The Magnificence of God
Stories
Contents
"The Magnificence of God" by Keith Wagner
"Hope for Tomorrow" by Keith Wagner
"Learning to Love" by John Fitzgerald
The Magnificence of God
by Keith Wagner
Luke 1:46-55
In the movie, Santa Claus III, there is a scene where the bad guy in the movie has turned the North Pole into a profit making venture. Christmas has been completely exploited and actor, Tim Allen, is devastated. At one point he says, “Christmas is out of control.”
Is Christmas out of control? It’s no secret that it has become a commercial enterprise as the financial success of many department stores depends on holiday sales to keep them in the black. I was in a store one Christmas season and I noticed that they had put a nativity display on a bench. My first thought was that baby Jesus had been benched. Perhaps Jesus is no longer a player. Christ has become sidelined. Christmas is so out of control one wonders if it is possible to rescue it. Perhaps the true meaning of Christmas is so overshadowed by commercialism that it will never recover. What can we do to take back control of God’s most sacred event?
Our scripture today is known as the Magnificat. It is the song that Mary sang as a response to the news that she would give birth to the son of God. It was a song from the heart in which she sang the words, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.”
If God can use someone like Mary do something extraordinary then God can make ordinary folks like you and I to do extraordinary things as well. A few years ago I received an email from a man in Taiwan. He was the editor of a Christian devotional publication. He wanted my permission to include one of my Christmas sermons that was on line, in his publication. He went on to say that the sermon would be translated into Chinese and distributed to millions of people in China. I have never written a book, and I am certainly not a famous theologian. I have never thought of myself as a missionary, but to have one of my messages circulated in a country with millions of people was beyond my wildest imagination. I was published and the editor sent me a copy. It is in Chinese, but I cherish it as a reminder of what a single person can do.
God can use anyone as an instrument of his hope and love. God’s servants can arise above the most powerful and popular and do great things like bringing a savior into our midst.
Before Mary gave us the Magnificat she resolved to “let it be.” In other words, we can trust that God is still in control even though it appears that Christmas is out of control. A key moment in Santa Claus III was when the little girl, who played Tim Allen’s niece, had to put her trust in him. And, it was because she trusted that goodness prevailed over evil.
I believe that God wants us all to have faith like Mary, reaching deep within ourselves and singing from the heart. Christmas will likely never return to its humble origin and sacred beginning, but God wants us to keep trying. Since God can make great things happen through the life of a lowly, peasant woman, like Mary, God can make great things happen through each of us. All a person needs is a little encouragement and affirmation, just as Elizabeth gave to Mary. Then, we “let it be” and we watch God do amazing things.
* * *
Hope for Tomorrow
by Keith Wagner
Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11
According to many sociologists, the 1950’s were the “golden years” for the United States. World War II had ended and the nation was becoming stronger economically. Millions of Americans were building homes and families began acquiring new things like; washing machines, televisions, ranges, refrigerators and a second automobile. Television kept our attention with shows like “Ozzie and Harriet.” Society revolved around the nuclear family and the “American Dream.”
Many people still lament over that period of time in our history. The 50’s have become the benchmark for the state of the American family ever since. It was definitely a golden period since the middle class grew by millions. It was golden for the church too which was flourishing. New churches were being built and many existing churches were adding educational wings and fellowship halls. It was a time of new beginnings, hope, prosperity and excitement.
Isaiah the prophet described a golden era for the Israelites. He was speaking to a people who were suffering. Their nation had fallen apart and they were living in exile. All hope was lost. They too had been lamenting over the “good ole days.” But, Isaiah promised them a society where there would be no suffering. People would live long and never go hungry. Everyone would have their own homes. Enemies would live at peace with one another. Isaiah promised hope for tomorrow.
Isaiah spoke of liberation and restoration, new beginnings and new birth. There was hope, not despair. There was glory, not doom. Instead of suffering and grief there would be joy and celebration. Messengers of God, like Isaiah, give us hope.
