Dec 23, 2007 sermon notes

Dec 23 2007 PUMC Reflections before Christmas

....idea for next PUMS trip ..lets go to India etc and seethe Taj Mahal in India
‘’‘’ one of the most beautiful and expensive tombs in the world.
. And it just made the list this year as one of the 7 wonders of the modern world

we’ve also got a lot of legends that go along with it
But, Max Lucado and James Moore like to pass on this story

the story says that
Shah-Jahan, that this great emperor, was in grief.
His favorite wife had died.
And He loved her so much
that he was just devastated by her loss.
And he wanted to honor her in some ..monumental way
He decided to build this spectacular temple,
The temple would also be her tomb.
.. a tribute to her..
. it would be symbol of his great love for her.

Her coffin
was placed right in the center of a large section of land

and then they started to build the temple around it.

No amount of money was going to be spared.

He wanted to make this burial place..into something breath-taking

But as the weeks turned into months,

the Shah's grief was turned into this passion for the building project

so much
he didn’t really miss her
. And in fact He hardly even thought about her anymore.


He was totally involved with the details of this building project.

He was just obsessed
with the temple.

It's all he thought about.

It was on his mind night and day...
the building of this magnificent Temple.

Then,
one day

as he was rushing around inside the building ...checking out the process
he accidentally bumped his leg against a wooden box.

And he was irritated
as he brushed the dust off his leg

and ordered the workers to throw that box out


What was that box doing here in the middle of this building anyway?

Get it out of here right now!

(You already know what this is...don’t you?)

The box was the box with the remains of his beloved wife.

The Shah threw out her coffin.

He forgot she was there.

And he forget really why he was building this temple

the one he wanted it to be for..was now forgotten,,ignored..

Pushed aside

... but, the temple was built anyway.


think about that

Could you build a temple and forget why?


Could you celebrate an anniversary
and forget the guest of honor?

Could you create a memorial and then forget who you’re trying to remember?

Could that story
be a kind of a parable for the way we celebrate Christmas today?

...
Do we ever get so wrapped up in the busyness and the expenses,,
and the family stuff
and the deformations of Christmas

that we forget
the one
we being celebrated

Have we built this economic and cultural temple called Christmas

done all the work
spent the money.

Put in the time..

but missed the point of it all.

Well you know Christmas eve is tomorrow

and I suppose
by now

you are about done with the shopping
right ?
and most of the baking
and the clearing and the decorating

you might have some traveling to do
and that list of last minute thing s

but have you planned for Jesus

have you planned for Christmas
have you remembered whose birthday it is..

Well
I suppose that’s why you’re here
and why you might be here tomorrow
I don’t need to convince you..

But still
lets just spend time remembering what its all about

first of all..
this is about Good News
The word of God..is given to us in Jesus Christ

Christmas is about its something said
and something done

its about saying what needs to be said

James Moore again

passes on a story about this young woman

who lived on a big ranch out in West Texas?

She was in love with a local cowboy named Tex..

.and she wanted to get married.

But you know Tex didn’t have any experience in the world of romance..

.and to make it worse,
he was extremely shy.
He just wasn’t the talkative type
so
this young woman
realized
that she was going to have to help him out a bit

to move this courtship along..,

so she decided take matters into her own hands.

““Oh, Tex,”” she said,

““Do you think my eyes are like glittering stars?””

““Yes,”” he replied.

““And,”” she ..said to him..
““Do you think my teeth are like a beautiful string of pearls?””

““Yep,”” he answered.

““And do you think my complexion is like gorgeous rose petals?””

she questioned.

““Yep,”” he answered.

““And
do you think my hair
shines like gold in the moonlight?””

““Yep,”” he answered.
““Oh, Tex,”” she exclaimed,
““You do say the most wonderful things!””

Well,

. Christmas has some wonderful things to say to us.


.
Christmas is about Jesus
as the Word that became flesh

I like to think that this whole Christmas story is meant to put words in our mouth

God is trying to move this whole love relationship along

Christmas is God ..coming to court us..and help us


to give us the words

Good News

and what are the words?
it Good News of Great joy

you will find a baby wrapped in swadling clothes..lying in a manger

peace on earth in the good willof God
a Savior is given

the light shiines in the dankness

and the darkness. does not overcome it..

Immanuel God with us..

name him Jesus,,

for he will save us from our sins..
The word became flesh
and dwelt among us

those are the words of Christmas

and in a sense
like Tex..
all we need to do
is say yes . And let the relationship go from there.

