Christ the Redeemer

Okay, here's what we're going to do for the next 15 or 20 minutes or so.

We're going to think about those verses in Colossians 1 that we read in the prayer a little bit earlier.

If you want to do that, you can open your Bibles at Colossians chapter 1.

Colossians 1 · chapter mention

Just three verses we're going to look at, verses 20 to 23.

They'll go on the screen at some point as well, so it's always good to have the Bible open in front of us.

So last week, I heard one of the best sounds ever.

Do you want to hear about it?

So I was taking the kids to school.

Not this Thursday, but last Thursday.

And it's a sleety day. It's a cold day.

You know, kind of Scotland just doing its Scotland in winter thing.

And all of a sudden, there's a noise erupts in the playground, this quiet scene.

One boy shouts, snow!

And what was a quiet scene?

And all of a sudden, now every single person who's in this playground lifts their eyes and has a look.

And the guys, the boy is right.

So everybody starts noticing that it's snowing.

And one after one, as each child recognizes it,

joy and laughter erupts across the playground.

Now, is that noise not one of the best things that we can ever hope to hear?

Right? When children discover white snow for the first time in the year.

And so what happens is we hear this noise.

I hear this noise.

I lift my eyes.

And because of where we live over this side of town,

we can see the Pentland Hills.

And the Pentland Hills are covered in pure white.

There it is.

It's untouched, pure, unstained, perfect snow.

And I hear the dulcet tones of Michael Bubly in my head.

A beautiful sight.

We're happy tonight.

We're walking in a winter wonderland.

You know that scene?

You know the scene I'm talking about?

The one we get in Christmas cards this time of year?

Snow.

Perfect snow.

Tranquility.

Peace.

White.

And here's why I think my heart yearns for that scene every single year when it comes around.

I wonder if you're like me.

I yearn for it because I want my life to be like that.

Yeah?

Inside, is there not our human hearts?

Is there not a yearning that that would be true of our lives?

Right?

I look back on the 351 days that I've come and gone so far in 2022 in my own life.

Oh, and there's been some great times.

There's been some joy.

There's been tons of laughter.

But also I'm so conscious getting to this time of year.

And this year for me has been tinged with regrets.

It's been tinged with hurt.

It's been tinged with words that I said that I can't take back.

It's been tinged with missed opportunities.

And so every person that comes to me this time of year and says,

what are you doing this Christmas?

The temptation for us, is it not, to spin the story and to keep up the show that we're somehow,

all of us, taking up our own little scene in this perfect Christmas postcard.

Right?

The pressure we put on ourselves and our world to kindle the magic of Christmas for one or two days a year,

when actually we feel like in that words of that carol,

we are in our lives in the bleak midwinter.

And that's a crushing pressure, is it not, that comes at this time of year,

that maybe comes at no other,

where we feel the pressure that our lives should be Christmas postcard white,

but we're conscious that they're not.

Friends, if you are here today and you're weary and sad,

if you're here today and you're feeling the anxiety,

if you're here today and you're aware of someone who you love,

who will not be around that Christmas table this year,

then I've got wonderful news for you today in this passage.

Because this is the gospel, what Christians call the gospel.

And here it is taking place in Bethlehem.

And this is good news for weary and sad and worn out people.

And here's what I mean by that.

I'm going to give you two reasons, one later on,

as to why I became a Christian at age 18.

Do you know what the first one was?

The first one was that I found in the Bible a compelling realism

that I found nowhere else in my life.

I agreed and C.S. Lewis put it like this.

He said, when he became a Christian, I've been reading poems.

I've been reading poems, romances, vision, literature,

legends and myths my whole life.

I know what they are like.

And I know none of them are like the Bible.

I remember when I first became a Christian,

it was like I picked up this book

and it was like for the first time in my life,

I was looking at a map

that helped me understand the contours of my worlds.

Now, there were three phrases in that passage

that we read earlier that describe the human condition.

And ones that I remember when I read them,

I thought, yep, that is true.

Here's the first one.

Did you pick them up?

The first one is that word alienated.

Right?

By our own free will.

This is what we are.

We are estranged.

We are separated from the good God of love,

of life and light who created us.

And he created us in his image,

not by chance, not by accident.

He created us in his image to live in relationship with him,

enjoying him and knowing him forever.

But now our paths, because of our rebellion,

are set on a destiny of physical and eternal death.

And because of that, what are we in our thoughts?

We are hostile in mind.

We are enemies in our minds.

Because we don't want the God who made us.

We don't want his ways.

We find them restrictive.

We find them offensive.

And because of that, what are we?

Well, we are doing evil deeds.

Do you see?

The kind of global acts that cause wars,

the kind of everyday acts that cause division and hurt.

I don't know about you,

but I'm always amazed at my ability

to hurt the people that I love the most.

And those three words, those three phrases come together.

And they come together in that word sin.

You know, we live its effects daily.

And we feel its effects daily as it wreaks havoc on our world.

I find it interesting.

