Colossians 3:12-17.     The results of Christmas??         30/12/12

 {12}  Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. {13} Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. {14} And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. {15} Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. {16} Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. {17} And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

 For many, Christmas is all over for another year. However, here we as Christians are reminded that in many ways Christmas is only just beginning. The gifts we received as a result of Christmas will be of lasting value for us: they will give us something to light up every day of the rest of our life. The batteries don’t run out on this one. Their usefulness is there all the time for us and truly gives us those things that make our lives infinitely richer and better.

 As you listened to that reading I am sure you would have thought that  those qualities and gifts mentioned there are what would make for a far better life for our lives and our world. They are what would make things far better for us and our relationships with those around us. If only we could be like that every day then Christmas would go on for us.

 Well today we are reminded here that these are all things that are freely available to every one of us. As a result of Christmas, each one of us can have all of this, all of the time. We all can make use of these gifts every day of our life and so have a whole new attitude and outlook on life. We can have that which will give our lives that something truly special that will enlighten and liven up our lives in ways that are good and helpful. We can have a joy and peace in our lives that surpasses all understanding.

 The problem of course is that all too often we leave these gifts under the tree. We get on with our life and slip back to our old selfish ways instead of keeping these gifts very much in the forefront of our thinking. We fail to use these gifts that have been made available to us all. Then off course the spirit of Christmas quickly evaporates from our lives and we are left to struggle with the difficulties of our lives on an ongoing basis.

 When we focus on the earthly gifts and the things that our world places as important, we find the spirit of Christmas is quickly gone: the batteries go flat and the promised happiness from the latest fad quickly fades. So we put those things on the shelf to gather dust and then once again go looking for the next possibility that might give us what we long for. But it will never work: we will never find that which we hope might be out there for us.

Yet, it is always there, waiting and available. Because Christ is now with us, we have the gift of those things that will now help us through life in the best way possible. Because as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved we are able to have all these things. Because Jesus has come to help us out of the mess we have made for ourselves, because he loves us dearly, this is all possible. He came to die on the cross so that now can be declared holy. God can now make available to us all that we need for life.

 God tells us therefore all we need to do is clothe ourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. We can put on those things that will enable us to be infinitely better people. They are his gift to us to make the most of. So put them on and use them and we will be surprised at the change that they will make in our relationships with others.

 But there is even more: Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. There we have the gift that will help in our relationships even further. In fact it is probably one of the most important aspects for us to have in our relationships with others. With Christ and his gift we can bear one another’s faults and failings, recognising that we all have our weaknesses and failures. That doesn’t mean that we condone bad behaviour, but we bear with each other, recognising that it is part of our sinful human nature.

 Forgiveness then is a vital aspect in these relationships, because we do fail constantly to do the right thing. So we readily recognise our failures and say sorry for them and forgive them. Again, because of Christmas: Christ come to be with us and die on the cross for us so that we might be forgiven, we now readily forgive one another. Jesus died for us even though we sin much, and now enables us to do the same in our relationships.

 Overarching all of this is the ability to now, over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Now instead of being selfish and self-centred we can be outward focussed: we can put the welfare of the other above our own interests. We can do so because, of Christ coming to be with us, we now know that we are guaranteed eternal life in heaven where we will have the very best of everything good. So we can give of ourselves for the benefit of others knowing that we will not go short ourselves.

 The flow on of that is that the peace of Christ rule in our hearts, since as members of one body we were called to peace. What another wonderful gift to be able to have as a result of Christmas. Because we are now one body with Christ and our fellow believers we are at peace with God and that then flows on to our relationships with one another. As we allow his peace to rule in our lives we can have that peace in the rest of our lives.

 And be thankful. With the gift of Christ and all that he brings we have every reason to be ever so grateful. Even in the face of the realities of life: difficulties, troubles, sickness and death, we still have every reason to be thankful. We now know that everything works for the good of those who love the Lord. Yes life in this world will always be tainted by the consequences of sin, but now we know that this is not the end of the story. In Christ we have the certainty of eternal life with our Lord in heaven.

 But as I have already said, this is not always easy to live this way. We still have our sinful, selfish nature and the realities of living in a sinful world, and so we will not readily see this new and wonderful life. The difficulties and tragedies of life will threaten to drag us down and drive us to despair. We will be distracted by the glitz and ‘glamour’ of the world around us, so that no longer look to this wonderful gift that is now ours. But that is where his next words are so important for us.

 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. We need to very much keep close to God’s Word, his Divine Services, and our fellowship with fellow Christians in order to keep our focus on the things that are important. It is through the Word and Sacraments of Baptism and Holy Communion that we receive the help and strength to do all that is needed for us maintain these gifts in our daily life. So also is the support and encouragement we give and receive from our fellow believers important for us in keeping these good things of Christmas very much a part of our daily lives.

 Then to conclude we are told that: whatever we do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. As I have often said, we need to continually keep our focus on Jesus Christ and the cross, and we will not go far wrong. After all he has done for us by coming into our world, that first Christmas, and through his death on the cross so that we might be forgiven, we have every good reason to hold Jesus Christ ever before us as the one who is all important in life.

 So may we all go from here and continually live in light of and with the gifts of Christmas: and may our ‘spiritual batteries’ never go flat, so that these gifts can continue to enliven and strengthen every day of the rest of lives. Then through our enriched lives may even greater glory and honour go to him who has made it all possible, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. After all to him alone belongs all glory and honour, now and always.  AMEN.

 Pastor Roger Atze

Glandore/Underdale Lutheran Parish