Changing Your Unchangeable Spirit

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- Welcome to Crossroads.

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I'm Andy and merry Christmas.

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This is the last week

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of our Christmas at the Movies series,

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and today we're going to be hearing from Chuck Mingo.

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Now, this time of year, it is filled with hope and joy,

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but it can also easily turn into stress and chaos.

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That's why it's important that we focus our attention on Jesus.

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He is the source of our peace,

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and when we worship Him, we're setting aside

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our priorities and putting Him first in our lives.

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These songs can be really helpful tools

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to lean into that peace and to put Jesus first.

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- I don't know about you,

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I needed a little breath today

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amidst all the craziness, chaos,

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amidst like three of my kids puking

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in the last two weeks.

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I'm fine, I promise. I've been to the doctor.

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But like, all the chaos,

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I just needed a little breath.

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I love that song and that version of that song,

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because it starts and it feels like a lullaby. Am I right?

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How many of you fell asleep for a second?

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You got a minute? It's been a long day, right?

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The song starts like it's a lullaby

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written for a little baby,

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and it's this cute, quaint night.

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And it ends like it was written for a king, sung to a king.

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And I could even watch in this space,

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and maybe the same at home, like, as the song started,

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I saw multiple of you just sort of

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tilt your head to the side

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like you would for a lullaby, like, oh.

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I need a cellist to follow me around in life.

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And then by the end, I just saw hands go up like this.

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Response made for a king.

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Here's who the baby is, written in Isaiah 9:6.

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For to us a child is born,

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and to us a son is given.

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Authority rests upon his shoulders,

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and he's named Wonderful Counselor,

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Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace.

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I don't know about you, and I don't think

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anyone told me this when I was young,

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but here's how I grew up thinking about Jesus.

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I thought God's name was distant,

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angry, and disappointed.

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But the Bible and the Christmas story remind us

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that his name is wonderful counselor.

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His name is with us.

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His name is Emmanuel,

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who comes to dwell among us and be with us.

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Every week in the month of December,

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the lines for prayer after service

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get longer and longer.

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For many of you, this is the season of pain and chaos.

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But what those lines represent

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and what happens in my heart when I open up

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to Him in a song like that,

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or a song like this one we're going to sing is,

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I say, I got this little crown.

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For me, it represents control, security, fear.

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And when I open myself up to Him,

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or when I get in line for prayer after service

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and say, "God, I need help," I say this.

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I want to turn to the Prince of Peace

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and lay my little crown down and say,

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"I don't want security or control or fear anymore,

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or chaos."

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I turn to a king who can actually help and say,

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"Would you help me?"

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That's the king I want to surrender to.

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That's the king I want to make space for.

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That's the king I want to remember in this season:

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Wonderful counselor, mighty God,

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everlasting father, Prince of Peace.

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And He's with us. Amen.

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- When we make room, we make room for joy.

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We make room for You to come into our minds

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and come into our emotions and actually bring joy.

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Not the, like, fake stuff we see on Hallmark movies,

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though those aren't bad.

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Not the fake stuff, Lord,

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but the real joy that comes from you.

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The joy from the Spirit.

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The joy of new life in You.

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Would You give us an extra dose of that

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the rest of the year, as we make space for You

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to speak to us and make space for You

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to come into our lives in a new and fresh way.

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Would you bring joy in that, Lord? Bring joy.

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We're thankful. Thankful for all You've done.

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We say Amen.

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Anybody thankful, a little bit more thankful today

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than you were when you walked in?

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Hey, why don't you go head back to your seat,

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tell somebody hey,

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give them a big hug if they're down for that.

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If they're not, don't force them.

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- Christmas doesn't have to be like this.

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2000 years ago, a baby king changed the world forever.

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Discover the real story of Christmas

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and what it means for your life today.

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- Christmas is about God breaking through

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to take you and I spiritually

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to a place that we can't naturally go.

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- Start a new tradition this Christmas

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with Crossroads Church.

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- Hey, if you're like me,

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you've still got some Christmas shopping to do.

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And I mean like a lot of Christmas shopping

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and the holidays can feel chaotic, right?

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But it doesn't have to be that way.

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Christmas can be a time of joy and hope,

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and that's what we want for you this Christmas.

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Our Christmas Eve service will do just that,

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and it'll be available to watch anytime on demand

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starting this Friday, December 22nd at 5 p.m.

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Starting tomorrow, you can join in

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the Christmas Story through the Crossroads Anywhere app.

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Download the app and you can have

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an interactive experience that will take you

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on a journey to discover the real Christmas story

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and what it means for your life today.

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Now, Crossroads is a generous church

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filled with generous people,

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and over the last few months,

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we've stepped up to donate over 13,000 gifts

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through the Christmas Gift Drive.

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And these gifts have gone to families

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who wouldn't otherwise have had Christmas gifts,

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and specifically to help incarcerated parents

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be the hero and give a gift to their kids this Christmas.

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I actually got to see this firsthand just yesterday.

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It's one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen.

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Like, it was this beautiful picture

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of what Christmas is,

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which is light coming in the midst of darkness.

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And I just love that example.

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And I love that, man, all year long

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our church has examples of light showing up in the darkness.

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We did 10,000 meals at Thanksgiving.

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We gave $125,000 to humanitarian relief

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for both Israelis and Palestinians suffering in Gaza,

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and we made space for our friends and neighbors

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to hear about Jesus and so many more things.

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All those things and so much more happened

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because Crossroads is a nonprofit.

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All the money that comes in

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goes right back out to make an impact.

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And like a lot of nonprofits,

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end of year giving is really important.

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And so if you're considering making a year end gift,

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I just ask that you remember your local church.

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Now, when we give, we're just being like God.

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He is way more generous with me

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than I could ever be with Him.

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If you want to join the team of faithful givers

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who make stuff happen around here,

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or have questions around where our money goes,

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just head to crossroads.net/give.

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Now, today we're in our last week

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of Christmas at the Movies, and Chuck is going

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to be doing a little dance to kick us off.

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I have to see this.

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- Christmas at the movies

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is perfect with some coffee.

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Don't need that ring-a-ling,

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ding-a-dong, ding-a-ding, talking.

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So if we see the glow

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of cellular telephone

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will take 'em and we'll break 'em,

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and we won't say we were mistaken.

