A FEW OF MY FAVORITE DECORATIONS

A Few of My Favorite Things #2

Pastor Dennis Clanton

Woodland Church

Sunday, December 10, 2023

(2 Corinthians 5:21–6:2, LB) “For God took the sinless Christ and poured into him our sins. Then, in exchange, he poured God’s goodness into us! As God’s partners, we beg you not to toss aside this marvelous message of God’s great kindness. For God says, “Your cry came to me at a favorable time, when the doors of welcome were wide open. I helped you on a day when salvation was being offered.” Right now God is ready to welcome you. Today he is ready to save you.”

ON THE CROSS, CHRIST WAS TREATED AS IF HE HAD DONE EVERYTHING I HAD DONE SO THAT I MIGHT BE TREATED AS IF I HAD DONE EVERYTHING HE DID.

This is a mystery, that Christ can be the obedient, glorious love of God and the full measure of our disobedience, both at once.  -Walter Wangerin, Jr, Reliving the Passion. Christianity Today, Vol. 39, no. 4.

1. GOD GIVES US DECORATIONS TO REMIND US OF OUR FAITH

(Exodus 12:25–26, NLT) “When you enter the land the Lord has promised to give you, you will continue to observe this ceremony. Then your children will ask, ‘What does this ceremony mean?”

(Hebrews 6:19, NLT) “This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. It leads us through the curtain into God’s inner sanctuary.”

(1 Peter 3:15, NLT) “If someone asks about your hope as a believer, always be ready to explain it.”

a.  Symbols are never meant to replace the reality of our faith.

b.  Think of symbols as joyfully sowing seed into your children’s faith.

2. THE ADVENT WREATH REMINDS OF OUR SAVIOR’S MISSION

(Matthew 1:21, NLT) “Name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”

(Luke 2:28–32, NLT) “I have seen your salvation, which you have prepared for all people. He is a light to reveal God to the nations, and he is the glory of your people Israel!”

1. The Gospels reveal Jesus as King

(Matthew 2:2, NLT) “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him.”

2. The Gospels reveal Jesus as Servant

(Mark 10:45, NLT) “The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

3. The Gospels reveal Jesus as Healer

(Luke 4:18–19, NKJV) “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed; To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.”

4. The Gospels reveal Jesus as Savior

(John 20:31, NLT) “These are written so that you may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing in him you will have life by the power of his name.”

1. The Prophecy Candle.  Jesus is the Hope of the World

(Romans 15:13, Message) “Oh! May the God of great hope fill you up with joy, fill you up with peace, so that your believing lives, filled with the life-giving energy of the Holy Spirit, will brim over with hope!”

2. The Bethlehem Candle.  Jesus’ birth

(Isaiah 7:14, NLT) “The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God is with us’).”

(Luke 1:31, NLT) “To a virgin … you will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus.”

3. The Angel’s Candle.  Jesus, Christ the Lord, has been born

(Luke 2:9–11, NKJV) “And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”

4. The Shepherd’s Candle.  Those of us who worship Him

(Luke 2:15–17, NKJV) “The shepherds said to one another, “Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us.” And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a manger. Now when they had seen Him, they made widely known the saying which was told them concerning this Child.”

(Matthew 2:11, NKJV) “And when [Wise Men] had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him.”

3. THE CHRISTMAS TREE REMINDS US THAT JESUS BROKE THE CURSE OF THE LAW

(Galatians 3:13–14, NLT) “But Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. When he was hung on the cross, he took upon himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.” Through Christ Jesus, God has blessed the Gentiles with the same blessing he promised to Abraham, so that we who are believers might receive the promised Holy Spirit through faith.”

a.  We exchange gifts because Jesus is God’s greatest gift to us.

b.  Instead of a barren life, we have a fruitful, eternal life.

4. BELLS, BOWS, HOLLY, and IVY REMIND US OF THE NEW COVENANT

(Leviticus 25:10, NLT) “Proclaim freedom throughout the land for all who live there.

(Luke 1:10, NLT) “While the incense was being burned, a great crowd stood outside, praying.”

(Hosea 11:4, NIV) “I led them with cords of human kindness, with ties of love.”

(John 19:2, NLT) “The soldiers wove a crown of thorns and put it on his head…”

(Proverbs 18:24, NLT) “A real friend sticks closer than a brother.”

5. SAINT NICHOLAS IS A SYMBOL OF THE FATHER OF CHRISTMAS

(1 Timothy 1:11, GN) “That teaching is found in the gospel … to announce, the Good News from the glorious and blessed God.”

a.  He was devoted to God

b.  He loved those overlooked

c.  He simplified his life so that others might simply live

(1 John 4:7–11, NLT) “Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love. God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins. Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other.”

GROWTHWORK

1. Encourage one another with these truths.

2. Start a daily devotion.

3. Start a daily Advent devotion with your family or friends.

4. Give God thanks daily for your new life in Christ.

5. Look for someone to bless this Christmas.