Tabernacle

Merry Christmas!  What a joy to worship together in one service this morning!  All throughout Advent we have looked at the different gifts given by those who were there at the first Christmas.  The wise men gave their riches, the shepherds gave their hearts, Joseph gave his honor, and Mary gave her body.  But let’s not forget the most important person in the story!  Jesus gave everything: His riches, His heart, His honor, His body, and even His life.  “Never has anyone given up so much” (John Stott).

A lot of people today would rather describe themselves as “spiritual” instead of “religious”.  Religion feels man-made and constraining to them.  Spirituality feels spirit-made and liberating.  They emphasize the spiritual and mystical, not the physical and tangible.  But when God wanted to show us His love, He didn’t just give us His Spirit, He also gave us His Son.  And His Son took on physicality and tangibility; He took on a body.  And then He did something even more wonderful—He gave us His body. “This is my body given for you…” (Luke 22:19).

Imagine the shepherds, carefully counting their sheep and the hours until dawn.  Every day and every night the same.  But then glory shines and a chain reaction takes over—they can’t help but rush off to Bethlehem and tell everyone what they’ve seen and heard.  Their extravagance of feelings and actions ought to instruct our dull hearts and our slow steps.  But ultimately, it ought to direct our hearts and steps to the One whose extravagance of feelings and actions led Him to do the unimaginable—for us.

Imagine the shepherds, carefully counting their sheep and the hours until dawn.  Every day and every night the same.  But then glory shines and a chain reaction takes over—they can’t help but rush off to Bethlehem and tell everyone what they’ve seen and heard.  Their extravagance of feelings and actions ought to instruct our dull hearts and our slow steps.  But ultimately, it ought to direct our hearts and steps to the One whose extravagance of feelings and actions led Him to do the unimaginable—for us.

Christmas season is upon us once again. This is the time of the year when we celebrate the birth of Jesus. Why then do we refer to this season as Advent? Advent teaches us that Jesus was not just born, but that He came. There are several important implications to this. First, the fact that Jesus came implies that He came from somewhere. He is eternally the Son of God, the second person of the Trinity, and he came into our world. Second, the fact that Jesus came implies that he chose to come and that he came for a reason. His birth was not passive. Jesus chose to humble Himself and to enter our world as an infant to save sinners. Finally, the fact that He came also reminds us that He will come again. Celebrate Jesus’ birth this season! But do more than that, remember that He came for you and that He will return. Worship Him.

We’re saving the best for last!  As we conclude our Next Step of Faith series on stewardship, we are wrapping up with joy.  God loves a cheerful, joyful, happy giver, and that is what we are celebrating today in worship.  Joy is His goal for us.  God really does want you and I to experience true joy in this world and the next!  Joy is not only our last topic in this stewardship series, it is also what we are feeling as we witness the remarkable results of our campaign.  Our debt is shrinking, our vision is sharpening, and our ministries are expanding!  There’s a lot to be joyful about—and thankful.

Jesus preached about the “kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 4:17).  He proclaimed the “gospel of the kingdom” (4:23).  Is that what you think of when you think of the Gospel?  Is there a difference between the “Gospel” and the “Gospel of the Kingdom”?  Are they the same thing?  Tabernacle exists for the advancement of Christ’s Kingdom in our congregation, in our community, and in the world.  I pray today’s worship service and Next Step of Faith Festival will help all of us give thanks for God’s work in and through us, and to know what part each of us plays in fulfilling His purposes for us.

Rewards in the Christian life are tricky.  We want our good works to be genuine, not false.  We want to do good because it is good, not because we are bribed.  And yet, Jesus unapologetically tells us to expect rewards in heaven for our obedience on earth.  He even tells us to give to the needy so that we might “Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys” (Luke 12:33).  Did you know that your generosity is an investment in heaven with guaranteed returns?  This is no earthly bribe.  It is heavenly sanity.

“If I had ever learnt, I should have been a great proficient.” So states Lady Catherine de Bourgh regarding her hypothetical proficiency on the piano in Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice.  No one is proficient in theory.  No one is generous in theory.  It requires action to learn to play an instrument and it requires action to learn to be generous.  Piano virtuosos sacrifice their time, their money, and other interests to achieve their goal.  Sacrifice is the key.  Generous people sacrifice their time, their money, and other interests to bless others.  Lady Catherine was off her rich rocker!  So are we if we say, “If I had ever sacrificed, I should have been a generous person.“

When was the last time you repented of losing your temper and saying something in anger?  When was the last time you repented of lying or lusting?  You probably don’t have to think back too far, right?  Now think—when was the last time your repented of your greed or covetousness or lack of generosity?  That’s a harder one.  Tim Keller observes, “Jesus warns people far more often about greed than about sex, yet almost no one thinks they are guilty of it” (Counterfeit Gods).  Jesus calls us to pray and repent over our love of money.  He calls us to believe that our treasure is not on earth but in heaven.  He calls us to use our money to glorify God and to help others enjoy Him forever.