthly Father of Jesus,” “A Man of Faith.”

            The writer of the book of Hebrews tells us that “Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not yet seen.” James says, “Faith without (something to back it up) is dead.”

            That was Joseph. That’s what we remember. A man of integrity. A man of faith. A man who couldn’t see where the journey ahead was going. All he could see was the next step. But he trusted God. He did what he was told. And he took each step (in faith). And God did the rest.

            Now, take that story (about Joseph), drop it on your life, and do you think the same could happen today? Do you think God can work through your life (in 2011), as he did through his?

            I don’t want to minimize anyone’s problems (here this morning). Some of you are facing things in your life (at the end of this year) that you never imagined. Health problems, financial problems, struggles in your marriage, with your kids. I don’t want to minimize anything that’s happening in anyone’s life.

            But the things Joseph was facing were not minimal. Engaged to be married and (he finds out) his fiance’ is pregnant. Now, the king’s out to kill his son, and he’s told to get up and leave. (And so, what does he do?) Matthew says, “So he got up, took the child and his mother, and he left…And so was fulfilled (Matthew says) what was promised.”

            I’m glad that’s not where the story stops (Christmas Eve, a baby in a manger), because that’s not where life stops. The first thing we need to do after Christmas is to keep trusting God. The second is to take care of those we love.

            That was one of Joseph’s main concerns (as you read the story). Apart from being a man of faith, he was a good husband and a good father. Now (admittedly), he wasn’t very experienced (at the time) at either one, but he understood what marriage and parenting were all about. He loved his wife and he loved their son, and he was committed to caring for them both. And not just physically, but emotionally and spiritually.

            My friends, that’s what family does. (You know that.) That’s what good husbands do for their wives and their kids. That’s what good wives do for those they love. (There’s not enough of it in the world today.) Even brothers and sisters, they care for each other. They watch out for each other. And not just for their physical needs, but for their emotional and spiritual needs as well.

            Philip Yancey tells a touching story of a visit he made (a few years back) to the University of Southern Mississippi. While touring the campus (he said), he saw a 6’ 8” man holding hands with a fidgety coed, just over four feet. His curiosity piqued, he watched as the young man, dressed in a warm-up suit, leaned over and gave the girl a kiss on the cheek and sent her off to class.

            When he asked the tour guide who the man was, he was told that he was a star basketball player. When he was young, both parents had died, and he made a vow to take care of his sister. When it was time to enter college, many scholarships had come his way, but only Southern Mississippi had offered one to his sister, too. And so there they were.

            That’s when Yancey went over to the star, introduced himself, and said he appreciated the way he was watching out for his sister. The athlete shrugged it off (he said) and said, “It’s nothing. Those of us who God makes six-foot eight have to look out for those he makes four-foot two.”

            In the stories we’ve been given, Joseph never says a word. But his actions speak for him, and they have a lot to say. He was a man of faith. He listened to the Lord and he did what he was told. And he loved his family. He did everything (he could) to keep them safe and secure. And not just physically, but emotionally and spiritually as well.

            My friends, (and maybe this is so obvious, it doesn’t need to be said), but the people God has given us in our lives are gifts. Our husbands, our wives, our children, they’re all gifts from God. And with every gift from God comes a responsibility. And with every responsibility comes also a chance to love.

            The first thing we need to do after Christmas is to keep trusting God. The second is to take care of those we love. The third is to love the world to whom Christ came and for which he died.

            Now, I realize this is all basic (here today). There’s nothing we’re hearing this morning that we haven’t heard before. Because what happened at Christmas, (the story of Jesus) is central to our faith. God became a man. Jesus took upon himself our humanity. He became one of us and went all the way to cross (gave his life) so that you and I could have ours.

            That’s what the Bible is all about. It’s about God and his love for the world. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son.”  In other words, God’s love for his world knew no boundaries, when Jesus was born in Bethlehem. First, to the shepherds in the fields, then to the wise men from the east, and soon after, Joseph and Mary take off into Egypt.

            Now, it’s not at the heart of the story, but it’s most certainly a sign of what was to come. Because that’s exactly what continued to happen. The boundaries continued to expand. As Jesus grew up, began to teach, died on the cross, and eventually sent his Holy Spirit, and gave birth to the Church. All throughout the world, the message of God’s love for the world.

            And so, now, here we are, 2000 years later, and it’s the same calling we have today, (as beneficiaries of what God has done), to expand the boundaries of our love, to go beyond those in our own families (who will love us in return), to those we may not know and who may never pay us back.

            My friends, the story of Christmas is a beautiful story: a baby in a manger, shepherds in the fields, angels singing praises to God. We hear it (and we tell it) every year. But I’m glad that’s not where the story stops, because that’s not where life stops. After the tree comes down, the decorations get put away, the family and friends go home, life continues on, and so must we.

            And so, trust God in the year ahead. Take care of those you love, (the gifts in your life you’ve been given). And expand your love to all for whom Jesus died. Back to real life. Amen.