New Things for the New Year!

As the holidays draw to a close every year, most people begin to contemplate, “What’s my New Year’s resolution going to be this year?” While you inevitably grow and make changes all throughout the year, there’s something refreshing and definitive about resolving to make changes at the beginning of a brand-new year. Many people even have a standing New Year’s resolution that they commit to anew every January, only to lose momentum somewhere along the way. Diminished resolve and motivation are common for everyone.

Top Ten Resolutions …

Go back to school… Get a better job…  Get in Shape…  Make a Difference…  Go Somewhere…  Quit Smoking… Reduce debt / save money…  Get Organized…  Find someone special… Focus on Important Relationships.

I.          New Treasures

a. Matt 13:52  He said to them, "Therefore every teacher of the law who has been instructed about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old." 

b. My Bible – God’s Word written to me!

c. A Bible that's falling apart probably belongs to someone who isn't.

d. A man who loves his wife will love her letters and her photographs because they speak to him of her. So if we love the Lord Jesus, we shall love the Bible because it speaks to us of him.

God's Book is packed full of overwhelming riches; they are unsearchable-the more we have the more there is to have. Oswald Chambers

I study my Bible as I gather apples. First, I shake the whole tree that the ripest might fall. Then I shake each limb, and when I have shaken each limb, I shake each branch and every twig. Then I look under every leaf. Martin Luther

II.       New Birth

a. 1 Peter 1:3-6 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade — kept in heaven for you, 5 who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.

b. Nicodemus

c.  John 3:3-7 In reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again." 4 "How can a man be born when he is old?" Nicodemus asked. "Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb to be born!" 5 Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be surprised at my saying, 'You must be born again.'

d.The world laughs at the phrase “Born Again” … the world does not understand the things of the Spirit!

The Bible is a universe of revelation facts which have no meaning for us until we are born from above; when we are born again we see in it what we never saw before. We are lifted into the realm where Jesus lives and we begin to see what he sees.

III.    New Creation

a. 2 Cor 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!

b. Walk into a dark room and flip on the light switch.

If Jesus Christ is only a teacher, then all he can do is to tantalize us, to erect a standard we cannot attain to; but when we are born again of the Spirit of God, we know that he did not come only to teach us, he came to make us what he teaches we should be.

IV.    New Person

a. Eph 4:22-24 You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23 to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

b. Col 3:8-10 Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.

The craze on daytime television has become to have a celebrity make over. They bring out a member of the audience. Dressed in their everyday casual attire. The producers take the individual backstage and give them a new hairdo, They give them a manicure and a pedicure. They take them shopping and buy them new clothes. Then they do the big reveal… ta-dah! A new person. New only on the outside. What lies beneath the skin the true person is still the same .. unchanged. When Christ does a makeover, He starts on the inside. He changes the heart. Even dressed in the same cloths you can tell by the face that it is a new creation in Christ!

V.        New Teachings

a. Mark 1:21-27  They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach. 22 The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law. 23 Just then a man in their synagogue who was possessed by an evil spirit cried out, 24 "What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are — the Holy One of God!" 25 "Be quiet!" said Jesus sternly. "Come out of him!"  26 The evil spirit shook the man violently and came out of him with a shriek. 27 The people were all so amazed that they asked each other, "What is this? A new teaching — and with authority! He even gives orders to evil spirits and they obey him."

As a starving man in front of a banquet feast, we partake of Christ as though we will never get enough. Having been satisfied we go out to find others also starving and bring them in to enjoy the feast.

The more I experience my life in Christ … the more I want to experience!

VI.    New Command

a. John 13:34-35  "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."  

b. The Old commandments demanded obedience out of a motivation of fear. The New Commandments enlist obedience out of a love relationship with God.

c.  Do you love your children? … enough to die for them?

d. Do you love your parents? … enough to die for them?

e. Do you love your spouse? .. enough to die for them?

f.   Do you love Christ? ….

VII. New Life

a. Rom 6:3-4  We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

b. A person may go to heaven without health, without riches, without honors, without learning, without friends; but he can never go there without Christ.

In new birth God does three impossible things: the first is to make a man's past as though it had never been; the second, to make a man all over again; and the third, to make a man as certain of God as God is of himself.

VIII.      New Covenant

a. Luke 22:20  In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.

b. What debt would you owe someone who saves your life?

Someone asked Luther: "Do you feel that you have been forgiven?" He answered: "No, but I'm as sure as there's a God in heaven. For feelings come and feelings go, and feelings are deceiving; My warrant is the Word of God, naught else is worth believing. Though all my heart should feel condemned for want of some sweet token, There is One greater than my heart whose Word cannot be broken. I'll trust in God's unchanging Word till soul and body sever; For though all things shall pass away, his Word shall stand forever!" --  Martin Luther

IX.    Everything New

a. Rev 21:2-5  I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."  5 He who was seated on the throne said, "I am making everything new !"

