A SEASON OR A REASON?

Matthew 2:1-12 / 1 Corinthians 15:1-4,14

Christmas is a wonderful time of year. But, in the last few decades, something terrible has happened. Somebody has stolen
Christmas! Not only have they stolen Christmas, they replaced it with something terrible. They have replaced Christmas with –
SHOPPING!

The gifts of the wise men formed the start of the tradition of ‘giving’ gifts at Christmas. Now, giving things to others is a wonderful
way to express your love and appreciation for them, but if we are not careful, we end up in the place where the only focus are
material things. It seems to be all about the giving, and nothing about the birth, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

We need to start taking heed to what is said in Joshua 24:15... ‘As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.’ Joshua didn’t say
anything at all about shopping for presents, did he? He was saying that he and his entire household would serve the Lord. More
than they wanted presents they wanted God’s presence among them.

Talking about giving gifts, there was a married couple once that really didn’t try too hard to get along with one another. So, one
Christmas, she gave him a burial plot for Christmas. He was stunned, but he didn’t say anything about it.

The next Christmas she didn’t get him anything. This was more than he could handle, so he just told her that he was quite hurt that
she didn’t get him anything. She said, “Why should I? You didn’t use the gift I got you last year.”

To be honest, most of us like to get gifts, don’t we? It is because of this desire to please others through gifts that Christmas has
turned into one giant selling spree. Parents love to buy for their children, but they cannot afford to pay cash for everything they
want to buy, so they act like the aid and “charge” it. What they don’t realize is that hurts the family even more because now they
are paying for it for years to come.

What do you think pleased the Lord the most? Was it the gifts the wise men brought to him, or was it the fact that they came to
worship Him that counted the most?

I am not saying there is anything wrong with buying gifts for others at Christmastime. I think the desire to give shows a very
Christian heart. But, I think that as we do buy things for others, we should not only use common sense when it comes to our
budgets, but we must also keep focused on the real meaning of Christmas, and what it means to us as individuals.

If we were to ask the thousands of children that are left in orphanages, or that are abandoned, I am sure they would all want to
have a real home with a loving family more than any gift.

We can give those around us many things this Christmas, but none of them even come close to the love we give them by merely
being around them and sharing time with them. See, your presence is the best possible gift you could ever get for someone whom
you love and treasure.

The most important thing WE NEED is to understand the PREEMINENCE, PURPOSE, POWER of true Christmas:

1. PRE-EMINENCE OF CHRIST IS THE REASON NOT A SEASON – The prime point person of Christmas is Jesus Christ! Not Santa
Clause, not Mary, not the wise men, not someone else, it is CHRIST JESUS.

Now a days Jesus has been out of place, out of the picture, outdated and the worst they change Christ into unknown by the letter
‘X’. The most shared and remembered for every Christmas season is not Christ, it’s the THING! Not the KING!

SHARE THE LORD WITH THEM

Can we at least read the Christmas story before opening gifts? Are we really afraid of offending someone? We should be! Many
offend Christ as He is ignored at His own birthday.

A little girl came home from Sunday school and proudly told her mother she had memorized a Bible verse. She said it was JOHN
3:16, and she began to repeat it – For God so loved the world that He gave His only forgotten son...

When Jesus looks down at the way we tend to celebrate Christmas today, I wonder if He feels somewhat forgotten. We have all the
trappings of a celebration – the trees, the lights, the gifts, the foods and the songs – but where is Jesus? After all, this is the
celebration of His birth! We should be focused on Him. Not us! We are supposed to be joyously celebrating the presence of Jesus –
not the presents under the tree.

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I think it is time to make it very clear that we are Christians, we believe in Jesus Christ, and if that offends somebody we are sorry –
we are sorry they get offended, that is. We are not sorry that we worship the Lord and we do not plan on NOT worshiping the Lord.
What is

The greatest presents that we can give to our kids, our families, and our friends is to share with them the presence of the Lord.
Deuteronomy 6:6-9
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And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: 7 And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children,
and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when
thou risest up. 8 And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. 9 And thou
shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.

Let us make sure that our family and friends celebrate the true meaning of Christmas this year. Celebrate the birth of Jesus, and not
the race to see who can buy the most. Share the Word of God with them this Christmas, not the word of the world.

Share with others about how Jesus came to literally sacrifice His very life – for them, because He loves them. See, the cradle without
the cross means nothing.

The Christmas story does not end after the birth, nor does it end after the cross. If Jesus had stayed dead and buried, He would be
no more than the other leaders of other religions. (1 Cor 15:14)

The only thing that separates us from all other religions in the world is that their leaders are all still buried where they died. Ours
isn’t. Our leader arose from the grave and ascended into heaven to be at the right hand of God, where He sits to this day.

Let Jesus Christ BE YOUR/OUR PREEMINENCE not for a season but for a reason.