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You've been warned.

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Merry Christmas.

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[clock ticking]

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[clock chiming]

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[bell music: Jingle Bells]

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[upbeat music: Jingle Bells]

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- Merry Christmas.

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That was too much fun.

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I have to say that was a whole lot of fun

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and I am so glad to be with you.

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Merry Christmas, Crossroads.

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Oh, man. If you are just coming for this first week,

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we have been in a series called Christmas at the Movies,

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and so you probably knew that

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from the popcorn or wherever you are.

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If you're at home, hopefully you can get some popcorn too.

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Um, but yes, we've been looking at

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what are the transcendent messages that we can learn

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from Christmas movies, which I'm sure, like me,

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you're watching a lot of this time of year.

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But first I have to tell you, the Christmas spirit

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has hit our church in a big way because

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I think Christmas is one of the times of year

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when Crossroads is at its best, because

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there's such generosity that flows from this place.

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So, for instance, we just wrapped up

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our Christmas Gift Drive.

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This is something we do every year to provide gifts

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for children who may not otherwise receive a gift,

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including several children who have family members

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who are incarcerated.

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And I just got the latest numbers here.

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13,000 kids have gifts because of the generosity

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of this community over the Christmas Drive.

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Give yourselves a hand. Seriously.

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Amazing, amazing.

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And over a thousand volunteers made all of that happen.

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And that is the spirit of Christmas at play in our church.

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So as we start today, I just want to pray

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from a place of gratitude for you,

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for your generosity,

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and for what it reflects about the heart of God.

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So, God, I just thank you for every person

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who leaned in and was generous.

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And for those of us who just recognize

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that You've been generous to us

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and want to respond in kind.

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God, I know that just pleases Your heart.

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And also, God, I believe that in that

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even story of the the gift drive

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is really Your heart for us today.

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So I pray that we would receive a gift,

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that in this time that we spend together,

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we would receive the gift of Your presence here,

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we would each receive the gift of

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a specific word that You have for us.

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And I pray all of this in Jesus name, Amen.

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Well, it feels right after prayer to confess, Um,

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and I just have to start in an honest place

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that I lied to our church.

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I said last year, if you were here,

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that if we did Christmas at the Movies again in 2023,

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I would preach on the movie Die Hard,

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which is absolutely a Christmas movie. Am I right?

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Amen. There's a little bit of divide on that.

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I get it, I get it.

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Um, but here's what I have to tell you.

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I talked to Brian about this,

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and between him and me and Alli,

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one of us is going to --

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I think it should be Alli, personally,

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because she's really passionate about this.

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I really think Alli should do it.

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But if not, one of us is going to preach on Die Hard

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if we do Christmas at the Movies in 2024.

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You have my word on it. You have my word on it.

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So I will not have to confess a sin

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to start my message next year.

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I've already started to think about the themes

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that I can find from Die Hard,

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but today I've picked a different movie.

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I picked the movie Spirited.

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And if you're not familiar with that movie,

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it's a new take on the Charles Dickens classic

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A Christmas Carol.

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And in the Spirited version of it,

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Will Ferrell actually is Ebenezer Scrooge,

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and Ryan Reynolds is kind of

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the next level Scrooge like character.

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And I don't want to give away any spoilers,

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but it's a really good movie.

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And I tell you why I like it.

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I like it because at its heart,

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it's a redemption story.

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I don't know what kind of movies make you misty eyed

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in the theater, at home, man.

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You want to get me to tear up and well up,

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show me a good redemption story

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and it will get me every time.

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I love stories of redemption.

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It's one of the reasons why we're inviting people

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to come and be here for our Christmas services,

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because Christmas is a redemption story.

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I know people are like, "Hey, I've been watching

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the Bengals game and all of a sudden

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I see a commercial for Crossroads.

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What's up with that?"

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Well, what's up with that is

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I think about the Christmas story

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and how God pulled out all the stops

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and had angels show up to tell people

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the good news of the redemption story of Jesus coming.

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And we feel the same way as a church.

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We want to validate that invitation

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as you're asking someone.

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We want you to invite someone to service

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who sits down and watches a Bengals game

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and says, "Hey, that's the same church

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that my friend or my family member just invited me to."

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So we're praying that God would leverage that

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for your invitation and that many people

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would get to experience, maybe in a fresh way,

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this redemption story called Christmas.

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Because that's what Christmas is,

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Christmas is a redemption story.

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But here's the problem.

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Here's the problem with so many redemption stories,

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we long to believe that redemption is possible.

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We really want to believe that.

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But am I the only one that looks at

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the evidence of my life and the world around me,

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and sometime have to ask the question,

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is redemption possible?

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Have you ever found yourself asking the question:

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do people really change?

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So this opening scene that we're going to look at from

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Spirited really just raises that question to the surface,

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and we'll find out that one of the lead characters

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kind of has a point of view on that,

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that maybe you share as well. Let's watch this.

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- Do people really change?

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I mean, real, lasting, positive change?

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I sure hope so,

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because we are in the business of change.

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Now, that's not a cheery start

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to a Christmas movie, is it?

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Kind of ominous, but so is that question

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when you think about the evidence around us.

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But today, what we're going to look at

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is the fact that for all of the ways that

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we struggle to believe that redemption is possible,

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in the Christmas story, God breaks down those barriers.

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And I'm praying that he breaks down

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those barriers for you as we go through this time today.

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Because here's the deeper issue

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when it comes to redemption, I long to believe

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that redemption is possible for everyone,

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because I long to believe

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that redemption is possible for me.

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I have found myself asking this question

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over and over again this year,

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just like every year of my life in certain areas.

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Will I ever change? Will I ever change?

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I mean, you know, I gained 25 pounds from COVID

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and I have done some things this year

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very intentionally with exercise and diet

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to change the trajectory of that.

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And I'm down a whopping 3 pounds in like multiple months.

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That's not great. No, you don't clap at that.

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I've been working hard

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and that's all I have to show for it.

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I'm asking the question: will I really ever change?

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But I do appreciate your encouragement.

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I need it, I need it, but I want more.

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I mean really, will I change?

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Will there be this kind of change?

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I think about how I'm still battling

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the same demons that I've been battling for years

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in certain areas of my life,

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and I asked the question: will I ever change?

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And I'm guessing I'm not alone.

