The Unexpected Gift : Sermon Matthew 1:18-25

Dear God, take our minds and think through them; take our hands and feet and work through them; take our lips and speak through them, take our hearts and set them on fire for you. Amen

Well, it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas. Christmastime is almost upon us again, although it hardly seems possible. Christmas is perhaps my favorite time of year, there is a chill in the air; people seem friendlier, for the most part. I love to see the twinkling lights on people’s houses and see their decorated trees through their windows. Christmas is a time for gathering with friends and family. There are Christmas parties, dinners, lunches which reminds me of the food of Christmas. Cookies, cakes, dressing, casseroles, ham, and turkey amongst other things none of which are really good for us, but hey it’s Christmas. Christmas is also the time for gift giving and receiving. I was telling someone the other day, when I was a kid I would look forward to Christmas so that I could open gifts. I loved to see what surprises there were behind the wrapping paper. However, now that I am older I know the joy of seeing other people get the joy from opening my presents that I give to them. If you are as lucky as I am there are many boxes, ribbons, and bows lying in wait underneath the tree. Gifts come it many different sizes and shapes. Sometime we like the big ones, the heavy ones. Those must be something really nice. But the small ones can hold some great things as well, like car keys and diamond rings. And sometimes the greatest gifts we can receive come in unexpected packages.

The greatest gift that we receive at Christmas is not the CDs, books, or toys we might get under the tree, it is the Christ child in the manger. God’s greatest gift to humanity was the gift of himself. God came down and became human so that God could understand what it was to be human. God taught humanity what it meant to love and exist in peace with one another. This is a great gift. But it does not end there. God sacrificed of himself upon the cross of Calvary so that all of humanity might be reconciled unto him. We are forgiven of our sins because of God’s gift to us. We are reconciled to God because of the gift of Jesus. This indeed is the greatest gift, a gift worthy of thanksgiving, a gift worthy of praise, and a gift worthy of worship.

This gift from God is indeed great, but it definitely came in an unexpected package. If God wanted to come down from heaven he could have done it in many ways. God should have come as royalty, as a great, conquering, king descending from heaven with the mighty hosts behind him. This was not his style. God could have been born to a queen or a princess in a beautiful palace with all the pomp and circumstance befitting the King of kings. This was not God’s way. Instead God was born into humanity in the most humble, and degrading ways possible. God was born in a cold, dank, dark barn in a small town called Bethlehem. God was not wrapped in fine linens and silk wrappings, but in swaddling cloths, in old rags that were gathered. God was not laid in a crib made of gold and other precious metals; God was laid in feeding trough for animals. The Creator of the universe and all time was born in the filth and humility of a barn which was nothing more than a cave hewn from the hillside. The infant God was surrounded by the very animals that he had created. This was a place that none of us would want to have our baby. This was a place not fit for any human child to be born, much less God, the Lord of lords.

This was not the end of the unexpectedness that accompanied the birth of Christ. God was born to some unusual parents. Here were two people, not married yet, not yet established in the world and God chose them. Here was Mary, a young girl whose life was spent helping her family gather water and cooking the meals. There was nothing particularly special about this girl at first glance. Mary was a common enough name at the time. She was a faithful girl, but she was not part of the aristocracy. She was good to her family and those she encountered, but she was not heir to a throne or to riches. She could have been any girl in any village in the area. However, Mary was chosen for a purpose, she would give birth to the Son of God.

Then there was Joseph. He was an average guy, with an average life. There was nothing that special about him except perhaps the fact that he was a descendent of King David, but he was not an heir to any throne nor did he have particular political ambition. He was a carpenter by trade. He lived and worked in Nazareth just getting by like everyone else. He worked hard during the day; he adhered to the Sabbath law and the other Laws of God. He is what we would call a good man. He was engaged to this young girl Mary and if it had not been for this incredible change that was to take place, no one would have ever heard of them. This was a big change that was to take place and I imagine that anyone of us would be wary at this angelic announcement. Joseph had found out his future wife was pregnant and he was going to let her go quietly without public humiliation which was his right to do, and then this angel appears telling him that he was to raise the Son of God in his household. We can’t imagine what was going on in his mind, but he had faith in God’s plan even thought he did not understand it.

