The Lutheran Hour
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"The Perfect Christmas"
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Text: Galatians 4:4-5
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Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed! Dear Lord, at Your time, according to Your will, You sent Your Son into this world to change things, to make things better, to give us a taste of Your perfection. Send Your Holy Spirit upon us that, with faith in the Christ, we may be given a perfect Christmas founded on a perfect Savior. God grant this to us all. Amen.
The shopping day known as Black Friday is over. You are already aware the Christmas season has begun. The next four weeks ahead of us will be filled with activities unending, obligations unrelenting, and duties overwhelming. All of these things we will endure in order to find the perfect Christmas. Today, as the Christian church begins a new year and marks the season which encourages believers to remember the Savior’s first coming and look forward to His second arrival on earth, I thought it would be right, as sort of a public service message, for me to help you find the perfect Christmas.
Now I know you could go to the internet and find some help there. I scanned what was available and found numerous articles on how to achieve the perfect Christmas. There I read you could do this by picking the perfect Christmas tree, either real or artificial. There was advice on how to make a perfect Christmas by picking the perfect present for those whose names appear on your list. There were features on how to achieve the perfect Christmas by cooking the perfect Christmas feast and how to create the perfect Christmas by properly decorating your house with the hanging of a few hundred-thousand LED lights. Of course, that is just scratching the surface. There were other articles: articles on how to put together the perfect Christmas music playlist; how to take the perfect Christmas vacation; how to throw the perfect Christmas party, and how to be the perfect Christmas guest or host. Now I am sure all of those articles are both informative and enlightening, but I would still like to add my two cents on how to have the perfect Christmas.
I do so without shame or hesitation since I am a bit of an expert on the super-holiday. Not only is Klaus my last name, I also have a gray beard and a belly which shakes like a bowl full of jelly. But more than that, I am married to one of the nation’s foremost Christmasaholics. When we get up to the quaint town of Frankenmuth, Michigan, we have to set aside an entire day to shop at Bronner’s Christmas Store. Come to our house in July, and as likely as not, you will hear Christmas music being played. Our nativity set is never taken down and around the house, in various places of honor, are placed some of her ever-growing number of Santa Claus dolls.
So, yes, I am an expert who wishes to help you seekers possess the perfect Christmas. To do that, I think it is only right and proper for us to go back two thousand years and observe how the principal players in the Savior’s birth achieved their perfect Christmas. After all, if anyone should know how to achieve perfection, it ought to be them.
The first people we encounter are the priest Zacharias and his wife, Elizabeth. When we meet them, they are old and they are childless. Their lives had not been ideal. They had lived in a day and age which was much different than our own. Today we are concerned about how to help people limit the size of their families, but in those days, children were considered to be blessings from the Lord. Conversely, being without children was a sign of the Divinity’s displeasure. ‘Certainly,’ the reasoning went, ‘this couple must have done something, at some time, which had caused the Lord to punish them in such a way.’ It was to this couple which had endured society’s smirks and sneers that the Lord sent His angelic messenger. The angel, Gabriel by name, came privately to Zacharias in the temple and told him 1. He would have a son; 2. that son would be the forerunner of the Messiah; and 3. his boy would be named ‘John.
That news should have been the perfect Christmas present. It should have been, but it wasn’t. Having heard the angel, Zacharias did what most people would do. He doubted. Possibly, all those unsuccessful years of trying to have a child had left a mental and spiritual scar. Possibly the priest felt the angel was a delusion, a bit of his imagination gone wild. Zacharias doubted and, as both reminder and punishment, was struck dumb until his son was born; which left Elizabeth all alone in explaining her unexpected pregnancy. It left her to tell the story to the cynics, the skeptics, the gossips, and the curious. It left her to deal with the entire family who, after the boy was born, wanted to call him Zacharias Junior and not John as God had instructed. What I’m trying to say is, for this aged couple, the time immediately before Christmas was anything but perfect.
