Sermon – Colossians 3:12-17 – Christmas Gifts

Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard

First Presbyterian Church of Ocean City

Sermon – Colossians 3:12-17 – Christmas Gifts

December 27, 2015                                              

            Christmas Day has come and gone and we are now in the season of the church calendar called Christmas.  Christmas lasts for a period of twelve days beginning on December 25.  Today is the third day of Christmas.  The twelve days of Christmas is the traditional time when Christians exchange gifts with each other, just as the wise men brought gifts to the baby Jesus.  Here in America we usually exchange our gifts on the first day of Christmas.  People in other countries often use all twelve day to give gifts.  And according to the old song, by today you should have received from your true love, three French hens, two turtle doves, and a partridge in a pear tree.   There are still some unwrapped gifts under the tree.  We will open these, but first let's pray.

            All glory to you, great God, for the gift of your Son, whom you sent to save us. With singing angels, let us praise your name, and tell the earth his story, that all may believe, rejoice, and bow down, acknowledging your love; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.  (Book of Common Worship p.187)

            Listen to the good news from the Apostle Paul to the church at Colossi.  

Colossians 3:12-17

¹² Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. ¹³ Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. ¹⁴ And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

¹⁵ Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. ¹⁶ Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. ¹⁷ And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

            As we look under the tree this on third day of Christmas we find a present for each one of us.  It's from God and has your name on.  Let's open it up a see what's inside.  There we find a Christmas gift from our God.  And what is this gift?  God has given us the gift of election.  We have been chosen, before we were even born, to be in the great drama God is unfolding called the history of the world.  We have been chosen for forgiveness and eternal life.  Because of this gift we experience great joy every Christmas. 

            God also has two other gifts for us.  The first is the gift of holiness.  God has made us holy.  We are set aside for God's purposes.  We are part of God's holy plan for the world.  We are marching in the great procession which leads from Adam and Eve to the return of Jesus.  And the second gift we receive is that we are loved by God.  Imagine that!  Not only has God chosen us with a particular purpose in mind, but we will fulfill our role as God's beloved.  God loves us so much that he sent his own son to die for us.  We have been saved.  We have been redeemed.  We have been forgiven, all because God is in love with us.

            What amazing gifts each of us has received God's election, God's holiness and God's love.  But there is another gift under the tree.  This gift is for the church, all of us together.  So let's open it up and see what God has given to all of us.  Inside is a paper chain like what you used to make as kids to put on the tree.  This chain has five links and each link stands for a Christmas gift God has given the church.  They are, “compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience”.

            The first gift we receive is compassion.  With this gift the church now cares for one another.  Whatever troubles one of us, troubles all of us.  One's concern is everyone's concern.  We have compassion for each other.  We experience their need.  When someone needs prayer or help of any kind we, the church, also experiences that need.  And whenever the church compassionately experiences the needs of any one of us we respond with kindness. 

            Kindness is our second gift.  Kindness means that we do whatever we have to do, whatever we can do, to satisfy the needs of our members.   If one of us needs prayer we pray.  If one of us needs financial help we give.  If one of us is hungry, we feed.  If one of us lacks housing, we find someplace for them to live.  Compassion with kindness leads to a caring church.  When we experience compassionately the needs in our church and respond with kindness we must do so with humility. 

            Humility is the third gift we receive from God.  Always remember that any of us could experience need.  Maybe you have enough money in the bank that your utilities won't be shut off.  But all the money in the world can't prevent a broken leg or a hyperactive thyroid or a stroke or a cancer on the lung.  All of us will, one day, need help.  And that is why the church is here.  When you are in need the church is here with compassionate kindness.  So when you see someone less fortunate than yourself, swallow your pride and humbly care for you fellow Christian.  Humble, compassionate kindness is God's gift to us through the church this Christmas.  But there is more.  When someone in the church experiences a need we respond with gentleness. 

            Gentleness is the fourth gift the church gets from God.  Usually, our first reaction is to tell a person in need where they have gone wrong and what they must do.  But this often comes across harshly.  Instead of pointing out where someone has gone off the tracks a humble, compassionate, and kind church responds with a gentle touch and shoulder to cry on.  Our primary task is not to fix problems or provide advice.  Our role is to pray for one another.  We should never be judgmental.  Praying for someone's needs is what a gentle, compassionate, humble and kind church does. 

            And believe it or not there is still another gift that God gives to the church, and this is patience.  Whenever we gently, compassionately, humbly, and kindly help a member in need we must remember that God sometimes takes time to answer prayer.  Prayers for healing or prayers for financial assistance or prayers of comfort and strength will be answered, but it can take a while.  And so a gentle, compassionate, humble and kind church is also a patient church.  Sometimes all we do is sit at a bedside and wait.  Sometimes it seems we have been praying for the same thing for months and years.  Sometimes the grief and anger just won't go away.  The gift we receive from God at Christmas is the gift of patience.  We compassionately experience one another's needs and we respond with kindness, gentleness, humbleness, and patience.  We receive all of this in a gift from God called the church.

            At Christmas we experience God's gift of peace, love, joy and forgiveness through the church.  What should be our response to these wonderful gifts?  The Apostle Paul says that we should express our thanks to God, but how exactly do we do this.  According to the apostle the way to express our thanks to God is for members of the church to teach scripture.  That's why a church needs teachers for children, youth and adults.  You could express your thanks to God by volunteering to teach.  We have children attending both of our worship services and they would love to learn of your God who gives kindness, compassion, patience, gentleness and humility to the church at Christmas.  If you would like to teach others in this church please let me know.  Teaching is a perfect way of thanking God for your gifts.  But there is more. 

            Another way to thank God is by singing.  That's why we sing in worship.  We sing praises to God in gratitude for all the gifts we have received.  If you would like to sing with this choir come Wednesday evening for practice.  If you can play a musical instrument please let me know.  We are putting together a band for our 1pm worship.  We can use you.  If God has given you musical ability use it in the church as a way of thanking God.  But there is still another way you can thank God for his Christmas gifts.

            According to the Apostle Paul the best way of thanking God for your Christmas gifts is to do everything in the name of Jesus.  So when you are out in the world be compassionate.  And when people ask you why you are concerned about them tell them that you follow Jesus.  Always be kind, and when people asks why you are doing things for them, tell them that it's what Jesus wants you to do.  Don't contemptuously tell people what they have done wrong, rather humbly pray with them, and when they ask you why you pray, tell them that Jesus prays for us.  Always be patient and gentle with people, and when they express surprise, tell them about our patient and gentle Jesus. 

            What a great Christmas! We have received so much from God.  We have been chosen for forgiveness and eternal life.  We belong to a compassionate, kind, gentle, humble, and patient church.  And we express our thanks by worship, teaching and singing.  Our gift to the world is our compassion, kindness, gentleness, humbleness and patience.  And as we do this we give credit to our compassionate, kind, gentle, humble and patient God named Jesus who was our Christmas gift this Christmas.  Let's pray.

            Almighty God, you gave your only-begotten Son to take our nature upon him, and be born of the Virgin Mary. Grant that we, who have been born again and made your children by adoption and grace, may daily be renewed by your Holy Spirit; through our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Book of Common Worship p. 187)