I wonder if you saw that that's the tone that John Lewis

are being praised for recognizing in their Christmas advert this year.

You've seen that one?

The John Lewis advert?

Choosing not to go for novelty,

not to go for cuddly monsters,

not to go for the man on the moon looking through the telescope,

but instead going for reality, right?

Basing their advert around the fact that heartbreakingly,

some 108,000 children are currently caught up in the care system in the UK.

It's almost as if we're waking up, isn't it,

to the fact that, no, something is not right.

This should not be how it is.

And yet this is our world.

And the Bible would say it is because of our hearts.

And so what do we do with that?

Well, there's three options, right?

Or three animals when you think about it.

Okay, what do we do with that?

Well, we can go full hamster, right?

And we can try and get on the proverbial training wheel

and we can try and run a bit harder,

trying to do a bit more,

aiming to do a little bit better.

We can go full hamster or we can go full ostrich, right?

We can put our heads in the sand.

We can close our ears.

We can say it ain't so.

We can try and escape the realities of our world

that we feel so acutely at this time of year.

I find it interesting that the BBC

now show their biggest and their best shows,

not on a Saturday night at eight o'clock,

as used to be the case in my day growing up.

When do they show their best shows now?

They show them at Sunday night at what time?

At nine o'clock, every single time, right?

And it's almost as if we thank them as a nation

for the fact that for one extra hour on a Sunday night,

we thank them for being able to forget about one Monday morning

for one extra hour, right?

It's what we do.

It's escapism.

Or we can go, and this is the invitation of this passage today,

we can go full lamb, right?

Full hamster, full ostrich.

This invitation is to go full lamb.

As we see Mary's little lamb born in that manger in Bethlehem.

Now, if you've got the passage open in front of you,

don't worry if you don't, it will go on the screen.

You'll see that Paul makes a big deal of the fact

that Jesus has a body of flesh, right?

That he really came as a human being.

That for Paul, as he writes this,

this is not some take it or leave it little detail

of the Christian faith.

In fact, this is a cornerstone of the Christian faith, right?

This is like the Jenga brick,

that if you pulled this out,

the whole thing would collapse around you and you lose, right?

Jesus was no ghost figure.

No, without ceasing to be God,

he really did become a human being.

The eternal God was at one point in time

smaller than a full stop.

The creator of all things came out the womb,

all fingers and toes.

The God who upholds all things

had to have his umbilical cord cut.

I remember moving to Bristol

and asking a lady who lived,

who worked in the PR department of the company

that I was going to work for

that I'd seen a flat in a certain area of the city.

And I asked her, I said, is this a nice area?

Should I live there?

Should I, what kind of word would you use to describe it?

Do you know the word she used?

She used the word earthy.

Yeah, I know I'd never heard of it before.

Earthy.

What she meant is that area of town,

there's no glitz and glam,

no pomp,

real people,

rough and ready,

you'll be right in the thick of it.

Earthy.

Use that word all the time now, I love it.

Earthy.

The wonder of Christmas

is that in Jesus,

God got earthy.

Right?

Born into our sweat,

our toil,

our mess.

The son of God shed tears.

He knew smiles.

He got splinters.

He felt hunger.

He had needs.

Why?

Well, last week we thought about the fact

that Jesus coming,

he came to reconcile all things.

And this week,

it's almost in this passage

that Paul goes from all things,

he goes personal.

He says,

you.

Jesus came for you.

Right?

What did he do?

Jesus took responsibility.

That's what he did.

Right?

We hate people in our culture

who don't take responsibility.

It's why Matt Hancock went on,

I'm a celebrity,

get me out of here,

wasn't it?

Trying to gain back his reputation

that he lost.

Why?

Because we didn't trust his words

and didn't trust him

to take responsibility.

Well, this Jesus

took responsibility

with his life.

Right?

He came,

he entered our world,

he stood in our shoes

and he lived a life

that we couldn't.

A life lived,

a perfect life of worship

to his father.

And you have to say,

what a life it was.

And this is the second reason

I remember becoming

a Christian when I was 18.

Reading the person,

reading about the person

of Jesus

and thinking to myself,

I've never met anyone

like that.

You have to say that

you should look at Jesus

in the Bible

and if you haven't done

that this morning,

the invitation is for you

to do it

and you can grab a Bible

before you go.

We'd love to make that happen.

You have to say,

here is the fullest human being

who ever lived.

He did what we couldn't.

Healing the sick,

going towards the destitute,

eating and drinking

with questionable people.

You have to look at Jesus

and say,

here is the most fully satisfied

human being

that's ever existed.

His life.

He lives the life

that we couldn't live

and his death.

His life ends

crucified on this Roman cross.

The death that he suffered

in his body

that we deserved.

This Jesus took it.

He took it.

He lived the life

that we couldn't live

and he died the death

that we should have died

and he did it.

Why?

To take responsibility

to win his people.

That's what his name means.

His name means God saves.

He came to save us

from our sin.

And the call is to trust

in this rescue plan

hatched in eternity past

by this God of love.

