C160 12/21/58
© Project Winsome International, 1999
"HOT DOGS, TOOTHPICKS AND A BABY'S SMILE"
Dr. John Allan Lavender
Isa. 9:2,6; Rev. 21:5
This morning I'd like to spend our time talking about the real source of true Christmas joy. For
reasons which I hope will become apparent, I have entitled this teaching: "Hot Dogs, Toothpicks
And A Baby's Smile."
The other day I came across a happy little bit of doggerel which I thought might provide a
provocative introduction to our Christmas season this year. It goes like this --
"If Santa's train should run out of fuel
Would you still have a happy Yule?
If Rudolph's nose should not be bright,
Could you still smile -- your hearts delight?
If all your friends should stray and roam,
Would you be satisfied to stay at home?
If war should come to spoil our calm,
Could you find peace within a Psalm?
If you say, 'Yes,' you're rare indeed.
My season's greetings you'll not need.
For you've seen past the reds and greens,
To find what Christmas really means."
It's interesting to notice what seems to generate a sense of Christmas cheer for people. I met a
fellow on the street the other evening who was pretty well in his cups. He seemed to feel he'd
found his Christmas cheer in a jug of eggnog.
The glistening eyes of tiny tots as they wander through Toyland makes it perfectly clear to them
that Christmas cheer is related to the coming of Jolly Old Saint Nick with his sleigh full of
goodies.
For more sophisticated folk, the presence or absence of Christmas cheer seems to depend upon,
the "profit and loss" column in their business ledger. Or the size of their year-end bonus, if any.
Or the personal circumstances which surround them right now.
But the real truth is that deep down, honest to goodness Christmas cheer is not dependent upon
any of these superficial things. It rests upon values which are much more significant and cannot
be affected by the changing tides of life. It is this fact I want to nail down for you this morning
so whatever your situation, be it good or bad, you will feel the real, deep-rooted peace and joy
which this season of the year should bring.
If you want a text for this teaching, I would direct your attention to two of the great prophetic
books of the Bible: Isaiah 9:2,6; and Revelation 21:5.
In Isaiah 9:2, 6, we hear a voice from the past which points us forward to the birth of Jesus and
the great power which that birth unleashed, as the prophet cries:
"The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light . . . for unto us a child is born, unto
us a son is given . . ."
In Revelation 21:5, we hear a voice from the future which calls our attention back to the birth of
Christ and the incredible power which that birth unleashed. John describes how he saw a new
heaven and a new earth, and how, "He that sat upon the throne said, 'Behold, I make all things
new.' "
It is in a union of these two voices -- one from the past and one from the future -- that we find the
key to the inner core of Christmas. For Christmas is many things. It's like a fabulous jewel, each
facet of which is too astonishingly beautiful to describe.
Christmas is light and life and love. Christmas is peace and purpose and power. Christmas is
beauty and blessedness and brotherhood. But, however wonderful the different facets of this
many-splendored thing may be, the best part of all is that which glows at the very core of
Christmas, and is expressed in the most meaningful word of all: Hope!
For, in the last analysis, that's what Christmas is all about. H-O-P-E. Hope.
Hope for people who walk in darkness.
Hope for the one who is frozen by fear.
Hope for those who have lost their way.
Hope for the aged who know the gray shadows of loneliness.
Hope for the young who are often left limp by self-doubt.
Hope for the man whose life has been seared and scarred by ugliness.
Hope for the woman who has been left shaken and bewildered by some sad happening.
Hope for the person who has been driven to the edge of despair by guilt.
Hope for the souls which cower before the black specter of their sin.
Hope for those who would be better than they are.
Hope for the many who want some assurance that death is not the end, that those they
have loved and lost awhile shall be seen again.
Hope. H-O-P-E. Hope! That's the heart-core of Christmas,
"The people who walk in darkness have seen a great light . . . (for) unto us a child is born, unto us
a son is given . . . and behold, I make all things new."
There's a mammoth amount of meaning for every one of us this morning in those words "all
things." For if Christmas tells us anything, it's that God is concerned about -
The Common Cares of Plain People
It assures us, once and for all, that the world is not a tiny wheel in a gigantic cosmic clock which
has been tightly wound and then left to run on and on throughout the eons without thought or purpose.
Christmas makes it clear that this world of ours, and the people who live in it, are the central
object of the indefinable affection and care of a loving God who started it all in the first place. A
heavenly Father who gave his only begotten Son to prove that he cares what happens to this
world and the people he created.
Grace Noll Rowell gives expression to this fact when she writes --
"Whatever else be lost among the years,
Let us keep Christmas a shining thing.
Whatever doubts assail us, whatever fears,
Let us hold close one day, remembering
Its poignant meaning for the hearts of men.
Let us get back our childlike faith again."
"Behold, I make all things new."
I don't know what concern is eroding your faith this morning, but I do know the Christ of
Christmas can make "all things new." He proved that by the transforming power he brought to
bear upon the smallest features of his humble birth.
There was nothing newsworthy or awe-inspiring about a chilling, austere stable, a red-faced,
squalling baby. A birth-worn mother. A bewildered father. Both of them travel-weary, and not
yet conscious of the incredible meaning of the mysterious events which were taking place amidst
lowing cattle and bleating sheep. Nothing regal or majestic about any that! Yet, the One who
"makes all things new" took that humble manger scene and plowed it into history. Clear
evidence that --
True happiness is not dependent upon physical surroundings or sensory pleasures.
