Make Room for Christ

And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. – Luke 2:7

It’s the same every year, but his year it’s even more pronounced. The signs go up. The music is played. The décor is changed. The commercials begin. And it’s happening earlier and earlier and earlier every year. This year it began in late September and early October; the earliest yet. And you know what I’m talking about. The mad dash to Christmas. The best way I know to describe it is by using the words of commercial that running on the radio. It’s become psychotic. That simply means the next 23 days will drive us all to delusions, hallucinations, incoherence and distorted perceptions of reality. We’ll brag about all we have to do or get done. We compare schedules to see who has more parties to go to as if it’s some badge of honor. We shop and eat, shop and eat, shop and eat. We’ll moan and complain, moan and complain, moan and complain. And we’ll all be determined in the end to never celebrate Christmas this way again, yet we’ll start all over next October and do it again just like last year.

The bottom line is, we can’t wait for this time of year due to the lights, music, cooler temperatures, romance and gifts. But we never really enjoy, at least like we hope to. And I think we don’t enjoy it because as hard as we try, we don’t make room for Christ. Oh we yell at Walmart for exchanging Merry Christmas with Happy Holidays. We demand our nativity scenes to be included on town squares alongside the menorahs. We say things like “Remember the reason for the season.” But truth be told, we don’t make room for him any more than non-Christians do.

The most common explanation for there not being any room in the Inn for Jesus, Mary, and Joseph is overcrowding. Just too many people to accommodate in such a small town. We’ve always been given a picture of a nice empathetic innkeeper telling the couple that if he had room he’d give it to them. The Nativity Story that came out a couple of years ago, and that many of you have seen, paints a different picture. I think it’s a more accurate picture because I think there was more to their being relegated to a stable or shepherd’s cave than just overcrowding of the small town. Too many people just doesn’t answer the question for me. You see, I think there are three other reasons why there wasn’t room and these three reasons, if you will allow them to, may convict you like they’ve convicted me as I’ve contemplated them lately (and let me say that I’ve been wresting with the content that follows for some time and it was last year as I was reading the story again prior to our Christmas Eve service that the Scripture leapt off the page and really crystallized it for me).

I. DISINTEREST (indifference, lack of concern, apathy)

First of all, there was no room due to disinterest. To the innkeeper and others it was just another baby, couple, no one special. There was no concern shown. They were indifferent to the baby and his family. Had they known who He was, they would have made room.

To the world today the same is true. Despite the fact that His birthday is a national holiday, Jesus is just another baby, no one special, so they don’t make room. There is no special concern, just indifference. He’s no different than a president or Martin Luther King. But if they knew they would make room.

Do you make room for Christ on a daily, weekly or monthly basis? Have you made room for Him this holiday season? If you don’t or if you haven’t, it could be because to this point you haven’t known Him. You may have been indifferent to Him. You may have lacked concern for Him because He has been nothing more than a historical figure to you. You haven’t acknowledge that He is the Savior who is Christ the Lord that was born for you.

Do you hear the subtle description that I’m using? I hope you’ll notice that I’m asking you if you make room for the Savior who is Christ the Lord not if you are making Him Lord. Here’s the difference. Making Him Lord is an impossibility on a human level for two reasons. First, and most simply, He already is Lord, we don’t make Him Lord. Jesus being the Lord, is not dependent on whether you or I believe it. There will come a time when every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that He is Lord. Some will be doing it willingly in an act of submission, others will do it under compulsion while still in a state of rebellion. Second, the Bible speaks of our conversion as rebirth and not intellectual understanding or in terms of degree of commitment because the initiative lies solely with the Father and not us.

But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, (13) who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. – John 1:12-13

What does he mean? Well very clearly John is saying that our salvation has nothing to do with physical family history or family ties, that’s the blood part. It has nothing to do with being emotionally stable or not, that’s the will of the flesh. And it has nothing to do with determination or the power of positive thinking, that’s the will of man part. It has everything to do with God. At the same time, Paul writes in Ephesians 1 that we have a responsibility to believe. The difference is this, and I’ll use the inn as a picture if I can. If our hearts of stone have not been replace with hearts of flesh (that’s language from Ezekiel), or to put it another way, if we have not been regenerated by the Holy Spirit and have not been spiritually reborn (that’s language from Jesus, John, Paul and others), the door of our hearts would remain closed because the door is sealed shut and everyone inside is dead. It’s only through the supernatural work of the Spirit that the seal is broken and the door can be opened and that we are alive to answer the door when the Savior knocks.

There’s another group in this room, more than likely, who have acknowledged that He is the Savior but you still lack concern for Him, you are still disinterested in Him. And the lack of concern and interest comes from the fact that you haven’t made room for Him “as He is” or “as He exists”. It’s not that you haven’t professed or confessed that He is your Lord, you’ve just placed your faith, hope and trust in a God or in a Savior as you’ve created Him to be rather than in a God or a Savior as the Bible reveals Him.

