The Unexpected Christmas--The Label Makers Week 3

As we have studied for the past two weeks, there are people all through the family tree of Jesus whom you and I would not expect to be there based on their actions, reputations, and history. As Matthew, the tax collector begins to launch into The Greatest Story Ever Told, he seems to take particular pleasure in underscoring the "R" rated members of Jesus linneage--the unlikely characters that God chose to help bring His son into the world. We have seen and will continue to see that all through history, God has chosen to distribute His grace to those who did not deserve it. In Matthew 1:1, we see yet another example. Rahab, the harlot was listed in Matthew's reiteration of the family tree of Jesus. Rahab wasn't even Jewish. She was a Cannanite woman whom Matthew reminds, had a reputation that was tainted throughout life and history. Surely, this lady of the night, this immoral Cannanite could not play an important role in God's plan? Surely, God would not choose such a character to be part of His plan to save the world?

Yet, in Joshua 2:8, when God's spies were studying the city of Jericho for the next conquest by God, we see Rahab taking these men into her house and hiding them from those who would like to kill them. We also find that the Hebrew word that Rahab used to identify God was a word for Lord that was not spoken by some and was only used in written form to refer to the God of the Universe. Rahab chose this particular term to refer to God, literally meaning "the existing one." God clearly had a plan for the conquest of Jericho so that it would be abundantly clear who should get the credit for this great victory--God. Believing and non-believing scholars alike have agreed that, for whatever reason, at the end of the day, the walls of Jericho collapsed. In the midst of the chaos that followed, God spares one family because of the faith of one Cannanite prostitute. How unlikely is that? How can we understand why God chose Rahab? Later, we find that Rahab and Salmon marry and have a baby named Boaz. Boaz eventually marries Ruth and their great grandson is actually King David of the linneage of Jesus! Rahab had a label, Rahab, the harlot. Yet, she played an important role in bringing our Savior into this world!

If the truth be told, probably most of us have a label. Sometimes labels are based on secrets, sometimes on habits, and sometimes on poor decisions. Yet, Rahab's story is much like our own story. When we think about approaching God, we realize that we all have some kind of label, Jimmy, the jerk, or Carrie, the coveter, or Larry, the luster, or Allen the addict. Yet, Jesus invited all kinds of people to follow Him while they were still wearing this label.

This Christmas season as we think about what Jesus did for each of us, let's rethink our approach to God. Instead of thinking about what I did (went to church, read the Bible, gave an offering, helped the neighbor, etc.), let's realize that God decided before the foundation of the earth to pay for the sins of all who wear labels regardless of what that label is. This Christmas, let's discard the "If I don't, then God won't" approach to God. Instead, let's approach the newborn Savior from the standpoint of the grace and mercy that He has offered to each of us. God offers each of us a new label. Lord, teach me to live my life in accordance with who YOU say that I am. Joy to the World!

The Unexpected Christmas--"An Unlikely Candidate"

In this second week of Andy Stanley's series, "The Unexpected Christmas", we see a contrast between every religion in the world and Christianity. Every religion in the world with the exception of Christianity teaches an approach to God based on "what I've done." People who bought into this teaching assumed an attitude of self-righteousness in order to justify a relationship with God. Others realized that they can never meet this standard and have distanced themselves from God. That was the story of Matthew, the tax collector. Matthew, though understood the teaching of Jesus. Mankind had access to God not based on what they had or had not done, but based entirely on what had been done for them. This was a brand new view and one which was destined to turn the world upside down. This was a new paradigm for mankind.

In this week's lesson, Matthew illustrated this concept by underscoring another surprising member of the linneage of Jesus. In Chapter One of Matthew, we see the reference to Judah and his brothers. Judah had eleven brothers. These brothers became the foundation for the fathers of Israel. In this week's lesson, we reference the story of Joseph. As you recall, Joseph is stripped of his multi-colored coat by his brothers and sold into slavery. Judah, one of the brothers that appears to be a leader of the brothers, influences the sale of Joseph to Egyptian traders. Later, Joseph becomes a great savior of his people and of all people in the midst of a great famine. He would make a perfect forefather of Jesus. However, God chose Judah.

