Christmas Is DIFFICULT

Christmas Is Miraculous, Ben spoke about this last week.

Christmas Is truly miraculous, it is inclusive, it is wonderful, and it is difficult.

Would you agree?

It's right there in the story of the birth of Christ.

His birth story is difficult.

A young man is betrothed to be married, and he gets told by an angel that this woman is already with child.

And he knows the child is not his.

This is a difficult thing for a young man to cope with.

And not only that, he is told that his wife to be is bearing the son of God.

Micah 5 2 had prophesied, But you, Bethlehem, ifratha, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will rule over Israel, whose origins are from old, from ancient times.

It's funny how it was God's doing that stirred Augustus Caesar to cause a census to happen amongst the people of Judea, that they would go back to their birthplace.

And because of God's doing, to see the prophecy fulfilled, Joseph and Mary have to travel 150 kilometres from Nazareth to Bethlehem.

Mary fully ready to go, ready to give birth.

It's something that is difficult, but it was God's doing.

And sometimes we need to remember that God is part of the things that we go through that are difficult, that come out of following Jesus.

Giving birth in a manger, not an easy thing to do.

Then within the next two years, the wise men just happened to go before King Herod and say, where is the king of the Jews that's recently been born?

This is a despotic king.

He doesn't like anyone potentially taking his glory, and so he sends murderers to go to Bethlehem within those first two years to commit genocide and to kill all the male boys born.

So this is all happening, and because of this murderous action of Herod, God warns Joseph and Mary, and they escape to Egypt, and they become refugees.

Christmas is difficult.

And we know, Cal spoke about it in his prayer just before, when we think of Christmas in the 21st century, it's often difficult.

It's often difficult.

We have challenging times, sometimes, as families get together.

We maybe are not used to being together.

There is water under the bridge.

There is some stuff that's quite hard to deal with.

And sometimes it can be very challenging to get together at Christmas, the time that's meant to be so filled with peace and joy and love, but it's not always the case.

Certainly for those of us who have lost loved ones, we come to Christmas and we're reminded of dreams that have either been lost or lost in the past, lost in the future.

And if that's a time for you that is difficult Christmas, I trust that the prayerful people of our church will be praying for you because people are praying.

We know for those who are going through genuine difficulty at this time.

Our text for today is Luke 2, 33 to 35.

The child's father and mother marveled at what was said about him.

Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother, this child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel and to be a sign that will be spoken against.

So that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed and a sword will pierce your own soul too.

This is part of the Christmas story, an important part, but often a section that's left out.

After Jesus was born, when he was eight days old, he was taken to the temple to be circumcised.

And also for Mary and Joseph to offer a sacrifice of turtle doves, which was the purification right of the poor, to cleanse her from ritual uncleanness after the birth.

Now, we're told there was an old man.

We don't know what his vocation was.

We don't know if he's a priest or a prophet, but he does the role of a prophet.

His name is Simeon.

He's in the outer courts, and he's been waiting for Messiah.

And when the family come by him, he's prompted by the Holy Spirit to perceive Jesus' true identity, and led by the Spirit, he begins to prophesy.

And that's what Kathleen read for us.

He says, a lightful revelation to the Gentiles has come, and the glory of your people, Israel, as he held the baby Jesus in his arms.

And then after acknowledging that his eyes had finally seen the Lord's salvation, he spoke the words of today's text.

This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel and to be a sign that will be spoken against.

Christmas is difficult because Jesus causes conflict from without, and he causes conflict from within.

And I totally appreciate that sounds completely contrary to his name, doesn't it?

Prince of Peace.

But difficult doesn't mean the absence of good or the absence of peace or the absence of hope or the absence of life.

Difficult is simply part of the process of Christmas.

It's part of the process of following the Christ of Christmas.

Later on, Jesus himself will say in Matthew 10, Don't suppose that I have come to bring peace on earth.

I didn't come to bring peace, but a sword.

For I have come to turn a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.

A man's enemies will be the members of his own household.

We know that Jesus didn't preach violence at all.

But he divided people, didn't he?

Some wanted to kill him when he ministered as a grown man, and others fell on their face before him and worshipped him as God.

He divided.

The child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against.

Christmas is difficult because Jesus causes conflict among people.

Jesus said in John 3, 19-20, people love darkness instead of the light.

He said, this is the verdict, light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.

Who prefers to be an optimist and think people are good?

I do.

If you're travelling around the world, it's actually a really far better posture to be just meeting people and smiling when you can and thinking, you know, you're a person who wants to be good.

I want to trust you.

I want the good for you.

But it's not what Jesus taught.

It's really not.

We want to think the best of humanity.

And of course, there is good in humanity.

We're made in the image of God.

