Home for Christmas: Ps Miles Paludan

Hello, Hills family. It's my greatest

honor to share God's word today. I

really feel I have a word in season and

a word that's on my heart. Kind of want

to get a bit personal if I can and just

share what God's doing in my life and

and what God is doing in our church. And

this series of coming home for

Christmas. Oh my gosh, the the

celebration service last week, the

thought of the father, you know, looking

down the road to prodals coming home

just resonates in my heart coming home

to the Lord for Christmas. And our verse

for the entire series is John4.

It is an amazing scripture. It's

actually impacted my life so deeply over

this series. The word became human and

made his home among us. The word God

Almighty, he became human in the form of

Jesus Christ. But more than that, made

his home amongst us. He was full of

unfailing love and faithfulness,

revealing his character. He doesn't quit

on us. He never gives up. He pursues

unconditionally his unfailing love and

faithfulness. This is John's most

startling statement so far and it

changed the world forever that the God

of the universe would come to planet

Earth to be with mankind where God has

come close. He's moved into our lives

and our world. You don't have to

struggle to find him. God's come to

earth to find you. The word home in the

Greek is scano and it means to dwell or

occupy. And two of the most common

errors that people make about Jesus is

number one, they minimize his humanity

by disregarding how he identifies with

us as human.

He was all human, not partial human. He

was fully human and fully God. And so as

he was born into this earth through a

virgin birth of Mary, there is this

humanness that he can relate to us that

we can connect with him. The other

mistake people make is to minimize his

deity by rejecting what he has done

singlehandedly

by his death and resurrection. He is the

king of kings and the lord of lords. He

is all powerful, all god. So Jesus is

all human and he is all God. Why does

that matter? Well, the significance of

this verse is God was once far off,

separated from man by sin, but now he

has come close through Jesus. And the

real question today as we wrestle in

this season, has he made his home in

your heart?

Has he made his home in your life?

Does he occupy your life

or is he just something you visit when

it suits you? Is he dwelling in your

life? Or is he like an app? You just

pick it up and use it when it's

convenient.

Does he consume your life? Has he filled

every room of your life? Or do you just

push him into certain areas of your

life? Are are you planted in the house

of the Lord? Are are you being consumed?

Are you all in? Are you on fire? Are you

in love? Are you adoring? Are you sold

out? Or is he just something sort of

that you use when it's convenient? Kind

of like that exercise machine. You

bought it once, the treadmill or the or

the exercise bike, and you used it a few

times and it's sitting gaining dust.

Maybe for you that's what Jesus is

doing. He's sitting in the corner

gaining dust, waiting for you to invite

him in. There's a time of year at

Christmas where we all have a longing to

come home. Uh there's a longing to find

a place to belong, a longing to find

acceptance, you know, a longing to find

love, a longing to find meaning, to find

value, to find respect, to find loving

family and friends. And St. Augustine,

which was one of the early Christian

theologians, he actually started out as

a worldly intellect and he heard a

child's voice to say, "Read Romans 13."

Which he did. His life was transformed.

He was never the same. He was changed

accepted Christ. And he said these

words, you have made us for yourselves,

oh Lord. Our heart is what? It's

restless

until it rests in you.

For me, I grew up in a loving family.

Um, my parents got divorced, but my mom

was just a beautiful mom. provided this

loving, caring house for my sister and I

to grow up in. I was just a teenager and

we had to move because of the divorce

and we ended up in a little fibro shack

in Darly Street Monavale. It was a two

bed, one bath. I kind of my bedroom was

like a closet. I didn't care because I

was a 100 meters from the beach. I was

in the surf morning and night. And it

was in this place that mom was working

two jobs, single mom, but she provided

love, stability, security, that there

was food on the table. There was safety.

It was 20 cent coins that I could use

for the local milk bar to play Space

Invaders. She she would always cook

meals. She cleaned my clothes. It was

beautiful, humble. Uh but but there was

this love in the place. I remember my

mom used to get Lacost

um little alligator if you remember the

brand and she would cut them out from op

shops and sew them on to my Kmart socks.

Once she bought me some Reebok boots

that were knockoffs, but I felt like I

was on top of the world wearing these

Reebok boots. She once made me a Miami

Vice white jacket with shoulder pads in

it so I could be like Don Johnson. It

was in this place that God that God used

my mom to provide love and care and

stability and it was a beautiful home.

