Micah 5:2-5a.     A meaningful /life-changing Christmas gift!!                        20/12/15

2 "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times. " 

3Therefore Israel will be abandoned until the time when she who is in labour gives birth and the rest of his brothers return to join the Israelites. 

4 He will stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God. And they will live securely, for then his greatness will reach to the ends of the earth.

5 And he will be their peace. 

Yes, we are at that time of the year again. Christmas is almost on us. Hopefully by now we have done much of our Christmas shopping. But again I am sure we have been frazzled by trying to decide what we are going to give as gifts to those who are near and dear to us. At a time when everyone has got everything that they want; what do you get them that they might enjoy and in some way find meaningful and lasting?

In the end, we often get something that we know when the battery has run flat the interest will already be gone and the person is bored once more. But what do you get. Nothing is lasting and so much is not as meaningful as it used to be. At least that is the way that it seems. Maybe this is a reflection of our own thinking, or the vastness of ‘stuff’ that is out there and peddled as being good, but our experience is the it doesn’t live up to the hype. So what Christmas Gift is meaningful and lasting for us to give and receive?

Now when I was young, and if the truth be told it is still there today, when I looked at the Christmas gifts, nicely wrapped under the tree, I would look firstly to the biggest and brightest and hope that that would be mine. For some reason or other the bigger, brighter and better looking the wrapping was, the better we thought the gift would be.

Then in the unwrapping of it there was great excitement, in the hope that here was something really great. Often it would be something that we were hoping to get and which we thought would be super good, so for the first few days we were all over it as much as we could. However it did not take long for the novelty to wear off. Then the gift gets put away in the corner and rarely used.

The bigger was not always better and the brighter would just as quickly become lack-lustre. Often the socks and shirts got far more use than the toy we think was just great. The noisier they were the more quickly they became irritating. So the wrapping and gift often has little to do with its greatness and meaningfulness.

Nearly always, even now sadly as we are older and supposedly wiser, we quickly overlook the little tag stuck to the outside of the present. On it written, something like, To Roger with love from …….. and maybe a message that is deep and meaningful and lasting. Quickly overlooked and discarded in favour of the gift itself. That which is truly good is not treasured anywhere near as much as the gift that is here today and gone tomorrow.

This is Christmas today for most of us. We know that it should be much more than that, but we can’t seem to help it. The same thing then also crosses over into the spiritual sphere of Christmas. We get caught up in the trappings and quickly brush over the real meaning and significance of Christmas. Then we wonder why Christmas doesn’t seem to be Christmas all.

Instead of Christmas lighting up each day of the year for us, we too get caught up in ‘the twelve days of Christmas’ then it is all over and done with. Very quickly Christmas loses its dazzle and the ‘batteries’ of our faith runs flat once more. Then we start questioning within ourselves whether there is anything much to it all. Our church attendance slackens off and the pressures of life increase more and more.

Now it is right into the midst of all of this thinking that our text here this morning has much to say to us, and a great deal of encouragement to give to us. Here is a prophecy that was made hundreds of years before Christmas ever was a reality. Here God was giving his people a meaningful present that would change everything. Yes that ‘package’ did not get unpacked for them for many years hence. But the message on the wrapping helped to sustain them and keep them looking forward into the future with hope and a deep sense of excitement.

The message starts out: "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah.” A tiny little village is to be significant in this package that is to come. The ‘wrapping paper’ is very plain and ordinary. The box it comes in is small and insignificant. But the present that you will find in it will be great and life changing for all: even us here two thousand years later again.

Yes out of this little town Bethlehem “will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times." The present that comes to the world from this little village will be a ruler who will rule over God’s people. This ruler is the one whom God had determined and promised way back in ancient times. In fact even before the creation of the world itself.

God knew that we would sin and so he already had his plan in mind as to how he would save his people and ensure that they can be in his presence for all eternity. Then regularly he reminded his people that he would send the Messiah who would save and rescue his people from the mess that they had made for themselves. He would be “the Lamb of God” who takes away the sin of the world: He would take the punishment we deserve on himself, so that we could be forgiven and made acceptable once more.

So the message was there for them way back then and for us today. God would come to save his people. But between now and the fulfilment of this, God tell his people that they will be abandoned until the time when she who is in labour gives birth and the rest of his brothers return to join the Israelites. So for a while real life in a sinful world will not always be easy. There will be times when we are left feeling as though God has abandoned us.

Nevertheless his sure promise is that it will come to an end. And it did. All Israelites had to return to their ancestral town for a census and in that process a young woman named Mary give birth to her baby in that little village of Bethlehem.  All very lowly and unassuming, but was to be a gift that changed the world.

Now the message that was given in connection with this gift was that this baby will stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God. Now think through what this is saying, not just to those people way back then, but also to us here today. This baby will stand in the strength of the Lord. So here in Jesus will be one who has all the power of God.

This power will be at work pastoring his people: Shepherding them as a shepherd would do for his sheep. He will lead them to green pastures and cool refreshing water. He will protect them and guide them; he will give his life to rescue them from the clutches of the evil one.

Even though he is born in such an ordinary and lowly manner he has all the majesty of the name of the LORD his God. He thereby is God almighty himself come into our world to do what is necessary for us to be saved from death and hell. God walked this earth and did miracle after miracle to clearly show there was God himself come into our world so that we would stop and listen and take note. He taught the things of God with great authority and power and so that people sat up and took note. Here was the Lord himself, the boss of all, so we need to sit up and take note.

Then he went to Jerusalem and allowed the leaders to put him to death on the cross. God takes the punishment that you and I deserve on himself so that we might be forgiven and accepted back into God’s family. God lowers himself to us so that we might be lifted up to him. He takes on our sin and in place gives us his righteousness. God forsakes his own Son so that we might not be forsaken. How amazing is that.

Then God raises him from the dead so that we can know that all who are connected to him will also be raised to life again and taken to be with God in heaven; there to enjoy the rest of eternity. All who believe and are baptised he assures that they will now be with him in heaven. Nothing now can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus.

So now they and we will live securely, for then his greatness will reach to the ends of the earth. Jesus lived died and rose again so that all people can know and be a part of this great thing he has done for us. The present – this gift is for all. Sadly of course many will reject and turn their backs on this gift and so will lose these great benefits; but it is for all.

So, all who take seriously this gift and the message that goes with him will receive that which is truly great, meaningful and lasting. It is a gift that gives peace, hope and joy to all who listen and take seriously what has been done for us. This gift – this Jesus Christ will be their peace. 

Now we have something meaningful and lasting to give life and hope to every day of the rest of our lives. Now we have a gift to share with others this Christmas that far surpasses any other gift. So help others and ourselves to take careful note of the real message of Christmas and then we all will receive that which lasts and lasts, to eternal life. So to him again then be all glory and honour, now and always. AMEN.

Pastor Roger Atze

Glandore/Underdale Lutheran Parish