Judah and Joseph are the only two brothers of the 12 brothers who have a story in the Bible. Judah gets one chapter in the Bible and his story goes from bad to creepy. Judah has three kids, one of whom married Tamar. The older son of Judah did evil in the sight of the Lord and died. The second son of Judah also did evil in the sight of the Lord and died. Judah promises to take care of his son's widow, for in that day and time, a widow who was not cared for by her husband's family was left destitute. Tamar, however, dresses as a temple prostitute and Judah hires her for her services. As a pledge for his payment, Tamar asks Judah for his seal and his staff. Three months later, when Judah is informed of his daughter-in-law's illegitimate pregnancy, he is prepared to enforce the Mosaic law requiring the death of such a woman. Tamar reveals to Judah her possession of the signature seal and the staff and Judah quickly changes his mind about the death penalty.

Judah became a part of the family line that brought Jesus into this world! Judah was a picture of you and me. He was a picture of someone who deserved one thing and got another. He is the picture of a person learning that God's grace is available even to people who have not made themselves available to God. Joseph gave to Judah (and all his brothers) the opposite of what they deserved. God chose Judah through whom He brought His son into this world.

Never has anyone ever been expected to come to God on the platform of their own righteousness. That has never been the plan. I'll never be at peace with God because of what I've done or what I haven't done. Throughout history, God always chose the broken. This Christmas, let's be thankful that we don't have to approach God based on what we have done or what we have not done. We get to approach God based entirely on what He did for each of us. The GIFT He sent to us is on that special night in history is an unspeakable GIFT. O, Holy Night!

THE UNEXPECTED CHRISTMAS--WEEK ONE

How many of you have taken photos at Christmas of the whole family? Such photos usually include grandmas and grandpas, aunts and uncles, brothers and sisters, sometimes gathered around the family Christmas tree or in front of some Christmas icon. The picture represents our immediate genealogy. In our Sunday School lesson this week, Andy Stanley begins a series titled "The Unexpected Christmas."

Andy begins a study of the writing of Matthew. He reminds us that Matthew was a tax collector, considered by the Jews to be one of the lowest of the lowest in the social heirarchy of the day. This is a man who paid the Roman government for the privilege of taxing the citizens at his own established tax rate, which offered him a handsome income! Yet, Jesus chose Matthew as one of his followers--one of his disciples--one of the writers of the Bible.

Matthew's writing starts off with the genealogy of Jesus. He was writing to a Jewish audience making the case that Jesus is the Son of God--answering the question of who is Jesus ultimately related to? Matthew makes the obvious connections in Jesus' linneage, Abraham, Isaac, King David those whom God chose to carry the line of Jesus. However, he also includes some other characters who were found in the linneage of Jesus. Some of the characters underscored by Matthew were similar to him in their standing among others, some had reputations that were as odious as the reputation of Matthew the tax collector, and some of the linneage of Jesus were as unexpected, undeserving, and unrighteous as he.

Matthew spent three years with Jesus. He heard Jesus teach. He saw Him perform miracles. He saw Jesus die on a cross and he stood next to an empty tomb. As he wrote the story of Jesus, he knew that shady characters carrying baggage were the point of the story he was about to tell. Sin was the issue Jesus came to address. Jesus didn't just come for sinners. He came FROM sinners. Jesus was the light coming into a world of darkness. He represented life coming into the element of death. He was the story of forgiveness in a world of condemnation. For Matthew, this story was also his story. These shady characters from the linneage of Jesus were like his people, like his friends.

When Jesus' followers questioned his relationship with Matthew, Jesus responded in Matthew 9:12, "...It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick." While this statement could have offended Matthew and his friends, Andy Stanley points out that people who are far from God know they are far from God. This was the case with Matthew. Andy says the story of Christmas is about God leaning towards those who had leaned away from God. Jesus changed the rules about who could approach God. The religious culture suggested that those who approach God must do so under the guise of what they have done. Jesus debunked this requirement for approaching God. He made it clear that we could approach God based on what HE did for us and NOT based on what we have done. The story of Christmas is about this GIFT that God gave to us. The greatest gift ever given...the Savior of the World who came from sinners, and people who could never qualify as part of Jesus' family. This Christmas, let's remember the GIFT God gave to each of us.

