The Perfect Gift for Jesus

Welcome to Gateway Churches Podcast.

Wherever you're tuning in from, we hope you're encouraged by today's message.

Merry Christmas, everyone.

Isn't it a wonderful time of the year?

It's a special, special time, and it's that time and in which we're all thinking about what kind of gifts to give to each other.

We're trying to survive the shopping and the eating.

And my pants always get very tight.

I don't know why.

Somewhere between Thanksgiving and Christmas, I know that doesn't happen to you.

As you're making your list of gifts and people for whom to shop, can I encourage you to be sure and add to that name Jesus Christ?

He's the hero of the holidays, and he deserves our finest gift.

And in just a moment, I want to talk to you about a gift idea for Jesus under this title, The Perfect Gift for Jesus.

Before I pray, let me encourage you to keep the Christmas musical as well as the candlelight services on your calendar.

And also keep in mind that this is the perfect time to bring your family and friends.

Whatever campus you're on, whatever service you wish to attend, there are people just looking to be invited.

This is the time.

Invite your family and friends, and let's celebrate our Savior Jesus Christ.

And one more thing.

I have just picked up a bit of Portuguese in the room.

Many of you know that I lived in Brazil for many years.

Two of my three daughters are Brazilian, born in Brazil, and I think they're all right here.

I heard Brazilians behind me.

Stand up, look at this.

Sejam bem-vindos.

Amen.

Thank you, Lord, for this day, for the blessings that we have of belonging to you, our great King.

Thank you, precious Lord, for the story of Christmas.

We never would have imagined that God would become a baby, that the word would become flesh.

Thank you, Father.

Warm our hearts.

And now prepare our hearts in this Advent season for the great Advent, your return.

Would you please forgive our speaker?

You know that his sins are many.

And help us to see Jesus.

Just Jesus.

Through Christ we pray.

And all God's people said, He deserves our pity.

When you see him, please do not laugh.

Do not mock.

Do not point.

Just gently walk him over to the nearest bench and help him to take a seat.

Have pity on the man.

He's so fearful.

He's so wide-eyed.

He's so out of his element.

He's a deer on the streets of Manhattan.

He's Tarzan walking through the urban jungle.

He's a whale that's beached and has no clue how he got there or how he'll ever get back.

Who is this forlorn creature?

Who is this ashen-faced orphan?

He is, please put your hand over your hearts as I tell you, because your hearts are going to break.

He is a man in the women's clothing department.

And he's looking for a gift.

This is the time of year he appears.

He comes out of his normal habitat in the mall.

He comes out of the sporting goods department, out of the food court.

He turns his back for just a moment on that big screen television in the appliance section.

And here he ventures into the unknown world of women's wear.

You'll spot him easily.

He stands motionless in the aisle.

And were it not for those big rings of sweat beneath his arms, you would think he was a mannequin.

But he's not.

He's a man in a woman's world, and he's never seen so much underwear.

At the Walmart where he buys his, it's all packaged neatly on one shelf.

But here, he's in a forest of lace.

His dad warned him about places like this.

And though the sign above him says to linger e linger e knows he shouldn't.

And so he moves on, but he has no clue where to go.

You see, not everyone has been prepared for this moment like I was.

My dad saw shopping for the lady in a man's life as a rite of passage.

A bit like teaching a son to shave or tie a necktie or that talk about birds and bees.

And so he had a talk with us.

He sat my brother and me down.

I can remember it to this day.

And with a very solemn voice, he said, Sons, there will come a day in which you are called upon to purchase a Christmas gift for the lady in your life.

And in order to prepare you for that day, remember these three words.

Este Lauder.

I thought he was giving me a basketball cheer.

Stay louder.

But I never forgot it.

And every Christmas, my mom would get three gifts from the three men in her life, Estee Lauder, Estee Lauder, and Estee Lauder.

My problem was solved until I got married.

My wife does not like Estee Lauder.

Even though I told her it made her smell motherly.

Didn't change her mind.

As a result, every year I have been in a bind.

Now my wife Deanlin is not with me on this trip, so I can tell you if you promise not to tell her.

But I've been shopping and I decided this year I would get her, I would purchase her a purse.

What's complicated about buying a purse?

I've carried the same money clip for eight years.

No doubt I'll have it for the rest of my life.

What's complicated about a tool that carries money and carries cards?

Oh, naive soul that I am.

Tell an attendant in the men's department that you want a wallet, and you're escorted to a small counter next to the checkout.

Tell a woman, attendant, that you would like to look at a purse.