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Our hearts ache for redemption.

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They really do. They long for it.

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I think a lot of us want to live a life

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that's more free than ours is.

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We want to love more fully

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than maybe we find ourselves able to do.

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We want to change.

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And the story of Christmas says change is possible

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redemption is possible.

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But our belief in that truth

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faces three very real barriers.

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The first is weariness.

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There's just a weariness that comes with

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the constant barrage of negative news

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and bad news and toxic social media feeds.

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It really messes with our psyche and our belief

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about whether or not change is possible.

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So later on in the story of Spirited, Clint Briggs,

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who's the Ryan Reynolds Scrooge character modern day,

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he has a point of view, a world view

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that people never change. And he's a cynic.

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And you can look at that and say,

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"Oh my gosh, what a terrible way to live."

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But as you watch this clip, I just want you to see

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if what he says, even though we want to believe

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that we can change and we know that we've seen people change,

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there's still something about what he's saying

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that just kind of digs at

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whether or not change is really possible.

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Let's watch this second clip together.

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- By the end of the afternoon. - Easy. - Easy. Yeah.

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People they used to insist on authenticity.

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Have people changed? No, that's the good news.

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No, people never change.

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But you know something?

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Real trees are trending downward.

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Your sales continue slipping.

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They destroyed your bottom lines

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with plastic pines and same day shipping.

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Well, you've got the better product.

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But if you want to win, you gotta study human nature.

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All those interested, lean in.

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People are what? Lazy.

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We only care about ourselves.

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Your competition knows this,

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so their crap flies off the shelves.

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We're all so too desperate to feel good and smart and right.

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And that's what you have to harness

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if you want to win this fight.

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See what you're really selling

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is the way things ought to be.

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So your pitch becomes compelling,

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selling more than just a tree.

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It's a symbol of your values,

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it's your ethics and your cause.

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You can either be fake like a trees they make

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or take a stand for Santa Claus.

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We're bringing back Christmas.

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- It's a good -- it's a good movie. It's a good movie.

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And here's what's interesting.

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You hear what he's talking about with human nature.

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He clearly is cynical about human nature.

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But doesn't some of that ring true?

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You know why? Because we're broken.

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Because brokenness has infected everything in the world.

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The Bible is very clear about this,

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that sin has impacted all of us at

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a deep, deep level.

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And so there is this tension

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of whether or not change is really possible.

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And it is exhausting.

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Am I the only one that's exhausted at more bad news?

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Am I the only one that gets exhausted

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about another life lost senseless?

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I know that's what we feel

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and it really makes us wrestle.

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And that scene he's talking to

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the real Christmas tree growers of America.

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And you know what he says?

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He says, "Hey, if you want to boost sales

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of real Christmas trees, make it a culture war issue.

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Because that's the way to get people on your side.

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When you can make it a us versus them issue,

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people will rally around it because we're tribal

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and we're lazy and all of those things."

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And I know, I know that nobody in this room

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has ever fallen prey to a culture war.

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I know I'm talking to a perfect, pristine group

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of people who aren't influenced by that.

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But if you can believe it or not, a lot of people are.

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A lot of people who say they aren't, are.

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And so we wrestle with this and it's weary to think,

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hey, can I really change?

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Can things really change in the world?

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That's a real barrier

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to us believing in redemption.

00:29:50

But here's another issue that we struggle with is worry.

00:29:54

You know, it's one thing to think about them out there.

00:29:56

It's another thing to wrestle with this.

00:29:58

I'm still struggling with things.

00:30:00

Will I ever change?

00:30:01

I have a lot of conversations with people around here

00:30:04

and that's the gist of the conversation.

00:30:06

And, you know, I think this is really hard

00:30:08

for people who are Jesus followers because

00:30:11

when you're struggling with something

00:30:13

over and over again, don't you start to ask questions,

00:30:16

like, well, wait a second, don't I have the Holy Spirit?

00:30:19

Don't you start asking questions, like,

00:30:21

well, aren't I supposed to be able to change this?

00:30:23

Shouldn't I be free of this by now?

00:30:26

You start to ask questions like, well,

00:30:27

maybe my salvation didn't take

00:30:29

and you start to use baptism like a car wash.

00:30:31

Maybe I need to get dunked again and again and again.

00:30:34

Right? You wrestle with this

00:30:35

or you just ask the question, am I doing it wrong?

00:30:38

Or maybe you're in here and you're on a journey

00:30:41

of wondering, man, what would it look like to follow Jesus?

00:30:43

But you have similar questions.

00:30:45

Some of your questions might be,

00:30:46

but is this really worth it?

00:30:47

If I look around at people who claim to be Jesus followers,

00:30:50

do I see change in their lives that I desire?

00:30:53

I mean, these are real questions that we wrestle with.

00:30:56

So maybe for you, it's weariness that's the barrier

00:30:58

to believing redemption is possible.

00:31:00

Maybe it's worry or maybe it's wounds.

00:31:05

Wounds. We all have wounds.

00:31:08

We have things that were done to us

00:31:09

that we didn't choose, didn't deserve.

00:31:12

And those wounds can make it really hard

00:31:14

to believe that change is possible.

00:31:17

I'll show you another scene in the movie,

00:31:19

and we get a little bit of insider story

00:31:20

on how Clint, Ryan Reynolds' character,

00:31:23

became the cynic that he is.

00:31:25

And surprise, surprise, it has to do with

00:31:27

a wound from his early childhood.

00:31:29

So many of us, me included, are still impacted

00:31:32

by wounds from our early childhood,

00:31:34

and they show up in ways that continue to impact us today.

00:31:36

So I want you to watch this scene like a psychologist.

00:31:40

I want to give you permission to be

00:31:42

an armchair psychologist and see if you find

00:31:45

in this scene, maybe a bit of a hint

00:31:47

at how he became the cynic that he is.

00:31:52

- Carrie. Carrie, mom, said we can open one present tonight.

00:31:55

- Cool. Let's start with that green one.

00:31:59

- You got me a puppy?

00:32:01

- You've only been asking me for a puppy,

00:32:03

for about, what, 1000 years. - Where is he?

00:32:05

- He's sleeping in the kitchen.

00:32:07

- Sparky! Sparky?

00:32:09

- Sparky? Uh, Clint, wait until you see him.