Yet, as wonderful as my mom was, I I was

still longing for something more. I was

at Pitwater High School and just felt I

didn't belong. I didn't know who my

people were. No one knew what I was

going through. No one understood the

pain of the divorce, the rejection from

my father, the feeling of failing and

causing the divorce. And no one

understood I was just searching and

longing. And it wasn't until I was 15

that I got saved.

I got saved and I found out that there

was a home for me. I found out there was

a God who knew my name. He knew the

number of hairs on my head. that knew

the thoughts in my head. He he he knew

my plans and the destiny for my life. He

knitted me together on my mother's womb.

It was like coming home. I felt a

belonging. I felt this confidence. I

felt this freedom, this peace.

I found home in the Lord. I think that's

why this series is so important to me

and this message is so important because

I don't want anyone to not find their

home in the Lord. It's what drives us as

Christians. Not only have we found home,

but we can help others find home in

Jesus Christ. Home in the Lord is a

personal relationship with God. [snorts]

Home in the Lord is knowing God

personally through Jesus Christ. Do you

have a relationship with Jesus Christ?

Have you come home or is there a longing

in your heart? Is there a void that only

God can fill? God desires to bring us

home.

The word became human and made his home

among us. From Genesis to Revelation,

this is the plan of God that his heart

has always been. He would be with his

people. In the Garden of Eden, God

started walking out with mankind, his

creation. He would walk in the cool of

the afternoon with Adam and Eve until

something happened in Genesis 3:8. When

Genesis 3:8

the cool evening breeze were blowing,

the man and his wife heard the Lord

coming. He was walking about in the

garden and they what? They hid from the

Lord God among the trees. This verse

shows God's desire to fellowship, to

walk with us, his people. But because of

their sin, Adam and Eve hid from the

Lord. They they heard him. They saw him.

They knew he was there. But their sin

cause them to hide, to withdraw, to pull

back, to shut the door. I think so often

we do the same thing. I know I do. I can

let sin in my life, being a workaholic

or feeling too much weight or stress or

pressure. I got to fix everything. I got

to be in control. That can cause me to

shut the door to my heart. It can cause

me to hide. It can cause me to withdraw.

What about you? Is there some sin and

shame and guilt in your life that's

shutting the door of your heart that's

not allowing God to come in to

fellowship like he wants to do? How sad

it is honestly for a loving God who gave

his son to bring us home yet we stay

away because of sin in our lives. Here's

what sin did. S sin broke the

relationship with Adam and Eve and God.

It does the same thing for us. And

Jesus, he came and he died and rose

again to renew our fellowship with our

God in heaven. God longs to be with us.

He actively offers this unconditional

love to be forgiven, to come home.

But we have to accept that. We have to

respond to that. He's a gentleman. He

will not barge into your heart. He will

not force entry into your life. He'll

knock at the door of your heart and ask

if you will let him in. The Christmas we

often use the word Emmanuel, which is

found in Matthew 1:23. Look, the virgin

Matthew 1:23

will conceive a child and she'll give

birth to a son, and they'll call him

Emanuel. It means God with us. The

Christmas story isn't just about a baby

in a manger. It's not about religious

works. It's about the creator of heaven

moving into our heart, finding a home in

our lives where we can know him. It's

about relationship, not religion. I I

often tell people, I'm not a religious

person. They say, "What? You're not

religious, mate? You're a pastor." Well,

the original meaning of religion comes

from the Greek word tarasia. Tarasia and

it means outward practice. It means

rituals. It means ceremonies. But Jesus

came to destroy

religion. He came to destroy outward

practicals. He came to establish a new

covenant through relationship.

I I love having relationships with my

family. I love my family. You see,

pastoring is a job. It's something I do.

But who I am? I'm a follower of Christ.

I'm a husband. I'm a dad. And I love my

kids. I love my family. That is my first

priority. I mean, I love you, but I love

them more. And we recently got together

for Thanksgiving. And here's a photo of

my beautiful family. I just love every

one of them. I I love having

relationship with them. I love doing

life with them. I just am focused on

them. We even put Dolly the dog in the

photo. She's sort of part human and

become part of our family. But I also

want you to know our family isn't

perfect.

And I often will pray for the meal. I'll

say grace and they're all mucking up.

They're playing around. And I found a

clip on Insta and it is the exact thing

that happens when I pray for the meal.

