Because of Jesus, I am Loved

Gym class could be a cruel place. There were some kids who were really fast runners, and they got picked first. Then the most popular kids got picked and then the captains’ friends. Finally all who were left were the chubby kid, the clumsy kid, and the unpopular kid, and the teams argued over who had to take them. At least at recess they were allowed to do their own thing and weren’t forced to play sports. For those few short minutes they could ignore the fact that they didn’t belong. But when the bell rang, they were dragged back to reality, a reality that hurt.

And maybe home wasn’t any better. Absent or uninvolved parents. An older sibling who seemed to “get” everything on the first try. Maybe tonight would be the night when someone would call and invite you out… or maybe not.

Alone. Not good enough. Not pretty enough. Not athletic enough. Not rich enough. Not popular.

The Christmas story is full of these characters. When Gabriel meets Mary, she is an unmarried woman. In these times, a woman was always given her worth based on the man she was associated with, and the Bible does not record who Mary’s father was. Thus she is recorded as a woman without a man, a person of low status.

Joseph, a carpenter, had some status, but what does it say about his status that there was “no room” for him in the inn? The concept of “the inn” has caused some confusion in our culture; this wasn’t a hotel with some grumpy innkeeper who turned a pregnant woman out. No, it was worse than that; the word translated “inn” here carries the meaning of guest house or guest room. When we read “there was no room in the inn” the literal meaning is that their family didn’t have room for them.

I remember a trip we took about a month before Jonathan was born. We drove to visit our seminary friends in Texas. They lived in a rather small parsonage with their two small children, but when we came, they gave up their bedroom for us. That’s hospitality. But Mary and Joseph were not afforded that kind of hospitality, even by their family. The Bible doesn’t tell us why not, but I imagine the fact of Mary’s pregnancy has something to do with it.

There were shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flocks at night.

Shepherds in Jesus day were dirty and smelly, and they were considered untrustworthy. They were usually nomadic, traveling from place to place reflecting the changing seasons, so they were not tied into the society around them. So they were nobodies. They were invisible. They didn’t show up in polite company. They weren’t invited to parties.

Everything about the culture pointed to the wealthy and the connected. Yet God sent his angel Gabriel to Mary, to Joseph, and to the shepherds. Why would God do this? Why would God choose the lowly? Wouldn’t God have done this all a little more efficiently if he had sent Jesus as a conquering king? After all, this is what prophecy led the Jews to expect, a Messiah in the line of David, a powerful king and strong deliverer.

Had God chosen to come to the mighty, strong, and wealthy, who could stand against him? But, on the other hand, had God chosen the mighty, what would that mean for the lowly and the humble? It would be just like the elementary school gym class all over again. “I choose the rich! I choose the strong! I choose the popular! I choose the connected! Oh, the weak? The poor? I guess I’ll take them. But I don’t want them.”

Furthermore, had God chosen to do things this way, there would be some people who would come to the conclusion that they had something to do with God’s choice. Because I did this, God chose me. Because of me, God…

This isn’t the way God works. Why not? Because God actually loves the last one chosen. There is enough bad theology out there that says that God’s love is demonstrated in how wealthy and healthy you are. So many times I’ve seen health and wealth equated with God’s favor, but this just doesn’t match with God’s character. God loves those who culture bypasses. God loves Mary and Joseph. God loves smelly shepherds. God loves the single mother. God loves the illegal alien. God loves the AIDS patient. God loves the hungry. God loves the smelly. God loves the least and the lost. God loves.

Deuteronomy 7:7-9 tells us that The Lord did not set his affection on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples. But it was because the Lord loved you and kept the oath he swore to your forefathers that he brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you from the land of slavery, from the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Know therefore that the Lord your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commands.

God chose us, and God loves us. Love isn’t just what God does, but it is who God is. Listen to Psalm 86:15 But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness. Or, if you want to be a little more succinct, how about the description in 1 John 4:8, 16: God is love.

So how does a God we cannot see demonstrate his love? 1 John 4:9 This is how God showed his love among us; he sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. Jesus is the personification of God’s love. The old hymn declares “Love Came Down at Christmas” and that is the case. Jesus himself is proof of God’s love.

Let’s look at maybe the most well-known Bible verse of all: John 3:16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Will you stop for a moment and let it sink in that “the world” that God loved is you? God knows you inside and out, and he loves you. He knows everything you ever did, and he loves you. You are his first pick.

Ephesians 2:4-5 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions – it is by grace you have been saved.

I’ve known people who (in bad times) continuously ask, “What did I do to deserve this?” Well, we didn’t do anything to deserve this treatment from God; on our own, we deserve Hell. On our own, we are dead in transgressions, but God loves us so much that he pours his mercy on us, saving us by grace, his unmerited favor.

We who have been in the church for a long time know this truth pretty well. We know that it’s by his grace that God saves, but then we often want to pack all kinds of extra requirements on top of that for us to continue in God’s love. But Paul writes in Romans 8:38-39 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Can my bad behavior and sin separate me from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus? We sometimes act like it can, but think of it from a parental standpoint: when your child misbehaves, do you just cut off your love for that child? No! Of course not! You would just as soon cut off your arm. It doesn’t mean that we’re always happy with our misbehaving children, but we don’t stop loving them. And even if we did, God doesn’t.

God’s love for us is never based on our behavior. God’s love for us is based on His Character. And so, in the midst of our sin and rebellion, God chooses the only way to reach us with his love; by sending his Son. And because of Jesus, I can know that love.

1 John 3:1 How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!

Christmas is all about God’s love for us, how we doesn’t just call us his children, but how through Jesus Christ he actually makes us his children. This is what Christmas means. It doesn’t mean presents and lights and parties and food. Christmas is God’s love letter to us. So many of us, even understanding the true meaning of Christmas, “get it” in a theoretical way, forget what it means for us. It means the Almighty God, the creator of the universe loves you, gives himself so you can have life.

I’m one who gets a little annoyed seeing Christmas decorations starting to go up in October, but think of it this way: every decoration should stand as a reminder of how precious you are to God. So every time you see brightly colored lights, candy canes, Santas, think of God’s love for you. It doesn’t matter if you were the last one picked – God picked you. It doesn’t matter if your past is full of mistakes, while you were a sinner, God showed his love for you by sending his Son, Jesus, for you.

Let’s close this evening with a reminder from 1 John 4:11 – Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. I have seen this church loving one another in some great ways during Christmas – can we do so all year long?