"An Unexpected Christmas"--COMING NEXT WEEK

For most of us, Christmas is more than one special day of the year. It is a time of the year in which we like to celebrate peace on earth, bright lights, cool air, and special music. It is a time when shopping and cooking and eating and spending time with the family become priorities. Special dishes and special songs, streets outlined with colored lights, the fragrant whiff of an evergreen tree, and the sweet aroma of fresh-baked cookies are part of our Christmas experience.

From a spiritual perspective, Christmas is about the birth of our savior. It's the story of God using everyday people to accomplish His purpose. It is about God fulfilling ancient prophesy exactly as it was written!

Here we are in October. Is it too early to begin thinking and talking about Christmas? If one looks at the calendar, one will see that there are nine weekends until Christmas (not counting Thanksgiving). I am certainly looking forward to the Christmas season--even if it is early in the year! I am looking forward to all of those Christmas experiences described above! Yet, wouldn't it be great if this Christmas was special? Wouldn't it be wonderful if we and our families and our friends and those who came into contact with us were able to experience a special annointing from God this Christmas? Wouldn't it be a blessing if we were prepared spiritually to celebrate the birth and life and teaching of our Lord in a way that brings us closer to Him and causes us to celebrate Christmas in a more Godly way than ever before?

We are fortunate to have two special Christmas message series from Andy Stanley that will cover eight of the next nine Sunday School Lessons leading up to Christmas. We will begin this series next week with a five week study of the geneaology of Jesus. We will study the Christmas Story during the next eight weeks from angles and perspectives that you and I may have never considered before. Andy Stanley will challenge us to think about Christmas with some unique thoughts about the way God brought His son into the world. I hope you will pray for God to touch us all with a special Christmas celebration that honors HIM and enables each of us to share a special Christmas spirit with those around us. Join us next week for "An Unexpected Christmas."

Embrace Your Response Ability--Part 4 Take Responsibility for Your Life

Every child in every culture has, at some point, uttered the phrase, "That's not fair." Well, life is NOT fair. Yet, we all want life to be fair some of the time. Andy Stanley suggests that we are really only concerned about life being fair when our piece of the pie is smallest. If we got the big piece of pie, we usually don't feel that life has been unfair to us. Even so, life isn't even. One guy marries into wealth and gets to enjoy the benefits of a big deer ranch. That was always my dream. When I met Cindy, I found out that her dad owned a "farm" in Anderson. Wow, I thought, my dream is coming true. Then, I found out that she stood to inherit 7 acres of a treeless, open prairie with no utilities and no infrastructure. Yet, one of my friends married a girl whose dad owns almost 2,000 acres of an old Mississippi plantation that is today prime deer and quail hunting habitat. Life's not fair.

In today's lesson, Andy observes that the unfairness, the unevenness of life often become an opportunity for irresponsible behavior. In past lessons, we learned that irresponsibility eats a hole in your soul. You begin a negative spiral as a result of this terrible confict in life. Perhaps, Ben Franklin said it best, "He that is good at making excuses is seldom good at anything else."

Andy also notes that people with a large piece of the pie, people with "extra" are often irresponsible with their bounty. The more money you have, the more you waste. The more free time you have, the more time is wasted.

Andy Stanley suggests that we ask the question, "What am I going to do with the opportunity that God gave me, regardless of the opportunity that someone else has been given?" Jesus taught this 2,000 years ago in Matthew 25. God's perspective on unevenness or unfairness of life was illustrated in the parable in Matthew 25:14. Andy describes this passage as a story that teaches a lesson about the unevenness of God. Parables were used to make a point and parables did not actually happen. In this story, the master gave one servant 5 bags of gold, another 2 bags of gold, and another 1 bag of gold. Andy calculated that each of these bags of gold represented about 20 years worth labor. Obviously, this was NOT an even distribution of wealth. As you recall, two of the servants put the money to work and doubled the master's money. Yet one of the servants, the one who was given the least gold, began to blame the master and whine when called to account for his lack of effort on the master's behalf. Notice that the master chose to take the gold from the servant who had been irresponsible and give it to the servant who had been most responsible. Was it fair?