Take a look. our family and thank you

for our great family that we have that

you blessed us with. Father, we pray

that you'll just we just know that

you've done this for us and we love you

and honor you, Father, with our lives.

Help us to live our lives in a way that

that that make that pleases you, Father.

And pray that you'll guide and direct us

each day. Help us to be witnesses for

you to the world because we know we have

a light inside of us that the world does

not have. and pray pray that we will be

able to tell them about um the

encouragement and the love that we have

for you and that they will come to know

you as their Lord and Savior as we have

thank you for this food nurse my body

thank you for Debbie she prepared it all

parents can anyone relate [laughter]

I'm praying for revival I'm praying for

an awakening for souls I'm praying for

godly spouses and husbands and for for

the coming of the Lord and They're just

mucking around, playing up. But but our

home, it's more than bricks and mortar.

It's a place where people can be real

and honest. And even though we're not

perfect, it's a place where we can

actually pursue deep, meaningful

relationships, where we're not

pretending. There's no pressure. It's

not performancedriven,

where we can just be ourselves. That I'm

going to love my kids unconditionally

regardless of what they do or say. I'm

for them. I encourage them. I want to

create this environment in my home where

there is this love that they can

receive. So there can be intimacy. There

can be openness. There can be

conversations that my kids can say, "I'm

home. There's peace. There's love and

there joy. It's not because we're

perfect. It's because we're pursuing

relationship." And that's exactly what

it's like when God makes home in our

hearts. He brings a peace, a a warmth,

the joy, a love,

and all the things that make a house

feel like a home. The these

relationships that are connected, where

you feel loved and safe and secure from

the very beginning, that's what God

wants to do in your heart. God wants you

to come home to him where you can give

him full access to your life to be real,

to be genuine, to be honest, to wrestle

with your doubts, to tell him your

problems. So often we think I'm not

telling God. God knows everything. He

knows what you're going through. He is a

safe place. Don't don't let sin cause

you to hide. Don't let sin put a

blockage in your life that pushes God

out today. God, I need you. Go. God,

forgive me. Go. God, come into my life.

God, be my Lord. The birth of Jesus

isn't just the start of the story. It's

the beginning of God moving in. Has he

moved in to every area of your life? But

it doesn't stop there. That's only part

of the Christmas story. That's only half

of the gospel. God desires to bring us

home. But God desires to bring others

home. God desires you would bring others

home. Romans 10:14 says it so well. But

Romans 10:14

how can they call on him to save him

unless they believe in him? And how can

they believe in him unless they've not

heard about him? And how can they hear

about him? Unless someone tells them.

And how can anyone go and tell them

without being what? Without being sent.

And that's why the scriptures say, "How

beautiful are the feet of the messengers

who bring good news." Let me say that

again. How beautiful are the feet of

messengers who bring good news.

Interesting verse because if we're

honest, feet aren't beautiful. I mean,

let's be real today. Feet are ugly. And

some of you have got super ugly feet,

right? YOUR SECOND TOE, IT'S BIGGER THAN

YOUR big toe, right? You got a LITTLE

PINKY, IT TRIES TO ESCAPE HALF the time.

You put your thongs or sandals on and

it's jumping out the sight. Feet,

they're just these ugly things. Yet the

Bible says they're beautiful. Why is

that? Because feet speak of activity.

Feet speak of motion, of progress. And

all those who are active and moving

forward in the work of preaching the

gospel, the Bible says, have beautiful

feet. There is something beautiful when

we share the good news to others.

There's times I wonder why I don't share

the gospel more. I'm in a plane most

weeks sitting to someone for at least an

hour in silence. I wonder is it fear or

you know I don't know enough or is it

I'm not good enough. But there's

something beautiful when we share our

story. When we invite people to church,

when we can share the gospel that God

wants to come home to the heart of every

person that he doesn't want anyone to

perish. There's something beautiful when

we go out of our way to tell someone

that God loves them. There's something

beautiful when we go OUT OF OUR WAY TO

SHARE WHAT GOD HAS DONE IN OUR HEARTS.

THERE'S something beautiful when we go

out of our way to invite someone to

church. Matthew 9 verse 10. Later,

Matthew 9:10

Matthew invited Jesus and his disciples

to his home as dinner guests and with

many tax collectors and other

disreputable sinners. But when the

Pharisees saw this, they asked, "Why

does your teacher eat with such scum?"