In the movie, Castaway, starring Tom Hanks, he was stranded on an island for over four years and he was all alone. His future seemed totally hopeless and he was isolated and completely cut off from society. Eventually he managed to build a raft and sailed away. Later he was rescued by a freighter. Since Hanks was presumed dead, his fiancé married someone else. When he returned to the states he said to a friend: “One day logic was proven all wrong because the tide lifted, came in, and gave me a sail. And now, here I am. I'm back in Memphis, talking to you. I have “ice” in my glass. And I've lost her (Kelly) all over again. I'm so sad that I don't have Kelly. But I'm so grateful that she was with me on that island. And I know what I have to do now. I have to keep breathing, because tomorrow the sun will rise. Who knows what the tide could bring?”
What kept Hanks going those four, long, lonely years? Hope. He had a picture and memories of his girlfriend and that gave him the courage and strength to survive. In the same way, Isaiah gave the Israelites an image of the future. By promising better times, he gave hope to a people in despair.
Having a vision, dreaming dreams, creates excitement and wonder. Instead of lamenting over what was, God wants us to put our energy into what could be. I am reminded of something that happened during the depression.
During the dark days of 1929, a group of ministers in the Northeast, all graduates of the Boston School of Theology, gathered to discuss how they should conduct their Thanksgiving Sunday services. Things were about as bad as they could get, with no sign of relief. The bread lines were depressingly long, the stock market had plummeted, and the term Great Depression seemed an apt description for the mood of the country. The ministers thought they should only lightly touch upon the subject of Thanksgiving since there was human misery all around them.
Dr. William L. Stiger, pastor of a large congregation in the city rallied the group. It was not the time to give a mere passing mention to Thanksgiving. In fact it was just the opposite. Instead it was the time for the nation to get matters in perspective and thank God for their blessings at that moment. The most intense moments of thankfulness are not found in times of plenty, but when difficulties abound.
There is hope with God because God is constantly creating newness from the old. Better times are still a possibility. Isaiah was not promising a total restoration to make things like they were. Isaiah was proclaiming that the faithful have hope because their lives would eventually be renewed.
* * *
Learning to Love
by John Fitzgerald
John 1:6-8, 19-28
This third Sunday of Advent serves as a reminder that Christmas is all about the love of Jesus. Everyone is somewhere on the path of learning to love as Jesus first loved us.
The world teaches that we can “fall in love” and still be a self-centered person. Jesus says love is different than what our culture would have. God’s son demonstrated that love is what happened at Calvary. Christ the Lord poured out his love for humanity by dying on a Cross. Jesus teaches that if we really want to love than a cross must be picked up daily.
The love of God’s son is sacrificial and giving in nature. This is the love we need to learn about at Christmas.
John the Baptist knew about a giving kind of love. He poured out his heart to prepare the world for God’s Messiah. In our scripture lesson John is recorded as saying, “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, “Make straight the way for the Lord” (verse 23).
The Bible also confirms that John testified to God’s true light manifest in Jesus, “He (John) himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.” (verse 8). John willingly bore a subservient position to Jesus because of his great love for the Messiah.
I hope as we approach Christmas day we can know the serving kind of love that John the Baptist and Jesus gave witness to.
We know more about what scriptural love looks like by reading 1 Corinthians 13. I want to share a Christmas version of 1 Corinthians in closing:
If I decorate my house perfectly with plaid bows, strands of twinkling lights and shiny ornaments, but do not show love to my family, I am just another decorator. If I slave away in the kitchen, baking dozens of Christmas cookies, preparing food for the church party, and getting food ready for a large gathering, but do not show love to my friends, I am just another cook. If I work at the Food Pantry, sing carols at the Nursing Home, and give extra to needy causes, but do not show love to those around me, it profits me nothing. If I decorate my Sunday school room with shimmering angels and sing in the church choir, but do not love Christ, I have missed the point. Love stops the cooking to hug a child. Love sets aside the decorating to talk with grandpa. Love is kind, even when I am tired. Love does not yell at the dog to get out of the way. Love gives not expecting in return. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things. Video games will break, pearl necklaces will be lost, golf clubs will rest, but the love of Jesus never fails.
*****************************************
StoryShare, December 17, 2017, issue.
