Text: Luke 2:1-20 (RSV)
| The Birth of Jesus
2 In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be enrolled. 2 This was the first enrollment, when Quirin′i-us was governor of Syria. 3 And all went to be enrolled, each to his own city. 4 And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, 5 to be enrolled with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. 6 And while they were there, the time came for her to be delivered. 7 And she gave birth to her first-born son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn. The Shepherds and the Angels 8 And in that region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear. 10 And the angel said to them, “Be not afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy which will come to all the people; 11 for to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 And this will be a sign for you: you will find a babe wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” 13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, 14 “Glory to God in the highest, 15 When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.” 16 And they went with haste, and found Mary and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. 17 And when they saw it they made known the saying which had been told them concerning this child; 18 and all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. 19 But Mary kept all these things, pondering them in her heart. 20 And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them. In the Name of God: The Holy and Undivided Trinity. Amen. Bethlehem Of JudeaA little child, Yet in that place, [Show Innkeeper video] Tonight is the night we have all been waiting for, planning for, hoping for, preparing for. Tonight is the night when the light pierces the darkness, life conquers death, love overcomes hatred. |
If we listen very closely, we might be able to hear the voices of the angels. We might be able to hear the soft cry of a newborn baby. We might be able to hear the murmurs of a tired young mother who is soothing and cuddling that precious little child. We might hear the soft lowing of the cattle and the cooing of the doves in the rafters.
Tonight is the night. Jesus, our Savior, is born!
[Show Mary video]
That Holy Thing
THEY all were looking for a king
To slay their foes and lift them high;
Thou cam’st, a little baby thing
That made a woman cry.
O Son of Man, to right my lot
Naught but Thy presence can avail;
Yet on the road Thy wheels are not,
Nor on the sea Thy sail!
My how or when Thou wilt not heed,
But come down Thine own secret stair,
That Thou mayst answer all my need–
Yes, every bygone prayer.
George MacDonald (1824-1905)
You might say that today is just “the end of the beginning.” Everything that has gone before has been just the prelude to what’s happening now and is going to happen. God’s thunderous voice has spoken and brought The Word into this broken and desperate world in the form of a tiny and helpless baby – but the ripples and the echoes of that thunderous voice continue on like a tsunami and carry us along. And, even though we’ve heard this story every year of our lives, we are still astounded and amazed at the way God surprises us, the way God takes us by the scruff of the neck and jerks us to attention. In the Christmas story, we again hear the echoes of the words of the prophet Isaiah, “’My thoughts are not your thoughts, and my ways are not your ways,’ declares the LORD.”
“They all were looking for a king / To slay their foes and lift them high…” That’s what the people of Jesus’ day expected. An avenger. A war leader. A general. A hero. Someone who was going to sweep into town and clean house, once and for all. Ah, the glory of it! Good-bye, Caesar! So long, Herod! The days of Solomon and David are back!
But look what they got – a baby. Born in a manger – a feeding trough for cows! Not in a palace. Attended to by shepherds. Peasants, all of them! Not a noble person or a general among ‘em.
But here we see the wondrous wisdom of God: “Thou cam’st, a little baby thing / That made a woman cry.”
Each and every newborn child arrives on earth with a message to deliver to humankind. Clenched in each child’s little fist is some particle of truth that has yet to be revealed, some missing clue to solving the mystery of human destiny. Each child is sacred.
God comes to us as a baby! How unexpected! How absurd – in the eyes of the world! But how wonderful!
Once again, we see that God is not about meeting our expectations. God does things in His own way, in His own time, to suit His purpose and plan. But we are used to being able to lead our lives as we see fit. So we miss that point constantly, as a society, as a church, and as individuals. Every attempt we make to control God and to stuff him into our hip pockets, like some kind of divine trump card, is doomed to fail. God is bigger – far, far bigger – than our limited imaginations can even begin to comprehend.
Tonight we can also really relate, I think, to Joseph. Of all the people in the Christmas story, Joseph was at one and the same time a major player and also the one who was maybe the most confused by what was going on around him. But he never wavered in his commitment…
[Show Joseph video.]
I wish you and yours a blessed and wonderful Christmas!
In the Name of the Holy and Undivided Trinity, One God, World without End. AMEN