The Nightmare Before Christmas
Steve Jones
Luke 2:1-7
SUMMARY: This message emphasizes that while God's timing may seem questionable in the short-term, in the long-term he works all things together for the good of those who love him. Also, this message, while thoroughly Biblical, is also rich with references to children's Christmas movies like ''Rudolph'' and ''Frosty.'' It will be engaging for churches holding a ''family service'' with children present along with their parents. If you can obtain the relevant ''clips'' from these movies it will play even better.
Introduction: In Tim Burton's movie, ''The Nightmare Before Christmas'' the Pumpkin king Jack Skellington has delivered another scary Halloween. But he receives the adulation of Halloweentown with no enthusiasm -- something is missing from Jack's life and he's tired of doing the same old Halloween thing year after year. On a walk, Jack stumbles upon ''Christmastown.'' He is curious about everything he sees there, but finds it all delightful and wants to be part of it. Back in Halloweentown Jack calls a town meeting, where he announces that they're taking over Christmas and starts assigning jobs. Things don't go as planned, however and Christmas Eve turns into a nightmare until Santa Claus saves the day.
None of that has anything to do with our Christmas Eve message today except for the fact that on the real Christmas Eve, (not Dec. 25th but the night before Jesus was born), not everything was playing out the way Mary and Joseph might have liked. In fact, to them, it might have seemed like something of a ''nightmare.'' Let's read Luke's account.
Luke 2:1-7 ''At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census. And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David's ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in ...
Steve Jones
Luke 2:1-7
SUMMARY: This message emphasizes that while God's timing may seem questionable in the short-term, in the long-term he works all things together for the good of those who love him. Also, this message, while thoroughly Biblical, is also rich with references to children's Christmas movies like ''Rudolph'' and ''Frosty.'' It will be engaging for churches holding a ''family service'' with children present along with their parents. If you can obtain the relevant ''clips'' from these movies it will play even better.
Introduction: In Tim Burton's movie, ''The Nightmare Before Christmas'' the Pumpkin king Jack Skellington has delivered another scary Halloween. But he receives the adulation of Halloweentown with no enthusiasm -- something is missing from Jack's life and he's tired of doing the same old Halloween thing year after year. On a walk, Jack stumbles upon ''Christmastown.'' He is curious about everything he sees there, but finds it all delightful and wants to be part of it. Back in Halloweentown Jack calls a town meeting, where he announces that they're taking over Christmas and starts assigning jobs. Things don't go as planned, however and Christmas Eve turns into a nightmare until Santa Claus saves the day.
None of that has anything to do with our Christmas Eve message today except for the fact that on the real Christmas Eve, (not Dec. 25th but the night before Jesus was born), not everything was playing out the way Mary and Joseph might have liked. In fact, to them, it might have seemed like something of a ''nightmare.'' Let's read Luke's account.
Luke 2:1-7 ''At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census. And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David's ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in ...
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