Simple Christmas: Simplifying Our Complicated Life

Key Bible Verses

Luke 1:26-38

1 Corinthians 1:26-31

Matthew 5:3;  James 4:6

Isaiah 9: 6-7

Proverbs 16:9

Sermon Quotes

FROM PASTOR JOSH LAXTON

“God may add or allow complexity in our life, but offer TRUTH to simplify our complexity.”

“Don’t think your burdens are there to bog you down.  Your burdens have, at the very least, been filtered by a good and gracious God.  In God’s perspective, burdens become a blessing to be used to bless God and others.”

“You don’t have to be perfect;  you don’t have to have it all together for God to love you.”

“God may not give us the details, only the destination.  We will therefore have to walk by faith and not by sight.”

“God is a miracle worker and a mountain mover.  What seems impossible to man, is not impossible with God.  God makes the impossible possible.”

“Perspective reminds us not to play God, but to trust Him.”

“Mary simplifies her life by responding to God and saying, “Here I am, Do what you will with me!”  Her life was yielded to the service of God.  Her life wasn’t about her, it was about God.”

“God offers Truth to simplify our complexity.” 

DIGGING DEEPER

The story in Luke 1:26-38 tells us about how the angel Gabriel visited Mary in her hometown of Nazareth.  

Throughout the Bible the angel Gabriel, was God’s chief messenger angel who delivered important information on God’s behalf.  Gabriel appeared to at least three people in the Bible giving them news from God that was not easy for them to understand or accept. 

The first appearance of the angel Gabriel was in the Book of Daniel (Chapters 8 and 9) as the revealer of Daniel’s dreams.  The second appearance of Gabriel was to the priest Zechariah.  Gabriel told Zechariah that in their old age Zechariah and Elizabeth were to give birth to a son, John the Baptist (Luke 1:19).  The third appearance of Gabriel was to the virgin Mary.  Gabriel told Mary that she would conceive and bear a son, who would be called Jesus and he would be the Son of God.  (Luke 1:26-38)

From what we learn in scripture Gabriel was a very imposing figure. When Gabriel appeared to Mary, he proclaimed that she was highly favored and that the Lord was with her.  This troubled Mary and Gabriel told her not to be afraid and then he shared again how she had found favor with God.  No wonder Mary was greatly troubled and wondered at the greeting that Gabriel brought her.    Being told she was highly favored and given a divine blessing from God delivered by an angel would definitely be an unusual situation and greeting for a young peasant girl.  But Mary listened and heard Gabriel tell her that “You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus.  He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most HIgh.  The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jabo’s descendants forever;  his kingdom will never end.”  (Luke 1: 29-33).  

Mary asked the very practical question, “How will this happen since she was a virgin?”  Gabriel provided the answer,  “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.  So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.”  (Luke 1:35).   Later in the passage Gabriel shares that “For no word from God will ever fail.”

How awesome that Mary then answered the angel with amazing faith stating, “I am the Lord’s servant….May your word to me be fulfilled.”

As we learned this week in the teaching, Mary’s life was about to get very complicated.  She was blessed to be favored and chosen and loved by God, but she had to have wondered how everything would play out once Gabriel left the scene.  Among her questions might be, What would her future husband say about her pregnancy? Why had God chosen her for this honor over all the other women He could have chosen?  We can see how God in his sovereignty knew that Mary was poor and humble.  All she could give God was herself and her trust and obedience to faithfully fulfill the mission that she was given by God—to be the mother of Jesus Christ, the son of God.

This passage is a story which demonstrates God’s love for Mary and also for us.  We see that just as God chose and used Mary to be the mother of the Son of God, God can also choose and  use us as we are humble, obedient, and trust Him to provide our destination even without all the details. 

We, like Mary, need to think about how we can yield to God as we listen to Him and seek ways to serve Him and others around us knowing that God has all the details and that He loves us.   

The Bible states:

Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean He no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? ... No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow — not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below — indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:35, 37-39)

During this Christmas season, may we realize the amazing gift of God’s love which is vast and deep and so great that we cannot fully comprehend it.  Just like Mary, let us step into this great love and destiny that God has for us.  Let us be able, like Mary, to dedicate ourselves to being the Lord’s servant so that His will can be fulfilled.

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WHAT NOT TO MISS

Life is complicated.

Five Truths that Shape our Present Realities— simplifying the complexities of our life:

1. God loves you. (Luke 1:28)

a. You don't have to be perfect, you don't have to have it all together for God to love you.

2. God is with you. (Luke 1:28)

a. The first place God was present with someone was in the Garden of Eden with Adam.
b. Life and purpose flow from the presence of God with us.
c. Having God with us provides comfort, calmness, and simplicity when life gets complicated and overwhelming.

3. God is doing something in you and for others. (Luke 1:30-33)
   

a. Mary believes even in the midst of complexity.
b. She will experience difficulty, pain, hurt, lack of understanding.
c. God is doing something beautiful and glorious in and through her.

4. God's got the details covered. ( Luke 1:34-35)

a. Mary inquires asking Gabriel about the details of the news she is given and she is given the answer that there will be divine activity in and over her life.
b. God doesn't give Mary a vast number of details but God does let her know that He has it covered.
c. God wants us to trust Him as we follow Him.
d. God would be guiding, directing, and filling in all the details for Mary as she trusted Him directionally toward the final destination.