Copyright 2017 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to the StoryShare service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons, in worship and classroom settings, in brief devotions, in radio spots, and as newsletter fillers. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to permissions@csspub.com or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
"The Magnificence of God" by Keith Wagner
"Hope for Tomorrow" by Keith Wagner
"Learning to Love" by John Fitzgerald
The Magnificence of God
by Keith Wagner
Luke 1:46-55
In the movie, Santa Claus III, there is a scene where the bad guy in the movie has turned the North Pole into a profit making venture. Christmas has been completely exploited and actor, Tim Allen, is devastated. At one point he says, “Christmas is out of control.”
Is Christmas out of control? It’s no secret that it has become a commercial enterprise as the financial success of many department stores depends on holiday sales to keep them in the black. I was in a store one Christmas season and I noticed that they had put a nativity display on a bench. My first thought was that baby Jesus had been benched. Perhaps Jesus is no longer a player. Christ has become sidelined. Christmas is so out of control one wonders if it is possible to rescue it. Perhaps the true meaning of Christmas is so overshadowed by commercialism that it will never recover. What can we do to take back control of God’s most sacred event?
Our scripture today is known as the Magnificat. It is the song that Mary sang as a response to the news that she would give birth to the son of God. It was a song from the heart in which she sang the words, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.”
If God can use someone like Mary do something extraordinary then God can make ordinary folks like you and I to do extraordinary things as well. A few years ago I received an email from a man in Taiwan. He was the editor of a Christian devotional publication. He wanted my permission to include one of my Christmas sermons that was on line, in his publication. He went on to say that the sermon would be translated into Chinese and distributed to millions of people in China. I have never written a book, and I am certainly not a famous theologian. I have never thought of myself as a missionary, but to have one of my messages circulated in a country with millions of people was beyond my wildest imagination. I was published and the editor sent me a copy. It is in Chinese, but I cherish it as a reminder of what a single person can do.
God can use anyone as an instrument of his hope and love. God’s servants can arise above the most powerful and popular and do great things like bringing a savior into our midst.
Before Mary gave us the Magnificat she resolved to “let it be.” In other words, we can trust that God is still in control even though it appears that Christmas is out of control. A key moment in Santa Claus III was when the little girl, who played Tim Allen’s niece, had to put her trust in him. And, it was because she trusted that goodness prevailed over evil.
I believe that God wants us all to have faith like Mary, reaching deep within ourselves and singing from the heart. Christmas will likely never return to its humble origin and sacred beginning, but God wants us to keep trying. Since God can make great things happen through the life of a lowly, peasant woman, like Mary, God can make great things happen through each of us. All a person needs is a little encouragement and affirmation, just as Elizabeth gave to Mary. Then, we “let it be” and we watch God do amazing things.
* * *
Hope for Tomorrow
by Keith Wagner
Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11
According to many sociologists, the 1950’s were the “golden years” for the United States. World War II had ended and the nation was becoming stronger economically. Millions of Americans were building homes and families began acquiring new things like; washing machines, televisions, ranges, refrigerators and a second automobile. Television kept our attention with shows like “Ozzie and Harriet.” Society revolved around the nuclear family and the “American Dream.”
Many people still lament over that period of time in our history. The 50’s have become the benchmark for the state of the American family ever since. It was definitely a golden period since the middle class grew by millions. It was golden for the church too which was flourishing. New churches were being built and many existing churches were adding educational wings and fellowship halls. It was a time of new beginnings, hope, prosperity and excitement.
Isaiah the prophet described a golden era for the Israelites. He was speaking to a people who were suffering. Their nation had fallen apart and they were living in exile. All hope was lost. They too had been lamenting over the “good ole days.” But, Isaiah promised them a society where there would be no suffering. People would live long and never go hungry. Everyone would have their own homes. Enemies would live at peace with one another. Isaiah promised hope for tomorrow.
Isaiah spoke of liberation and restoration, new beginnings and new birth. There was hope, not despair. There was glory, not doom. Instead of suffering and grief there would be joy and celebration. Messengers of God, like Isaiah, give us hope.