The promise that he made

that snowballed and grew

through the Old Testament

until Jesus came.

He lived,

he died,

he rose

and he calls us now

in the position

where he is

of all power

and authority

having conquered death

to trust him.

Come and trust him.

That his death

is our death.

That his life

is our life.

And his father

is our father.

You know,

I always think about this

what it means

to be a Christian.

I remember a number

of years ago

Alex and I and the kids

we started climbing

Blackford Hill.

New Year's Day I think

or the 2nd of January.

We started climbing

Blackford Hill

and we get halfway up

and then we realise

with the kids

that this ain't gonna work.

And we're with friends

and our friends

want to get to the top.

They've never really been

to the top

so they keep on walking

to the top

and we say

we'll just stay halfway

and we'll just get you

on the flip side

when you come back down.

And so we sat there

on the benches

getting colder

but we've got our

big winter jackets on

and we each took a child

at a point

there was only two

child in

and we just wrapped

them in our jackets.

What is it to be a Christian?

What is it to trust Jesus?

At its heart

the Bible talks about

the fact that

our lives are in him.

He has taken

full responsibility

for the life

that we couldn't live

and the death

we should have died.

And that is what

happens to our lives.

And that is what it is

to go full lamb.

To trust in him

and to come to him

and to find

our life

in his light.

And what's the result

of that?

Well we are

reconciled.

Those

now what

three phrases

describe us

as Jesus

presents us

before God the Father.

Holy

you see that?

Set apart.

Blameless

without blemish

not just forgiven

but perfect

and above

reproach.

Meaning that

no charge

or accusation

will stick

against

those who

trust in Jesus

because he

has paid it all.

And now

in him

what are our

lives

because when

God looks at us

he sees Jesus.

What are our

lives?

Our lives

are pure as snow.

That is what

your life is

in the eyes

of your loving

father because

of Jesus.

And the invitation

then

is to come

and trust him.

And maybe

you have

maybe your

life is

in Jesus.

The invitation

again is to

come and find

rest in him.

To fall back

to collapse

yourself in

who he is

and what he's

done for us

on the cross

and to bask

ourselves

in our

father's love

for us.

That's what

sent Jesus.

Our father's

love for us.

You know what

does this look

like just as we

close?

I want to tell

you about my

friend Gordon.

Right Gordon's

another pastor

in the city

but that's not

how I really

know Gordon.

I know Gordon

because I see him

as a fellow dad

every day on the

school run.

Right?

And every day I

see him and he

texts me sometimes

afterwards.

He's become a

really good friend.

He texts me and

he said,

buddy, you're

looking really

down today.

Are you okay?

Sometimes I text

him, mate, you're

looking quite sad

today.

Anything I can

help with?

And I love it

because we so

often chatted

about the

struggles in our

lives.

Right?

Life is really

hard.

Battling

illness as a

family, raising

children aware of

your own weakness,

concerns for your

own family, things

that always need

done around the

house, financial

concerns, all of

these things which

would seek to rob

us of that joy of

who we are.

And I said to

him, buddy, listen,

how do you do it?

What is God

teaching you?

And he said,

because of the

gospel, there's so

much going on in my

life, but I say to

myself that there's

two things that are

true for me every

day, two phrases are

true for me every

day because my life

is caught up in

Jesus.

Do you know what he

said?

He said the first

one is that there's

no one today I need

to impress.

And he said,

secondly, there's

nothing today I need

to prove.

And that's what it

is to trust in

Jesus.

The one who came

for us, the one

whose name means

God saves, the one

who lives the life

we couldn't live, who

dies the death we

should have died, and

who now holds our

lives in his right

hand at the

God the Father's

right hand side in

the place of all

power and authority.

This is not about us

up in our game.

This is not us about

finding our greatest

self at this time of

year.

This is another

wonderful reminder

that Jesus has done

it all.

So that's what it is

to go full, Lamb.

That's the invitation

we have this morning.

So come to Bethlehem

and savour what God

is doing.

As your Saviour

takes on flesh and

is born.

No wonder the

angel said, it is

good news of great

joy for all people.

Let's pray, will we?

And we thank you, dear

God, for your wonderful

love for us.

So undeserving.

Lord, we weren't

looking for you.

Thank you that this

tells us, the baby in

the manger, that into

our darkness and our

distress and our sin,

that you came looking

for us.

And we just thank you

that this is the kind

of God that you are.

And so, Father, I pray

for those here today

who are hurting.

Lord, I pray that by

your Spirit you would

meet them and comfort

them in their loss.

Lord, those who are

anxious, those who are

worried, those who are

stressed, those who are

fearful of what

tomorrow might hold.

Father, thank you that

because Jesus came to

earth, took on our

flesh, not only does he

know what it is, but

Father, thank you that

he's able to bring

rest and peace for our

souls.

And we just thank you

for this wonderful time

of year, everything that

we've done so far today.

And we commit ourselves

to you in his

wonderful name.

Amen.