5. God makes the impossible, possible. (Luke 1:36-37)

a. God is a miracle worker and a mountain mover who makes the impossible possible.
b. Mary believed what the angel Gabriel told her but she didn't understand the process or the details and she may felt some doubt what she had been told.
c. Warren Wiersbe says, "There is a difference between doubt and unbelief. Doubt is a matter of the mind: we cannot understand what God is doing or why He is doing it. Unbelief is a matter of the will: We refuse to believe God's Word and obey what what He tells us to do" (Wiersbe Commentary: Luke,159).
d. Alister McGrath distinguishes between doubt and unbelief. According to McGrath, "Doubt arises within the context of faith. It is a wistful longing to be sure of the things in which we trust. But it is not, and need not, be a problem" (Ligonier Ministries Blog, http://www.ligonier.org/learn/articles/when-doubt-becomes-unbelief/).

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Six Descriptions of the child Mary will conceive and give birth to:

• You shall call His name Jesus.
• He will be great.
• He will be called the Son of the Most High.
• And the Lord God will give to Him the throne of his father David.
• And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever.
• And of His kingdom there will be no end.

What kind of King will be born to Mary:

• He is a wonderful counselor, mighty God, everlasting father, Prince of Peace.
• He has impeccable judgment and wisdom.
• He is El Shaddai (Mighty God)—the same God who showed up to Abraham and Jacob and He will come as a baby boy.
• He is the eternal everlasting God—the Ancient of Days incarnate as a baby.
• He is the Prince who has come to bring Peace to troubled souls and to a troubled world.
• He is the Prince who has come to calm the raging storm of brokenness and isolation.
• He is the Prince of Peace who comes to mend the hostile division between man and God.

What kind of Kingdom will He institute?

• A just, righteous kingdom that will be for all eternity.
• He will right every wrong.
• He will reverse the curse of sin.
• His kingdom will be marked by righteousness, holiness, and godliness.
• There will be love, kindness, joy, and jubilee in His kingdom.
• His kingdom will be the light and hope for a dark and dying world.

So why is this important for Mary?

•  For Mary, participating in God’s life and purpose by carrying and raising the Messiah, she would experience complications and difficulties:'

• Hurt and heartache from the words people would say.
• She would be misunderstood and misrepresented as a young woman giving birth before consummating her marriage.
• She would tend to be isolated from the rest of the community who didn't believe her.
• People would misunderstand, hate, and kill her Son.

• For Mary, participating in God’s life and purposes as she was the mother of Jesus Christ, The LIFE, God would do something in her and God would do something amazing for the world.
• Jesus had come to make all things new. He was coming to mend the broken, heal the wounded, reconcile the divided, redeem the enslaved and set the captives free.

Mary had unbelievable faith! She responded: "I am the Lord's servant….May your word to me be fulfilled.

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These truths simplified Mary's complicated life by providing:

1. Perspective. These truths DIVERT our attention away from focusing on all that we can’t control to focusing on the ONE who is in control.

• Perspective reminds us not to play God, but to trust Him.

2. Purpose. These truths DECLUTTER our lives by aligning our hearts with God’s purpose.

• Purpose allows us to prioritize what's more important in life.

3. People. God puts other people in our lives, who He is doing a work in, so that they can be used to do a work for others.

• People encourage us that we are not alone.

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Do you want to simplify your life today? Do what Mary did and realize that God offers truth to simplify our complexity.

Life Application

During this week, think about ways to use the Five Truths that Shape Our Present Realities in the What Not to Miss Section of this study to see practical ways to simplify the complexities in your life.   For example, identify some burdens you are carrying and think about how God has all the details covered.  How can your faith be made stronger as you directionally trust God with the destination He has planned for your life?     Also, take a look at Northland’s website. Learn more about attending Christmas Eve Worship Services or how to Serve on Christmas Eve.

Small Group Discussion Questions

• How is your life complicated where complicated is defined as difficult, overwhelming, confusing, hard to understand, or complex?
• What about this holiday season makes life more complicated for you?  What are some ways you could simplify it?
• In thinking about Mary and how God was working in her life, in what ways might God be doing something in your life (easy or difficult things) that would benefit others?
• Pastor Josh shared that Mary didn’t have all the details but she trusted God directionally as He led her towards the final destination.  What details in your life are you struggling to know or understand?  What are some ways you could practice walking by faith and not by sight in these situations?
• Where might there be some places in your life where you need to yield to God like Mary did when she said, “Lord, I am your servant, let my life be according to your purpose”?

Daily Devotional Bible Passages

• Monday - God Loves You- John 3:16; Romans 8:35-37;37-39; Ephesians 3:18-19
• Tuesday - God is With You- Romans 8:38-39; Matthew 28:20; Deuteronomy 31:6
• Wednesday - God is Doing Something in You and For Others- Philippians 2:12-13; Philippians 1:6; Acts 20:35
• Thursday - God's Got the Details Covered- 1 Peter 56:7; Psalm 55:22; Romans 8:28
• Friday - God Makes the Impossible Possible- Psalm 77:14; Matthew 19:26; Luke 18:27

Prayer

Lord, we thank you that you love us and that you are intent on being with us.  We are thankful that you are at work in our lives and we ask that you would show us ways that we can serve you and others each day.  During this busy Christmas time, as we are celebrating the birth of King Jesus, we ask that you remind us that you have all the details covered that often weigh us down. We trust you fully to provide for us.  Lord, we know that you can do all things and that you make the impossible possible.  Help us to have faith and rely on you in all areas of our life, as we learn and hear your truth and know that through everything we are going through that you love us, have the details covered, and care for us. 

Additional Resources

Alister McGrath - Ligonier Ministries Blog, When Doubt Becomes Unbelief.

David Jeremiah - Blog -  Why Did God Choose Mary?

Brittany Yesudasan -Cru - How to Trust God. ‍