Northside Church - Sydney
Christmas: Tis the Season to be Daring Week 2: Ordinary People Took A Risk
You're listening to another great message from Northside Community Church. Hello, here's the scenario, somebody's driving to a shopping centre, they've got to list this long and they realise that the time for the closure of the shopping centre is getting closed. So they're driving a little faster than usual, normally they're very careful, very sort of mild men and driver, but this time they're really tense and they get to a roundabout and take a chance, bang, there's an accident. Why? Because there's Christmas and there's pressure to meet certain shopping expectations at Christmas. Well, here's a young student, young university student, and they've managed to get a job in a toy warehouse and they're packing shelves and they've been rushed into the roll, had a bit of a briefing, a bit of a talk from the boss, but not as detailed as it should have been. They've got to pack this shelf the right way and a whole bunch of cartons and crates about to fall on them, cause them quite a bit of injury. Well, here's a middle-aged man who's facing the prospect of the fact that this Christmas will be the first Christmas when all of his children will be away for Christmas, a couple of overseas ones in the state, and he's got this heaviness that's falling upon him and it's increasing day by day and he can't understand why. And no matter what people say or do, it doesn't seem to ease his pain. Friends, one of these three scenarios, having common, they are all, each one of them falls under the heading of the risks associated with Christmas. Of course, Christmas is officially regarded as a season of risk. There are more traffic accidents, more deaths, we know this because of increased travel. Insurance companies run business seminars for organisations reminding them about the occupational health and safety requirements, particularly for those who were drafted as short term part-time workers to avoid that scenario. I just mentioned a moment ago, I went online in preparation for the message and was amazed to see the number of listings under the heading, risk management at Christmas. It was amazing, just page after page, even a training company in New York offering a seminar on the 12 risks of Christmas, presumably a bit of a play on the 12 days of Christmas, I don't know. One unusual site actually said that there's a risk to pets around the world at Christmas and they expect that sadly many dogs will die because of the excessive amounts of chocolate that they offered, I think that's true, I've heard others say that. So the world of commerce and industry regard Christmas as a risky season, with the inevitable upsurge in consumerism and travel. In the meantime, the medical world acknowledges the health risks associated with Christmas, not only with some people more prone to depression in that little scenario, I mentioned a moment ago, but because of crash diets, both before and after, excessive alcohol consumption, even as one article mentioned, the fact of bringing a live Christmas tree into your home with all the allergens that it brings with it, if you're a prone to asthma, that can be an actual risk itself. So I mean, where does it end? I mean, there's a risky time of the year, I don't know if any allergies in the Thomas household with that impressive tree that was secured yesterday. Friends, look, not a lot has changed, really, because there were many risks at that first Christmas time, many risks were taken by the key players, I'm going to bring some of them on the centre stage this morning and hopefully we can draw inspiration and encouragement from their example. Let's face it, the window of opportunity to talk about people like Mary, Joseph, the wise men, it's very small, isn't it? I mean, you trot these passages out in July, see how you go, it's just not cool, it just doesn't sound right, it's got to save up for Christmas these last three weeks. So we're going to drop onto these characters this morning, let's take Mary for starters. And among other things, I believe Mary was daring in the face of a risky conversation. I mean, how hard would it have been to tell the man she was engaged to him she's never slept with that she is expecting a baby? How hard would that conversation be, especially in the context of their very strict upbringing and their very devout lifestyle there in ancient Palestine? Mary did say that her pregnancy was part of a spectacular miracle. She did say that she had been conceived by the Holy Spirit, just wondering how long it took for Joseph to really kind of take that explanation on board. His first reaction of course was to break off the engagement, subtly remove her name from his Facebook list of friends and withdraw from the whole complicated situation as his first reaction. So it took a dream in which an angel of the Lord appears, it took a dream to convince him that Mary was telling the truth. He was about to play a very key role in God's plan of salvation for the world. But how difficult must that conversation have been for Mary? A really tough thing, she would have been aware of the risks involved in terms of the relationship. She