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, (19) because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. (20) For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. (21) For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. (22) Professing to be wise, they became fools, (23) and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures. – Romans 1:18-23

We have always had a problem with making God in our image and believing in Him as we create Him to be rater than believing in Him as He is. We have trouble with some of His attributes and say we could never believe in a God that doesn’t fit into our manmade constructs. And rather than submit to Him as the Bible reveals Him to be we create a more palatable, comfortable God. There are two problems with that. #1 He when we do that He ceases to be God and #2 we fail to please Him.

And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him. – Hebrews 11:6

So with that clarification, let me ask the question again. Have you made room for Jesus?

II. DISRUPTION (interruption, interference, distraction)

Well, the second reason there was no room in the inn is because providing room would have caused a disruption. The innkeeper and others were busier than they ever had been. Providing room for the couple would have been an interruption, it would have caused interference in the schedule or daily routine. It would have been a distraction that got in the way of other things that needed to be done. There just wasn’t going to be enough time to take care of all the guests and this couple and their new baby as well.

To the world today the same is true. They don’t make room for Jesus because faith or spiritual things are interruptions, they interfere with plans, schedules and routines. Religion is just a distraction. There are too many other things to get done.

Do you make room for Christ on a daily, weekly or monthly basis? Have you made room for Him this holiday season? Does your personal time with Him come first and all other activities follow or is your personal time with Him squeezed in when you have a spare minute or two, which seldom occurs? Do you have so many things going on that you have to mess with the Lord’s Day to get everything done? Do you have so many commitments and activities that you forsake the gathering together of the church? Is all your time spent on yourself and your family and little to no time for ministry to others?

III. DEMANDS (requirements)

Finally, and closely related to the second reason, there was no room in the inn because of the demands the couple would have made on the innkeeper and others around them. They would have needed and more than likely asked for help. There would have been an extra level of care needed. They were going to be demanding. They were going to have expectations that others weren’t going to have. And meeting those demands would have taken an extra measure of selflessness. It was going to take extra time, food, money, and other things that they weren’t willing to give up. Providing room for Mary, Joseph and the baby wouldn’t have been the most time and cost-effective thing to do.

To the world, the same is true. They don’t want to make room for Jesus because He demands a change of lifestyle. Certain ways of living have to be set aside. Selfishness isn’t acceptable. Looking out for number one is contrary to an “I’m third” (God, others and me) lifestyle. Those of the world want what they want when they want it how they want it where they want it. They don’t want to follow anyone else’s rules and they don’t want anyone else’s belief imposed upon them. They want to keep their time and resources for themselves.

Do you make room for Christ on a daily, weekly or monthly basis? Have you made room for Him this holiday season? Do you love Him with all your heart, soul, mind and strength? Do you love other believers? Do you love your neighbor? Do you you’re your enemies? Do you listen to Him? Do you abide in Him? Do you strive to enter through the narrow door? Do you take up your cross and follow Him? Do you lay up for yourselves treasure in heaven rather than earth? Do you let your light shine before men? Do you make disciples? Do you strive to meet His demands even though doing so means you will live a radically different lifestyle than those in the world? Those are just a few of the demands he makes. They are questions to ask yourself.

CONCLUSION

Well, this is probably the shortest I’ve ever preached and ever will preach. But, I believe, if you truly contemplate what I’ve said, it could be one of the most life-altering questions you’ve ever asked yourself. Do you make room for Christ? Or do you have to admit, there is no room for him.

If you have not acknowledged and repented of your sin that alienates you from God and is deserving of wrath and death, if you’ve never acknowledged your need for and cried out to the Savior who is Christ the Lord who paid the debt for sinners like you through His death and resurrection, if you have never professed or confessed Jesus as Savior and Lord of your life, I beg you to come to Him today. In faith, throw yourself at His feet, cry out to Him to save you and receive the forgiveness that only He can offer you. Make room for Christ in your heart today.

Beloved, I exhort you today to make room for Christ as well. Make room in your heart. Make room in your schedule. Make room in your lifestyle. Make room in your daytimer. Make room in your checkbook. Make room in your decisions. Make room in your priorities. Make room in your future plans. Make room in everything for Christ. Today, tonight and tomorrow, make room for Christ. Wednesday, make room for Christ. In January, February, ’09. . . He is the God-Man. He is Jesus the Savior. He is Immanuel, God with us. He has brought God out into the open so that He might be known in part by everyone and known intimately by you who have received Him and have been given the right to be His children.

Because the bottom line is, we all have great ends in mind as far as who we want to be as Christians, fathers, mothers, husbands, wives, friends, etc. We all want to be holy, righteous, blameless, forgiving, patient and kind, selfless, evangelistic, great spouses and parents. But unfortunately I think we’re all a little more committed to the ends than we are committed to the means to the ends. And if we don’t commit ourselves to the means, we’ll never accomplish the ends. As a friend of mine once put it, “many of us are looking too far towards the horizon while ignoring the day-to-day graces that will carry [us] to the future [we] desire.” It has to begin by making room for Christ.

Make room for Christ.