In the movie, Castaway, starring Tom Hanks, he was stranded on an island for over four years and he was all alone. His future seemed totally hopeless and he was isolated and completely cut off from society. Eventually he managed to build a raft and sailed away. Later he was rescued by a freighter. Since Hanks was presumed dead, his fiancé married someone else. When he returned to the states he said to a friend: “One day logic was proven all wrong because the tide lifted, came in, and gave me a sail. And now, here I am. I'm back in Memphis, talking to you. I have “ice” in my glass. And I've lost her (Kelly) all over again. I'm so sad that I don't have Kelly. But I'm so grateful that she was with me on that island. And I know what I have to do now. I have to keep breathing, because tomorrow the sun will rise. Who knows what the tide could bring?”
What kept Hanks going those four, long, lonely years? Hope. He had a picture and memories of his girlfriend and that gave him the courage and strength to survive. In the same way, Isaiah gave the Israelites an image of the future. By promising better times, he gave hope to a people in despair.
Having a vision, dreaming dreams, creates excitement and wonder. Instead of lamenting over what was, God wants us to put our energy into what could be. I am reminded of something that happened during the depression.
During the dark days of 1929, a group of ministers in the Northeast, all graduates of the Boston School of Theology, gathered to discuss how they should conduct their Thanksgiving Sunday services. Things were about as bad as they could get, with no sign of relief. The bread lines were depressingly long, the stock market had plummeted, and the term Great Depression seemed an apt description for the mood of the country. The ministers thought they should only lightly touch upon the subject of Thanksgiving since there was human misery all around them.
Dr. William L. Stiger, pastor of a large congregation in the city rallied the group. It was not the time to give a mere passing mention to Thanksgiving. In fact it was just the opposite. Instead it was the time for the nation to get matters in perspective and thank God for their blessings at that moment. The most intense moments of thankfulness are not found in times of plenty, but when difficulties abound.
There is hope with God because God is constantly creating newness from the old. Better times are still a possibility. Isaiah was not promising a total restoration to make things like they were. Isaiah was proclaiming that the faithful have hope because their lives would eventually be renewed.
* * *
Learning to Love
by John Fitzgerald
John 1:6-8, 19-28
This third Sunday of Advent serves as a reminder that Christmas is all about the love of Jesus. Everyone is somewhere on the path of learning to love as Jesus first loved us.
The world teaches that we can “fall in love” and still be a self-centered person. Jesus says love is different than what our culture would have. God’s son demonstrated that love is what happened at Calvary. Christ the Lord poured out his love for humanity by dying on a Cross. Jesus teaches that if we really want to love than a cross must be picked up daily.
The love of God’s son is sacrificial and giving in nature. This is the love we need to learn about at Christmas.
John the Baptist knew about a giving kind of love. He poured out his heart to prepare the world for God’s Messiah. In our scripture lesson John is recorded as saying, “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, “Make straight the way for the Lord” (verse 23).
The Bible also confirms that John testified to God’s true light manifest in Jesus, “He (John) himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.” (verse 8). John willingly bore a subservient position to Jesus because of his great love for the Messiah.
I hope as we approach Christmas day we can know the serving kind of love that John the Baptist and Jesus gave witness to.
We know more about what scriptural love looks like by reading 1 Corinthians 13. I want to share a Christmas version of 1 Corinthians in closing:
If I decorate my house perfectly with plaid bows, strands of twinkling lights and shiny ornaments, but do not show love to my family, I am just another decorator. If I slave away in the kitchen, baking dozens of Christmas cookies, preparing food for the church party, and getting food ready for a large gathering, but do not show love to my friends, I am just another cook. If I work at the Food Pantry, sing carols at the Nursing Home, and give extra to needy causes, but do not show love to those around me, it profits me nothing. If I decorate my Sunday school room with shimmering angels and sing in the church choir, but do not love Christ, I have missed the point. Love stops the cooking to hug a child. Love sets aside the decorating to talk with grandpa. Love is kind, even when I am tired. Love does not yell at the dog to get out of the way. Love gives not expecting in return. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things. Video games will break, pearl necklaces will be lost, golf clubs will rest, but the love of Jesus never fails.
*****************************************
StoryShare, December 17, 2017, issue.
Copyright 2017 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to the StoryShare service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons, in worship and classroom settings, in brief devotions, in radio spots, and as newsletter fillers. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to permissions@csspub.com or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