But it's Jesus who says people are fallen, broken, sinful, more comfortable in the darkness than the light.

When Christmas happened, when God became one of us and grew into a man, he was fully God, fully man, he divided people because he is the light of the universe.

And Jesus himself says people love the darkness more than the light.

In the early days of Christianity, after Jesus had lived that perfect life that he lived and died a perfect death, risen from the grave and empowered his church with his Holy Spirit, Roman society, the society in which much of these Christians were living, was awash with God's religious cults and mystery religions.

And it was expected of you to give public honor to these gods, to pay homage to the image of the divine Roman emperor.

Acknowledgements of the gods was expected at formal dinners and in the general marketplace to refuse to participate aroused resentment, anger, and even physical reprimand.

Christian faith has always caused a separation to occur in community, conflict from without.

When you decide to be integrist in your workplace, like G.

May spoke about a few months ago, or maybe a month, when she refused to partake in the gossip that was going on, she was suddenly shunned by her colleagues.

And, you know, I'm not trying to generalize and say, everyone that isn't a Christian lacks integrity.

I'm not saying that, but we know there is pushback so often when we live the life Jesus has called us to live.

Amen?

Christians, unfortunately, have been known for racism at times.

But when a person is moved by the spirit to love a race that is not normally accepted in their society, there's often pushback about that, because Jesus taught us to love everybody.

Being a Christian in our secular society often causes us to live in such a way that comes across as a threat to the social order.

Traditional Christian beliefs are regularly perceived as dangerously intolerant.

You might have seen in the news recently when a Christian principal of a school was told that they were PNC that were making a petition against him being a Christian.

Just for the fact of his so-called intolerant views, it's more and more common.

There's a pushback.

When we follow the Christ of Christmas, it causes conflict from without.

Now, should we retreat into a siege mentality?

No, no way.

Should we become judgmental and cynical as followers of Jesus about people outside of the faith of Christianity?

Of course, not.

We need and want to be known by love.

And yet, for some of us today, we need to hear the truth that Christmas is difficult, which means that Christianity is difficult.

As you live out your faith, you will be spoken against, expect it, pray for strength to stand up under it.

Love in the name of Jesus through it.

Amen.

Christmas is difficult secondly because Jesus causes conflict within people.

This child is destined, Simeon prophesied, to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel and to be a son that will be spoken against.

So that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed, and a sword will pierce your own soul too, as he looked at Mary and prophesied these words.

A sword will pierce your own soul too, young woman.

And it did, didn't it?

It certainly did.

Mary would stand years later, maybe 30 or so years later at the foot of the cross, John 19 verse 25 tells us that she stood there and watching her son executed by the Romans.

She had known and pondered from the very beginning that her son might be the Christ of God.

I'm sure she was pretty confident that he actually was the hoped for Messiah.

But there's little chance that she really understood that he would suffer an early terrible death.

It must have seemed to her, as to all Jesus' disciples at the cross, was the bloody incomprehensible end to all of their hopes and dreams.

And to that terrible disillusionment, Mary could add the unique agony and bottomless grief of outliving her child, watching him die.

A sword did pierce her soul.

Christmas is difficult.

Jesus causes conflict within people.

Mary, I mean, it's stating the obvious, isn't it, that she lived an interesting life.

She was a unique individual in the history of the world.

But she was clearly conflicted internally, don't you think?

Mary lived a life where she had the most profound revelation, and yet she messed it up.

She didn't hold on to what was completely true.

We read in Mark 3, verse 20, Then Jesus entered a house and again a crowd gathered so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat.

When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him.

For they said, He is out of his mind.

He's out of his mind.

Then in verse 31, Jesus' mother and brothers arrived, standing outside.

They sent someone in to call him.

A large crowd was sitting around him and they told him, Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you.

Who are my mother and brothers, he asked.

Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, Here are my mothers and brothers.

Whoever does God's will is my brother and sister and mother.

With all of her revelation, she just seemed to get it wrong so often.

Internally, she was conflicted.

JC.

Rowell, the 19th century Anglican bishop, wrote this about Christians in an old style of language.

The child of God has two great marks about him.

He may be known by his inward warfare, as well as by his inward peace.

When you put your faith in Christ, many struggles are ended, or nearly so.

The struggle to prove yourself, to find an identity, to have a meaning in life that can handle suffering, to find true satisfaction.

All of these fights become resolved.

However, a whole new set of struggles are touched off by faith in Christ.

I often feel compelled to let Christians, certainly new Christians, know that doubt is part and parcel with faith.

I think people need to know that when they begin the journey.

Don't expect to not experience inner turmoil in following Jesus.

The journey of Christianity is not the absence of inner conflict, of questions, of failings, of mystery.

And yet, it's not the absence of resolution and peace and the miraculous either.

