Messages from Pastor Raddatz

December 19, 2021 Mount Olive Lutheran Church Houston TX

SMALL AND GREAT 

Micah 5:2-4 "But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel whose origins are from old, from ancient times. "Verse 2 

Sometimes little towns, which are only dots on the map, achieve great fame. Green Bay, a rural Wisconsin town, is notable because it sponsors a National League Football team. Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, was settled by Moravian Christians in 1735 to be a peaceful town of the simple life. The Moravians were descendants of John Hus, who suffered martyrdom for his faith in Bohemia before the Lutheran Reformation. The Moravians in Pennsylvania chose the name "Bethlehem" for their village, because they wanted to imitate the simplicity of life so apparent in the Christmas story. The headquarters of the northern province of the Moravian Church in America are still there. Ironically, the city is better known today as having been the center of what was one of the great steel companies of America, Bethlehem Steel. The name is an oxymoron, if there ever was one. The products of this company, which was associated with a name made synonymous with "little" by the Prophet Micah, proved to be a network of girders and framework for the expansion of this country. 

Bethelehem means HOUSE OF BREAD...or food. The name of the original Bethlehem gained its fame from the Christmas story and the many fictional accounts of how our Lord was born there. Phillips Brooks, the famous preacher of the nineteenth century, immortalized the name of Bethlehem with the popular Christmas carol, "O Little Town of Bethlehem." Yet the significance and the importance of the town is best expressed in the message of the Prophet Micah, who understood what was to be involved in the divine choice of Bethlehem as the birthplace of our Lord, and why it was important for Jesus to be born there. 

Micah's view was rural and lacking sophistication. He may have been regarded as a country bumpkin. Certainly the people had low regard of him when he suggested that the City of Jerusalem and the Southern Kingdom would also fall. Israel had been divided into two kingdoms, the Northern and the Southern. To be sure, the fall of the Southern Kingdom was still a long way off. However, the prophet sensed that Judah could not prevail in her present practices without paying the price for her sins. The bold rustic prophet was, in fact, the first to predict the destruction of Jerusalem. The thought of the destruction of the holy city undoubtedly was as repugnant to him as to the people who believed that the holy city could never be assailed because God lived therein. A hundred years later Micah's prophecy was quoted in the royal court when people questioned Jeremiah's prediction of the city's destruction. 

We foolishly look for the "highly visible" to be the great heroes of faith. Often we ask God to make us high and mighty for evidence of His goodness. We are plagued with the Gospel of success. This is not something I just see in someone else, but it is in every one of us. We are disillusioned if we follow this was of false glory. Shouldn't we be looking for significance verses success? God's way is not always the most visible to others. God often uses the low in society to do his highly important work. BE 

WHAT GOD HAS MADE YOU TO BE! 

There have been some small and great people. Alexander Pope, English poet 4'6" 

Olga Korbut, Soviet gymnast 4'11" 

John Keats, English poet 5'3/4" 

Debbie Reynolds, U.S. actress 5'1" 

St. Francis of Assisi, Italian saint 5'1" 

Micky Rooney, U.$. actor 5'3" 

Voltaire, French writer 5'3" 

James Madison, U.S. president 5'4" 

Pablo Picasso, Spanish painter 5'4" 

Hirohito, Japanese emperor 5'5" 

Aristotle Onassis, Greek shipping tycoon 5'5" 

Napoleon Bonaparte, French emperor 5'6" 

(esermons, Illustrations, web site) Book of Lists, #2, p. 6. 

God uses apparent misfits as his chosen ones. Rick Warren in THE PURPOSE DRIVEN LIFE identifies a roll call of individuals that had obvious and glaring faults and "handicaps", that did not seem to limit God from using them powerfully. He writes, "If your'e not involved in any service or ministry, what excuse have you been using? Abraham was old, Jacob was insecure, Leah was unattractive, Joseph was abused, Moses stuttered, Gideon was poor, Samson was codependent, Rehab was immoral, David had an affair and all kind of family problems, Elijah was suicidal, Jeremiah was depressed, Jonah was reluctant, Naomi was a widow, John the Baptist was eccentric to say the least, Peter was impulsive and hot-tempered, Martha worried a lot, the Samaritan woman had several failed marriages, Zacchaeus was unpopular, Thomas had doubts, Paul had poor health and Timothy was timid. That is quite a variety of misfits, but God used each of them in his service. He will use you too if you stop making excuses. 

There are small ways we can live securely. Through this little town God sent his son who guides us in the strength and majesty of the Lord (verse 4). Just as this little town is not necessarily a peaceful place today. The holidays often bring conflict. As us imperfect people come together, I would like to give you some relational tools which might help you in a great way. 

1. Know that you can't change others. We all want the picture perfect Hallmark family and most people want to believe that their family is really that wonderful group of people if they could just get in the right circumstances. If we go into a holiday with an agenda to try to get people to act differently or change their lives we are going to be frustrated and disappointed. Boundaries can help us. 

2. Limit the time you are together. Just because you may have a week off doesn't mean you have to spend the entire week with family, 

3. Make an escape plan. Sometimes the atmosphere of the family and their reactions get overwhelming. Make plans for a short break with an afternoon walk. Make sure you have a car available. It gives you the option out saving you from feeling 

trapped, 

4. Use your Allies. If you have a supportive spouse or sibling, strategize with them to help in awkward situations. 

5. Give yourself a gift. All the Christmas hype leads us to believe that we must purchase that perfect thoughtful gift for someone else. Be your own best friend. Buy yourself a gift. It doesn't have to be expensive; it may be an early morning walk or tickets to a play or an entire evening where you and your friends can be alone. (Association of Christian Therapists, Dec 2, 2003, Fax) 

Most importantly, feed on the greatness of the baby Jesus this Christmas. Praise and thanks to God for the savior who paid for all our sins and makes us His children. He stands for you. This is the position of readiness and watchfulness. Thanks be to God that through this small infant born in this small town we can live securely. Amen. 

Jfr/Dec 19, 2021, re-written from 2003