00:32:12

He's got the most adorable little white paws and --

00:32:15

Oh, my God, how many times have I told you

00:32:17

to close this kitchen door when you come back in?

00:32:19

If it doesn't click when you close it,

00:32:21

then it lets all the heat out,

00:32:23

apparently, adorable little puppies too.

00:32:25

Oh, geez. This is a Christmas tragedy.

00:32:27

Clint, no, no, no, she's lying.

00:32:30

There is no puppy.

00:32:31

She got you a dog dish

00:32:32

to make you think that there was a puppy.

00:32:35

- That's ridiculous.

00:32:36

- Then why aren't we out looking for it?

00:32:37

You know, if you spent a nickel on it,

00:32:39

we would be out looking all night.

00:32:40

- Oh. That is it!

00:32:43

You're ruining Christmas!

00:32:47

You keep on running, missy.

00:32:50

Hey, where do you think you're going?

00:32:52

- Sparky? Sparky?

00:32:56

- I see it now.

00:33:00

I see the -- I see the --

00:33:04

the chain of events that led me to be the monster that I am.

00:33:11

Oh, you're faking. Very nice.

00:33:13

- Sorry, that was too much.

00:33:15

What do you expect when you misread

00:33:17

the situation so egregiously?

00:33:19

That was the single best Christmas gift

00:33:21

that she or anyone else has ever given me.

00:33:23

- Hold on. A lie about a non-existent puppy?

00:33:26

- No, the solid gold lesson

00:33:28

that people will believe anything

00:33:30

if they want to believe it.

00:33:35

- All right.

00:33:36

So I'm going to play armchair psychologist

00:33:38

for just a moment and say that is classic deflection.

00:33:43

How could you not be wounded

00:33:45

if the woman who gave you birth you can't trust?

00:33:49

And here's what I know.

00:33:51

I know that many of us have wounds that are that deep.

00:33:55

And those wounds make it really hard

00:33:57

to believe that change is possible.

00:34:00

One of the things that's been a theme for me this year,

00:34:03

I've really been fortunate to spend some time

00:34:05

with a spiritual director, kind of a person

00:34:07

that helps kind of guide you and, you know,

00:34:09

counsel you, not necessarily a psychologist,

00:34:11

but someone who's kind of helping you

00:34:13

lean into what is God saying in your life.

00:34:14

And I've been doing this spiritual direction

00:34:16

this year, and one of the things that

00:34:18

my spiritual director has helped me to see

00:34:20

is that when you hit midlife, and I am 47,

00:34:23

which means I am midlife, you have childhood wounds

00:34:27

that you've tamped down in your drive for achievement

00:34:30

and your drive for success.

00:34:32

But when you hit midlife, it's almost like that little kid,

00:34:35

that little boy and that little girl

00:34:36

starts to tug on you and ask for care and attention.

00:34:41

And so I found myself this year needing

00:34:44

to wrestle through childhood wounds that

00:34:46

I really thought I was over.

00:34:48

But recognizing all of the ways

00:34:51

that these childhood wounds have been impacting my life,

00:34:54

how it's been impacting my relationships,

00:34:56

how it's been impacting how I show up,

00:34:58

how it's been impacting my leadership.

00:35:00

And it's one of those things that at the heart of this,

00:35:05

I want to believe that I can change.

00:35:08

But often our weariness, or maybe our worry,

00:35:11

or maybe our wounds make us think that

00:35:14

change and redemption is just too far beyond our reach.

00:35:18

But what I want to say to you today is that

00:35:21

God, through the Christmas story,

00:35:22

wants to meet that weariness, that worry,

00:35:25

and those wounds with a word of hope.

00:35:27

He has a word of hope for all of us today.

00:35:30

I don't often have a word of the year

00:35:32

or a phrase of the year, but I do for 2024.

00:35:35

And I actually got it from my friend Troy.

00:35:37

He's been saying this and I'm like,"

00:35:38

I'm adopting that for 2024."

00:35:40

And it's simply this: It's mine for hope.

00:35:43

In whatever situation I'm in, I want to look

00:35:46

for the places that point to the hope of redemption.

00:35:48

I want to believe that God

00:35:50

is still in the business of redeeming.

00:35:52

And so for the rest of our time,

00:35:54

I want to look at the person in the Christmas story

00:35:56

that I believe reflects this the most.

00:35:58

If I could point to one person in the Christmas story

00:36:01

who believes in the redemptive power of God the most,

00:36:04

I would look no further than Mary, the mother of Jesus.

00:36:09

Mary's story in the Christmas story

00:36:12

reflects three moves that, if we will make,

00:36:15

it opens us up to the redemptive power of God in our lives.

00:36:19

Let me tell you about this woman, this girl, Mary.

00:36:21

Mary was actually of royal lineage,

00:36:25

but she wasn't living like royalty at the time.

00:36:28

We know she was of royal lineage because

00:36:30

one of the things the prophecy predicted

00:36:32

is that the Messiah, the rescuer, when Jesus would come,

00:36:35

He'd have to come from the royal line of David.

00:36:37

And so way, way back multiple generations,

00:36:39

Mary was connected to royalty,

00:36:42

but she was not living like royalty.

00:36:43

Actually, Mary was living a life

00:36:45

under triple forms of oppression.

00:36:49

Number one, she was oppressed because she was Jewish.

00:36:51

And this was the time

00:36:53

when Rome had occupied the Israeli territory.

00:36:56

And so we know that she was oppressed

00:36:58

because she was Jewish.

00:37:00

But we also know that she was oppressed

00:37:02

because she was of low estate.

00:37:04

I don't know what her economic reality was,

00:37:06

but I know from a class perspective

00:37:08

she was not seen as being in the upper echelon,

00:37:11

and so she would have been oppressed

00:37:12

and looked down on because of her social class.

00:37:15

And I also know that Mary was oppressed

00:37:17

because she was a young woman

00:37:19

in a highly patriarchal society where women had zero rights.

00:37:24

And so this is not the woman that you would think

00:37:27

God would use to bring about the birth of His Son,

00:37:30

and yet that's exactly what God did.

00:37:32

It's exactly what God did.

00:37:33

So Mary's story is that she was

00:37:36

kind of minding her own business when an angel came

00:37:40

and gave her a word from God.

