WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.399 Welcome to the Awakening Church podcast. 00:00:02.560 --> 00:00:07.040 We pray this message encourages you and provides the hope and light of Jesus Christ. 00:00:07.200 --> 00:00:08.640 Thanks for tuning in. 00:00:18.879 --> 00:00:19.600 Amazing. 00:00:19.760 --> 00:00:20.719 Great to be with you. 00:00:20.879 --> 00:00:23.600 Thank you so much for joining us today. 00:00:23.839 --> 00:00:28.960 So special to get to celebrate and share this moment with you. 00:00:29.359 --> 00:00:39.679 You know, I was thinking as a kid, uh leading up to Christmas, it just felt like sheer torture waiting for this day. 00:00:39.840 --> 00:00:55.520 I don't know if anybody else had this experience, but the minute uh the tree went up and presents started to populate underneath the tree, it felt like time slowed down and just moved at a crawl. 00:00:55.679 --> 00:00:57.200 When will it get here? 00:00:57.359 --> 00:00:59.359 When can I open my presence? 00:00:59.520 --> 00:01:05.280 Um, all I wanted was just a peek inside, just a glimpse to see what was inside. 00:01:05.519 --> 00:01:10.079 It was just utter agony as a kid. 00:01:10.560 --> 00:01:16.959 And here's the thing: not knowing is one of the hardest parts of life, isn't it? 00:01:17.200 --> 00:01:23.920 Not knowing's hard as a kid, and not knowing's hard as an adult, too. 00:01:24.400 --> 00:01:30.799 You know, as we get older, the things that we worry about aren't necessarily presents under the tree. 00:01:30.879 --> 00:01:33.920 They're bigger things, they're heavier things. 00:01:34.400 --> 00:01:42.879 The boxes change, you know, it's no longer a present under the tree, it's maybe the future box. 00:01:44.560 --> 00:01:45.200 You know? 00:01:45.760 --> 00:01:47.120 Will I make it? 00:01:47.359 --> 00:01:50.239 What's gonna happen in the next 10 years? 00:01:50.480 --> 00:01:54.000 Um how do I navigate the future? 00:01:54.159 --> 00:01:56.560 Or maybe it's the relationship box? 00:01:56.719 --> 00:01:58.719 Will I ever find my person? 00:01:59.680 --> 00:02:01.840 Um, will this relationship last? 00:02:02.000 --> 00:02:02.799 Will our marriage last? 00:02:03.040 --> 00:02:03.840 Will we ever have kids? 00:02:03.920 --> 00:02:07.200 Are we messing up our kids right now? 00:02:07.760 --> 00:02:10.800 Or maybe for you it's the career box? 00:02:12.319 --> 00:02:14.080 Did I choose the right career? 00:02:14.240 --> 00:02:15.280 Do I need to change? 00:02:15.439 --> 00:02:18.000 Will I have a job in five years? 00:02:18.240 --> 00:02:23.599 Or maybe it's even the health box. 00:02:24.159 --> 00:02:28.879 How is this going to impact and shape our lives? 00:02:29.120 --> 00:02:35.199 Is this the way it's always going to be? 00:02:35.680 --> 00:02:42.479 Not knowing is one of the hardest things in life. 00:02:42.800 --> 00:02:46.639 And wouldn't it be amazing to get just like a peak, a glimpse? 00:02:46.719 --> 00:02:50.800 And so any one of those, oh, I just would love to know. 00:02:51.759 --> 00:02:57.360 You know, one of the boxes we all wonder about is this one. 00:02:58.800 --> 00:03:01.360 Not really this one, but you know what I mean. 00:03:02.560 --> 00:03:10.240 Whether you're spiritual or not, religious or not, we s we all actually wonder about the God box. 00:03:11.120 --> 00:03:14.000 And the question is like, one, is there a God? 00:03:14.159 --> 00:03:14.800 Is there meaning? 00:03:14.960 --> 00:03:15.759 Is there purpose? 00:03:15.919 --> 00:03:17.360 Is there beauty? 00:03:18.479 --> 00:03:21.120 And if there is a God, well, what is God like? 00:03:21.360 --> 00:03:22.639 Is he good? 00:03:22.960 --> 00:03:23.840 Is he loving? 