The next person we meet in the search for the perfect Christmas is an extraordinary young girl by the name of Mary. I say she was young, but the Bible really doesn’t say. On the other hand, if she were like other Jewish girls of that time, her family would have set up her engagement shortly after puberty. The same angel who had appeared to Zacharias also stepped in on Mary. She was shocked, surprised, and confused. Who could blame her? In short order she was informed she would become pregnant and her child would be the Son of God, the Savior of the world. Mary asked a question or two for clarification and then the angel left her alone with an incredible bit of good news.
Or was it? Was the news good? Today, from our perspective in history, we would say, “Absolutely, the world received a Savior through this woman.” But that is hardly seeing things from Mary’s perspective. Mary was engaged. In a few months, even with loose clothing, her condition was going to become noticeable. The tongues of the gossips in Nazareth would begin to wag. Joseph would know and he would also know that the Child Mary was carrying wasn’t his. She would have to explain her pregnancy to her father who would assume she had brought disgrace upon the family’s good name. Ladies, let me ask you, what would your betrothed or your father say if you went and said, “I’m pregnant by the power of the Holy Spirit and my Son is going to be perfect?” No man would ever believe such a thing, and in those days, such an infidelity could end up with Mary being stoned. It would take a considerable stretch of the truth for anyone to say, for Mary, those months before Christmas were perfect.
Should I continue? I just mentioned Joseph. He had entered into the engagement process in good faith. The agreement would have been made between the families and he would have been proud to see the wedding preparations proceeding smoothly. He would have looked forward to the day when he could bring his new bride into his home. But then Mary became great with Child. Some observers would have assumed the Child was his and others would have spent a great deal of time trying to guess the name of Mary’s secret lover. But Joseph knew. He knew the Child wasn’t his. Disappointed, Joseph decided although he wasn’t going to accuse Mary of infidelity, he wasn’t going to marry her either. That’s the way it was for the man until the Lord revealed the truth to him in a dream. Still, you can understand why those days before the first Christmas were not perfect for Jesus’ foster father.
An escape from the rumors and scandals swirling all around them was provided for the couple when they heard Caesar Augustus in Rome had ordered a census be taken of the empire. The imperial command called for the pair to journey to Bethlehem, a small town about 70 miles away. Of course, that distance is as the crow flies. In practical terms, Joseph, with a very pregnant Mary, had to journey about 90 miles to take part in Caesar’s census. Did they walk those dusty miles? Did she ride a donkey? It doesn’t make much difference, does it? Either way the trip was uncomfortable and filled with danger to both mother and unborn Child. It would be surprising if either Mary or Joseph had said, “This is going to be the perfect Christmas.”
They eventually arrived in Bethlehem and two things became quickly evident: first, Mary was going to have her baby very soon, and second, there was no place she could go for a reasonably safe delivery. Tradition says that with no room in the local inn, the Christ-Child was born in a stable. If so, it was not the antiseptic stable that appears on my wife’s Christmas card. It would have been a stable filled with all the germs, sights, sounds, and smells of a barn. Any curious onlooker would quickly conclude that the first Christmas was hardly perfect. True, the appearance of the shepherds, the first to receive the good news of the Messiah’s birth, had to provide some comfort and reassurance to Mary and Joseph. But we need to remember those shepherds risked a lot to go and see this thing about which the Lord had told them.
You see, in appearing at the Savior’s manger, those shepherds had to leave their flocks behind. Their sheep could have been stolen; they could have been attacked by wild animals; they could have been scared by a noise and scattered across the hillside. This was their livelihood and they left that livelihood behind so they could worship the Baby Jesus and that night became the first to tell the world about what the Lord was doing.
My friends, if you remember, we started out a few minutes ago trying to find the perfect Christmas. By any human criterion, the first Christmas was anything but perfect. There were no lights, there was no music, there was no feasting, no drinking, no family reunions, no cards, no caroling, no tinseled trees, no parties, and no expensive, brightly wrapped presents. Looking into the future a bit, the visit of the Wise Men, who brought gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, would also bring the soldiers of mad King Herod who would kill the infant children of Bethlehem. A perfect Christmas? Not hardly.
That, my friends, is Scripture’s picture of the first Christmas. There are problems and troubles in great abundance. Indeed, there are few troubles that we have today which the first Christmas cannot match or beat. And that is the point of today’s message. The first Christmas was, from a human point-of-view, not a perfect one. If the world had been perfect; if everything had been in its correct place; if everything had been proper and pristine, there would have been no need or purpose for the Savior to come.