00:37:42

And part of that word was the angel said to her,

00:37:44

"You are highly favored by God,

00:37:47

that among all women there is a favor

00:37:50

that God has placed on your life."

00:37:52

And then he tells her about this amazing thing.

00:37:55

The angel tells her about this amazing, amazing thing

00:37:58

that God is going to do.

00:37:59

She's like, "How is this going to happen?

00:38:01

I've never been with a man."

00:38:02

He says, "That's okay.

00:38:03

The Holy Spirit's going to work a miracle,

00:38:05

and you are going to be impregnated

00:38:07

by the very Spirit of God,

00:38:09

and you're going to give birth to literally the Son of God."

00:38:14

And when she says, "How can this be?"

00:38:16

I love this line in Luke 1:37,

00:38:19

the angel ends his message to Mary, saying:

00:38:25

Man, if you're wrestling to believe

00:38:27

that redemption is possible, I want you

00:38:29

to think about these words: Nothing is impossible with God.

00:38:33

No matter what it looks like,

00:38:34

no matter how dark it may seem,

00:38:36

no matter how much your weariness or your worry-ness

00:38:38

or your wounds seem to be a barrier,

00:38:40

nothing is impossible with God.

00:38:43

Mary received a word from God that she,

00:38:46

of all women, would be highly favored,

00:38:48

that she would give birth to the Redeemer of the world.

00:38:51

What I love is that God speaks a blessing to Mary

00:38:54

that transcends her social class,

00:38:56

a blessing to Mary that transcends her racial dynamic

00:38:59

and a blessings to her that transcends the fact

00:39:02

that she was a woman and a female

00:39:03

in a place where it didn't have any rights.

00:39:05

And God says, "I'm going to take you from the lowest

00:39:07

and elevate you to the highest.

00:39:08

There is nothing impossible for God."

00:39:12

And I think we see that even in some of the things

00:39:15

that God is doing in the midst of our church.

00:39:17

I had an opportunity a couple weeks ago

00:39:19

to spend time at Warren Correctional Institution.

00:39:22

We were there for about six hours on a Saturday,

00:39:24

basically doing a version of Man Camp

00:39:26

for men who are a part of our church community

00:39:29

but are incarcerated at the time.

00:39:31

And I got to tell you, it's always powerful

00:39:33

when I get to spend time with those brothers,

00:39:36

because when I'm there, I recognize

00:39:38

I get to choose whether or not I show up in worship.

00:39:41

I get to choose whether I come to church or not.

00:39:44

These are people who are choosing, despite the odds,

00:39:48

to continue to pursue a relationship with God.

00:39:50

And I admire them for that.

00:39:52

And every time I sit across from them and we share,

00:39:55

I'm also reminded that thank God I'm not judged

00:39:58

by the worst decision I ever made in the eyes of God.

00:40:02

Thank God that the worst day and my worst thing

00:40:05

is not the sum total of how God sees me.

00:40:08

And this came to light for me with something

00:40:10

that a friend of mine texted me today.

00:40:12

We had a chance as a part of the Christmas Gift Drive

00:40:15

to actually take family photos of some of

00:40:17

the men and women who are part of our community

00:40:19

that are at Crossroads, but also incarcerated at this time.

00:40:23

And I just look at these and I got to tell you,

00:40:25

this makes me cry.

00:40:26

These are redemption stories in the working.

00:40:28

And it makes me happy because these are people

00:40:31

who are mothers and fathers and sons and brothers and sisters.

00:40:35

They are not their worst day.

00:40:36

So if you're watching right now,

00:40:38

because I know you guys will see this,

00:40:39

I want you to know you're a part of our community,

00:40:41

and we see you wholly and fully for who you are,

00:40:44

and so does God. So does God. [applause]

00:40:48

Because there is nothing impossible for God.

00:40:53

Whatever her story had been, God was about to change it.

00:40:57

But Mary had to make a choice.

00:40:59

Mary had to make a choice.

00:41:02

I love what Brene Brown says in Dare to Lead. She says:

00:41:10

Think about that. And the reason is:

00:41:17

You know what some of us would have done

00:41:18

if we got that word from the angel,

00:41:20

we would have started catastrophizing in our head.

00:41:22

"Well, wait a second.

00:41:23

Once God finds out what I did yesterday,

00:41:25

He's going to renege this offer.

00:41:27

Maybe God got the wrong person.

00:41:28

Maybe He wanted my next door neighbor.

00:41:30

He didn't want to give this message to me."

00:41:31

We would start rehearsing the reasons why this isn't possible.

00:41:34

What I love about Mary is she doesn't rehearse tragedy.

00:41:37

She receives it as joy.

00:41:39

She doesn't say, "I got to recount

00:41:41

all the reasons why this couldn't be me."

00:41:43

She says, "I am the servant of the Lord,

00:41:45

and this is God's gift to me."

00:41:46

She doesn't allow it to kill her joy.

00:41:49

She believes she can be a part of God's redemptive story.

00:41:53

So in Luke 1:38, just one verse later, it says:

00:42:03

Mary believes and receives.

00:42:05

I want everybody to say believe and receive.

00:42:08

She believes and receives

00:42:10

that God's redemptive work includes her life.

00:42:15

And then Mary sings.

00:42:19

One of the things that you'll find

00:42:20

if you read particularly the history of Jesus,

00:42:23

captured as the Gospel of Luke, is that

00:42:25

there are multiple songs in the Christmas story.

00:42:28

No wonder there's Christmas music

00:42:29

connected to Christmas, because in the Bible

00:42:31

we see these songs.

00:42:33

And one of the biggest and beautiful songs

00:42:35

in the Christmas story is Mary's song.

00:42:37

It's called the Magnificat, Latin for making great,

00:42:40

because the first word she says is

00:42:41

my soul magnifies the Lord, my soul makes great the Lord.

00:42:45

And actually, this song is so subversive

00:42:48

that it is literally banned in three countries

00:42:50

and cannot be read in public worship in churches.

00:42:54

Because it is so subversive, because it talks about

00:42:57

how God takes the weak and the low of the world

00:43:00

and elevates them.

00:43:01

How God operates on an inside out,

00:43:04

upside down reality, which means

00:43:06

that nothing is impossible for God.

