What does an Easter egg have to do with Christmas? The kind of Easter egg we are talking about isn’t the ones that you pick up on Easter Sunday. We are talking about the clues hidden away in movies, books, or theme park rides that point back to a different part of the narrative or point ahead to something that is coming in the future. These Easter eggs connect the current experience with a bigger story and give it a greater meaning. The Christmas story is full of these kinds of Easter egg moments, especially as the shepherds encounter the new-born Messiah. Seeing how this moment fits with a bigger story helps us to understand how anticipation had been building for generations and how there was something even greater still to come.

Many times, when we are waiting for something to arrive, we build up in our minds what we think it will be like. We create picture of what we think it will look like. And this mental picture can even become the hope in our hearts. So when the moment arrives and it doesn’t look like what was expected, we can be disappointed or unsettled even when the arrival is better than what we expected. Israel had waited for a Messiah for generations, building up in their spiritual imagination what he would and should look like when he arrived. So when he came, and surpassed their expectations, they did not know how to receive him. We too can be caught off guard when God shows up in a long-awaited way and His answer to prayer doesn’t look like what we thought. Will we struggle to receive the blessing or will we be able to realize that God’s ways are even better than our own?

Everyone likes to get invited to something special. It is a reminder that you belong, that you matter, and that you are valued. Some invitations are more important than others, and we sometimes have to make decisions on what to attend and what to miss. For those very special gatherings, the decision is easy. As the time approaches the preparation increases and the excitement builds. As the planner of the event prepares, it becomes important for each person to send that RSVP. As we look to Christmas, God has invited us to be a part of the most amazing celebration ever! And it is not just a one-time celebration—it will go on forever. Two thousand years ago, a teenage girl got an invitation to be a part of God’s celebration, and she realized how amazing it would be. Now you and I must make a similar decision—will we allow Christ to live and grow in our hearts? Will we join the celebration? Are we getting prepared and are we excited about what is to come?

What is at the heart of generosity? The single greatest force and power driving generosity is gratitude. Realizing that God supplies every need, that God gives grace and mercy, and that God gives an abundant life rewires us. We move from fear and want to confidence and joy in helping others. The key to living with strength, freedom, and the ability to live with purpose lies in our willingness to trust God and be content with what He provides. Ultimately God invites us to know that what He chooses to provide is always the best, even when we may not like it or understand it. This radical contentment freed us from a rat race of achievement and consumption for a life of purpose and impact.

“The widow’s mite” has become a powerful symbol of sacrificial generosity. Jesus tells the disciples that this woman gave more than all the rest who donated to the temple. Her offering came from a form of commitment and devotion that many Christians have neither experienced nor understand. It is the call of every Jesus follower to wrestle with the call to “die to self.” The call is not sacrifice for the sake of sacrifice or self-denial itself. The call on every follower of Jesus is to be fully committed to the mission of the Gospel even when it requires sacrifice. Worship of God is costly. Comfortable and casual Christianity is neither true worship nor God honoring at all. In following Jesus there is a higher calling not based on dollar signs or percentages, but by commitment and passion for the Kingdom of God.

In the early days of the church, followers of Jesus faced many challenges and trials. The church in Jerusalem especially struggled with all kinds of persecution. In response, the Apostle Paul collected financial support from churches around the Roman empire to help believers in need. In this letter to the church in Corinth, Paul praises the efforts of the believers in Macedonia in their generosity. It would have been easy for these believers to focus solely on their own lives and building up their specific house-churches, but they had a bigger and greater view of the call to join with God’s kingdom work. Their efforts to support the Jerusalem Christians both honored God and made a real positive impact in the lives of others—not only the current believers but also all of those that the church in Jerusalem would reach with the Gospel message. We need a global and kingdom view of our work in the world. We don’t just participate in programs, we look to impact generations and bring the Gospel to the world.

What does it mean to love another person? Love is acting in a tangible way to benefit another person. It doesn’t always come with warm feelings, and it doesn’t always come with getting something in return. In fact, it often comes at a cost. And sometimes we must decide if we will keep loving when life is hard. Living in a broken world means that we are going to deal with problems, pain, and predicaments. We must choose to love amid these things, not to avoid these things. A reward is coming, but it won’t always come here and now. In 2 Kings 4 we get a picture of faithful giving with no expectation of immediate reward. We love when we don’t expect anything in return. Then God shows up and gives what no one else can give—a prize that will not fade and rust but made for a resurrected and forever life.

The Bible teaches that those who love money will never have enough. We may be able to get what we want, but we discover that nothing really satisfies that does not come from God. Many of the world’s wealthiest continue to live in want and dissatisfaction because they do not know what it means to receive the good gifts of God. On the other hand, many of the world’s poor and needy see God’s love show up in tangible ways daily. They see regular miracles of God. Allowing ourselves to depend on God puts us in position to experience the miracle of daily provision AND the miracle of God working through us to provide for others. In our position of need we discover that there is a delight in dependence because God is faithful to provide in amazing ways.

The greatest barrier to generosity is fear. Specifically, the fear of scarcity is the great hurdle to generosity. When I am afraid of not having enough, it will be nearly impossible to have a generous heart. Thankfully, there is good news here. God is generous. In Christ we have an abundant life, not a life of scarcity. This does not mean that God wants us all to have a big house, nice cars, luxury vacations, and fancy clothes. But it DOES mean that God wants to care for our daily needs and give us true blessings that last not just for a few months or even years, but will last a life-time and for eternity. When we learn to depend on God’s good provision we discover that a generous heart is born in knowing a generous God.

Stand-alone sermon by Jonathan Wallace