What Do you Treasure in your Heart?

Short Talk (SHT131) What will you treasure in your heart? © Jane Hulme 2018 SHORT TALK: “What will you treasure in your heart?” Aim of Short talk: Use of Short talk: Main themes: Biblical references: Lectionary: To encourage people to treasure some of the truths about Jesus in their hearts once all the Christmas festivities are over. This is a short All Age talk picking out one issue from the Lectionary Gospel reading of the Sunday main service. The talk stands alone and assumes that the Gospel Bible reading may not yet have been read to the congregation. It could be used for example, for the whole congregation before the children go out to their age specific groups, leaving the adults with a full sermon later. Christmas, Jesus, Heart Luke 2:41-52 Year C – The 1st Sunday of Christmas .................................................................................................................. Many of us have enjoyed singing Christmas carols over the last couple of weeks so I thought that we would have a carol quiz today.  I will read out a line from a carol then you guess which carol the line comes from. So question number 1) “Glad tidings we bring of Jesus your King”  Which carol has that line in it? (Receive responses) It is from the carol “We wish you a merry Christmas”  The line I read is bringing us good news about King Jesus coming to earth. Moving on to question number 2) “To you in David’s town this day is born of David’s line, a Saviour who is Christ the Lord”  Which carol has that line in it? (Receive responses) It is from the carol “While shepherds watched their flocks”  And the line I read tells us that King Jesus is our Saviour; the One who has come to put our relationship with Father God right again. Moving on to question number 3) “Light and life to all He brings”  Which carol has that line in it? (Receive responses) It is from the carol “Hark the herald angels sing”  And the line I read says that Jesus has come to bring us light and life....  Light in this dark world, where we are lost without Him,  and life in all of its fullness, for all eternity. Moving on to question number 4) “O come to us, abide with us, our Lord Emmanuel”  Which carol has that line in it? (Receive responses) © Jane Hulme 2018 2 It is from the carol “O little town of Bethlehem”  Who can tell me what the word Emmanuel means? (Receive responses) It means “God with us,”  so the line I read tells us that Jesus has come to be with us in our day to day lives. And finally question number 5) “Not in that poor lowly stable with the oxen standing by, we shall see Him; but in heaven, set at God’s right hand on high”  Which carol has that line in it? (Receive responses) It is from the carol “Once in Royal David’s city”  And the line I read says that although Jesus came to earth the first time as a baby, one day He will return as King and everyone will see Him. There are a lot of precious truths about Jesus contained in the Carols aren’t there?  A lesson that Jesus’ mother Mary taught us is to treasure those truths. After Jesus had been born, shepherds came to visit.  They probably told Mary and Joseph all about the angels appearing to them while they were watching their sheep and the wonderful message about baby Jesus.  The Bible tells us that “Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart,” (Luke 2:19)  which means that she thought deeply about what she had been told about Jesus. On another occasion, when Jesus was only 12 years old, Mary found Jesus in the temple talking and listening to the religious teachers of the day.  Everyone was amazed at the things that Jesus said and again the Bible tells us that “Mary treasured all these things in her heart.” (Luke 2:51) In a few days time all of the Christmas decorations will come down and be put away again.  But you know Christmas isn’t really over because the wonderful truths about Jesus are still with us.  So my question to you today is: “What truth about Jesus will you treasure in your heart as we go into the New Year?” As I read out the lines of the carols again, which truth will you hold deeply in your heart and treasure?  “Glad tidings we bring of Jesus your King”  “To you in David’s town this day is born of David’s line, a Saviour who is Christ the Lord”  “Light and life to all He brings”  “O come to us, abide with us, our Lord Emmanuel”  “Not in that poor lowly stable with the oxen standing by, we shall see Him; but in heaven, set at God’s right hand on high” © Jane Hulme 2018 3