December 23, 2007 Sermon

Jesus Fulfills the Plan
Luke 2:1-20

I wonder when Mary and Joseph most felt like giving up.

Was it when Mary somehow had to get Joseph away from all the relatives (in a house where privacy did not exist) and tell him, “Uh, I know we haven’t done anything, but, well, I’m pregnant.” The Bible tells us he “quietly resolved to divorce her.” According to the custom of their day, their fathers had bound them with a contract years before. No matter what their marital status was when she had to tell him, if Joseph wanted out he had to divorce Mary. But he reconsidered. He stood by her.

Did Mary and Joseph most feel like giving up when they learned of the Emperor’s decree that all must go to their tribe’s home towns and pay a tax? They could add. They knew Mary should deliver that baby right about then. They could project that they would have to walk about 100 miles (counting the extra distance to get around the territory of the hated Samaritans) just when Mary would (a) have to lug around a nearly-full-term stomach; (b) have to carry a newborn while recovering from a birth accomplished in her mother’s mud house; or (c) God forbid: have the baby during their journey. But they had no choice. The decree required them to go, and on such-and-such a date. They went.

Did Mary and Joseph most feel like quitting when she felt that first contraction while walking toward Bethlehem? Did they reach bottom after all the angels and shepherds left them alone with their child for the first time and the cold silence of the night reminded them that they still had to pay that cussed tax, then walk those 100 miles back to Nazareth? Or did it come when Herod started killing baby boys back down there in Bethlehem and word reached them even in their remote corner of the north?

We have only a couple of tantalizing glimpses of what went on in Mary and Joseph’s hearts. We know only a bit about what they did. But what they did was keep going. Mary could have argued with God’s decision to make her the mother of His Son. Perhaps she might even have refused the “honor”. But she accepted it. Joseph could have left Mary. He had every reason. Nobody would have questioned his decision, especially when her belly began telling the world why he made it. But he stuck by her. The two of them could have turned aside or pulled apart any number of times. But they kept going. Because they did, God’s eternal plan to save humanity worked through them.

Jesus fulfilled God’s eternal plan. As God, he submitted to human birth. We offer him all honor and praise for his decision. We thank him for his love. We glorify him that he has accomplished our salvation. But his birth most assuredly did not happen in a vacuum. It happened in Mary. And Joseph stood beside her. These three—Jesus, Mary and Joseph—show us how blessings can come through perseverance. They kept going. Because they did, God’s plan worked.

When do you most feel like quitting? How can you find the spiritual energy to keep believing, to keep going with and toward God, to keep walking toward salvation? Let Christmas renew your spirit.

When do you most feel like quitting? You parents: did the bottom come when the baby just would not go to sleep—for the fourth night in a row? Did it come when your child’s weary teacher, the one with 32 other students to get through at parent-teacher conferences, told you that your son/daughter still got into fights on the playground, still led the mean girls in their campaign against the less popular, still drew violent cartoons? Did it come when your defiant teen managed to hide yet another destructive aspect of his or her life from you, and then lied to your face when confronted with evidence of it? Did it come when your grown child effectively removed you from his/her life—and from that of your precious grandchildren? When did you most feel like quitting?

Let Christmas renew your spirit.

You single people: do you ever feel like quitting? How deeply do you fear that you will never connect with an honest, caring person who actually loves you? You married people: do you ever feel like quitting? How deeply do you feel trapped in a dying relationship? You aging people: do you ever feel like quitting? How deeply do you feel like just giving up because, really, what good can you do now? Everybody together now: do you ever feel like quitting on the job, at home, at school, with God?

Let Christmas renew your spirit.

I had a moment this week. They come every once in a while. I once again made a serious mistake in my practice of ministry. I had to accept that I had once again done one of the things on my personal list of stupid, stubborn habits. And after speaking with the person or people in question, I found myself fantasizing about changing careers. Nothing serious, mind you. I have never gotten far with these thoughts. I have a wife and family to support. I refuse to move. Decent jobs do not grow on trees in northern Michigan. Plus there’s the pesky matter of God’s call on my life. Imperfectly as I do it, ministry is what I must do.

I believe that God works through us. I also believe that God gives us the freedom to choose not to obey God. I believe that most of the suffering in this world results from our abuse of that freedom. We stubbornly go our own way, instead of God’s. This causes pain. Yet this pain does not disprove God, nor that God has a plan. In fact, I believe that God’s plan incorporates our freedom. I believe that God knows what choices we will make, and that many of them will be sinful. That is precisely why God’s plan had to include being born into a human body. God suffered as we do to display his love for us.

Over the years I have heard dozens of pre-game speeches to football teams. I heard them when I played. I have heard them here at this church as visiting speakers have addressed the West high school team. I have made a few of those speeches myself. They follow a pattern. The speakers open with nervous references to their own athletic prowess (or lack thereof). They continue with a statement of the theme of the speech. The speakers then add one or two stories (preferably from the world of sports) to illustrate that theme. They conclude with a rousing repetition of the theme. Almost without exception that theme is: Don’t ever quit. After a few such speakers the players no doubt tune them out. That’s a shame, because it is a terrific message.

Do not tune out this message. Do not quit. We do not know why Mary and Joseph kept going. Perhaps they felt trapped, as though they had no choice but to play out the hand dealt them. Perhaps they got pre-game speeches from their loved ones. Perhaps they believed in the God of Abraham and never considered trying to thwart His plan. In the end it does not matter. Because they kept going, God fulfilled his eternal plan for the salvation of humanity. Because they kept going, we can, too.

Let Christmas renew your spirit. Let Christmas, our celebration of the birth of God in human form, give you the strength to keep going. If stories of people who have fought through challenges inspire you, gain new strength from the story of Mary and Joseph. If you love the decorations on houses, let the Light shining in the darkness renew your spirit. If the idea of God submitting to human birth fills you with wonder, let the love of Christ renew your hope.

We all face the decision of whether to keep going in the face of pain and discouragement. Never quit. Let Christmas renew your spirit. Keep going all the way to Jesus.