00:03:24.000 --> 00:03:24.560 Is he kind? 00:03:24.639 --> 00:03:25.360 Or is he angry? 00:03:25.439 --> 00:03:26.560 Is he distant? 00:03:27.439 --> 00:03:28.560 Does he care? 00:03:30.560 --> 00:03:35.120 And then, okay, does God like me? 00:03:35.759 --> 00:03:40.560 Not only what is God like, but does God actually like me? 00:03:42.159 --> 00:03:53.039 You know, the claim of Christmas, we come to celebrate this every year, and for some, uh, this is your first moment of celebrating Christmas in a church. 00:03:53.199 --> 00:03:55.840 Welcome, we're so glad to have you. 00:03:56.000 --> 00:03:58.000 We're not in a church, we're in a cafeteria. 00:03:58.319 --> 00:04:00.319 So close enough. 00:04:01.039 --> 00:04:08.000 But the claim of Christmas is this that Christmas actually reveals that the God box has been unwrapped for all to see. 00:04:08.240 --> 00:04:12.159 Like you don't have to wonder anymore. 00:04:12.560 --> 00:04:23.120 In fact, John, one of Jesus' disciples, one of his closest friends, in the intro of his gospel, his account of the life of Jesus, he says it this way no one's ever seen God. 00:04:23.360 --> 00:04:24.639 And that's the problem, right? 00:04:24.720 --> 00:04:25.839 No one's ever seen God. 00:04:25.920 --> 00:04:32.800 And so, like, we're filled with questions and wondering, okay, what is God like and does he like me? 00:04:33.120 --> 00:04:37.199 And then he goes on to say this we don't need to wonder anymore. 00:04:37.360 --> 00:04:48.639 No one's ever seen God, but the one and only Son who is himself God, and in closest relationship with the Father has made him known. 00:04:48.800 --> 00:04:50.399 This is what John's saying. 00:04:50.720 --> 00:04:54.959 Jesus has revealed God to us. 00:04:55.439 --> 00:05:00.319 Jesus has explained what God is like. 00:05:00.800 --> 00:05:06.240 Jesus isn't just, by the way, like from God or speaking for God. 00:05:06.639 --> 00:05:11.360 Um, he's not just, you know, a good teacher or a moral example. 00:05:11.519 --> 00:05:14.480 Jesus is fully God. 00:05:15.279 --> 00:05:20.399 And Jesus, we see exactly what God is like. 00:05:20.879 --> 00:05:21.519 And so. 00:05:22.639 --> 00:05:27.920 So if you want to know what God is like, look at Jesus. 00:05:29.120 --> 00:05:35.839 If you want to know how God responds to broken, messy people, look at Jesus. 00:05:36.879 --> 00:05:47.600 If you want to know what God, like what breaks the heart of God, how he responds to pain and suffering, look at Jesus. 00:05:47.759 --> 00:05:55.040 If you want to know how God feels about religious hypocrisy, look at Jesus. 00:05:56.160 --> 00:06:03.759 If you want to know whether or not God likes you, look at Jesus. 00:06:04.160 --> 00:06:15.920 See, the claim of Christmas is this this baby born in a manger, wrapped in swaddling clothes, is actually the God of the universe unwrapped for the world to see. 00:06:16.959 --> 00:06:24.319 And so this begs the question, okay, what then does Jesus reveal about what God is like? 00:06:24.879 --> 00:06:31.120 When we look at him, when we look at Jesus, what does it show us about the heart of God? 00:06:31.439 --> 00:06:39.600 Well, uh, on one occasion, Jesus was invited to a dinner with this religious, elite person, this guy named Simon, he was a Pharisee. 00:06:39.759 --> 00:06:41.040 He invites Jesus over. 00:06:41.199 --> 00:06:44.720 Now, in their day, they didn't have HBO or Disney or Netflix. 00:06:44.879 --> 00:06:48.720 And so this was the event, this was the entertainment of the night. 00:06:48.879 --> 00:06:53.360 Jesus shows up uh and they would have the dinner in a courtyard, right? 00:06:53.439 --> 00:06:58.480 Uh and the town then would gather around and listen into the conversation. 