Everything I Needed to Know, I Learned at Christmas

EVERYTHING I NEEDED TO KNOW, I LEARNED AT CHRISTMAS by Ray Pritchard Several months ago Lou Diaz of Wheaton Evangelical Free Church suggested to me the idea of preaching on “Christmas and the Christian Worldview.” Because the coming of Christ changed history–literally, from B.C. to A.D.–we aren’t straining things to say, “Everything is different now that Christ has come to the world.” This isn’t a sentimental thought–like “The Little Drummer Boy” or “I’ll Be Home for Christmas.” Seen in its proper context, Christ’s birth speaks with incredible relevance to 21st-century people who write off Christmas as nothing more than eggnog and candy canes. Here are the four sermons in the series called, Everything I Needed to Know, I Learned at Christmas: November 30–Faded Glory: Why Christ Had to Come. Text: Psalm 8 & Hebrews 2:5-9. The Incarnation reveals both the ruin and the majesty of the human race. He came because we were fallen; he came because we were made in God’s image. He became a man–not a squirrel or a bird. This touches issues such as the reality of sin and the sanctity of all human life. December 7–No Crib for a Bed: The God of Every Circumstance. Text: Galatians 4:4. God may be seen in the tiniest details of the birth of Christ–from the decree by Caesar Augustus to the “No Vacancy” sign at the inn in Bethlehem to Simon’s prediction of Christ’s death on the cross. Nothing happens by chance–though that’s how it appears on the surface. Christmas teaches us that God works in all things, all the time, to accomplish his purposes on the earth. Note the wonderful King James phrase–“and it came to pass.” When God is in charge, it always “comes to pass” exactly as he ordains. December 14–Can You Hear the Angels Singing? Christmas and the “Other World.” Text: Luke 2:1-20. How remarkable this is: Angels everywhere, God speaks in dreams, a “star” guides the Magi to Jesus. At Christmas we learn that there truly is “another world” that is more real than this world. Christmas reminds us that this world is temporary; the “other world” is the only world that really matters. December 21–A Savior is Born: God’s Christmas Message. Text: Luke 2:11. To those who sit in darkness, a great light has shined from Bethlehem. He came for the lost, to live among the lost, that he might one day save the lost. This is the heart of the Bible doctrine of redemption. This truth joins Bethlehem and Golgotha and reminds us that the beauty of Christmas will one day lead (must lead–for it cannot be any other way) to the agony of the cross. And in these days of pluralistic confusion, let us clearly say that Jesus is not only the Savior of the world; he is the only Savior of the world. We need no other way of salvation–and apart from him, there is no other way.