Andy points out that everybody gets an uneven amount of opportunity in life and everybody gets held accountable for what they do with the opportunity given to them. Our job is to figure out how to leverage the opportunity we are given--great or small--to its maximum. What are we going to do with what we have? We need to look at our own bag and refuse to waste it or refuse to excuse myself because I don't have as much as others. Andy makes reference to a book by Scott Rigsby called UNTHINKABLE in which we see a double amputee become the first double amputee to cross the finish line in the Ford Ironman World Challenge in 2007.

Will you accept what's in your hand as coming from your Father in heaven and leverage it for something bigger than yourself? Remember, life's not fair. Get over it!

This is NOT the Time to Pray--Taking Responsibility for Your Life--Part 3

Have you ever heard someone try to talk themselves out of a situation they behaved themself into? As a former principal and school teacher, I heard it many times. I suspect the police officers in our class have heard many examples as well. As parents, you may have even heard your children try to talk themselves out of situations they behaved themself into.

Does such behavior ever apply to Christians? Do we ever try to talk or pray ourself out of situations we behaved ourselves into? I suspect we are all guilty of such behavior at some time in our lives. Some very religious folks have a tendency to hide behind their prayers and to match irresponsibility with prayers. For example, how many times have we disobeyed the will of God only to face the consequences of our actions, and then fell before God earnestly seeking deliverance from the consequences of our failure to follow God's will?

In today's lesson, Andy Stanley uses the story of Achan's Sin in Joshua 7 to illustrate how God's people often try to pray themselves out of situations they behaved themselves into. In Joshua 7, we learn that Achan took some of the spoils from God's great victory at Jericho after being told specifically not to take any of the spoils of victory. Achan saw a beautiful robe and silver and gold as he went through the rubble of the Israelite victory over Jericho. He coveted these things and took them even though the Lord specifically forbid such behavior.

Days later, when the Israelites attacked the small city of Ai, a city that Joshua's scouts had recommended only sending 3,000 men to attack and subdue the city, the Israelites were routed and chased from the city gate. Indeed, about thirty-six of the Israelite soldiers were killed. This caused the men of Israel to become afraid because they realized that God had not delivered Ai into their hands as they had expected. Joshua and the elders tore their clothes and fell face down to pray. At the end of the evening, the Lord told Joshua to stand up. He wasn't interested in granting the prayers of a people who had been unfaithful to him. He instructed Joshua to sanctify the people and to identify the men of Israel who had violated God's command. Achan was found to have the forbidden items. Achan and his entire family were destroyed. Many men died because Achan failed to honor God's commands. Praying to God was not sufficient to justify the irresponsible behavior of Achan. You might ask, "Was it fair that innocent Israelite warriors died as a result of Achan's sin? Was it fair that Achan's entire family was destroyed because of his sin?" Maybe not, but irresponsible behavior is almost never "fair" in the end.

Andy Stanley suggests that we don't need to pray about something that God has already addressed in His Word. You don't have to pray about it. God said to be honest. Don't pray about it, just be honest. God said to pay your taxes. You don't have to pray about it....just pay your taxes. God said not to participate in sex before marriage. One doesn't have to pray about it....just don't have sex before marriage. However, if someone fails to honor God's directives and then thinks they can pray their way out of a situation caused by their irresponsible behavior, they are sadly mistaken. Andy says, "If you are substituting prayer for taking responsibility in your life, you're an irresponsible person that prays." But, don't think that God is going to bail you out of a sticky situation that you have created.

Take responsibility for your life. Act responsibly. Follow God's directives. In these matters, prayer is not necessary. As the Nike slogan says, "Just Do It." If we fail to do so, we or someone else or perhaps both will have to pay for the irresponsible behavior. We can't tolerate irresponsible behavior--in our own lives or in the lives of others. Eventually, everybody pays for irresponsible behavior