Have you ever bought a new car? … I mean showroom new. You sit in it and enjoy the new car smell. Did you know that smell comes in a spray can? New can be an illusion in cars but I know what new true will be.

b. New is when God makes everything new.

X.       New Song

a. Rev 14:3 And they sang a new song before the throne …

b. Moved to sing.

While driving to a meeting the other day, I felt as lifeless as the white sky and frozen roadway stretching before me. Where was joy? I wondered. When would I sing again? Right away, God gave me fresh perspective. Looking up, I noticed telephone wires suspended horizontally across the highway like a musical staff. Birds at various levels punctuated the lines like little black notes. As I sped by, insulated by my car's closed window, I couldn't hear them, but I knew they were singing. Reassured, I remembered the psalmist's words, "Sing to the Lord a new song" (Psalm 96:1), and I knew God could give me a song, too.

A man said … My three-year-old son, Grant, told me he learned a new song in children's church about goats on the mountain when Jesus was born. I hadn't heard that one before, so I asked him to sing it. He began, "Goats tell it on the mountain, over the hills and everywhere. Goats tell it on the mountain, that Jesus Christ is born."

Cleaning Up After Christmas

Cleaning Up After Christmas

What was it like about this time yesterday at your house? Was it nice and quiet and peaceful? ….

Who doesn't remember the thrill of getting up on Christmas morning and racing to the Christmas tree to see what Santa brought us?  After that, there’s a great breakfast and trips to grandparents and relatives.  We usually have our traditional Christmas Tex-Mex meal. As children, Christmas morning was a magical time in our lives that none of us ever forget. As we grow older, that Christmas morning joy doesn't disappear.  We re-create that joy for ourselves, our friends and our children. Christmas morning is a time filled with exhilaration, gratitude and hope.  We still enjoy opening gifts with our family members and sharing memories with them of other Christmas mornings. It wasn't only getting and opening up gifts that made Christmas mornings special in our lives.  Those trips to church and to visit relatives, the music, the food, the fire crackling in the fireplace are all part of what made those mornings so special. So special, in fact, that we carry them with us our whole lives.

After the excitement of opening gifts come the chore of cleaning up the wrapping paper and boxes that the gifts came in.

I thought about cleaning up after Christmas…

Luke 2:19-24 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told. 21 On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise him, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he had been conceived. 22 When the time of their purification according to the Law of Moses had been completed, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord 23(as it is written in the Law of the Lord, "Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord"), 24 and to offer a sacrifice in keeping with what is said in the Law of the Lord: "a pair of doves or two young pigeons."

I.          Precious Memories

I remember one Christmas where the SS class of young married couples invited the senior adult SS class to their party. We went around the room sharing our favorite Christmas memories. What a great time … what precious memories.

Assignment … write down your favorite thoughts and memories from Christmases past and present.

Start a notebook. Cherish those moments each year as you add to your collection.

a. V. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.

b. John 15:20 Remember the words I spoke to you:

c. John 16:4 I have told you this, so that when the time comes you will remember that I warned you.

In Hank Ketcham's comic strip "Dennis the Menace," Dennis asks his father, "Why can't Christmas ever go into overtime?" It's a good question. It's a great idea! All we could ever imagine, could ever hope for, He is. ... He is the Prince of Peace whose first coming has already transformed society but whose second coming will forever establish justice and righteousness. All this, and infinitely more, alive in an impoverished baby in a barn. That is what Christmas means-- in a place where you would least expect to find anything you want, to find everything you could ever want.

II.       Normalcy Returns

a. V.20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

b. Luke 17:22-25 Then he said to his disciples, "The time is coming when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it. 23 Men will tell you, 'There he is!' or 'Here he is!' Do not go running off after them. 24 For the Son of Man in his day will be like the lightning, which flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other. 25 But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.

In "A Carol for Children" Ogden Nash picked up the rhythm of the carol "God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen" Two of the stanzas are these: "Oh, dimly, dimly glows the star Through the electric throng; The bidding in temple and bazaar   Drowns out the silver song.       Two ultimate laws alone we know,  The ledger and the sword--  So far away, so long ago  We lost the infant Lord."

In the Indian Ocean there is a Christmas Island; an almost lost, isolated speck of land. There is another Christmas Island, an equally isolated speck of land almost lost in the Pacific Ocean. Christmas is always an island; an island of hope in a world of despair, an island of love in a world of indifference, an island of giving in a self-centered world. Come to Christmas Island!