00:06:58.720 --> 00:07:04.800 And Jesus is sitting there at this table, and all of a sudden, a woman shows up. 00:07:05.439 --> 00:07:07.600 A woman that everybody knew. 00:07:07.920 --> 00:07:10.959 A woman with a past and a reputation. 00:07:11.600 --> 00:07:18.160 A woman that when she showed up, whispers began to spread around the crowd. 00:07:19.680 --> 00:07:24.160 In fact, Luke, who wrote the Gospel, Luke, he was a doctor and historian. 00:07:24.319 --> 00:07:37.680 He writes it down this way: says, A woman in that town who lived a sinful life, learned that Jesus was eating at a Pharisee's house, so she came there with an alabaster jar of perfume. 00:07:39.279 --> 00:07:48.079 This woman with the reputation, with the scorn of respectable women, perhaps the guilty secret of some of the men, she crashes the dinner party. 00:07:48.319 --> 00:08:04.079 And like many Jewish women in her day, she would most probably have like a small vial of perfume, expensive perfume, around her neck, standing listening in to the conversation, overwhelmed, she begins to break down in tears. 00:08:04.800 --> 00:08:14.079 Big drops of tears begin to fall, and Jesus reclining at the table, he would have been on his side and his feet behind him, these tears begin to hit his feet. 00:08:14.319 --> 00:08:16.959 Drop, drop, drop. 00:08:17.519 --> 00:08:20.959 And she does something that breaks all norms, all customs. 00:08:21.360 --> 00:08:31.040 She undoes her hair, bends down, still weeping and crying, and begins to wipe his feet with her hair. 00:08:32.799 --> 00:08:45.519 And if Jesus really is the explanation of God, this moment will tell us what God is like and whether or not God likes us. 00:08:46.639 --> 00:09:00.639 Simon the Pharisee saw what was happening and he said to himself, if this man really were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is, that she is a sinner. 00:09:01.840 --> 00:09:06.159 Simon responded with, I think how we think God responds to us, right? 00:09:06.639 --> 00:09:10.960 Shame, judgment, rejection, condemnation. 00:09:11.600 --> 00:09:17.600 Surely Simon, this religious leader, knows how God would respond to a woman like this. 00:09:18.399 --> 00:09:19.519 Now think about this. 00:09:19.759 --> 00:09:22.399 While the woman is weeping, this is happening. 00:09:22.639 --> 00:09:23.600 The crowd is watching. 00:09:23.679 --> 00:09:28.320 This is like one of those moments, like everybody's not even sure what to do, how to respond. 00:09:28.480 --> 00:09:31.600 And they're kind of just holding their breath in this moment. 00:09:31.840 --> 00:09:36.559 She's still weeping, still washing Jesus' feet, pouring perfume on it. 00:09:36.720 --> 00:09:38.639 And Jesus turns to Simon. 00:09:38.879 --> 00:09:41.440 He thinks this is a good time to tell a story. 00:09:41.679 --> 00:09:44.080 He's like, Simon, I got a story to tell you. 00:09:44.240 --> 00:09:45.679 And he's like, Go for it. 00:09:45.919 --> 00:09:50.159 He says, Well, there were two people who owed money to a certain moneylender. 00:09:50.320 --> 00:09:53.360 One of them owed 500 denarii and the other 50. 00:09:53.519 --> 00:09:55.360 Neither of them had money to pay him back. 00:09:55.440 --> 00:09:58.000 So he forgave the debts of both. 00:09:58.240 --> 00:10:02.480 Now, which of them will love him more? 00:10:04.720 --> 00:10:05.360 Huh? 00:10:06.559 --> 00:10:07.919 So here's what Jesus is saying. 00:10:08.000 --> 00:10:08.960 He says there's two people. 00:10:09.039 --> 00:10:12.399 Both were up to their eyeballs in debt. 00:10:13.360 --> 00:10:18.159 In our context, let's say one owed 50 grand and another owed 500 grand. 