..if its really what you want to say
say yes
say this amen
to the Christmas words




but still even with all this help from God..

.I think we still don’t really know
what we are saying yes to

I don’t think we really know what this is
about Immanuel

God with us
the light that shines in the darkness

Christ is born

do you wonder what we are really getting into

.can you really fathom this with your rational mind..

do you know how powerful this word could be?

Dean Snyder
is the pastor at Foundry United Methodist Church in Washington dec..
a church that Beth and I visited back in about 1997


Dean Snyder says he was in seminary years ago in Boston

there was a preacher in one of the big Boston churches there

and the students at the seminary gave him a nick name

they liked to call him Dr. Tickle-text,
because --they'd say--
he took the great verse of Scripture,
these great Bible messages

and he stood in the pulpit,
and he tickled them for a few minutes,

and then sat down.
Dr. Tickle-text.
I hope Im not just doing that..

I hope that these Christmas verses.. Do more than just tickle your fancy
I don’t want to just tickle us with some warn fuzzies

I hope we don’t just let this powerful word just tickle us into feeling good
or giving us a giggle

Dean Snyder said someone had listened to that same Boston preacher
preaching on one of the great texts of Scripture,

and then the person said about the sermon:
"Never have I seen
so small a rabbit
pulled
out of so large a hat."

Sometimes We do that with this Christmas season and gospel
we turn it into cute little stories
about miracles
and reindeer and santa Claus

and little drummer boys and the littlest shepherd
and ..a lot of cute stories..
that I like
just as much as anyone else..

But is any of that big enough..?

I
but there is so much more to pull out .of this story..

Now having said all that
what does it mean ?
what does it say
can I explain this all to you
can I tell you how
the word became flesh
can I scientifically explain the Christmas story
or the virgin birth
or how God is born as a baby in a manger

that’s like asking me to explain
or improve upon a great song or a work of art

there is story about Beethoven
he was working on some music
actually it was a sonata
that he had been working on for weeks.

Finally
he sat down to play it for a group of friends and some others who happened to be there.

Beethoven poured himself into it....

He was oblivious to everything but the notes that he was playing

And the music filled the room
and swirled around him
and out to the people
who were listening.
When he finished.

He let out this deep sigh of release
and relief..

slowly
he turned toward his audience

and one perosn said
without even a pause..he said..
yes
but what doe the music mean

well Beethoven was not pleased with that response

and he gave this man a scowl.
.a furious scowl

and then he turned back to the key board

and he
replayed the entire sonata

And he did it with all the same passion
and the same intensity
and the same gracefulness

then he finished

and he turned back to the questioner..

.and this time
with a great smile on his face
he said to the man

That is what it means




Christmas invites us to just listen to it again..this year

not to figure out

but let it be its own beauty
let its own simplicity
its own master piece
its own complexity and its own mystery.

Let is just be the story that tells the Christmas Gospel story

Christmas is its own experience and wonder

I get the idea
that w e know that..

You already know that..
Just let it be itself

.and we come to hear it

year after year
again and again
and God keeps playing it and saying it

with that same passion and intensity


just let it be..
just listen to the words


Do Not be afraid..
Behold look listen

I bring you good news of great joy for all the people

for unto you is born this day
in the city of David

a savior who is Christ the Lord

you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes
lying in a manger

and suddenly there was with the angle a multitude of the heavenly host.
Saying Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace....in the favor of God
good will among all the people


Maybe you just need to hear that again and again
in scripture and prayer ...silence and song,
in faith and hope and love
just say yes to it..
But at the same time..don’t just settle for the first tickle or the small rabbit.

Because this is also a revolutionary and radical story
about peace and justice
and hope for the poor.
..really its about the transformation of the world

We forget to hear that big part of the story

and we can not get it..all at once.

..there is more that will come to you again and again

there is always something more amazing and revealing about this

.. I cant tell you what this will personally be for you

but it will speak to you
and change you
layer by layer..
step by step

It will some how
be more of God..
.more of Gods love
more light
more wholeness
more courage
more peace

more of the Christmas music

Ultimately this is one of those mysteries
just to live in
and to live with
like
music
or like poetry
you don’t need to explain it or analyze..just be with it.
or like the story that never grows old


(Max Lucado, The Applause of Heaven, pp. 131-132) also used in James Moores sermons
Dean Snyder material from his sermons at Foundry UMC website
Beethoven story is from McKenna Matthew The Book of Mercy p. 183