A few years ago, a country and western singer named Merle Haggard, sung a song that became a number one country and western song around the world, entitled, If We Make It Through December, We'll Be Fine. Tonight, we're going to do a little message, sermon, discussion, whatever you want to call on that title, if we make it through December, we'll be fine. Now in this song, Earl Haggard talks about the fact that his little girl can't understand why he can't provide Christmas for her. Now this is supposed to be the happy time of year, December. Now, I want to look at this discussion on several fronts. Okay, first of all, Many people are living in the December of their lives. They're getting close to the time when they pass over to the other side. And so, sometimes when people are getting old, they're going through a lot of pain and suffering, they are in the December of their lives. And if they make it through that December of their life, when they go to the other side, if they're God's children, They will be fine. Now another thing I want to talk about is this subject, if we make it through December, we'll be fine. When I was younger and in marketing and sales, it was very tough time of the year for people involved in sales. It's a time of the year that's tough for a lot of people, a lot of people in construction. In fact, my brother who's a plumber is out of work right now on unemployment because there's no work in Kansas City. And so construction people could relate real well to Merle Haggard's song, if we make it through December we'll be fine. I'm sure sales people will try to sell something that nobody wants to buy in December because they're saving all their money for the pagan holiday Christmas. Now that brings up another part of the subject, Christmas. A lot of people have real high expectations for the 25th day of December. They spend and spend and spend. They rack up a huge credit card debt to try to please all their relatives and friends by giving them lavish gifts. And their expectations are high for what they might receive as well. But after the 25th of December, guess what? That next month, that Visa and MasterCard bill comes in. So those people, not necessarily are going to be free from the bondage of slavery for buying all these Christmas gifts just because it's no longer December. It's all going to hit in January, February, and March of the next year. So just because they make it through December, they won't necessarily be buying. Now let's look at it from a spiritual context. You know, none of us can make it through the Decembers of our lives on our own. In fact, we can't even take the next breath. I had a gentleman who recently I was in a conversation with and went something like this. He said, well, what do you believe? I said, well, I'm a Christian. And he said, what does that mean? What persuasion? Are you Baptist or Methodist or what are you? And I go, I'm not a part of organized religion. And I said, you know, I said, there's basically two realms of thought. There's the biblical realm and there's the non-biblical realm. The biblical realm teaches that God is sovereign over the universe. And he's sovereign over all of his creation. And that he has predestinated all things after the counsel of his own will. And I said, then there's the other side, which is free will. He said, why fall in that camp? Well, I knew that this particular gentleman had had a very, very hard childhood and an abusive father who abandoned his mother and him and his autistic brother. And I said, you know, do you believe that you We determine our own fate by our choices. I said, well did you choose your parents? Did you choose your father? Now, that's why the whole premise of if we make it through December we'll be fine falls on its face. Because just because we're living in a certain month of the year and getting through that month doesn't mean things are going to get any better than they were in the month of December. You know, you could put any month in there. If we make it through January, we'll be fine. If we make it through February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, we'll be fine. But the reason that that song grips at the hearts of people and their emotions is because so much is placed upon this Christmas pagan holiday. And so many people have high expectations of that 25th day of December. And you know the 25th day of December comes and the 25th day of December goes and guess what? Many people after that 25th day of December go into deep dark depression because their high expectations were not met. I remember when I was just a young boy, third grade, and I remember we were at my grandma's house on the 25th day of December and I was so depressed. I was down, and I remember my Aunt Velma coming in and trying to encourage me. And I remember them playing on the piano in the living room. Oh, come all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant. I didn't want to go in the family reunion. I didn't want to have any part of it. Because I knew it wasn't all it was cracked up to be that day, that particular day. Christmas is taken from a lot of the old pagan holidays, the winter solstice. And we know that a lot of the gods that were worshipped around the winter solstice was nothing more than human sacrifice, the Yuletide. Then we had, of course, the origin of Santa Claus coming down later on. But let me tell you folks out there that are still involved in the idolatries of Christmas, You're not going to be any better if you make it through December than you are in January. And so when you hear that song this holiday season, if we make it through December we'll be fine, just realize that at least you'll have all the debt over your head that you've accumulated in January to look forward to paying in February and March. We need to get back There's another country in Western, I don't know why I'm on this country and Western theme tonight. Remember that song that they sang, we've got to get back to the basics of love? Well we need to get back to the basics of the Bible. And I'm not talking about Woodrow Crowe, I'm talking