00:10:18.480 --> 00:10:20.799 Both had no way of paying it back. 00:10:21.039 --> 00:10:24.559 And both were going to experience the same fate. 00:10:26.799 --> 00:10:29.519 Except for an act of grace. 00:10:29.600 --> 00:10:31.200 And something had to show up. 00:10:31.360 --> 00:10:32.879 The moneylender says, you know what? 00:10:32.960 --> 00:10:34.879 I'm going to cancel it all. 00:10:35.759 --> 00:10:38.399 Forgive the debt completely. 00:10:39.840 --> 00:10:41.120 Can you imagine? 00:10:41.360 --> 00:10:45.120 It's not just you don't need to pay me back right now. 00:10:45.919 --> 00:10:55.600 It's not even, you know, do what you can and we'll make a plan, or hey, I'll cover part, but you do uh your best to cover the rest. 00:10:57.200 --> 00:11:03.279 In a moment, in an act of grace, giving them what they don't deserve. 00:11:03.519 --> 00:11:05.039 He says, I got it. 00:11:05.440 --> 00:11:13.279 Can you imagine the relief, the joy, the burden lifted, and the future return? 00:11:14.320 --> 00:11:21.840 And so Jesus asked Simon, now which of them will love him more? 00:11:23.279 --> 00:11:31.120 And Simon replied, Well, I suppose the one who had the bigger debt, forgiven. 00:11:32.720 --> 00:11:39.600 And then Jesus turns to this woman who's behind him and he says, Do you see this woman? 00:11:40.879 --> 00:11:46.000 I love that Jesus asks like the obvious questions, like, Yes, we all see this woman. 00:11:46.240 --> 00:11:49.120 Everybody's whispering about this woman. 00:11:49.679 --> 00:11:53.360 Simon certainly saw this woman and he saw the worst of her. 00:11:53.519 --> 00:11:55.600 He saw her past, her failure. 00:11:55.759 --> 00:11:57.519 He saw her reputation. 00:11:58.159 --> 00:11:59.360 Why is she here? 00:11:59.519 --> 00:12:01.679 She wasn't invited to this moment. 00:12:02.000 --> 00:12:06.639 And why in the world would Jesus let her touch him? 00:12:07.679 --> 00:12:14.799 And then Jesus begins to tell Simon the things that he couldn't see in this woman. 00:12:14.879 --> 00:12:20.559 He says, Simon, you know what I showed up to your house and it's customary, you know, to have water for you to wash your feet. 00:12:20.639 --> 00:12:25.919 You didn't have that for me, but she has been washing my feet with her tears. 00:12:26.000 --> 00:12:31.840 You know, I showed up and just the friendly thing, it's like a handshake is to greet one another with a kiss. 00:12:31.919 --> 00:12:35.039 And well, you didn't give me a kiss. 00:12:35.120 --> 00:12:37.360 She's not stopped kissing my feet. 00:12:37.679 --> 00:12:42.159 You know, an honored guest, you're going to anoint with oil as they come into your home. 00:12:42.320 --> 00:12:47.279 You didn't anoint me with oil, but she's anointed me with these expensive perfume. 00:12:48.480 --> 00:12:55.600 And then he turns to this woman and he says something to her that stunned the table and the crowd around. 00:12:55.840 --> 00:13:07.200 Therefore, I tell you, her sins have been forgiven, as her great love has shown for whoever has been forgiven little loves little. 00:13:08.480 --> 00:13:11.039 And then Jesus turns to the woman. 00:13:11.279 --> 00:13:23.039 The woman everyone assumed was the farthest from God, with no hope to ever be close to him, and looks at her and says, Your sins are forgiven. 00:13:23.679 --> 00:13:25.840 Your faith has saved you. 00:13:26.639 --> 00:13:29.440 Go in peace. 00:13:30.000 --> 00:13:32.960 At that moment, the crowd begins to murmur. 00:13:34.720 --> 00:13:38.879 Who is this who claims the authority to forgive? 00:13:39.840 --> 00:13:42.000 Only God can forgive in their right. 00:13:42.480 --> 00:13:48.080 Only God can lift the weight of guilt, shame, condemnation that haunts our lives. 