Jesus Makes Christmas Really Good News!

Well, the turkey has been eaten, the Christmas pudding polished off, and the crackers have been pulled, and I wonder what your favourite cracker joke was this year? I enjoyed this one: Who’s Santa’s favourite member of Oasis? Noel. Or what about: Why aren’t there more jokes about receiving Oasis tickets for Christmas? Most people won’t get them. I hope your Christmas was great fun, and that the jokes round the table were better than those. Christmas is a joyful celebration because of Jesus. But Christmas isn’t an easy time; it can be a time when we are very aware of the struggles of life; it can be a time when we compare our lives to other peoples. The festivities Christmas create high expectations, but does life always live up to them?

I read a while back that some research found that 50% of people expect to have arguments with their families at Christmas. Why on the happiest of days can we still not get it right? Those cracker jokes reminded me of another British band’s Christmas song. Here’s some of the lyrics of Coldplay’s song Christmas Lights:

Christmas nightAnother fightTears we cried a floodGot all kinds of poison inOf poison in my blood...

You can always rely on Coldplay to make sure that you feel really depressed. But it’s into this reality that the true message of Christmas is to be heard and understood. Christmas is about Jesus coming as King entirely for us and our deepest need. It’s great to celebrate! But behind the tinsel and the light it’s Jesus which makes Christmas really good news. That’s what we’ll see tonight as we look at Philippians 2 together. And whether we’re seeing it for the first time tonight or we’ve seen it many times before, this is always the good news that we need to hear. So before we go any further, lets’ pray:

Lord, we thank you for the joy Christmas. And we ask tonight as come to your word that you would show us more of the true meaning of it by showing us more of what your son Jesus did for us. For his sake we ask it, Amen.

Well please do have Philippians 2.5-11 open in front of you, it’s on page 980 in the Bibles where you’re sat. And you’ll see that our passage tonight begins:

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus...

And by mind Paul basically means “mind-set”. So to see that look back with me to Philippians 2.3-4:

Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

So the problem with the church in Philippi was that there were too many cases of the opposite of Philippians 2.3-4 going on: selfishness and arrogance. Underneath it all was what the ancient theologian Augustine called the mother of all sins – pride. And Paul was saying “No. Seek to a life of self-denial and service to others. That should be your mind-set”. That was true then, and it’s true for us as believers today and our motivation, and example in living this way is Jesus. Why? Because of all he did to serve us. Look down to Philippians 2.5-7:

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.

So these verses show us Jesus’ first step down:

1. He became human for us.

Jesus has always, and will always, be the eternal Son of God. But in entering into our world he took on a new mode of existence. Philippians 2.7 says he became a servant, being born in the likeness of men. Jesus became the “God-man”. And he did so entirely to serve us. That’s why the second half of Philippians 2.6 says he did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped i.e. Jesus did not view his status as God as something to be used for his own advantage. Instead, Philippians 2.7 says he emptied himself. He gave up his rights. He became a nobody. Without abandoning who he is, as a sinless and holy God, he took on a new form. The form of a servant, literally that word means a “slave”: someone with no rights at all. Jesus took that huge “step down” for us.

A while ago those of us in Home Groups studied the book of Ezekiel. And in Ezekiel 1 we read of Ezekiel’s incredible vision of God on his throne. It’s an image of a holy, glorious, powerful and magnificent God. And as the chapter progresses it becomes clear that Ezekiel is struggling to even find the words to describe what he saw. The chapter ends with Ezekiel saying (Ezekiel 1.28):

Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. And when I saw it, I fell on my face…

That’s the God who became a man for us; the awesome God, whose throne Ezekiel failed to find adequate works to describe was born as a baby in a manger, not a throne. Isn’t it outrageous that a perfect God would voluntarily come and live with sinful people like you and like me? Born as a tiny baby who dribbled and vomited. And as he grew Jesus would endure all the inconveniences, and trials, and struggles of living as a human being in a broken world. Which means that God truly understands you and me – from the inside of our experience because he’s experienced life in this world. So, not only can we know him with certainty, but, we can be certain that he knows all too well the kinds of pressures that we face. So when you talk to God in prayer – remember that. This astonishing truth marks Christianity out from any other worldview. Jesus understands how you feel – the joys, the trials, and the downright awfulness of life. He’s experienced it more than you or I can know because, Jesus took a second step down:

2. He died on the cross for us.

Philippians 2.8:

And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Crucifixion in the ancient world a diabolical form of execution reserved for the dregs of society – the worst of criminals. Such where its horrors the word wasn’t even mentioned in polite society. Jesus, the one man who lived a perfect life, was shamed, spat upon, stripped and nailed to a cross in the company of common criminals. Jesus chose to live a slave’s life, and then he chose to die a slave’s death. And he did it because of our sin (our wilful rejection of God as King) that lies at the heart of all our pride and selfishness. Quote Coldplay: "The poison in my blood" that can ruin so many things. But on the cross Jesus took the punishment that our sins deserved as God’s anger at sin was poured out on his precious Son. As is sometimes written in Christmas cards: “He came to pay a debt he did not owe. Because we owed a debt we could not pay.” He who came from the highest place, made himself the lowest he could possibly be – for us. Here’s how the novelist Dorothy Sayers reflected on all this:

The incarnation means that...Jesus himself has gone through the whole of human experience—from the trivial irritations of family life and the cramping restrictions of hard work and lack of money to the worst horrors of pain and humiliation, defeat, despair, and death. . . He was born in poverty and…suffered infinite pain—all for us—and thought it well worth his while.[The Greatest Drama Ever Staged]

So imagine with me Jesus, the Son of God, in heaven. And imagine him looking at you and your sin: all you’ve thought, and said and done. And imagine him knowing that to deal with it he’d have to leave the splendour of glory in heaven and face the restrictions of humanity. And then he’d have to endure the curse of sin: the rejection of his Father, and then he’d have to taste death on the cross. Imagine him staring down the barrel of all of that and then saying “I will. It’s well worth my while”. Do you see that’s how much Jesus loves you?