III.    Prophetic Name

a. V.21 On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise him, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he had been conceived.

b. Matt 5:17-18 "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets ; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.

c.  Luke 10:24 For I tell you that many prophets and kings wanted to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it." 

When Jesus was born, the whole course of human history was changed. Art, music, literature, Western culture itself with all its institutions and Western man's whole understanding of himself and his world changed. It is impossible to conceive how differently things would have turned out if that birth had not happened. And there is a truth beyond that: for millions of people who have believed since, the birth of Jesus made possible not just a new way of understanding life but a new way of living it.

Isa 9:6-7 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace 7 Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David's throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever.

IV.    Obedient Act

a. V.22-23 When the time of their purification according to the Law of Moses had been completed, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord 23(as it is written in the Law of the Lord, "Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord")

b. 2 Cor 2:9 The reason I wrote you was to see if you would stand the test and be obedient in everything.

c. 1 Peter 1:14-16 As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. 15 But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; 16 for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy." 

Residents of Wauconda, Illinois refused to let the plug be pulled on Christmas. Two water towers had always served as landmarks for travelers heading for their homes near Wauconda, Illinois. But especially at the holidays. More than 40 years ago, John Kuester, then village police chief, suggested mounting large twin lighted crosses on the towers to mark the season. The display of crosses became a tradition. But in 1989, Robert Sherman, spokesman for American Atheists, Inc., heard about the crosses. Since Wauconda's crosses were on government property, Sherman saw an alleged violation of church and state. He delivered an ultimatum: remove the crosses from the water towers or meet in court. Several town hall meetings followed. Resident Joyce Mitchell, a member of Crossroads Community Church, asked God to give her the right words and right spirit before each meeting. "The Christians in the community were united with the rest of the community--whether they were churchgoers or not--in refusing to let some outsider tell us how to celebrate Christmas." Realizing a similar case had lost in court, the residents of Wauconda opted not to fight the order. Then a grassroots group of residents had the final say. "Our business, Wauconda Boat Company, is located across from the village hall," resident Rosemary Buschick explains. "The meeting about the crosses was on a Tuesday night, and when it was over, we knew the crosses would have to come down. Then my husband, Chuck, went to the back room of the shop and constructed a window-sized cross with lights to display the next day. Will Shumaker, whose home appliance store is also on Main Street, also put up a cross. Within weeks, crosses were appearing on houses everywhere--attached to antennas, stuck in yards, beaming from trees, shining in windows. It seemed to just happen." When Joyce Mitchell drove around the village with her daughters, who were 6 and 9 at the time, she began to cry. "The media portrayed us as losing the fight, but we didn't lose. Two crosses had been replaced with hundreds. God was glorified in the end."

V.        Required Sacrifice

a. 24 and to offer a sacrifice in keeping with what is said in the Law of the Lord: "a pair of doves or two young pigeons."

b. Rom 3:23-25 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. 25 God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood.

c. Eph 5:1-2 Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children 2 and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

Praise God for Christmas. Praise Him for the Incarnation for Word made flesh. I will not sing of shepherds watching flocks on frosty night or angel choristers. I will not sing of stable bare in Bethlehem or lowing oxen wise men trailing distant star with gold and frankincense and myrrh. Tonight I will sing praise to the Father who stood on heaven's threshold and said farewell to His Son as He stepped across the stars to Bethlehem and Jerusalem. And I will sing praise to the infinite eternal Son who became most finite a Baby who would one day be executed for my crimes.

 Praise Him in the heavens.

 Praise Him in the stable.

 Praise Him in my heart.

Six Again

Audio Link - http://www.sermonaudio.com/sermoninfo.asp?SID=12201075458

A man was sitting on the edge of the bed, watching his wife, who was looking at herself in the mirror. He began pondering what he should get here for Christmas. They were pretty well off so she didn’t really need anything she had everything she could want. He finally asked her what she'd like to have for her Christmas. 'I'd like to be six again', she replied, still looking in the mirror. On Christmas morning, he arose early, made her a nice big bowl of Lucky Charms cereal, and then took her to Six Flags theme park. He had spared no expense. He had arranged for a private opening of the park. What a day! He put her on every ride in the park; the Death Slide, the Wall of Fear, the Screaming Roller Coaster, everything there was. And no lines. Five hours later they staggered out of the theme park. Her head was reeling and her stomach felt upside down. He then took her to a McDonald's where he ordered her a Happy Meal with extra fries and a chocolate shake. Then it was off to a movie, popcorn, a soda pop, and her favorite  candy, M&M's. What a fantastic gift! Finally she wobbled home with her husband and collapsed into bed exhausted. He leaned over his wife with a big smile and lovingly asked, 'Well Dear, what was it like being six again?" Her eyes slowly opened and her expression suddenly changed. ''I meant my dress size!!!"