Then there was this baby, the child which was fully God and fully human. At first glance this child did not look extraordinary. He could have been any child one would see at the maternity ward at any hospital. He cried like any other baby. He was weak and helpless like any other baby, vulnerable to the elements. The name Jesus was not unique in this time. The name Jesus is Latin for Joshua which was a common name especially for a Jewish boy. The King of kings and the Lord of lords came to this earth in the most unexpected package as a child born in the most ordinary place, to two ordinary people. This might seem strange to an outsider. You mean to say that God was born in a stable, to a carpenter and his wife, your kidding right? However, this place Bethlehem was no ordinary place, it was special. This woman was no ordinary woman, she was special. This man was no ordinary man, he was special. And this baby was not ordinary baby, he was special. This place and these people were chose according to God’s plan.

This brings us to the question then, why does God make his entrance in this most unexpected way? Perhaps it is to show us that great things can come in unexpected packages and in unexpected people. Perhaps this lesson teaches us that everyone we meet, no matter how ordinary they might look can hold great gifts for us if we just give them a chance. Every person we encounter is a gift from God to someone. Everyone has family and friends that love them and if they don’t perhaps God is choosing you to be that friend.

There is a Christmas poem that I love so much and I am sure that you have heard it before, but please indulge me. It is called the Christmas guest.

It happened one day near December's end
Two neighbors called on an old friend
And they found his shop so meager and lame
Made gay with a thousand bows of green
And Conrad was sittin' with face ashined
When he suddenly stopped as he stitched a twine
And he said "Oh friends at dawn today
When the cock was crowin' the night away
The Lord appeared in a dream to me
And said 'I'm comin' your guest to be.'
So I've been busy with feet astir
And strewin' my shop with branches of fir
The table is spread and the kettle is shined
And over the rafters the holly is twined
Now I'll wait for my Lord to appear
And listen closely so I will hear His step
As He nears my humble place
And I'll open the door and look on His face"
So his friends went home and left Conrad alone
For this was the happiest day he'd known
For long since his family had passed away
And Conrad had spent many a sad Christmas day
But he knew with the Lord as his Christmas guest
This Christmas would be the dearest and best
So he listened with only joy in his heart
And with every sound he would rise with a start
And look for the Lord to be at his door
Like the vision he'd had a few hours before
So he ran to the window after hearin' a sound
But all he could see on the snow-covered ground
Was a shabby begger who's shoes were torn
And all of his clothes were ragged and worn
But Conrad was touched and he went to the door
And he said "You know, your feet must be frozen and sore
I have some shoes in my shop for you
And a coat that'll keep you warmer too"
So with grateful heart, the man went away
But Conrad noticed the time of day
And wondered what made the Lord so late
And how much longer he'd have to wait
When he heard a knock he ran to the door
But it was only a stranger once more
A bent ol' lady with a shawl of black
With a bundle of kindlin' piled on her back
She asked for only a place to rest
But that was reserved for Conrad's great guest
But her voice seemed to plead "Don't send me away
Let me rest for awhile on Christmas day"
So Conrad brewed her a steamin' cup
And told her to sit at the table and sup
But after she left he was filled with dismay
For he saw that the hours were slippin' away
And the Lord hadn't come as He said He would
And Conrad felt sure he'd misunderstood
When out of the stillness he heard a cry
"Please help me, and tell me where am I!"
So again he opened his friendly door
And stood disappointed as twice before
It was only a child who'd wandered away
And was lost from her family on Christmas day
Again, Conrad's heart was heavy and sad
But he knew he should make the little girl glad
So he called her in and he wiped her tears
And quieted all her childish fears
Then he led her back to her home once more
But as he entered his own darkened door
He knew the Lord was not comin' today
For the hours of Christmas had passed away
So he went to his room and he knelt down to pray
And he said "Dear Lord, why did You delay?
What kept You from comin' to call on me?
For I wanted so much Your Face to see"
When soft in the silence, a voice he heard
"Lift up your head, for I kept my word
Three times my shadow crossed your floor
And three times I came to your lonely door
I was the begger with bruised, cold feet
And I was the woman you gave somethin' to eat
I was the child on the homeless street.
Three times I knocked and three times I came in
And each time I found the warmth of a friend
Of all the gifts love is the best
And I was honored to be your Christmas guest."

The lesson to be learned this day is this, don’t let extraordinary blessings pass you by because it comes in an unappealing, unexpected package because it might hold a great gift. The greatest Christmas gift came in an unexpected package and held extraordinary blessings. Make the gift of the Christ child be with you and yours this Christmas.

Let us pray…

Grant, O Lord,

that what has been said with our lips we may believe in our hearts,

and that what we believe in our hearts we may practice in our lives;

through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.