00:43:08

So I want to lean into Mary's song with you,

00:43:11

because in her song are those three moves

00:43:14

that if we will make them, they will allow us

00:43:16

to be open to God's redemptive power in our lives.

00:43:19

This comes from Luke 1:46-55,

00:43:21

and this is Mary's song of praise. And Mary said:

00:44:09

And I want to suggest to you

00:44:10

that Mary makes three moves in this song.

00:44:13

Her first move is Mary moves from weariness to wonder.

00:44:17

From weariness to wonder.

00:44:19

She says, my soul magnifies the Lord

00:44:22

and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.

00:44:25

There is a wonder she has

00:44:27

about God's ability to redeem her story.

00:44:30

You know, I have a nine year old daughter.

00:44:32

And so for her, the Christmas spirit is very much alive.

00:44:35

Like, that Christmas wonder, that excitement,

00:44:38

counting down the days.

00:44:39

And I just love the energy

00:44:41

that Isabel brings to our house because of that.

00:44:43

And she's also nine, which means she can actually

00:44:46

be super honest and trying to be slick at the same time.

00:44:49

Do you know what I mean?

00:44:51

So she told on herself some things

00:44:53

that we kind of suspected but now know to be true.

00:44:55

One of the things she told us is that

00:44:57

for the last several years,

00:44:59

she's been getting up early on Christmas morning

00:45:01

and going downstairs quietly.

00:45:03

She doesn't open any gifts,

00:45:04

but she just kind of checks and makes sure

00:45:06

that there's gifts for her under the tree.

00:45:08

So she told us that herself.

00:45:09

So, you know, this is what you do when you're nine.

00:45:11

But the other thing that she's doing is

00:45:13

she has a 12 and a 15 year old brother.

00:45:15

And I don't know if you've ever tried

00:45:16

to wake up a 15 year old for anything,

00:45:18

but they don't like that.

00:45:20

So but we have a rule in our family on Christmas Day,

00:45:22

nobody goes downstairs until everybody is up.

00:45:25

And her brothers have been hinting at this

00:45:27

for a couple of years, that what Isabel will do

00:45:29

after she checks those gifts is she finds

00:45:32

a reason to accidentally wake up her brothers early.

00:45:35

So this year, we're kind of on the lookout for her scheme.

00:45:40

But what I love about her is there's still

00:45:42

a wonder that she has about Christmas,

00:45:44

and I pray she never loses that wonder.

00:45:47

And I think us as adults in this room

00:45:50

need to recapture that wonder.

00:45:52

This is the time of year where songs talk about

00:45:54

a man who makes a list and checks it twice.

00:45:57

I want to suggest that you and I

00:45:59

need to make wonder lists this Christmas season.

00:46:03

If you want to be reminded of God's redemptive power,

00:46:05

make a list of all the wonderful ways

00:46:08

that God has already worked in your life over the years.

00:46:11

So I've made a little bit of a wonder list in my life.

00:46:14

It's a wonder that my wife and I

00:46:15

have been married for 21 years,

00:46:17

thinking about the ups and downs and the things

00:46:19

that I know I don't deserve from her, that's a wonder.

00:46:22

It's a wonder that God has blessed us

00:46:23

with three healthy children.

00:46:25

I'm so thankful for the kids that I have

00:46:27

and what they mean to my life.

00:46:28

It's a wonder that God has used

00:46:30

some of the worst things of my past

00:46:32

to help other men and their families.

00:46:34

That is a wonder that only God can do,

00:46:36

how he can take broken things

00:46:37

and bring beauty out of it.

00:46:38

That's something only God can do.

00:46:40

It's a wonder that God allows me to preach

00:46:42

and pastor as my profession.

00:46:44

That is a gift from God,

00:46:46

and I am so grateful for that privilege.

00:46:48

It's a wonder how God has surrounded me

00:46:50

with so many mentors and guides.

00:46:52

And I could go on and on and on.

00:46:54

What would be on your wonder list this year?

00:46:57

If you want to move from weariness to wonder,

00:47:00

a way to do that is to make a wonder list for yourself.

00:47:03

Remind yourself of the goodness of God in your life.

00:47:07

It will take your eyes off of the things

00:47:09

that are wearying your heart,

00:47:11

and it will put your eyes

00:47:12

on the wonder of our redeeming Savior.

00:47:15

Mary moves from weariness to wonder.

00:47:17

She also moves from worry to worship.

00:47:21

She moves when she says, "For he who is mighty

00:47:24

has done great things for me."

00:47:26

And then she says this, "Holy is his name."

00:47:29

Holy is his name.

00:47:30

If you look at the stories of Jesus's birth,

00:47:33

he gets 16 names at least throughout all of the gospels

00:47:36

when they're talking about him.

00:47:38

And I just want to share some of these names with you,

00:47:40

because these names represent who he is.

00:47:43

They represent what he will be to you and to me.

00:47:47

One of the names he's given is Messiah,

00:47:49

which means Anointed One.

00:47:51

This is the prophesied one that God promised

00:47:53

would come and rescue the nation of Israel,

00:47:55

and through him rescue the world.

00:47:57

Jesus is called the Messiah.

00:47:59

He's also given the name Jesus,

00:48:01

which means God is salvation.

00:48:04

So, if you ever think that things

00:48:05

are too far gone to be saved, just remember

00:48:08

that literally salvation is his name.

00:48:11

That when you call on the name of Jesus,

00:48:13

you are calling on salvation.

00:48:14

That when you receive Jesus,

00:48:16

you are receiving salvation.

00:48:17

Salvation is literally his name.

00:48:20

He's also called Emmanuel because he's God with us.

00:48:24

So even in the times where we feel alone

00:48:26

or desperate or feel like no one is listening,

00:48:28

Jesus is Emmanuel. He is literally with you.

00:48:31

He's not distant from you.

00:48:33

He's not waiting to see what you do.

00:48:35

He is right there with you.

00:48:36

It is literally his name.

00:48:38

He's also called the King, because

00:48:41

Jesus didn't just come to do helpful preaching,

00:48:43

he came to usher in a kingdom, a different reality

00:48:47

that looks like the love and the justice

00:48:49

and the mercy and the beauty

00:48:51

and the creativity of the God who made the universe.

00:48:55

He's called a shepherd because

00:48:57

he's not a king who's distant from his subjects,

00:48:59

but he is a king who comes close and takes care.