certainly would have been aware of the risks involved as a young Jewish woman, she would have been aware of the punishment, the possible punishment which in some cases meant death for that kind of thing. Friends springboarding from that point, Christmas can be a time of risky conversations for you and for me. It's a time when we have opportunities to share what this faith means to us like never before. People are more open, they're more receptive to the things of the spirit world at this time. It takes a bit of forethought, it takes a bit of courage, but the opportunities come when the inevitable question is asked, "What are you doing for Christmas?" How many times are you going to be asked that question in the coming weeks? I would venture to say stacks of times. And you can either keep it light and fluffy and superficial or you can include a direct reference to the fact that your Christmas celebration has a very strong spiritual component to it, that your Christmas celebration will find you in church. It will find you reflecting on the birth of Jesus Christ and what that means for you personally. I'm not suggesting you drop all of this onto somebody in one hit, but you know, praying into the conversations that we're going to have with colleagues and with neighbours and with friends, it's possible that we might start some people on a pathway like that amazing story Sam told about Rob is getting baptized next Sunday, that's all it takes, something like that. You just never know what the outcome is going to be. There are risks involved, but it can be a powerful moment with people whom we know in terms of beginning their spiritual journey. We've already touched briefly on Joseph, but it's very clear that Joseph was daring in the face of a risky decision. I mean, it was one thing to be told in a dream, you are going to be the father of the Son of God. It was one thing to be told that in a dream. Another thing entirely to start thinking about that and reflecting on that and wondering what the implications would be in the cold light of day. I would think that would have been a bit of a scary experience for Joseph. He was a smart man. He would have quickly figured out that this would be no ordinary parenting role. I mean, he'd be taking a back seat for the most part. I think he would have figured that out. This child would not be his in the traditional sense. This boy would be responding to a much higher authority than mere human wisdom. Of course, this proved to be the case, but Joseph caught up in that embarrassing moment. When Jesus is 12 and he's found in the temple, he'd be missing the three days, parents were at their wits end, they find him in the temple, he's talking to the priest, he's talking to the religious leaders, and Joseph joins with Mary in expressing utter dismay and disappointment and frustration when they ask, "What are you doing here? We've been looking for you, what's going on?" What's the answer they receive, these caring, selfless parents? What's the answer they have to cope with? If you look chapter 2 verse 49, "Why did you have to look for me? Did you know I had to be in my father's house?" This is the point where we think, "Oh yeah, that's right. That's what I would have remembered. That's our special role." We remember now. Sorry, Jesus. No, no, no, that's not the case. The very next verse says, "They did not understand his answer," get your head around that. "The decision to take on the role of being the earthly father of Jesus was a risky decision." There were many uncertainties. In fact, I don't know about you, but I found whenever I need to make a decision in response to something God is calling me to, it invariably involves risk. I mean, there has to be an element of risk because only then is there room for him to show up and do what we can't do in our own strength. In our walk with God, we're meant to face risky decisions because only then are we able to fully acknowledge our need of him, our dependence on him, our reliance upon him. This is what Paul is getting at in Ephesians chapter 3, 20, when he says, "God is able to do so much more than we can ask or we can ever ask for or even think of." Some versions say more than we can even imagine. If all we're capable of in the work of the kingdom, if all we're capable of is stuff that we can think of, ideas that we can imagine, that doesn't require a lot of faith. But if we're prepared to risk or for what he can imagine, for what he can think of, you watch the faith and trust really start to take off. It's got it because God, we can't do this on our own. I love the fact that Christmas comes at the close of the year, because it invariably gives us a chance to think about the year that's gone, more particularly to think about the year that's coming, to think about some of the risky decisions God may be calling us to take in the area of service, in the area of obedience, in certain areas of our lives, in the area of stewardship, of repentance, of renewal. We as a church have the opportunity to think about the risky decisions we may be prepared to take next year in expanding our ministry influence. And the leaders are beginning that process now. It's a fantastic