"The Gift Money Can't Buy"
Sermon Transcript for December 15, 2002 By Rev. Mike Beck
More than any other time of year, Christmas reveals how profoundly materialism is woven into the fabric of our society. I am not, in this message, trying to discourage you from buying gifts for family and friends. Doing so is one of the joys of the Christmas season. Rather, what we want to think about today is the fact that the most important gifts are those that money can’t buy – the gifts of love and relationships. An illustration is the MasterCard commercial where they give the cost of various items in which they encourage you to use your MasterCard. When they get to the last item – the cost of it? "Priceless!" That last item mentioned in the commercials always has to do with love and relationships.
The coming of Jesus stands in stark contrast to the present-day emphasis on spending and getting. But God’s word of correction for us may not be that we give too much…rather, it may be that "we don’t give enough" of the right kind of gifts to those who need them most.
As we continue in our journey from humbug to hallelujah, we come now to Scrooge’s encounter with the Ghost of Christmas Present. In this second "holy haunting", the miserly Ebenezer Scrooge is shown the consequences of giving too little. The Spirit of Christmas Past takes him to Bob Cratchit’s house on Christmas Day. Let’s watch.
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Two weeks ago we observed the ghost of Jacob Marley, shackled in chains, warning Scrooge that his endless pursuit of wealth was binding him in chains of his own making. Last week, as Scrooge was visited by the Ghost of Christmas Past, we saw him being reminded that the hurts in his past, and decisions he had made had effectively shut out joy from his life. And in the scene we just watched, the Cratchit family gives further witness to Scrooge that the riches of love far surpass the accumulation of money. The Cratchit family, and especially Tiny Tim, gives us a picture of what it means to be poor in body but rich in soul. Though crippled, Tiny Tim’s spirit walks freely. Though poor in things, he is rich in faith. The closing words of his prayer, "God bless us every one", is at the very heart of what Christmas is all about. Tough he seemingly has nothing special to be thankful for, Tiny Tim is yet thankful for every little thing. When he and his father return from church, Mrs. Cratchit asks how Tiny Tim behaved. Bob tells his wife, "As good as gold and better. Somehow he gets thoughtful, sitting by himself so much, and he thinks the strangest things you ever heard. He told me, coming home, that he hoped people saw him in the church because he was a cripple, and that it might be good for them to remember on Christmas Day the One who made lame beggars walk and blind men see!" Contrast this with Scrooge, whose heart is crippled, who is unable to walk freely in the love and fellowship of people, whose faith is impoverished, who knows nothing of gratitude and who resists giving any assistance or encouragement to anyone.
Friends, the Bible tells us that we get rich by investing in people. We store up treasures that will last by giving of ourselves to others. We see that in the story of Joseph that we read from the first chapter of Matthew’s gospel. Most of the attention in the Christmas story has been given to Mary as an example of faith. But let’s not forget the courage and commitment of Joseph. He was asked by the angel to stand with Mary in what looked to everyone else in town like a scandal. Joseph could have chosen the easy way out and gotten a quiet divorce. But instead, in faith he endured the embarrassment, the questions, and the uncertainties. Joseph’s commitment to his relationship with Mary was costly in many ways. Genuine love always costs us something. But in the process, Joseph came to know the riches of following God.
I want to invite you today to stop and take inventory of your relationships—for relationships are the very heart and soul of life. When I am with families following the death of a loved one, I almost always observe that they don’t talk about bank accounts, possessions, or accomplishments. Rather, they talk about relationships. With the Holy Spirit as your guide, invite God to show you how to take steps to enhance and give greater priority to your relationships this Christmas. The bulletin insert gives suggestions for "Breaking Christmas Chains Forged in Life". What negative patterns have marked your past Christmas celebrations? Describe the emotions connected to these recurring problems. What advice do you think God might offer to improve matters? Write down a specific action you can take this week to help remedy a problematic holiday situation. The Advent Devotional Calendar offers suggestions for breaking Christmas chains forged in life. Who is someone special you could celebrate by spending time with this Christmas? Do you need to reconnect with a long-lost friend or relative? What about someone who has helped you in the past and whom you’ve never thanked in the way you’d like? Who could be your Cratchit family this Christmas? Ask the Lord to bring to mind some special need—food, transportation, time, child care—that you could help meet in the next ten days prior to Christmas. Then do it!
I close with this story from "The Greatest Gift". It is about a man named Paul who had received a new car from his brother as a Christmas present. On Christmas Eve, when Paul came out of his office, a young boy, rather shabbily dressed, was walking around his shiny new car admiring and touching it. The little boy looked up and asked: "Is this your car, mister?" "Yes", Paul said, "My brother gave it to me for Christmas". The little boy answered, "You mean your brother gave it to you, and it didn’t cost you nothin’?" Paul nodded. The little boy said, "Boy, I wish…" Paul thought he knew what the boy was going to say—that he wished he had a brother like that who could give him a car. But to his surprise the boy finished his sentence this way, "…I wish I could be a brother like that!" Paul looked at the boy, overwhelmed. Then he asked, "Would you like to take a ride in my new car?" The boy exclaimed, "O yes, I’d love that." And off they went for a ride. During the ride the little boy turned to Paul and asked, "Mister, would you mind driving in front of my house?" Paul smiled, thinking the little boy wanted to drive by his house so he could show off for the neighbors. But when they got to the house, the little boy jumped out and quickly went inside. In a little while, Paul saw him coming back. He was carrying his little brother who was crippled with polio. He set his brother down on the bottom step and scooted up against him. He pointed to the car. "There she is, Buddy, just like I told you upstairs. Ain’t she beautiful? His brother gave it to him for Christmas and it didn’t cost him nothin’! And you know what, Buddy? Someday I’m going to give you one just like it! And then you can ride around and see all the things in the windows I’ve been telling you about." Overwhelmed with emotion, Paul got out and walked over to the boys. "Do you want to ride around and see those things now?" They both nodded eagerly with bright faces. Paul leaned over and lifted the lad up to the front seat of the car. His shining-eyed older brother climbed in beside him, and the three of them began a memorable holiday ride.
Friends, God has given us the most wonderful gift of all—the gift of Jesus. And like the little boy marveled in relation to the car, "it didn’t cost us nothin’!" And when we share that gift with others then, like Scrooge, we move from humbug to hallelujah! Let us pray, "Lord, we too often forget what’s really important. Forgive us. Help us to value the people you have put into our lives and to realize that the true meaning of life is not found in our possessions, but in loving relationships. In Jesus’ name, Amen."
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