about Not back to the Bible, Woodrow. I'm talking about back to the Bible, the authorized King James 1611 version of the Bible that says that in Him we live and move and have our very being. The Bible that says as many as were ordained to eternal life believe and this is the work of God that you believe on Him. and that all that the Father has given me will come to me, and all that come to me I will know I is cast out. Then we won't have to base our expectations upon a month of the year passing by. We won't have to base our expectations on whether we get a bigger gift than somebody else. I've shared before, my family was visiting my brother one time and one of his kids brought a little note over to me, The thing she drew says, I'm giving this to you because you always give the smallest gift of everybody. If we make it through December, we'll be fine. You know, think about it folks. We can't make it through the next day without God's grace. Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost but now I'm found, was blind but now I see. Was grace that taught my heart to fear? Not December. Not a month. Not a holy day. Not family reunions. You know, I have a new word for family reunions. I think they should call it family disunions. If you want to get disunited with your family, go to a family reunion. Family reunions are nothing more than causing havoc and promoting covetousness and jealousy and envy and strife. That's what family reunions are about. A lot of people get drunk this time of year. They can't handle all the pain, emotional pain, so they go get plastered. A lot of people can't handle the emotions of the past, the memories of the past. Because the expectations are so high for this great, great holiday. And then they show up. I was with a person today, and we've had quite a bit of snow here in Weatherby. We were out on this country road, and we looked up at this road, and it was beautiful. And I said to my friend, I said, this reminds me of that song, over the river and through the woods to Grandfather's house we go. The horse knows the way to carry the sleigh through the white and drifting snow. You know, people like to play on people's emotions during this time of year, because people's emotions are high. People have these high expectations. You know, remember that song, All I Want for Christmas, by Two-Foot Thief? That was because people had gotten hurt, you know? Have you ever gone to the tree and got your present out of the tree and opened up and was absolutely infuriated at what somebody gave you. You had high expectations. And you opened up the present and it was a piece of junk. You know, I remember there's certain gifts I knew I was going to get from certain people. I was going to get socks from this person. I was going to get underwear from this person. And I was going to get aftershaving lotion from this person. high expectations of what somebody's going to give you. And then people have high expectations of what you're going to give them. Look, God gave the only free gift, the best gift that anyone could ever have. And he didn't require us giving anything back. He didn't require us to buy our way into the kingdom of God. You know, we don't have to bring any turtle doves. We don't have to bring any fancy gifts, yuletide logs. We don't have to put up manger scenes. We don't have to sit on Santa Claus's lap while he says ho ho ho. Jesus Christ gave his son freely, unconditionally to all of his people. And he does not expect anything in return because the gift was a free gift, not of works, lest any man should boast. But if we make it through December, we'll do fine. No, no you won't. You won't be any better off than you were in no good for October, friends. I'm here to tell you. And there's a lot of people that, you know, I mean even Jewish people that celebrate Hanukkah, they have this great big holy celebration. looking forward to Hanukkah. And you know what? After they get through Hanukkah, they're in worse mood than when they went into it. I've been around them, I know. I've been around people that they think that they're going to have such a merry, merry Christmas. And when they get through their merry Christmas, they're not merry at all. They're down in the darkness. Remember that song that Elvis Presley sang? going to have a blue, blue, blue Christmas. A lot of people have a blue, blue, blue Christmas. Because it's based on greed and selfishness. It's based on, you know, they used to have this acronym or acrostic of joy, Jesus and others and you. You know, they ought to come up with a new word, You others and Jesus last. You first, others next, and Jesus last. Yoja. Because that's what Christmas is all about. It's about greed. It's about promotion of pagan idolatry. Graven images. Candy canes and mistletoe and Yuletide logs. And people want to gorge themselves until they're stuffed. Participate in gluttonous activity. and act like everybody's happy while they're singing Merle Haggard's song, if we make it through December, we'll be fine. What a paradox for us to think about this evening, about the upcoming Holy Day. You know, the Bible tells us we're not supposed to worship Holy Days. We're not supposed to set apart any Holy Days. Of course, the 25th of December is the most unholy day out there. Do you know that human sacrifice was a very much a normal activity during the days of the winter solstice. The Roman Catholic Church ushered in Christ's Mass to try to get more people in the Roman Catholic Church because they thought that if they could bring it right into the church, the chivalry and everything that was involved in the Yule-tide celebration. The Yule-Log was a representative of a favorite symbol. And during that time they would abandon all laws and they would allow homosexuality and orgies and even children to participate in sexual immorality. And now we want to call it certain things called Christ-ness. No longer we have to sing if we make it through December, we'll be fine. What a travesty, folks. When we should be focusing upon the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, not upon the Catholic