00:49:03

He's a shepherd who leaves the 99 to chase after the one.

00:49:06

If you feel like the one,

00:49:08

if you feel like the outsider, if you feel like the outcast,

00:49:11

I want you to know Jesus is specifically coming for you.

00:49:14

He loves you because he's a good shepherd

00:49:17

and that is literally his name.

00:49:19

I wonder what do you need him to be for you this Christmas?

00:49:23

What name do you need to remember

00:49:25

is a part of his redemptive heart for you?

00:49:28

Holy is his name.

00:49:31

Claim it. Receive it. Believe it,

00:49:34

because Jesus wants to be that for you and more.

00:49:38

And then the final move that Mary makes

00:49:40

is she moves from wounds to a womb.

00:49:44

I think it is no accident that

00:49:48

the redemptive story of Christmas

00:49:52

comes to fruition in a woman's womb.

00:49:55

I want to suggest there is no more beautiful picture

00:49:59

of the creative power of God than what happens

00:50:03

in a woman's womb as they carry a child,

00:50:06

and then ultimately bring life,

00:50:08

new life into the world.

00:50:10

There's nothing more powerful than that,

00:50:13

and that is a painful process too,

00:50:17

or so I'm told. I mean, I let's be clear,

00:50:19

I, I don't know from personal experience,

00:50:21

but I know that I heard some amens on that

00:50:24

because it's a painful process.

00:50:25

Here's what I love about that, though.

00:50:27

What that means is, if you think

00:50:28

that God's redemption comes without difficulty,

00:50:31

you're missing the point.

00:50:33

You never get to a redemptive story

00:50:35

without pain and difficulty.

00:50:38

God works in the pain to produce something new.

00:50:41

He works in the pain to produce new life.

00:50:44

And sometimes we think the pain is evidence

00:50:47

that God is not working his redemptive plan.

00:50:49

And actually, that's the very place

00:50:51

where the redemption will begin,

00:50:53

at the point of pain, at the point of difficulty,

00:50:56

at the point where you feel like you can't do anything else,

00:50:59

that's where God shows up,

00:51:01

because there is nothing impossible for God.

00:51:08

And so Mary sings, she sings, she sings this song

00:51:13

that recognizes that if we're going to experience

00:51:16

the redemptive power of God, we've got to know

00:51:18

there is nothing that God can't redeem.

00:51:23

I want to go back to the movie and show you one final scene.

00:51:27

Because all through the movie, there's a through line,

00:51:29

and the through line is whether or not

00:51:31

Ebenezer Scrooge, Will Ferrell's character,

00:51:33

believes he's actually redeemable.

00:51:36

They put a stamp on him that says Unredeemable.

00:51:39

And so his question that we're going to see here

00:51:42

a question that maybe you've been asking,

00:51:45

and maybe that's the question God has you here today

00:51:49

to answer once and for all.

00:51:50

So I want you to listen to this together.

00:51:56

- No, no, no, there is no call for singing. Now, come on.

00:51:59

- Doesn't matter how many people you change,

00:52:01

no matter how much good you do,

00:52:03

you still don't know the answer.

00:52:05

- The answer to what?

00:52:15

- Am I forever unredeemable?

00:52:22

- What? Why that's preposterous.

00:52:24

You were redeemed. I was there.

00:52:26

- But can I ever overcome

00:52:30

all the wrongs I'm running from?

00:52:32

-That was all so long ago.

00:52:35

You more than made up for all that by now.

00:52:37

- Can my worst be left behind

00:52:40

and do I deserve to find

00:52:43

there's a soul who could see any good in me?

00:52:50

Or will I only ever be unredeemable?

00:53:01

- It's a poignant moment because

00:53:03

that's a real question that maybe you're asking today.

00:53:09

Here's where this story is different

00:53:11

than the Christmas story.

00:53:13

See in this story he wrestles with that question

00:53:17

because he wonders if he can ever do enough good

00:53:22

to make up for all the wrong that he's done.

00:53:26

That's why the Christmas story is good news.

00:53:29

Because I want you to know, without a shadow of a doubt,

00:53:31

no matter what you have done in your life,

00:53:34

you are redeemable.

00:53:37

Because it's not based on you doing enough good

00:53:40

to get into the right graces of God.

00:53:42

He sent His Son Jesus, that baby in the womb,

00:53:46

actually ultimately wound up dying

00:53:48

as a lamb on a Cross Ho say that his finished work

00:53:51

is what makes you and I right in the eyes of God.

00:53:53

It's a completely different way to be redeemed.

00:53:56

It's a beautiful way to be redeemed. I

00:53:59

t's a freeing way to be redeemed because

00:54:01

it's not based on what Chuck has done;

00:54:03

it's based on what Christ has done for me.

00:54:06

And so I just want you to know,

00:54:07

no matter where you are, no matter what it looks like,

00:54:10

you are redeemable.

00:54:11

But redeemable and redemption is a process.

00:54:15

Look what the Bible says in Philippians 2:12.

00:54:17

It says: continue to work out your salvation.

00:54:19

That doesn't mean you work for your salvation,

00:54:21

it means that salvation is a process.

00:54:23

Transformation is a process.

00:54:24

It is going to feel like two steps forward

00:54:26

and three steps back sometimes, that's normal.

00:54:28

That doesn't mean that you haven't received Jesus.

00:54:31

It means you're in the process of being saved.

00:54:34

Look at what it says in 1 Corinthians 1:18:

00:54:36

those who are being saved.

00:54:38

There is a moment where Jesus comes

00:54:41

and changes your life, and then there is

00:54:43

the process of maturity

00:54:44

that happens for the rest of your life.

00:54:46

And then when you ultimately come before

00:54:48

the presence of God on the other side of this life,

00:54:51

perfection will be realized.

00:54:52

That is the process of redemption.

00:54:56

And so I want you to trust the process

00:54:58

because God doesn't just say redemption is possible,

00:55:01

He says redemption is inevitable.

00:55:04

One of my favorite verses in the Bible

00:55:06

is at the very end in Revelations 21:5, and it saysH

00:55:16

I love that because what it means is

00:55:18

all the things right now that

00:55:19

don't feel like they'll ever be made new,

00:55:21

all the things don't feel like they will ever be healed,

00:55:25

those are the very things

00:55:26

that Jesus is in the process of healing.