But Jesus did come. He came to an imperfect world filled with imperfect people who thought imperfect thoughts and said imperfect things and did imperfect deeds. Jesus came. According to God’s plan and promise, “When the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law.” In short, God’s perfect all-powerful Son came and, born of human Mary; became One of us. True God so He might fulfill the law and lead a perfect life; true Man so He might live and die as One of us, Jesus’ entire life was dedicated to doing all that was necessary to forgive our sins, save our souls, and touch us in our troubles.
Jesus came, and, more than 30 years later, was able to say to His disciples as well as to us, “Let not your hearts be troubled.” At the beginning of this Christmas season, you need to hear those words. I am convinced there is not a single person listening to my voice today who is not troubled. There are the normal troubles… what will the government do; what is the status of my health; what is the future of my job; the kids, the parents, the church, the family, the economy, the school, and the entire expanse of the unknown future. To these general worries are added your specialized troubles. From here I am not able to say what those weights might be. But just for a second, I want you to stop and think; stop and remember.
What is it which nags at your heart, twists your stomach, raises your blood pressure, and robs you of sleep? You know it, don’t you? You can see it. It has a face. Try to forget it; it is always there as your constant companion. It refuses resolution and will not be ignored. When you go to bed, it is there and when you rise up, it has already put on the coffee. And during this holiday time, as everyone searches for the perfect Christmas, it seems to grow stronger and more cruel. No, I don’t know what it is. You can fill in the blank. Then, having done so, hear the Lord say, “Do not let your hearts be troubled.”
Understand, Jesus is not saying, ‘You don’t have troubles.’ He was a Man afflicted, beaten, misunderstood, denied, deserted, betrayed, and crucified. He was tempted in more ways than we can understand. No, Jesus would never say you have no troubles. Nor does Jesus say, “Do not think about your troubles.” Even Jesus wrestled in the Garden of Gethsemane with the sins of the world and the upcoming day’s events. No, Jesus would never say, “Don’t think about your troubles.” What He does say is, “Don’t let your hearts be troubled.”
That’s not the same as pretending that your troubles will disappear. That’s not the same as not thinking about your problems. What Jesus is saying is that when troubles come, as they did for every person in the Christmas Gospel, don’t let them run your life, don’t let them dominate you. Don’t let those troubles squeeze and push the Savior out of your heart. If Jesus continues to live there, within you, then there is no difficulty; then there is nothing He cannot handle.
Of course, all of us would like to know what the secret is to stop our troubles from ruining us and bringing us to the cliff of collapse. To those questioners, Jesus supplies the answer when He says: “You believe in God, you believe in Me.” It’s as simple as that. The Lord Jesus Christ, Who conquered Satan, Who defeated the grave, can, if we allow Him, also thrash our troubles. He Who conquered the major difficulties of this world, can defeat our difficulties as well.
The perfect Christmas. That’s what we started out looking for. Did you find it? No? I’m not surprised. You never will. Imperfect people in an imperfect world cannot produce perfection. Only God can and He does. In the stable, on the cross, at the open tomb, Jesus gave to all who believe the opportunity to escape the troubles of this world and be given a peace and perfection the world cannot offer. This Christmas it is there.
And, my friends, if you need help in receiving this great gift, we are ready to help. Please, call us at The Lutheran Hour. Amen.
Action in Ministry for November 27, 2016
Guest: Lori ParkerANNOUNCER: You’re listening to The Lutheran Hour and this is Action In Ministry. The calendar is drawing to a close and today we begin a new church year with the season of Advent.
SELTZ: Right, Mark. Here at Lutheran Hour Ministries, we know we can get caught up in the hype of Christmas, at least from the world’s point of view, and how easy it is to lose sight of Jesus in the midst of all those other preparations.
ANNOUNCER: We have a special resource we’d like to share with you that can help you keep Christ at the heart of Christmas for you and your family. Here to tell us a little bit about that, about our Advent devotions is Lori Parker, our colleague, who’s been here at Lutheran Hour Ministries since 1977. She manages our TeleCare Department and her staff has the privilege of speaking with many of you.