What do you get the person who has everything?

When I was six years old, my family lived in Dover, England. As Christmas was approaching we received a big box sent by family back home in the states. One of the items that came out of that big box was a U.S. Army pedal car for me. It was a great christmas because I thought that was the greatest Christmas gift possible.

Matt 7:9-12 "Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11 If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!

Rom 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Message on a Christmas Card - "If our greatest need had been information, God would have sent us an educator.  If our greatest need had been for reformation, God would have sent us an innovator.  If our greatest need had been money, God would have sent us an economist.  But since our greatest need was forgiveness, God sent us a Savior."

I.          If our greatest need had been information, God would have sent us an Educator.

a. Matt 5:1 Now when he saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2 and he began to teach them,

b. Matt 11:1 After Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples, he went on from there to teach and preach in the towns of Galilee.

c. Mark 2:13-14 Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to him, and he began to teach them.

A chaplain who was ministering to a seriously wounded soldier was requested by the dying man to write a letter to his former Sunday school teacher.  "Tell her I died a Christian because of what she taught me in that class in church.  The memory of her earnest pleas and the warmth of her love as she asked us to accept Jesus has stayed with me.  Tell her I'll meet her in Heaven."  The message was sent, and some time later the chaplain received this reply: "May God forgive me.  Just last month I resigned my position and abandoned my Sunday school pupils because I felt my work had been fruitless.  How I regret my impatience and lack of faith!  I shall ask my pastor to let me go back to teaching.  I have learned that when one sows for God, the reaping is both sure and blessed!"

II.       If our greatest need had been reformation, God would have sent us an innovator.

Matt 9:16-17 "No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch will pull away from the garment, making the tear worse. 17 Neither do men pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst, the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved."

Rom 6:4-11 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. 5 If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection. 6 For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin— 7 because anyone who has died has been freed from sin. 8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. 9 For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. 10 The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. 11 In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.

Have some of your carefully created castles been washed away? Mine have. Several times along my life's journey, I had nowhere to turn except into my heavenly Father's arms. There I remained quiet, soaking up his love for as long as I needed. Then I saw his hand begin a new creation for my life, a new direction, a new service for him and his kingdom. Waves need not always destroy. We must allow our heavenly Father to use them to redirect our lives.

III.    If our greatest need had been money, God would have sent us an economist.

Matt 6:24 "No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money .

Matt 25:14-30  "Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his property to them. 15 To one he gave five talents of money , to another two talents, and to another one talent, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. 16 The man who had received the five talents went at once and put his money to work and gained five more. 17 So also, the one with the two talents gained two more. 18 But the man who had received the one talent went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master's money . 19 "After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. 20 The man who had received the five talents brought the other five. 'Master,' he said, 'you entrusted me with five talents. See, I have gained five more.' 21 "His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. come and share your master's happiness!' 22 "The man with the two talents also came. 'Master,' he said, 'you entrusted me with two talents; see, I have gained two more.' 23 "His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!' 24 "Then the man who had received the one talent came. 'Master,' he said, 'I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. 25 So I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.' 26 "His master replied, 'You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? 27 Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest. 28 "'Take the talent from him and give it to the one who has the ten talents. 29 For everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. 30 And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'

If a man runs after money, he's money-mad; if he keeps it, he's a capitalist; if he spends it, he's a playboy; if he doesn't try to get it, he lacks ambition. If he gets it without working for it, he's a parasite; and if he accumulates it after a lifetime of hard work, people call him a fool who never got anything out of life.

God solves the problem …

      … everything we have comes from Him and so belongs to Him. He only asks us to give a small portion back to Him!

IV.    But our greatest need was for forgiveness, so God sent us a Savior

a. Rom 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

b. Rom 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

c.  Rom 5:8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

d. John 3:16-18 "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son.

e.  Mark 2:10 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins “

Each year in Washington, D.C., someone rents a hall, hires an orchestra, and advertises a sing-along production of Handel's Messiah. People stand in line to get tickets. The choir numbers five thousand. They pay for the privilege of singing Messiah. Of course, it is always a privilege to sing of the Christ or to speak of the Christ. Why do we not take advantage of our opportunities to do it?

Early Christians wisely decided to celebrate the birth of Christ on a day that was already a recognized holiday, December 25. Celebrating on this day would keep them from suspicion and danger. The Romans called December 25 "The Birthday of the Unconquered SUN" because it was so close to December 21, the winter solstice. For Christians it became "The Birthday of the Unconquered SON."