And you are taken into a room the size of the American Airlines Arena with shelf upon shelf.

Shelves with purses, purses with price tags, small but potent price tags.

Have you seen what these purses cost?

That should remove the need for a purse because you don't have any money after you purchase one.

That was exactly my thought when the attendant asked me some questions.

Questions for which I had absolutely no answer.

Sir, what kind of purse do you want?

There's more than one kind.

She said yes.

Handbag, shoulder bag, glove bag, backpack, shoulder pack, fanny pack, change purse.

I grew dizzy.

I grew weak.

I had to sit down.

I had to place my head between my knees.

I was afraid I was gonna faint.

She leaned over me like she was a drill sergeant and kept yelling at me.

Money bag, tote bag, pocketbook, satchel.

I perked up.

Satchel.

There was a baseball player named Schel Page.

That must be heaven's answer.

I told her I wanted a satchel.

Apparently, she did not like my answer.

And forgive me for saying this at church.

Forgive me for saying this at Christmas.

But she began to curse at me.

She did.

I didn't understand the language.

I think it was French.

She called me a Louis Vuitton.

Right there in front of everybody.

And then she called me a duny burg.

And then she said, I want all your money.

And threatened to brighten me.

So I turned.

I walked out.

But then I stopped.

And I gave her a taste of her own medicine.

I looked at her and I said, Este Lauder, lady.

And I left.

Christmas and gifts.

They've always been associated, and rightly so, since the first Christmas.

The Magi came with the gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh.

The shepherds came with their gift of presence and encouragement.

Mary gave the gift of her womb at Christmas and gifts.

They've been interlocked since the very first one.

But there's one gift that is most curious.

Most of the gifts make sense.

I mean, the magi's gift of gold frankincense and myrrh, that may have funded the escape of Joseph and Mary's family to Egypt.

The gift of the shepherds to be present.

They needed that encouragement.

And how could baby Jesus be baby Jesus without the gift of Mary's womb?

But there is one gift, the gift of the angels.

Which is a curious one.

Do you know about their gift?

The gospel writer Luke tells us about it.

Suddenly the angel was joined by a vast host of others, the armies of heaven, praising God.

Glory to God in the highest heaven, they sang, and peace on earth for all those pleasing him.

When this great army of angels had returned again to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, Come on, let's go to Bethlehem and let's see this wonderful thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.

The angels filled the night with lights and the sky with music, and well, that's it.

That's it.

I mean, don't you think they could have done more?

Joseph could have used a chaperone back to Nazareth.

But those who loved him the most gave him this simple gift, the gift of worship.

They placed their love on a pillow of praise and presented it to Christ.

That's all they gave.

But is that not the greatest gift to give Jesus this Christmas?

And that is to imitate the angels with the wonder of worship.

To give Jesus your worshiping heart.

You know what they're still worshiping.

Even at this very moment, as we're gathered, Revelation chapter 4 and verse 8 tells us that heaven is still reverberating with the sound of loud corporate worship.

Revelation 4 · chapter mention

Day and night they never stop saying holy, holy, holy.

The word worship evolves from an old English word.

I'm not sure how to pronounce it, but it's something like worth shipe.

And the idea is that when you worship, you are declaring the worthiness of the one to whom you give worship.

Worship happens anytime.

You turn your heart and your head toward heaven and you say, You are worthy.

You are worthy.

You are good.

Worship happens whenever you clear your calendar for prayer.

Whenever you turn the radio dial to praise music, whenever you use your lunch hour for meditation, worship happens in barns, in pastures, worship happens in workplaces, in cars, worship happens in homes.

And yes, worship happens in God's house.

Our highest call is to be a people of worship.

Whenever God's people make a public and plural proclamation of God's goodness, they are and we are worshiping.

God is on the hunt for worshipers.

He is on the hunt for people who will bow their knees, who will open their hearts, who will open their mouths and declare glory to God in the highest heaven.

Jesus said the Father is actively seeking such people to worship him.

Right now, he's looking for worshipers.

This is what he wants from you this Christmas.

You might say, well, what if I don't worship?

Oh, but you will.

You will.

The question is not, will you worship?

The question is, to whom or to what will you give your worship?

We're all worshipers.

And the great calamity of mankind is that we worship counterfeit gods.

And the consequence of worshiping a counterfeit God is a broken heart.

When I was eight years old, I asked my parents for a Schwin bicycle for Christmas.

Not just any Schwin bicycle, but a Schwin bicycle with a banana seat and high bar handlebars.

Oh my goodness, was that not a great day?