00:55:28

See who is the one who is seated on the throne

00:55:31

is the same baby that was in Mary's womb.

00:55:35

Because God wants you and I to know that

00:55:37

He will make any person, anywhere,

00:55:40

the center point of His redemptive plan.

00:55:44

How do I know that's true?

00:55:45

How do I believe that?

00:55:47

I know it because God made a stutterer called Moses

00:55:50

his mouthpiece for the liberation of His people.

00:55:53

I know it because God took a runt of a son named David

00:55:57

that his father didn't even want to recognize,

00:56:00

and made him the King of Israel.

00:56:02

I know it because he took a hot headed,

00:56:05

impulsive man named Peter and made him

00:56:08

one of the early pastors of the local church.

00:56:11

I know it because he took a murderer named Paul

00:56:14

and actually made him a minister of the gospel

00:56:17

all over the world.

00:56:19

And I know it because he took a girl of low estate

00:56:22

and elevated her to the highest honor

00:56:26

a woman could have as literally being the Mother of God.

00:56:30

And I also know it because he's done it in me.

00:56:33

Can I get a witness? Has he done it in you?

00:56:35

Are there people in here who know that

00:56:37

the life you live now doesn't make sense by your own power?

00:56:40

That there is a power at work in you,

00:56:42

that you are not forever unredeemable

00:56:44

because God is redeeming you right now.

00:56:46

Some of you this year have had God break through

00:56:49

your life in a powerful way.

00:56:51

There are things you never thought would change

00:56:53

and God is changing.

00:56:54

There may be relationships that you never thought

00:56:56

that would heal and God is healing them.

00:56:58

I want you to know there is nothing impossible for God.

00:57:03

But you and I have the same choice that Mary has:

00:57:07

Will we choose to believe that

00:57:10

or will we let our worry and our weariness

00:57:13

and our woundedness keep us from the God

00:57:16

who always is in the business of redeeming people?

00:57:20

The band's going to play a song

00:57:22

and we're going to do a meditative reflection time

00:57:27

for just a few minutes.

00:57:30

One of the gifts that came to me in 2023

00:57:33

was meeting a woman named Betty Lynn Dickinson.

00:57:36

Betty is a pastor. She's also an artist.

00:57:39

She wrote an incredible book

00:57:41

that I'm going through for advent.

00:57:42

It's called Making Room.

00:57:44

And one of the things she does is she uses art

00:57:47

as a way to help people reflectively pray.

00:57:51

You know, we think about it, vision is a muscle,

00:57:53

and we can use that muscle to meditate and to pray.

00:57:56

And so we're going to do that for just a few moments

00:57:59

using a photo, a photo of an image

00:58:01

that she's drawn in her book.

00:58:03

This is called the Magnificat.

00:58:05

This is her visual depiction of the story of Mary

00:58:09

that we've talked about today.

00:58:13

And so as we spend a few minutes on this,

00:58:15

I just want you to slow down,

00:58:18

maybe take a few deep breaths.

00:58:22

And I want you to just begin to fixate

00:58:23

and look at that image.

00:58:28

I'm going to take you around the image a little bit,

00:58:31

and we'll do some zooming in

00:58:32

so you can reflect on some specific pieces of it.

00:58:36

But as we do this, I just need to ask God,

00:58:38

what do you want me to see?

00:58:41

Just pray that prayer right now.

00:58:43

God, what do you want me to see?

00:58:49

In the painting, Mary's Magnificat

00:58:53

is a song that streams from her body through the Spirit.

00:58:57

See that white stream coming from her womb,

00:59:00

almost from her heart as she proclaims

00:59:04

that a truth that's represented in this story is real.

00:59:12

You may notice that that stream is actually

00:59:16

flowing to a group of people.

00:59:19

There's justice scales in this picture.

00:59:23

And actually the humble and the hungry

00:59:25

are the ones who are surrounded by the Spirit,

00:59:27

while the prideful and the rich

00:59:30

are actually found wanting on the scale.

00:59:34

And so we see that the Spirit

00:59:35

is with the humble and the hungry.

00:59:39

There's another piece of this painting

00:59:41

that I want to point out,

00:59:42

which is hard to see from a distance.

00:59:46

But if you can look in the trunk of that tree,

00:59:48

what you'll see is there's a fetus in that trunk.

00:59:55

And literally the roots from that life

01:00:00

is the foundation that Mary is standing on.

01:00:03

It's the foundation from which the Spirit flows.

01:00:08

And it's just as a reminder that often

01:00:10

what God is doing is he's birthing redemption underground.

01:00:18

So just a couple questions for you to reflect on.

01:00:20

One is what thoughts or feelings

01:00:22

does this painting evoke in you?

01:00:30

What specifically does God want you to see today?

01:00:40

Maybe think about an area of your own life

01:00:43

where you're hungry for redemption.

01:00:46

What would it look like to believe

01:00:48

and receive God's plan for you there?

01:00:53

I want you to receive that invitation.

01:00:55

I want to pray for you

01:00:56

and then we're going to stand and sing.

01:01:01

God, thank you for Mary's song.

01:01:04

Thank you for the story of her life.

01:01:07

Thank you for the redemptive story

01:01:08

that you are working not just in her life,

01:01:10

but in our lives today.

01:01:13

Would you help us to believe in a new way,

01:01:15

maybe see in a fresh way, nothing is impossible for you.

01:01:22

In Jesus's name, Amen.

01:01:26

Let's stand together.

01:01:29

We're going to sing just this song as a response.

01:01:32

It says, God, we want to make room for you.

01:01:34

We want to make room for the redemption

01:01:36

you're working in our lives.

01:01:45

- Let's sing this together.

01:03:55

- Hey, thanks for joining us today.

01:03:57

Set a time this week with friends and family

01:03:59

to watch the Christmas service and to join in

01:04:02

the interactive Christmas Story in the Crossroads App.

01:04:04

For more information, head to crossroads.net/Christmas.

01:04:08

Now, the week after Christmas,

01:04:09

all of our physical locations are closed,

01:04:11

but we're not closed.

01:04:13

We'll have an awesome online year end service

01:04:15

to talk about all of the amazing things

01:04:16

God has done this year, and looking forward to 2024.

01:04:20

We'll see you next week for Christmas services.

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