00:13:48.720 --> 00:13:54.159 You know, we're experts, by the way, at covering up our messiness, aren't we? 00:13:55.039 --> 00:14:07.600 We put on a good show, we stay busy, we numb out to escape the ache of our soul for peace, the longing for wholeness, the desperate need for forgiveness. 00:14:08.320 --> 00:14:10.720 But it's in the quiet moments, isn't it? 00:14:11.600 --> 00:14:14.000 It's in the midnight moments. 00:14:15.200 --> 00:14:19.919 The ache resurfaces, the regrets, the messiness bubbles up. 00:14:20.159 --> 00:14:24.320 What we've done, what's been done to us. 00:14:25.840 --> 00:14:32.000 The things that make us feel like damaged, good or even broken beyond repair. 00:14:33.919 --> 00:14:37.600 How does God respond to messy people? 00:14:40.480 --> 00:14:43.440 How does God respond to me? 00:14:45.759 --> 00:14:47.679 Because I'm so often a mess. 00:14:49.519 --> 00:14:56.399 Jesus is God unwrapped for the world to see. 00:14:58.960 --> 00:15:03.679 Jesus isn't repulsed by your messiness, he moves towards it. 00:15:03.759 --> 00:15:08.879 He knows every part of you, even the hidden parts you hope no one ever sees. 00:15:09.200 --> 00:15:13.519 He sees it and he longs to bring healing and wholeness in life. 00:15:14.559 --> 00:15:18.399 Back to John's introduction of Jesus. 00:15:18.960 --> 00:15:20.720 John explains Jesus this way. 00:15:20.879 --> 00:15:30.240 He says, Out of his fullness, we all receive grace in place of grace already given. 00:15:35.919 --> 00:15:37.279 Let me ask you. 00:15:40.799 --> 00:15:54.480 Let's just pretend for a moment if you were holding this box, the God box, and if you could open it and you could peek inside, how do you think God would respond to you personally? 00:15:56.000 --> 00:15:59.519 I mean, what do you think you would receive from God? 00:15:59.759 --> 00:16:01.120 You open it up. 00:16:04.240 --> 00:16:05.519 I think for some. 00:16:06.639 --> 00:16:08.000 See if I can get it to stay there. 00:16:08.080 --> 00:16:09.039 I don't think I can. 00:16:10.480 --> 00:16:11.519 It stayed. 00:16:13.120 --> 00:16:16.240 I think for some, maybe a scolding. 00:16:18.799 --> 00:16:19.840 How could you? 00:16:20.799 --> 00:16:22.399 What were you thinking? 00:16:23.120 --> 00:16:27.679 I've given you so many chances and still this is it. 00:16:28.559 --> 00:16:29.759 Do better. 00:16:34.720 --> 00:16:40.399 I think we would some of us think the minute we open what we receive is you're just a disappointment. 00:16:41.519 --> 00:16:42.480 Rejection. 00:16:45.919 --> 00:16:52.720 Jesus shows us exactly what you'll see when you open the God box. 00:16:53.679 --> 00:16:54.480 One word. 00:16:56.879 --> 00:16:57.279 Grace. 00:17:01.360 --> 00:17:07.440 God's unearned, undeserved favor for you. 00:17:07.839 --> 00:17:09.039 His gift. 00:17:10.640 --> 00:17:12.559 God's gift of forgiveness. 00:17:12.799 --> 00:17:14.240 God's gift of love. 00:17:14.480 --> 00:17:16.079 God's gift of peace. 00:17:16.319 --> 00:17:18.640 God's gift of salvation. 00:17:20.400 --> 00:17:31.039 The greatest gift of Christmas is God giving himself to you because it is his grace on display, because God is not down on you. 00:17:31.200 --> 00:17:32.880 He is not against you. 00:17:33.119 --> 00:17:35.279 He is not what others have said about him. 00:17:35.519 --> 00:17:37.039 He is Jesus here. 00:17:37.200 --> 00:17:41.279 And he leans in towards you and he has come for you. 00:17:41.519 --> 00:17:48.559 And when you call and when you ask and when you seek, he doesn't shout and he doesn't look down on you. 00:17:48.720 --> 00:17:50.240 He says, Welcome home. 00:17:51.759 --> 00:17:55.680 The greatest gift of Christmas is God Himself. 