SELTZ: Lori, thanks so much for being here with us today.
PARKER: I’m glad to be here.
SELTZ: It’s our pleasure. All right. Lori, each year we offer the short, daily devotions for the Advent season. What do you and your staff hear about from those who are actually using these devotions?
PARKER: Many of the comments that we hear are just how meaningful these devotions are, on a daily basis. It’s a great time. They gather their family together. They do the devotions together. It helps them to keep their focus on Christ.
ANNOUNCER: What are some of the creative ways that people are using these devotions?
PARKER: One church wrote stating that they are going to print over 6,000 copies of this devotion this year. This is their 9th year doing it. They call it the Advent Devotion Project and they call themselves God’s Outreach Squad. They hand-deliver these copies to area churches. They mail them out and they also mail them to others around the world. There are many ways you can share these devotions. You can hand them out to individuals you encounter in your everyday life. When you go to a restaurant and leave a tip, you can leave a devotion.
SELTZ: But you better leave a good tip with that devotion.
PARKER: That’s right. You can take them to the bank, give them to your bank teller, and you can leave them in waiting rooms at the doctor’s office, at hospitals, in a funeral home, anywhere that you would want to leave them.
SELTZ: These really are wonderful resources. I know because I get a chance to read them. I’m the voice that you will hear if you’re actually listening to them. They are so powerful and so meaningful, and so why not just leave them someplace so someone else might be blessed if they just picked them up. I was just thinking about this. Advent and adventure…those folks that are doing it by being God’s Squad, that’s an adventure and that’s really what Advent is about; that’s what these resources are about too. Lori, each year our Advent devotions, though, they follow a theme of sorts. Tell us a little bit more about this year’s focus.
PARKER: This year’s Advent devotion theme is Christmas Memories. While most of us have fond memories of decorations, colorful decorations, presents, baking cookies, spending time getting together with families; this devotion helps us to focus on the reason for the season; which is to celebrate our greatest Gift, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
ANNOUNCER: Specifically, how does this devotion series bring that focus to light?
PARKER: The devotions weave together personal family memories of Christmas with the actual Christmas Story.
ANNOUNCER: It switches between now and then; back and forth.
SELTZ: Now and then, back and forth. It’s so wonderful to see that the message of Christ actually fits into the daily parts of our life just like it did back then. That’s so great. So how can someone get a hold of these resources and begin to put them to use in their life?
PARKER: These devotions are downloadable online and customizable so that you can customize them with your church’s name on them. You can print as many copies as you want for free; and they’re in large print, regular print, and you can print them in color or black-and-white. You can listen to them online. You can subscribe by email and you can listen through the podcast.
SELTZ: There are so many ways you can put this to use in your life, right? I’m really starting to appreciate the large print edition, so thank you so much for that. Like I said, I get a chance to voice these wonderful resources, so I’ll look forward to being with you guys each and every day through the Advent season. There’s so many ways to use these devotions to get ready. We can put them to use for ourselves and for others. Lori, thanks for being here today to talk to us about this great resource that can actually enrich our Christmas season.
PARKER: Well, thank you for having me.
SELTZ: It’s our pleasure and that is our Action In Ministry segment today; to bless, to empower, and to strengthen your life in Christ for others.
ANNOUNCER: And for more information on the Advent devotions, go to lutheranhour.org and click on Action In Ministry. Or call 1-855-john316. That’s 1-855-564-6316. Our email address is info@lhm.org.
LUTHERAN HOUR MAILBOX (Questions & Answers) for November 27, 2016
Topic: 4th of JulyANNOUNCER: It’s the first Sunday in Advent; the first Sunday of a new church year and we are here once again with our Speaker Emeritus, Pastor Ken Klaus. I’m Mark Eischer.
KLAUS: Hello, Mark. You are absolutely right; this is the beginning of a new church year. I was so busy with my holiday planning, I had almost forgotten.
ANNOUNCER: How is that possible? Advent is the time when Christians prepare for the coming of the world’s Savior.
Klaus: Yes, that’s what the word Advent means: coming. Advent is a time of repentance for our sins which brought Jesus, God’s Son, into this world. So, on the one hand, Advent is a time of sorrow.