Basking in the light of the Christmas tree that morning, there it was.

It invited me to climb aboard and right away into the bliss of childhood, I decorated the handlebars with tassels.

With my own money, I bought a reflector for the fender.

And I attached a playing card.

Do people still do this?

I attached a playing card to the spokes so that as the wheels passed, what sound would be made?

Oh, how was George Clooney cool?

I rode that bike.

We explored subdivisions and drainage ditches and dirt roads and alleys.

I loved that bike.

Yes.

I worshiped that bike.

You see, I was counting on that bike to deliver me, to be my source of joy, to be my identity.

If a girl wanted to meet me, she had to see that bike.

I was Max, the owner of the red bike.

But then, guess what?

I broke it.

I bent the frame.

I mean, I really had a bad wreck.

And my dad and I tried to fix it, but it was never the same.

I was so disappointed.

It let me down.

And I was counting on it to do so much, you know, to deliver me, to entertain me, to fulfill me.

And then it didn't.

What about you?

You were counting on that career to entertain you, to deliver you, to fulfill you.

But then what about that marriage you were counting on to deliver you, to fulfill you, to sustain you?

What about that retirement you were saying would carry you?

Would be the reason for life, the hope of your existence, but it has fallen short.

You see, worship might not be the word you use to describe your fascination with stuff or people or events.

But it is worship.

Anytime we trust an object or activity or person to give us life and meaning, we worship it.

And when we make good things, the ultimate things, we set ourselves up for disappointment, don't we?

We set ourselves up for heartache.

If we depend upon a career, a relationship, or a purchase to give our lives meaning, what happens?

What happens when it doesn't?

Worshiping these imposter gods leaves us lurching from one disappointment to the next until we come to the end of our lives looking back and thinking nothing ever truly satisfied me.

And that is because we settled for worshiping puny deities.

God-centered worship, on the other hand, rescues us.

It rescues us from bamboozlers, from counterfeits.

Worship does to your soul what a spring rain does to the Texas ground.

It softens it and it prepares it to receive the seed that brings life.

Worship.

Are you brokenhearted?

Then worship the Prince of Peace who will give you hope.

Are you stressed?

Then worship the King of the universe who holds all of the galaxies in the palm of his hand.

Do you feel small?

Then bow before the great one who dares call you his child.

Worship.

Worship daily.

Worship honestly.

Worship with a longing heart.

The healthiest thing you can do is to worship.

It sets us right, it straightens us up.

It causes our hearts to be full.

And it delivers us from those false, small gods.

For your own sake, do what the angels did and make a big deal out of the arrival of the king.

Well, how do we do this?

Three ideas, and then I'm done.

Number one, worship verbally.

Worship verbally through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise.

Look at this, the fruit of lips that openly profess his name.

In the early 1980s, the great theologian Willie Nelson recorded a song in which he apologizes for unexpressed love.

And the song goes something like, Maybe I never told you.

Maybe I never called you.

Maybe I never showed up.

But honey, I want you to know you were always on my mind.

That song makes my wife want to puke.

He did not consult women if he wrote that, did he?

Ladies.

No sweetheart would accept that excuse.

You never told me that you loved me.

You never gave me flowers or compliments, but I was always on your mind.

Yeah, all right.

God doesn't buy it either.

God doesn't buy it either.

He wants to hear our affection.

It is out of the abundance of the heart that the mouth speaks.

So when the mouth is silent, the heart is in question.

Do you love God?

Let him know.

Out loud, in public, unashamed, let there be jubilation, let there be celebration, let there be festivity.

Shout to God with a joyful praise.

Make a joyful shout to God, all the earth.

I love this quote from John Wesley.

He wrote, Sing lustily and with good courage.

Beware of singing as if you were half dead or half asleep.

But lift up your voice with strength.

Be no more afraid of your voice now, nor more ashamed of its being heard than when you sung the songs of Satan.

Speaking of Satan, he hates worship.

He's not welcome in a house of worship.

He cannot bear worship because he wants to be worshipped.

And when he sees people worshiping the living and loving God, he ducks his pointed tail and turns and runs.

The quickest way to purge your house of demonic and evil presence is to fill it full of worship.

Just fill it.

Let there be worship in your house.

Let there be worship in your car.

Let there be worship.

When you tuck your children into bed at night, lean over them and sing a verse of worship.

As you awaken in the morning, begin with a verse, a chorus of worship.

As you're driving your kids to school, let the car be full of worship.

Let them know that there is somebody more that deserves our praise rather than the team or the clothes or the tennis shoes.