Is there sin in your life that lies heavy on your heart tonight? For me, I think of my lack of patience – even with my family, those I love the most I can be unkind and harsh. Whatever it might be for you, however big it feels, whatever effect it has had on your life or on other people. Jesus chose to come and die for it, so that you can enjoy forgiveness and new life in him.
This is the tidings of comfort and joy we sing about each Christmas. What great news it is! And what transforming news it is, because trusting in Jesus means that we want to serve God and serve other people. And when those tendencies to put ourselves first bubble up (just like they did for the Philippians) looking to afresh Jesus’ incredible sacrifice humbles us. It strips our pride away. Because who’s the problem? We are. We’ve all chosen to push God out of our lives. What can we do to earn Jesus’ forgiveness? Nothing. Nothing at all. What did Jesus sacrifice for us? His rights and privileges as God. He gave up everything for us. He emptied himself. He took the weight of our sin. And Paul says we’re to have this mind of humble, obedient, costly, Jesus-shaped service of others.

When I look at our church family I see so many ways that we have served one another in this way. I see so many encouragements. And you model so much of this to me. So, can I say, thank you for all you have done in 2024. And together lets press on in 2025. So, when we walk into church, or CYFA, or JPCi, or Home Group, let’s not just to think about our own needs, but about how we can serve others. And when we go home we’re to think, “what will it look like for me to serve this person this week? How can I help this person who’s in need?”It might be practical support; e.g. helping someone at church find a job, or look for accommodation. Or it might be helping practically at church, on a Sunday or during. Or by cooking a meal for someone, or paying them a visit. It might be very specific. I remember one small group wanted to help one of the guys in his group keep reading the Bible so he phoned him at 6.30am every day of the week for most of the year. That’s extraordinary. It might be prayer support. Maybe meeting with someone to pray, or open God’s word with them. It might be emotional support; talking to someone, checking in on them, spending time with them. It might be regularly serving at church to keep all our ministry here going. Some of us have been part of demanding ministries here at church for decades. It might be sharing the gospel with others who need our love and witness to Jesus. And it's not just about serving those we're close to. It's about all of us striving to serve the whole church family – including those we know less well, but have the opportunity to get to know better. What are the ways you could be praying to do this in the year that lies ahead? How will you commit yourself to God and his work in 2025? How does he want you to serve him in the next year of your life?

It’s a daunting task. And that’s the point because Jesus didn’t look at all he had to do for us, and say “that’s too hard a price to pay”. He said, "yes, I will". So, we need to look at what Jesus did for us say, “if this is what he did for me – I can serve him and others, even when it hurts". Serving others will hurt our time – it takes time to be at church, to be committed to a small group, to chat to, to meet up with, to pray for others. It will hurt our money – as we give to make ministry happen, and to improve, and for the gospel to go further afield. It will hurt us emotionally – as we serve others, and help carry their burdens. But humility based on the example of Christ means we'll look at those costs and still say "I'll do that for the sake of others".

Of course, the price we're called to pay may be very great indeed. I often think of our mission partners. Take Joe and Sarah Potter and family for example, who are Bible translators in Mozambique. Think of what they've given up; Comfort, safety, security, the surroundings of their own culture, schooling for their children. What examples they are. We all need to be prepared to give up everything and anything in humble service. Because as Christians we are here on earth to do God's will and to serve others, whatever the cost may be. That's what Jesus did. And Paul tells us the result of his humility and suffering, Philippians 2.9-11:

Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

So because of Jesus’ self-emptying, his obedience and his death on the cross, Jesus is vindicated by his Father. Through his resurrection from the dead and ascension back to heaven Jesus is given the highest of positions. And on the day he returns to this world it will be clear to everyone who Jesus is. No longer will anyone be able to say otherwise. And willingly or unwillingly, happily or unhappily, one day everyone will bow the knee before Jesus. So if you have made Jesus your King, keep going in serving him. He is risen and ruling and one day he will return. And even the best of Christmases with everyone speaking sweetly and everyone giving rather than receiving, will be a pale shadow of the eternal joy that will begin on that day. All you do for him and others now will be worth it in the end. But if you haven’t bowed before King Jesus, and I say this gently, please do so now before it’s too late. Jesus wants relationship with you. God sent Jesus into the world to deal with the poison in your blood. That’s what Christmas is all about – the coming of Jesus, who humbled himself to be the saviour and King that we need. The question is - will you make him yours? Let’s pray:

Heavenly Father, we thank you for Jesus. We cannot comprehend all he gave up for us. We are blown away by his love and concern for us as sinful people. But we rejoice that he saw fit to come for us that first Christmas. We rejoice that he decided to come to die for us. In the year that lies ahead, please help us to follow him as King, please change our selfish hearts, and use us to serve you and to serve others. Amen.