Date:   12/25/2011

Text:   John 1:1-4, 9-12,14

Title:   What's The Cost?

Theme: It is costly for the Light of the world to come and show us Grace and Truth.

Introduction:

  At the end of October, Cynthia and I spent 10 days in Japan, getting together with friends we haven't seen for 44 or 34 years. Even though we didn't get to visit a lot of places, catching up with friends was always exciting. I ran out of my Japanese and some of my friends ran out of their English after several minutes of conversation. But some of them were considerate and persevered in using English. My professor wrote after returning home, “I was totally exhausted from speaking English for two days.” Certainly we had a wonderful time. But the misers among us would be talking to ourselves, “Boy, in order for this reunion to happen, we have to use up most of our frequent miles, take time off and put the doggie in Motel K.” This college reunion was a costly reunion J .

  This past week, some of us have travelled to other states or out of the country for family gatherings. And some of you have travelled from other cities, or countries to come here to join your family members. Reunions are generally fun and rewarding, but it could also ring up a high price. There is more than money matters. I know of a family that had to drive 10 hours for a family reunion. What made the trip difficult was that the driver was having lower back problems. It was a great reunion, but full of worries. Family gatherings can be costly.

  There is a song about 12 days of celebrating Christmas. Each day her true love would give her one present (PPT) A financial service firm looked at the 12 items purchased during those 12 days, and concluded that in today's money, it will cost us $24K. More down to earth statistics tell us that an average US household spent about $384 for Christmas last year. Christmas can be costly.

  This year, the city of Bethlehem spent $90K on an artificial Christmas trees -- the largest and the most expensive tree it ever had. It was manufactured and imported from China.

I trust that most of us have enjoyed and been enriched by the Christmas Pageant. Have we paused and considered this: in order for us to enjoy this program, how many people-hours were put into this? From the beginning, that is about 6 months ago till last night; it is over 3000 people hours. At the rate of $10 per hour, just people hours it is at least $30,000. Of course this is much less than the $4 million one church in California would spend on their annual Christmas program. Christmas celebration can be costly.

  Four Christmases ago, we explored John 1:14-18 to see how Jesus manifests abundant grace and truth when he came into the world. This morning we want to look at it from another perspective. In order for Jesus to come into the world, full of grace and truth, in order for the world to celebrate his birth, year after year, what does it cost Jesus?

I• Light came into Darkness.

In vs.1-5, we learned that Jesus is God, the Light of the world. This Light came into a dark world. Light stands for life, goodness, righteousness, orderly, kindness and beauty. Darkness stands for death, evil, injustice, cruelty and chaos. Light and darkness are totally opposite. Yet, this light took the initiative to come into darkness.

In some Asian cities, there are people who make a living by going through the garbage dump for metal, recyclable waste and even food. They work and live in the nearby make shift homes. One can imagine the filth and smell. Now, imagine tomorrow, our outreach minister came to you and asks you to lead a short term mission team summer of 2012 to go and share the gospel with them. This team will also need to live among them for 5 days. Moreover, she tells you that that the team will not be welcome; for they are very hostile to outsiders. Now, would you go?

This is what happened to Jesus, the light of the world. He created this world in the first place. Yet because of sin, this world was tainted and came under the rule of darkness. He came to his own, and was not welcome. You see, in order for us to gather here and celebrate his birth, He, the light, came into total darkness, and was rejected. This was a mission that no one would undertake. Yet, out of his obedience to the heavenly father, Jesus, the Light came.

II • Jesus came to live among us.

  In recent years, when I went to teach in China, the seminary or the hosting group wanted to make sure that I and other teachers can rest well and have some privacy. The students would share a room with 7 or 8 others, and sometimes more. Instead of sharing a room with them, most of the time they would put me in a comfortable guest room with a private bathroom and AC; or in a nearby hotel. On the one hand I appreciated this arrangement, yet on the other, I also felt a little uncomfortable because I was living differently from them.

