Ugly Christmas Sweater (3)
Ugly Christmas Sweater • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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· 2 viewsPeople do all kinds of things, for all kinds of reasons. Some people do things for the praise they will receive… Others, to “feel good” about their lives… Others for control… and still others for the simple glory it brings to others… What is a Christian supposed to be motivated by? Why do we give… love… serve? “If we give with the wrong motive, we rob ourselves of blessing and reward, AND rob God of the glory…” — Weirsbe The Christian life is not about gaining glory, praise, and reward, it is about bringing glory to God as His children.
Notes
Transcript
There was an elderly man walking along the beach, when he stumbled across a magic lamp. He picked it up and a genie appeared.
"Because you have freed me," the genie said, "I will grant you a wish."
The man thought for a moment and then responded, "My brother and I had a fight 30 years ago and he hasn’t spoken to me since. I wish that he’ll finally forgive me."
There was a thunderclap, and the genie declared, "Your wish has been granted.”
“You know," the genie continued, "most men would have asked for wealth or fame. But you only wanted the love of your brother.”
“Is it because you are old and dying?"
"No way!" the man cried. "But my brother is, and he’s worth about $60 million."
Our motives drive everything we do… Every decision we make, every action we take, is motivated by what’s in our heart… Amen?
Luke 6:45 (NIV)
45…For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.
Our motives, reveal our hearts… They will either push us to bless others, or…Push us to use others for our own selfish gain.
Ugly Motives will harm our relationships and hinder our witness to the world.
23 Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.
We have to carefully and prudently guard our hearts against the sin nature.
“Our sinful nature is so subtle that it can defile even good thing like [giving and serving]” — Wiersbe
Our sinful nature tempts us to put ourselves first…
If you haven’t guessed… We are going to talk about motives today. Jesus was highly concerned with the motives of our heart…
Turn with me to Matthew 6.
This is a passage from Jesus’s “Sermon on the Mount,” …We like to break Matthew 5:3-7:27 into little blocks… BUT… This passage is about more than just “giving”, or “Prayer, or “Fasting”…
1 “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
2 “So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.
3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,
4 so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
5 “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.
6 But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
7 And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words.
8 Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
9 “This, then, is how you should pray: “ ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,
10 your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us today our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.’
14 For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.
15 But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.
16 “When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.
17 But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face,
18 so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
Do you hear the message Jesus is giving?!
(read again, break it down as you go)
It’s about MOTIVES!!!
Jesus is speaking to a group of people who are focused on “living out” every letter of the Law, and “looking” righteous in front of others.
They are more concerned with “looking” spiritual then they are about actually having a healthy spirituality!
In other words, They want to be called “Christian,” without having to “live it”.
They want to be called God’s children, without having to change anything about themselves…
Now… don’t get me wrong, Jesus is not against the actions they are taking here… Giving, Praying, and Fasting are all great things…
BUT… What is the motivation behind the action?
SOMETIMES WE DO THE RIGHT THING FOR THE WRONG REASON.
Ugly motives can nullify our witness in the world.
The Christmas season is filled with opportunities to serve others… to meet their needs …
The Christmas season is known to be the most generous time of the year… BUT…
Some people see those opportunities as a chance to “feel” better about themselves by receiving praise for their generosity.
So, they drop money in the bell ringers bucket, hoping that everyone around them will hear their coins drop… They want to be recognized at the Christmas party for their “outstanding contributions”… They want the applause!
We all can probably name people who, during Christmas, seek out soup kitchens, shelters, etc… where they can serve, and then they delight in telling the story of how they go and help, so they can hear the praise of those around them…
Look at Mt 6:1 again:
1 “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
Jesus makes it clear… These people have received all the reward they’re ever going to receive!
They got the recognition and applause they desired, but that’s it!!!
It’s over! Finished! Nothing more is coming!
So… they have to keep going, keep doing, keep repeating the same things to keep feeling good about themselves.
They never feel completely fulfilled!
— — Only God can do that!
“If we give with the wrong motive, we rob ourselves of blessing and reward AND rob God of the glory that only He deserves.” — Weirsbe
Do you think God is going to honor that?!?
MOTIVE AND MANNER MATTER!!!
Think about Barnabas vs Ananias and Sapphira…
36 Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabas (which means “son of encouragement”),
37 sold a field he owned and brought the money and put it at the apostles’ feet.
1 Now a man named Ananias, together with his wife Sapphira, also sold a piece of property.
2 With his wife’s full knowledge he kept back part of the money for himself, but brought the rest and put it at the apostles’ feet.
3 Then Peter said, “Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some of the money you received for the land?
4 Didn’t it belong to you before it was sold? And after it was sold, wasn’t the money at your disposal? What made you think of doing such a thing? You have not lied just to human beings but to God.”
5 When Ananias heard this, he fell down and died. And great fear seized all who heard what had happened.
6 Then some young men came forward, wrapped up his body, and carried him out and buried him.
7 About three hours later his wife came in, not knowing what had happened.
8 Peter asked her, “Tell me, is this the price you and Ananias got for the land?” “Yes,” she said, “that is the price.”
9 Peter said to her, “How could you conspire to test the Spirit of the Lord? Listen! The feet of the men who buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out also.”