Who learnt to drive a manual car?

I guess most of us older than probably about 20, 25.

When I was learning to drive a manual, I had this idea that when you learnt how to drive a manual properly, you would just release the clutch and put the accelerator on.

It would just go like that.

And so I was trying to get to the place that my expectation was setting up my hopes for.

And I remember where I was, down just around the corner from my house, with my dad learning in the meteor, the Ford meteor.

And dad said those horrible words to a 17-year-old.

Might have been 16, I can't remember.

It was on my ears, obviously.

He said, I thought you'd be better than this.

Dad, you know, your words are powerful, Dad.

You shouldn't say that to your son.

And, but, in my defense, I don't think Dad really taught me that no one's going to start a car in first gear, like that.

He didn't quite teach me, son, there's a feathering of the clutch plate and the gears, and the gearbox connecting, that will always happen.

Amen?

There's a tension.

And the different cars you drive, they're going to be different.

You're going to find where that clutch grabs.

But in first gear, it's always going to be a little bit of attention.

And then in every gear after that, you can move them pretty quickly.

And I just want to say there's a tension in Christianity to follow Jesus.

Don't expect it's not going to be there.

It is.

And it starts with the internal conflict of repentance.

You can't become a Christian without repentance.

Repentance is a lot like antiseptic.

You pour antiseptic onto a wound and it stings, but it heals.

That's what happens with repentance.

When you turn from the way of life you're living, and the way of the world that you're following, and you turn around and say, I'm going to live for Jesus, there's an angst that is involved in that.

Normally, I have to admit things that I don't want to admit that are part of my life in heading that way, away from God.

And I have to acknowledge weaknesses that I don't want to acknowledge.

There is an inner turmoil.

But that's the way to peace with God through reconciliation and forgiveness.

There needs to be a giving up of our pride and our self-righteousness.

It involves attention.

Christmas is difficult because following the Christ of Christmas is difficult, but worth it, but worth it.

Inner conflict is caused weekly, if not daily, as a Christian, because following the Lord of the Universe, who was born at Christmas, involves submission.

Every day, there is a tension.

My way or the Lord's way?

There is an internal conflict that was there right at the start in Christmas.

When Adam and Eve first sinned, it says in Genesis, God put a flaming sword to guard the way back to the tree of life.

He said, you will not eat of that tree.

You will not live forever.

Your days will be numbered.

And the consequence of sin was death.

And then every time that sin was dealt with by God and through His grace, it was covered over, it was atoned for.

What needed to be shed?

Blood.

A sword would take the life of an animal.

As a knife would take the life of an animal, pierce the animal.

Pierce the life for the blood to flow and to find forgiveness.

When Jesus died on the cross, the soldiers thrust that sword into his side.

And his blood was shed for you and for me.

What would have happened if Jesus said, I don't want a sword in my soul.

I don't want a sword in my side.

He did get to that point in the tension and internal conflict of Christmas.

He got to the garden of Gethsemane and said, I don't know if I can go through with this, Lord, but not my will, but yours be done.

Because submission is part of following Jesus, which is attention.

Each day we face the question, my way or the Lord's way?

Jesus embraced what was difficult for what was far better.

So I would put to you this morning, Christmas is difficult.

But difficult is not the last word.

It's not the last word.

And some of you are probably sitting there, listening to another sermon, and wondering, it's probably about to finish.

Time to shuffle a bit.

But there's a few of us here who know this Christmas is particularly painfully difficult.

And I'm really speaking to you.

I want to encourage you.

As you come to another Christmas, it may be difficult for you.

There could be conflict from without and conflict from within.

Some may speak against you.

And there may be a sword to pierce your soul.

Yet in Christ, a Saviour has been born.

Amen?

On the people walking in darkness, a light has dawned.

Would you stand together, please?

As we bow our heads before the Lord, I want to pray a blessing.

May you feel the comfort you need this Christmas.

May you receive the revelation you seek this Christmas.

May you know the peace that only the Prince of Peace can bring this Christmas.

May you know a deep and powerful inner strength.

When you reflect and observe, Christmas is difficult, but Christ is enough.

Christmas is difficult, but Christ is enough.

Lord God, we thank you for all that we can learn from Christmas.

Thank you for that righteous man, Simeon, who held the Lord Jesus and revealed the truth to us that we needed to know that this is the one, this is the Messiah.

And as he stated that a light had been revealed to give the grace of God to the Gentiles, we are Gentiles here and we are so appreciative that your heart was to take the good news of the Christmas message to all the world, even to us here in Australia.

May you be glorified in the difficulty and when it's easy as well.

May you receive all the glory from our life and that which you cause and lead us to step into in submission to your will in Jesus' name, amen.

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