This is quite different from Jesus the light. We learn that he came and dwell among us, meaning that he set up his tent among his people. It was not a mansion, or a bigger house, but a tent just like everyone else's. Moreover, of all the places, he was born in a manger, among the animals. As he grew up, his house most likely, was also a carpentry shop. Living in this country, we want to make sure we have a house that is separate from our neighborhood, equipped with the best lock and most advanced security system. Yet, when Jesus cane, he lived among men. Imagine, the light, penetrating the darkness and living among sinners; everything is the opposite of Him. This light had to give up all that belonged to him in heaven: power and glory. Instead, he came and lived among the unholy people, in doing so, he also had to temporarily restrain his divinity. By living among us, he experienced our frustrations and sufferings in life. Later, an apostle wrote that he was tempted in every way as we did, except that he did not sin. This Jesus came and became one of us.

III • Jesus came to share his life with us.

  When this light came, he also had to share his life with his people. We remember when our oldest son was two years old, we drove from Palo Alto, Ca. all the way to Calgary in Canada for a Francis Schaeffer week-long conference. Upon arriving at Calgary, we found ourselves sharing a small house with 10 or more other people. There was not much privacy, plus our 2 year old toddler. Or when you go to a family reunion and learn that you have to share a room with 3 other cousins that you don't know too well or can't get along with them, this is stressful.

When Jesus came, he was with his 12 disciples. He handpicked each one of them. They had different temperaments. Some were impulsive, others contemplative, one was short tempered (nicknamed son of thunder), another politically inclined, and one even ended up betraying him. And then during those three years, Jesus taught them about God's kingdom, yet they hardly understood anything until after his death and ascension. When they heard of his imminent death, they busied themselves striving for the top position after he's gone. If I am to pick 12 disciples, I definitely would by pass those apostles. I would pick the motivated, the humble and gentle, the quick to learn and spiritually and emotionally mature. Jesus was with them for three years, they travelled and lived together. Jesus came and shared his life with them. Later, one of his disciples John, wrote, “ 1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, ..” We have lived with him, talked with him and touched him. He was with us. Another apostle Paul, wrote, “ 8 So, being affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you had become very dear to us. ” He was imitating Christ, sharing his life with the believers at Thessalonica. This is quite different from modern day discipleship. When we say we disciple someone, we generally mean that I meet with you once a week or every other week for about 1 to 2 hours. There will be reading and other assignments. But we don't really share our life with others, right? But when Jesus came, he lived among us and shared his life with his disciples.

  There is one more thing. Jesus, the Light, came and shared his life with us, that led to his death on the cross. He came to live among us and shared his life with us but we rejected him and put him on the cross. You see, when the Apostle John wrote this book in his old age, as he was writing how the Word, the Light, came and dwelt among us, as he was recalling Jesus' birth, the ultimate rejection, death, was already being foretold. In order for the world to see the manifestation of the abundant grace and truth, it was very costly to Him. In order that we be lifted from darkness into the kingdom of light, it costs him his life. In order for us to have the right to become his children, he had to come and die in a world that is so contrary to him. In order for you and I and millions upon millions of others to be able to celebrate this and other Christmases, Jesus paid a hugh price indeed. For Jesus to come and make that connection with men, with you and me, it was terribly costly.

Conclusion:

  Several weeks ago, I shared in some of the services about a person camping outside the Sugar Land Best Buy on Tuesday evening of the Thanksgiving week so he could be the first to get in at 12am, Friday. This probably was repeated in many cities. One NPR commentator said, “Don't these people have someone they can spend time with? Isn't it more important to use this time to build relationships instead of sleeping outside that store for 2 nights?” Thanksgiving and Christmas are all about relationships, right? Jesus came so he can connect and build a relationship with us.

  Now, having opened our hearts to the light, to the son of God and now having become his children, what will this Christmas mean to us? Maybe there is someone we need to mend a relationship with. There may be someone we need to get reconnected to. To do so, we may need to give up something, such as our pride, our time and take the initiative to approach that person. In doing so, it will take us out of our comfort zone, into unknown territory. It is risky, and we may be rejected. Yet in our obedience to our father, it is the right thing to do.