ANNOUNCER: But it’s also a time of joy. Jesus began His mission with His birth in Bethlehem and He successfully completed it with His death and resurrection. Because of what He did, all who believe in Him as Savior are rescued from hell and damnation.
Klaus: Yup, no doubt about it, Advent is a special time. But that, my friend, is not the holiday occupying my attention right now.
ANNOUNCER: Really? What holiday are you preparing for?
KLAUS: The Fourth of July.
ANNOUNCER: The Fourth of July?
KLAUS: Absolutely, the Fourth of July. You see, I’ve been out of touch. Every year, the malls and superstores start getting their Christmas stuff out in July. That’s about the time I start getting catalogues advertising Christmas presents. The TV shopping networks run Christmas bargains all year long. So, I figured….
ANNOUNCER: … if they can start celebrating Christmas six months early…
KLAUS: …then I can start celebrating the true meaning of the Fourth of July in December.
ANNOUNCER: Okay. How does one capture the true meaning of the 4th of July?
KLAUS: By celebrating it the way it was meant to be celebrated. The true meaning of the 4th of July is fireworks. I’m going to get lots of fireworks. And bunting. Can’t forget the bunting. Then I’m going to barbecue. Everybody knows the true meaning of the 4th involves a brisket or pork shoulder slow-smoked for hours! Thankfully, I’m in Texas now and not Minnesota, where 4th of July barbecuing could get to be a problem in December.
ANNOUNCER: So you think the true meaning of the 4th of July is fireworks, barbecue, and…
KLAUS: Bunting. Red, white, and blue bunting. That’s what you need to remember the 4th properly. What do you think?
ANNOUNCER: I think if the founding fathers heard you say that, they’d want to clobber you with the Liberty Bell. The 4th of July is all about celebrating political freedom that was won and is maintained at great cost. Those other things are nice, but they’re really superficial compared to the true meaning of the 4th of July.
KLAUS: You know, Mark, you may be right.
ANNOUNCER: About the 4th of July?
KLAUS: No, about Advent and Christmas.
ANNOUNCER: I’m glad we got back to Advent and Christmas, but I’m not quite sure how we got there.
KLAUS: Easy. I will concede I may have messed up a bit on my “true meaning of the 4th of July” preparations. But I am also going to say most people do the same with regard to their Christmas plans. Tell me, Mark, between now, the beginning of Advent, and December 25th, how are people going to be celebrating?
ANNOUNCER: There’s going to be parties, and Christmas cards, and shopping… lots of shopping. There will also be family gatherings, reunions, lots of eating and drinking.
KLAUS: And do all of those ways of celebrating really get at the heart of Christmas?
ANNOUNCER: No more than a barbecue gets at the true meaning of the 4th of July. It’s nice, but it misses the point.
KLAUS: That’s what I think, too. You know, Mark, I’ve watched the TV Christmas specials. They tell me that family is the true meaning of Christmas, or that being accepting of other people’s differences is the true meaning of Charismas, or that a chubby little fellow in a sleigh is the true meaning of Christmas. And as nice as those things are…
ANNOUNCER: …they aren’t Christmas. They miss the heart of the thing. Just like the 4th of July ought to give thanks for freedom won at great cost.
KLAUS: Christmas ought to give thanks for salvation won at great cost… and it begins in Bethlehem with a little Child, God’s Son, Who gave His life so we might be saved.
ANNOUNCER: So, what are you going to celebrate on December 25th?
KLAUS: The same thing I will celebrate on the 4th of July. Freedom. December 25th is spiritual freedom from sin, death, and devil won for me by God’s Son and July 4th will be freedom won for me by America’s heroes.
ANNOUNCER: Thank you, Pastor Klaus. This has been a presentation of Lutheran Hour Ministries.
Music Selections for this program:
“A Mighty Fortress” arranged by Chris Bergmann. Used by permission.
“Savior of the Nations, Come” From The Concordia Organist (© 2009 Concordia Publishing House)
“Lift Up Your Heads, Ye Mighty Gates” From The Concordia Organist (© 2009 Concordia Publishing House)