10 At that moment she fell down at his feet and died. Then the young men came in and, finding her dead, carried her out and buried her beside her husband.
11 Great fear seized the whole church and all who heard about these events.
Barnabas gave out of a desire to help… to give to God… BUT… Ananias and Sapphira gave because they wanted the praise that Barnabas had received for themselves…
— It’s like Cain and Able all over again…
Jesus says, “Don’t practice your righteousness to receive the praise of others, seek the praise of the Father.” (Pastor Tony)
There is a greater reward for us to receive, BUT… we will only receive it through our willingness to serve without recognition.
It’s not about how much praise we get… It’s not about how much it makes our hearts “feel good”… It’s about bringing glory to God!
We ONLY bring glory to God through our own HUMILITY!
Someone who serves in humility develops a character that is worth far more than the praise of people.
This is Christmas, right?
This is the time in which we celebrate the birth of Jesus, right?
This is the time when we focus on others… Amen?
The very way in which Jesus entered into this world should give us motive to live life humbly!
1 In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world.
2 (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.)
3 And everyone went to their own town to register.
4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David.
5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child.
6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born,
7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.
Let me tell you… If anyone deserves praise for their actions, IT’S GOD!!!
He stepped out of Heaven, and became human, just to save us!
He didn’t come to a castle, like a king…
He didn’t come to a fancy temple, like a priest…
He came in the form of am innocent, helpless baby… in a stinky old manger… probably surrounded by farm animals!
Jesus’s motives were, clearly, not for recognition and praise… His motive was LOVE!
The very reason we celebrate Christmas is because of that divine act of humility!
He set the example!!! And He invites us to “Follow Him”… Mary understood this:
46 And Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord
47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
48 for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed,
49 for the Mighty One has done great things for me— holy is his name.
50 His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation.
51 He has performed mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
52 He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble.
53 He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty.
54 He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful
55 to Abraham and his descendants forever, just as he promised our ancestors.”
That’s a humble prayer!
That’s giving Glory to the One who deserves it!
That’s what we are meant to do!
JESUS IS OUR MOTIVATION!!!
An ugly Christmas sweater at any Christmas party is meant to do only one thing — draw attention to us!
When Jesus is our motivation, then our deepest desire is to draw attention to Him!
When we take the spotlight off of ourselves, and put it on Him, We Grow!
This is why John said:
30 He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less.
Jesus is our TRUE MOTIVE.
(story) Notre Dame football star, George Gipp could do it all —— run, pass, and punt with unparalleled skill.
The 1920 season established him as a star, but on December 14, 1920, he died of pneumonia… But his story lived on…
On Nov 10, 1928, Notre Dame was up against a wall in their game against Army… They went into halftime tied, it seemed like they couldn’t win…
Coach Rockne recalled the last words of Gipp: “Sometimes, Rock, when the team is up against it, when things are going wrong and the breaks are beating the boys, tell them to go in there … and win one for the Gipper.”
That quote inspired Notre Dame to fight and to win!
As Christians, our motivation for living a life of love and service for others is the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus!
23 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters,
We are not out to impress others by living righteous lives…
We are out to honor our Lord and Saviour!
God said:
26 You must be holy because I, the Lord, am holy. I have set you apart from all other people to be my very own.
We are to “Be Holy because God is Holy, and WE are HIS children!”
We live Holy lives when He is our motive and reward!
Being Holy means allowing Jesus to guide our words and our actions, no matter how tempted we are to be self-serving!
Let me ask you something: “Why do we act that way?”
Why do we tend to be self-serving?
— — we think we are in competition with each other…
We often find ourselves fighting against ugly motives, because we think we are in a competition for attention and accolades.
THE CHRISTIAN LIFE IS NOT A COMPETITION!
Rivalry is a mentality of the world!
It has no place in the heart of a Christian!
3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves,
Rivalry and competition in the Church is not new… It finds its roots in its very beginnings.
The desire to “one-up” each other… to “be first”… to be in control… Is the very undoing of the church.
We are not in a competition with each other!
We should be cheering each other on… Encouraging each other forward in Love!
Let’s stop living as ugly Christmas sweaters, with ugly, selfish motives, and start living in the light of Christ!!!
I want to challenge you this week, to be a secret agent.
I want to invite you to choose one person to do something kind for…
HERE IS THE KEY!
This MUST be done anonymously.
However you choose to bless them, DO NOT LET THEM KNOW IT WAS YOU!
Allow your motivation for service to be Jesus, not recognition!
This can be a letter (or card) of encouragement… an anonymous gift card… a gift left on a doorstep… or a need being met…
Acts 20:35 (NIV)
‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”
Challenge your selfish motivations with selfless acts…
This Christmas, our gift is becoming more like the person God designed us to be.
(prayer)