Teach your children the power of God-centered worship.

James, the half-brother of Jesus, said, yell aloud, no to the devil, and watch him scamper.

But just say a quiet yes to God, and he'll be there in no time.

Worship.

This is the high call of churches to worship.

Other organizations organize people, other organizations feed hungry people, other organizations build buildings, other organizations offer counsel and fellowship.

But only God's church is called to be a house of worship.

That's our calling.

And we cannot fail in this, our highest calling.

The Lord is seeking those.

He is actively seeking those who will worship him.

Amen.

Worship verbally.

And then also worship in community.

In community.

On the night Jesus was born, there was a multitude of the heavenly host praising God.

You see, the presence of Jesus deserves an abundant chorus.

Every generation has had its share of Jesus, yes, church no Christians.

For a variety of reasons, people turn away from church attendance.

And I would tell you, they do so at great loss.

They do so at great loss.

There's something about getting up out of your lazy boy and getting in your car and putting on your breeches and lipstick or whatever you need, going to the effort of driving wherever you go and walking in and seeing that the reason we're all here together is we believe that Christ has come and Christ is coming again.

When you see my face in the sanctuary, when I hear your voice in the chorus, we are mutually edified.

Granted, we don't always sing well.

That's okay.

Our singing is imperfect.

We sing off key.

Our attention span, well, it tends to wander.

Even so, let us worship.

The sincerity of our worship matters more than the quality.

Let's see how inventive we can be in encouraging love and helping out, not avoiding worshiping together as some do, but spurring each other on, especially as we see the big day approaching.

So worship verbally, worship in community.

And then lastly, worship demonstrably.

Let your body express what your heart is feeling, and let your heart be awakened by your body.

May the lifting of my hands be like the evening sacrifice, wrote the psalmist.

Because your love is better than my life, my lips will glorify you.

I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands.

Yes, outward expressions of worship can be used inappropriately.

I get that.

Some people show off, some people strut.

Some people worship to be seen, but don't let potential abuse preclude appropriate use.

Don't let potential abuse preclude appropriate use.

Lift your hands.

Clap your hands.

Bend your knees, bow your head, fall on your face.

Something powerful happens, dear church, when we worship.

Something powerful happened on the day that the soldiers did.

Christmas Eve, 1915.

World War I was raging in northern France.

Frigid temperature shook the bones of the fighters, and bombs shook the soil of Europe.

Most of the soldiers were, well, they were kids.

Just a year or two removed from their homes.

They were young, homesick, longing to be with loved ones.

And the guns had blazed for a month.

Christmas seemed far away from the blood-soaked land.

And yet on one night, one particular night, that Christmas Eve night, across from the German side of the field came a chorus of soldiers' voices singing a holiday hymn in German.

Sleep, my child, and peace attend thee all through the night.

Guardian angels, God will send thee all through the night.

Soft, the drowsy hours are creeping, hill and vale and slumber sleeping.

I, my loving vigil keeping, all through the night.

And as the Christ child was honored, the soldiers placed their weapons on the ground.

And for a moment, in that moment, there was no war.

There were no enemies.

At one time it would be the Welsh soldiers, another time it would be the German soldiers.

At one time it would be in English, at one time it would be in German.

Back and forth, back and forth.

Around dawn, the feelings of goodwill emboldened the soldiers to step up out of their trenches and walk across.

And they shook hands.

And then they began exchanging gifts.

They didn't have much.

They had German beer and sausages and spiked helmets.

They had corned beef and biscuits and buttons.

But they gave what they had.

And they intermingled.

Then all of a sudden, a soccer game broke out.

Right there in the middle of no man's land.

It was awkward, it was disjointed, it was disorganized.

There were like 50 on each side.

But they played soccer.

And it all began with worship.

We can only pray that the worship of God's people to our Heavenly Father would cause weapons to be Lord yet again.

Amen.

Would cause those who are angry with each other to be at peace with each other.

As we lift our hearts and look toward the skies and thank the Prince of Peace.

So this Christmas, why don't you give the gift that the angels gave?

The gift of grace.

Thank you, Father.

Thank you for the privilege of worship.

Would you please forgive us for when our hearts are sleepy or our minds are distracted because we tend to forget?

But would you make us, would you make us into a congregation of worshipers?

And may we continually keep our knees bent, our hearts open, and our mouths full of gratitude for all you have done for us.

Through Jesus we pray.

Amen.

Thanks for joining us today.

If you'd like to connect with us, text Connect to 71010 or visit gatewaypeople.com.

We hope you have a great week.