Marian child. No. Not upon that. The Incarnation is a beautiful thing. But we should not be worshipping a little baby in a manger. We should be worshipping the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Jesus Christ is seated at the right hand of God. He is reigning. He is not a little baby anymore. He is not coming back as a little baby in a manger wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. He is not in Bethlehem with a bunch of cows and goats and shepherds. He's seated on his throne in heaven. He's coming back as a ruling and reigning king. We don't have to get down in the doldrums and saying if we make it through December we'll be fine. Now I'm going to have Mark read a passage of scripture that I think is apropos to what we're talking about in this month of December, the month that so many people get so depressed There are more people committing suicide in the month of December than any other month. Do you know that? Why is that? Because it shows that people are trying to conjure up something in their lives that will titillate them, that will some way Get them out of the doldrums, out of the spiritual darkness and depression that they were in. Go to the second chapter of Luke. Now we know the second chapter of Luke is the account of the birth of Christ. But there's one chapter, there's one version here that stands out to me. The second chapter of Luke? The second chapter of Luke that stands out to me during this time of December. Now just for the record, Jesus Christ was not born in the month of December. The shepherds would not have been out keeping watch over their flock by night in December the 25th with snow coming down. They would put their sheep away for the night and take them out in the morning hours. They would not be out all night in December. Remember this was in the latter part of Luke. when Mary took Jesus to the temple. And Simon was a just and devout man waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Ghost came upon him. And it was revealed to him by the Holy Ghost that he did not see death before he had seen the Lord Christ. And now I have Mark reading verse 30 there. Listen to what Simon says here. For mine eyes have seen thy salvation. Mine eyes have seen thy salvation. Unless our eyes are opened to the light of God's salvation, we will be singing, if we make it through December, we'll be fine. But once we've seen the light of the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ, we're going to say like Simon, mine eyes have seen thy salvation. We don't need any yuletide balls. We don't need any candy canes. We don't need any Christmas trees. Read Jeremiah. It says, don't do as the pagan do. Don't bring these trees and deck them out in your home. Mine eyes have seen thy salvation. I was telling someone, and I think I've shared this to the sermon audience before. We lived next, close to a small town called Canberra, Missouri. Right on the outskirts of town there's a United Pentecostal Church. And one Christmas they had a sign out in front of their church, closed for Christmas. Christmas happened to be on a Sunday one. one year and they had a sign out there closed for Christmas. Now if we are followers of Christ are we not going to be worshiping and honoring Him? Isn't that interesting? They were trying to make it through December folks. That's all I can tell you. Well, once the light of Christ comes into our hearts We can make it through January. We can make it through February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November. We can even make it through December. And we don't have to worry about whether Christmas is going to be a good day or a bad day. We don't have to sing I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas. We don't have to sing Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. We don't sing Grandma Got Ran Over by a Reindeer. sing Silver Bells or Winter Wonderland or Jolly Old Saint Nicholas, Lean Your Ear This Way. We don't have to say Mama Got Caught Kissing Santa Claus. We don't have to worry about all of that stuff. We don't have to sing. We don't have to get into putting out cookies and coffee or hot cocoa for Santa coming down the chimney. And we don't have to worry about whether we're naughty or nice, whether we get presents or not. Out on the lawn there rose such a clatter, I sprang to my bed to see what was the matter. You know, we don't have to worry about whether we're going to make it through December or not. God works all things after the counsel of His own will. We don't have to sing this song. If we make it through December, we'll be fine. If we realize that God is in control over all of these things, and for His elect, He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, why are we worried about December? Well, that's my thoughts tonight. Do you have any thoughts about this subject? No. You don't want to say anything? No. You know, there's a lot of people that try to mix pagan holidays and try to bring it in, you know, to the church, like the Roman Catholic Church did. You know, Christmas used to be illegal in the United States. Did you realize that? No. For a number of years, you could not... You could not... celebrate Christmas because it was considered to be idolatry. It was considered to be a form of following pagan Yuletide celebration. And you know who actually ushered in the Christmas into the churches? The Sunday school movement. Started giving kids candy to get them to come into the churches to increase their memberships. And now, that's another expectation set up. Kiddies are looking for their candy when they go to around the 25th of December. They expect to get that sack of candy. They don't care whether there's an apple or an orange in it, okay? They're looking for the candy. They're looking for the peanut clusters and the good stuff. Father, we pray you would take this message and open people's eyes and realize that whatever month we're living in, we're relying upon you. to help us to cope with the trials of life and not the passage of a month. We pray that you help us in this regard in Christ's name. Amen.