00:17:58.319 --> 00:17:59.519 The invitation. 00:18:15.759 --> 00:18:19.119 Jesus didn't show up to start a new religion, by the way. 00:18:20.000 --> 00:18:22.880 It isn't try harder, earn your way to God. 00:18:23.440 --> 00:18:29.279 Or even, by the way, it isn't even just to have a nice, warm, fuzzy feeling. 00:18:29.440 --> 00:18:30.480 Like, oh, those kids. 00:18:30.640 --> 00:18:32.000 Wasn't that fantastic? 00:18:32.319 --> 00:18:33.279 Oh my goodness. 00:18:33.519 --> 00:18:33.839 Oh. 00:18:34.880 --> 00:18:35.680 That's wonderful. 00:18:35.920 --> 00:18:37.440 But it isn't just that. 00:18:37.920 --> 00:18:44.400 The invitation is into a personal relationship with the God of the universe. 00:18:44.880 --> 00:18:53.039 To experience the love of Jesus, his grace, his healing, his wholeness, his forgiveness. 00:18:54.000 --> 00:18:55.200 And think about this. 00:18:57.039 --> 00:19:02.960 And so the same Jesus who looked at that woman and said, You're forgiven. 00:19:04.480 --> 00:19:05.759 Go in peace. 00:19:06.960 --> 00:19:10.559 Is looking at you right now in love. 00:19:12.559 --> 00:19:18.799 And so would you receive God's gift of grace? 00:19:20.160 --> 00:19:27.839 Maybe you feel like you're too broken, too messy, too far gone for God to ever want you or love you. 00:19:29.039 --> 00:19:33.359 Maybe you grow up with a picture of God that looks nothing like Jesus. 00:19:33.519 --> 00:19:36.720 And so you ran the other way, fair enough. 00:19:38.240 --> 00:19:45.759 Maybe you've wandered away from Jesus and feel ashamed to come back until somehow you get your act together. 00:19:46.160 --> 00:19:54.400 Or maybe, just maybe, tonight, for the first time you truly understand the meaning of Christmas. 00:19:56.319 --> 00:20:02.240 That God loves you and his grace is available for you. 00:20:03.359 --> 00:20:09.680 This moment, this moment is a holy moment, it's a sacred moment. 00:20:09.759 --> 00:20:15.440 It is a moment that has the power to change your life. 00:20:16.559 --> 00:20:19.279 Grace, by the way, is just a gift. 00:20:21.359 --> 00:20:23.759 It's not something you can earn. 00:20:24.799 --> 00:20:27.039 It's just something you can receive. 00:20:28.400 --> 00:20:33.119 So as we close, I want to invite you to just open your hands if you're willing. 00:20:33.200 --> 00:20:34.000 You don't have to. 00:20:34.240 --> 00:20:35.200 You don't have to. 00:20:35.680 --> 00:20:37.920 As a posture to receive. 00:21:04.799 --> 00:21:13.279 Would you receive Jesus as the one who's come to bring life and healing and hope? 00:21:13.839 --> 00:21:19.519 As a close, would you, if you want to receive the gift of Jesus, would you just simply pray after me? 00:21:19.680 --> 00:21:22.559 It could be your first time, it could be your thousandth time. 00:21:22.880 --> 00:21:24.880 Prayer is just a conversation. 00:21:25.839 --> 00:21:28.319 Jesus, I believe you are God. 00:21:29.440 --> 00:21:31.839 And I want a relationship with you. 00:21:34.880 --> 00:21:36.400 Thank you for loving me. 00:21:36.559 --> 00:21:38.160 Thank you for forgiving me. 00:21:38.400 --> 00:21:40.400 Thank you for saving me. 00:21:44.240 --> 00:21:48.000 Would you come into my life and make me new. 00:22:09.519 --> 00:22:11.119 In Jesus' name. 00:22:14.400 --> 00:22:16.720 We hope you are blessed by this message. 00:22:16.880 --> 00:22:21.279 Please subscribe to our podcast for access to every episode as they're uploaded. 00:22:21.440 --> 00:22:23.519 And hey, we'd love to connect with you. 00:22:23.680 --> 00:22:29.279 Take a next step by filling out our virtual connection card at awakeningchurch.com slash card.