time. I'm so glad that Christmas comes at the end of the year. Joseph was daring in the face of a risky decision, and that's the challenge for you and me as individuals and for us as a church as we approach 2013. Moving on, the wise men, they were daring in the face of a risky journey. And of course there's a lot of speculation about the origin of their journey, the length of their journey, the arduous nature of their journey. For my purposes this morning, friends, the fact is they risked all to make the journey. That's what they did. They risked all to make the journey, but here's the thing, the journey led them to Jesus. It's a tough journey, long journey. It led them to Jesus, and the journey which leads to Jesus is invariably a very challenging one. With many moments of joy and exhilaration and blessing and many moments of disappointment and loss and grief and heartache. But that's the nature of the journey of faith. That's the way it was for Jesus. That's the way it was for the disciples. That's the way it is for all followers of Jesus Christ. And what did Jesus say on occasion? In the world you'll have troubles. Be not afraid. I have overcome the world. What happens on the journey can be handled. Ultimately, it can be conquered. Why? Because of the destination. The journey leads to Jesus. That's why. Well, finally, two of my favorite characters in the Christmas drama, Simeon and Anna, and they provide my final point, Simeon and Anna were daring in the face of a risky call to faithfulness. Do you remember these two guys? They're recorded in Luke chapter 2, verse 22 and onwards. They're both old, both very devout people, both waiting patiently for the revelation of the Messiah. That's all they wanted to see. So single minded, so focused, both the voting themselves to a life of contemplation and reflection within the temple precinct in the anticipation of the Savior. Such single mindedness, such focus. I was thinking about this, back in 1990, I had the opportunity to lead a tour to the Abraham and Gao passion play in the Bavarian Alps. This play that takes place every 10 years, once every 10 years. And the oldest member of that tour party was a lady who really had, we found out, had broken the, you weren't supposed to be over 80 to be on the tour. She was over 80. She, I don't know, something had happened with a documentary, whatever, anyway. She was on the, and nothing impressed her. We went through all through England, went through parts of the top end of Europe there, and now I'm just, she keeps saying, all I'm waiting for is the Abraham and Gao passion play. That's all I'm here for. But, you know, look at London's, look, oh, I'm going to bed, that's all I'm just water. So, so single minded, so focused. And then we got to the Abraham and Gao passion play, which goes for a whole day, in various sections throughout the day. And I looked across at Eileen on a couple of occasions, she was asleep, so she kind of missed most of it anyway, which was terribly sad. Well, Simeon and Anna, they didn't miss a thing, they might have drifted off a couple of times, maybe, but they were both wide awake when the Christ child was bought for dedication. And just hanging around the temple, you may say, well, where's the, where's the daring in that? I mean, where's the risk in merely investing time and energy into worship and into prayer? Where's the risk in daring in that? And I would answer, the daring comes in our willingness to prioritize our life to be able to achieve that level of devotion. You see, faithfulness has its cost, it has its risks. You can lose friends that are being faithful to Jesus Christ. You can, you can forfeit hobbies and special interests if you're really in serious about your walk with, with Jesus. It can cost many of the things the world holds as precious. Look at what Luke says about Anna, verse 37, "She never left the temple. Day and night she worshiped God, fasting and praying." Can you imagine what friends and relatives would have said of this lady? Poor Anna. Yeah, she's, she's a bit over the top, she's a bit of a religious nut, you know. I mean, she's a fanatic, she's always at that church of hers. Her whole life revolves around it. And she goes to a connection group between services in her house, get that? I heard she gives 10% of her income to the church. She's used holidays to go on mission trips, both overseas and, and here at home. Imagine taking religion that seriously, you know, you picture people saying that. It's a call to discipleship from Jesus, is a call to faithfulness, it's a call to commitment. It will involve us in risky conversations. It will involve us in making risky decisions. The journey itself is fraught with risks and challenges, but ultimately it leads to Jesus. The journey leads to Jesus. So look, here's the word, have a daring Christmas this, this year, you know. Let me involved in a few risky conversations. Make a few risky decisions about 2013, and how you're going to spend that, spiritually speaking. Be more diligent on the journey, knowing the journey leads day by day and ultimately eternally to Jesus. Have a daring Christmas. It's the season to be daring. It's very impressive, shall we?