True greatness cannot be judged by the presence of one's name on the social register or by the
receiving of some world-famed accolade.
True power cannot be measured by pounds of rocket thrust or megatons of explosive capacity.
I
nstead, Jesus proved --
True happiness is an attitude of the heart wherever you are.
True greatness is a state of being in the humblest of surroundings.
True power is the capacity to bring people to their knees, not by might, but by love.
"Behold, I make all things new."
There is much that is perplexing about our world.
"It is," as William Temple suggests, "like a hardware store into which a practical jokester has
broken and mixed up all the price tags. When the customers arrive the following morning, they
find lawnmowers selling for a nickel, nails for twenty-five dollars each and a gallon of paint for a
penny. All of the values are wrong."
Much of our world is like that. Confused and topsy-turvy. But the Christ of Christmas comes
into this mad, sad, bad world with power to "make all things new." If we invite him to --
He can liberate us from the slave chains of fear.
He can break off the burdensome iron mask of pretense.
He can lift the oppressive weight of guilt.
He can drive away the foreboding clouds of doubt.
He can wash out the dark smirch of sin that stains our soul.
He can "make all things new" -- if we invite him to!
You see, the effectiveness of Christ's power is dependent upon our willingness to appropriate
that power. God's almightiness to bless is dependent upon our willingness to be blessed.
"In many ways he will be good and kind
But God will not force the human mind."
We must invite Him into our lives, or else he will not come.
The story is told of a woman who returned a new, electric iron she had received for Christmas,
complaining it didn't heat properly. It was shipped back to the factory, tested, found to be in
perfect working order and returned with a suggestion that she have her home wiring checked. It
was then she divulged she didn't have electricity in her home. It seems she took the iron across
the road to her sister's house, plugged it in until it was hot, took it back to her house, and then
wondered why it didn't hold enough heat to do much ironing.
I am afraid some of us are like that when it comes to matters of the soul. We don't have much
heat in our religion, and the heat we do have dissipates rather quickly because we're trying to use
the religious power of someone else. Our husband or wife. Our parents or child. Our pastor or
friends. We need to be plugged in! We need to invite Christ to dwell within us so his
transforming power -- his ability to "make all things new" -- may be operative in our lives every
moment of every day.
To do that we must avoid the tragic error of the innkeeper who found no room for Jesus. We
must make sure that, in a day when we have roomier homes, roomier cars and roomier places in
which to work, we also have roomier hearts. Hearts which can see past the glitter and glamor,
the elegant and elaborate trappings people have hung on Christmas. Hearts which can see within
the simplicity of a helpless, red-faced baby cradled in a bed of straw, the only true and lasting
hope for our burdened hearts.
"Yes, the tinsel attracts and the tree fairly gleams
The sleigh-bells and snow are inducive to dreams:
The mistletoe high and the scent of fresh pine,
The log on the fire with its Christmasy shine,
The holly and candles, the feasts and the fun,
Are wonderful thrills to the tiniest one.
But where is the babe of the manger set
In our making? And why do we often forget
That Christmas without all those trimmings would be
Still the date that our Savior was born, and that he
Of each Christmas is truly the integal part,
For he is the founder and he is its heart.
The things we have glorified really are naught
Compared to the wonderful tidings he brought,
And we who are earthbound should turn from our dreams
To think for a time what this day really means!
And we who are blinded by gifts on the floor
Must be reminded that Christmas is more
Than the gleam or an ornament heliotrope --
'Tis really the day when our God sent us hope!"
"The people that walk in darkness have seen a great light . . . for unto us a child is born, unto us a
Son is given . . . and behold, I make all things new."
Perhaps we are ready now for the little story which suggested the title of this sermon: "Hot Dogs,
Toothpicks and a Baby's Smile."
A prominent and successful businessman was stopped by a friend just outside a butcher shop on
Christmas eve. "On your way to get your Christmas turkey," he was asked? "No," he answered,
"hot dogs!" He then explained how, during the Great Depression a bank failure wiped out his
fortune. He struggled bravely to keep going, but as time went on things grew worse. Finally he
came up to Christmas with no job, no money for gifts and less than a dollar for food.
As he, his wife and their baby daughter sat down to dinner that year, they gave grateful thanks to
God for a plateful of hot dogs. His wife, who had a delightful imagination, gave each frankfurter
toothpicks for legs and broom straws for tails and whiskers. Their child was enchanted. Her
radiant face, smiling eyes and infectious laughter set their own hearts to singing. Before they
knew it, all sense of self-pity was gone as they discovered Christmas in the midst of abject poverty.
That night, as they tucked their little darling into bed, they joined hands across her crib and gave
thanks to God for the most wonderful, loving Christmas they had ever known. "It's a tradition
now," the man said to his friend. "Hot dogs for Christmas, to remind us of that happy day when
we realized we still had each other and our God-given hope."
"Hot Dogs, Toothpicks and a Baby's Smile." A simple, earthy, poignant reminder of the fact that
true Christmas cheer is not related to material possessions or business success or the
circumstances which surround us at the moment. Christmas is more than "tinsel, bell, and holly
wreath." Christmas is the season of hope. It is the birthday of the One who said,
"Behold, I make all things new."
Welcome him into your heart this morning so he may light your life with hope.
"For unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given, and behold, I make . . . all. . . .things . . .
new!"