When Jesus heard this, he said, "Healthy

people don't need a doctor. Sick people

do." That the Pharisees were horrified

that Matthew was a tax collector, then

became a disciple. They were horrified

that Jesus, the rabbi, would hang out

with sinners.

But the Pharisees, they were like

doctors. who wanted to avoid contact

with the sick at all costs.

They they wished that the sick would

become healthy, but they wouldn't risk

getting infected themselves. What a

tragedy that the gospel was in the hands

of these religious leaders, but they

wouldn't share it to the ones who needed

it the most. On the other hand, Jesus

came to help the sick. Jesus came to

reach the lost. Jesus came to go places

where others wouldn't. In fact, I

believe the reason that he chose

Matthew, a sinner, to be a disciple, was

he could be a bridge to the lost. That

Matthew's shady past was the best asset

for Jesus to reach people who needed him

most. And I think that's about you and

I. We know people from our past who may

not know Christ. They're the ones God

wants to use us to reach out to. At

elevation, this is important to us. We

want to reach everyone. Everyone is

invited. Everyone is accepted. Doesn't

matter your background, your skin color,

your financial status, what you believe.

Everyone's welcome. Everyone is invited.

Because I've had this prophecy over our

church at Hills that we are a hospital

that we're a place where people can find

the Lord. They can find healing and

wholeness in the Lord. But that means

we've GOT TO GO OUT to the highways and

the byways. WE'VE GOT TO GO OUT TO reach

and invite people to come in. We got to

go out and tell them that there is a God

in heaven who loves them. As we wrap up

this series, Home for Christmas, it's

been one of the most impactful series of

my life. I know we've gone to multiple

services with our nine and 11 and we did

that to make room and I know that

sometimes that can be difficult

adjusting

making changes but our heartbeat has to

be to make home for God in our lives and

to help others make home for Jesus in

their lives. We we got to go. We we have

to share the gospel. I have a beautiful

message to share on Christmas day. How

the shepherds were the very first

evangelists that were on planet Earth.

The ordinary average lowly shepherds. I

want us to be a church that goes. I want

us to be a church that gets out of our

worlds. I want to be a church that sees

the hurt and is prepared to do what it

takes to reach people for Jesus Christ

so they can come home just like we have.

Father, I pray today you would use every

one of us to be beautiful feet of the

gospel. that you would challenge us that

we just don't make our home for God in

our hearts that we want to bring others

home to share the good news of Jesus.

And maybe today you're sitting here and

you haven't made God the Lord of your

life. You haven't asked him into your

heart. You haven't made a home for him.

Today's your day. This is why you're

here. Maybe someone invited you. Maybe

you got an invite card. Maybe you're

here just cuz it's kind of the thing to

do at Christmas time. You're not here by

accident. You're not here by chance. And

today, you're going to ask Jesus to be

the Lord of your life. You're going to

ask God Almighty, the of the universe,

to come home, to reside in your heart,

which he created you to do. There's a

longing that nothing will satisfy it.

Nothing will quench that desire. Only

God can fill it. That's why you're here

today with eyes closed and heads bowed

as you hear this message of the gospel

that Jesus came to you [music]

to make a home in your heart. All you

have to do is say yes to him. Open your

heart and receive him as your Lord and

your Savior. Today across the auditorium

with eyes closed and heads bowed. You

want Jesus to be your Lord and your

Savior. On the count of three, I want

everyone to raise your hand. Or maybe

you're coming back to the Lord. You've

drifted. You shut the door. It's time to

open your heart up and say, "God, I'm

here. I'm yours. Be the Lord of my life.

Fill my whole heart, not just a part of

it." That's why you're here today. With

eyes closed, heads bowed. On the count

of three, we're all going to put our

hands up to make God the home in our

hearts. One, two, three. That's it.

Raise him up. Raise him up high all

across this room. Raise him up. Raise

him up. You want Jesus to be your Lord.

Raise him up. You want him to be the

center of your life. Raise him up. You

want God to have a home in your heart.

Raise him up. Father, we pray for

everybody with hands raised that you

would make your home in their hearts

through Jesus Christ. We pray. If you

would all say this prayer after me

together. Jesus, let's all say it

together. Jesus,

forgive me of my sins.

Make a home in my heart. I give my life

to you. I surrender my life to you and I

want to follow you and serve you all the

days of my life. I pray in Jesus' name.

Everybody said, "Amen." Come on. When we

celebrate how good our God, how