Series: Christmas Chaos
Sermon: Change
Scripture: Luke 1
ICE BREAKER: What is the most unique Christmas gift you have received as an adult?
REVIEW:
This week, Pastor Noel helped us learn how to deal with the complex changes in our lives that are often highlighted during Christmas. What makes change so hard is that it is both CONSTANT and CONSISTENT! It is constant in the sense that change happens all the time. However, it is also inconsistent, meaning the changes that occur are rarely predictable!
The first Christmas bore witness to massive, painful changes in the main characters' lives! Mary went from being happily betrothed as a virgin to pregnant out of wedlock! Joseph went from being a confident husband-to-be to an engaged man dealing with the scorn of a pregnant fiance! Both Mary and Joseph then had to take a long, painful journey to Bethlehem, where they were virtually homeless, stuck with a barn as their only option.
This was also a massive change for Jesus! The Light of the World came down and was born as a baby. Jesus stepped out of Paradise and into our brokenness 2000 years ago!
After His birth, the changes kept on coming! The young family had to flee before Jesus was even two years old. When Jesus turned 30, he left behind his carpenter apprenticeship and became a Rabbi and leader. Ultimately, his family endured the ultimate change as the crowds turned on Jesus and crucified Him!
The question we answered this week is:
How do we deal with the inconsistency of change in our lives?
We find that answer in Mary's response.
Luke 1:38
38 “See, I am the Lord’s servant,” said Mary. “May it happen to me as you have said.”
Mary believed in God! She knew that God had made a promise thousands of years earlier that foreshadowed the coming of the Messiah. She was tasked with accepting these HUGE changes in her life to accomplish God's will.
Mary teaches us that when life is CONSTANTLY changing, we can put our faith in a God who is always CONSTANT! God never changes - He is the same yesterday, today, and forever! If your hope is rooted in the things of this world, your faith will be shaken when the world inevitably changes. However, if your trust is in God, you will be on a firm foundation!
APPLY:
What are some significant changes that you experienced in 2023?
How have these changes affected you?
What is ONE WAY you can trust God with the changes in your life?
PRAY:
Spend some time thanking God for his consistency. Having an unchanging God to put our faith in is a blessing. Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal the changes most affecting you, and seek to put your trust in Jesus in light of those changes.
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