2. PURPOSE OF CHRIST HAS A REASON FOR THE SEASON – Luke 19:1-10

There is no other purpose of Christmas - to give gift of eternal life. Salvation of all men!
Let us analyze the statement of Mary – Luke 1:46-47, What does she really need? Salvation!

FULFILL THE PURPOSE OF CHRIST BY SHARE LOVE OF CHRIST WITH THEM

If you would ask a young child which they would prefer for Christmas, a new bicycle, or one hour playing with mom and dad on the
floor, they would immediately say the bicycle.

But which would mean the most in their lives? Twenty years later, they will not remember the bicycle, but they would remember
that one-hour with mom and dad playing with them on the floor until the day they die.

Give your family the wonderful presence of your love. Give your friends the wonderful presence of your love. In 1 JOHN 3:18, we
read, 1 John 3:18 My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.

There’s a story of a family who went to see Grandma for Christmas. The little boy and the little girl were told to be sure to wipe their
feet before they went inside, because Grandma had brand new carpet.

When they got there, the kids did as they were told. Soon, Grandma gave them each a glass of Kool-Aid. As you would guess, the
little boy ventured into the living room with his and promptly spilled red Kool-Aid on the light beige carpet. He tried to clean it up
with his shirttail, but when he saw that wasn’t working, he started to cry.

The grandmother came in and put her arms around him and said, “That’s okay, honey, don’t cry...Grandma will get you another
glass of Kool-Aid.”

That is how you show love to someone. By really caring what they are going through. By caring enough about somebody to sacrifice
something that has value to you. And sacrificing it willingly – just like Jesus did His life upon the Cross of Calvary.

Most people will not pay attention to the Lord by themselves. It seems that everybody who is a Christian was brought to it by
someone who cared for them; someone who led them. This Christmas, care enough about someone else to lead them to Christ!

LEAD THEM TO CHRIST

Lead by illustration. Your children will not do everything you say, but they will eventually do most everything you do.

What is the point? When our children are younger, they may not want to do everything we do, but as they get older, they start
following our example more and more. So, should you go to church with your family? You may not want to sit in church every

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service, but for the sake of your family, you need to, and for yourself as well! Do you pray where your family can see you? Shouldn’t
you?

Lead by example. Also, lead by instruction. It might be worthwhile to tell your family or your friends that they need to go to church
too. Plain and simple! They need to. You’d be surprised at what you will see several months down the line after you tell someone
this. But you need to say it with conviction.

We need to lead by intercession. Intercession is when you pray to the Lord for another person’s sake. When you bring another
person up to God so that God can help that other person. When is the last time you brought individual members of your family up
before God in prayer, asking Him to help them in specific areas? When is the last time you cared enough about a friend to really
pray for him?

During the Great Depression, a couple had one child. This 6-year old boy asked if he would get any presents for Christmas, and the
father had to explain to him that there was no money to do so. The father told the boy, though, that instead of buying each other
presents, they could draw pictures of the presents they would like to give to each other and that would be their Christmas.

It was a very busy week as each drew presents that they would like to have been able to give to the others. Then, on Christmas
morning, they all assembled by the skimpy branch of a big plant they had made into a Christmas tree.

The mother gave the father a picture of a shiny red speedboat, and the father gave the mother a picture of a nice diamond
necklace. They gave the son pictures of wagons and tricycles. When it came the boys turn to give, he gave them his drawing that
simply said “US”, and had a picture of the three of them engaged in a group hug.

Don’t you know that Christmas was the most special Christmas they ever celebrated as a family? They knew what the true meaning
of Christmas was. And, they shared it with one another.

Christmastime can be a very hard time to get through for most of us. There are many demands on us, including our finances and our
time.

Ill.--One lady was having a very hectic day shopping when she pushed the button for the elevator in a department store. She was
tired and exhausted. When the elevator door opened, it was already filled and she had to squeeze in. When she got in, she
muttered, “Whoever started this whole Christmas thing should be hung.” A voice in the back quietly said, “It’s okay, Lady, He
already was.” From that point until the last stop the elevator made, nobody made a sound.

This year, we should go ahead and shop and give gifts, but let us do so without taking our focus away from Jesus Christ.

3. POWER OF CHRIST IS FOR ALL SEASONS WITH A REASON – 1 Cor 15:1-4

Christmas will not be completed if Jesus did not risen from the dead!
V14 – it very clear that the most important is his Resurrection not his birth!
His resurrection has power to bring a dead person to life – Eph 2:1 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and
sins; Eph 2:2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air,
the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Eph 2:3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in
the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.
Eph 2:4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Eph 2:5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath
quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) Eph 2:6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in
heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

Rom 8:10 And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.
Rom 8:11 But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also
quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.

Our faith in celebrating Christmas would be totally in vain if Christ has not risen from the dead. That power comes only from God.

Reason: to bring us to life in eternity.