Christmas Eve Sermon

“And Unto Us, A Child is Born…”             

Christmas Eve Sermon for December 24^th, 2012

            At last! Christmas is here! The presents are wrapped. The cookies are made. The candles are lit. The manger is no longer empty. Inside the manger we find a baby – a small, helpless, fragile baby. A baby that is vulnerable to heart ache, pain, fear… A baby that is susceptible to joy, friendship, compassion… We actually know quite a bit about this baby. We know that he was born to a virgin named Mary. We know that his cousin, John, prepared the way for him and later baptized him. We know that he was born in a stable with less than comfortable accommodations and spent his first few years as a refugee from the Roman Empire. He grew up in a poor, Jewish family, with a carpenter as his father. We know that he had a group of close friends… around 12 or so… with whom he spent a significant amount of type. He preached to crowds of people about love, peace, and justice. He also extended his shepherding hand to the outcasts, to the tax collectors, to the Samaritan woman, and to those whose worth had been diminished and spirits had been crushed. Soon, the fate of those around him and all of those who were to come after him would be left in his hands. But for tonight, we celebrate the birth of a baby.

            Looking at what all Jesus must accomplish over the next few years is somewhat of a daunting task. Soon he will feed thousands, reclaim the temple as sacred space, and call for unity amongst ALL people. He will also bear the weight of the sins of the world and offer himself so that God’s peace may reign over all the Earth. But right now… he is just a baby. Why would God choose to come to us in such a small, fragile way? Carrying out the Good News is not going to be easy, especially for a baby. It is up to us, the children of God, to continue to share the Gospel. God did not choose to come to us as something small and fragile, God chose to come to us in a way that we can understand. God came to us in the flesh… the flesh that eats and breathes, loves and fears, rejoices and mourns… God came to us as… us.

            In the birth of Christ we find that God’s promises have been fulfilled. Throughout the Old Testament we see the same scenario over and over – God’s people are living in bondage. They are being oppressed, abused, and ostracized. They’re waiting and waiting for God to intervene while the prophets continually promise that God will deliver His people in the coming of the Messiah. God’s people remain faithful, knowing that God will not allow them to suffer forever. They wait… and they wait… and they wait… Shortly after the birth of Jesus, Mary and Joseph take him to be presented at the temple. When they arrive at the temple they meet Simeon. Simeon is one of God’s most faithful servants. Much like the prophets of the Old Testament, Simeon had complete faith in the never-ending love of God and knew that he would meet the Messiah before his death. He remained faithful in God’s promises, just as the Hebrew people had for so many years before. He knew that the Holy Spirit was upon him and felt that the Spirit was moving him to go to the temple. When he arrived at the temple, he knew that God’s promises had been fulfilled. He held the Messiah, the Christ-child, the baby in his arms. He kissed the cheek of God and at last, he called out to God that he, Simeon, his faithful servant, was now ready to be called home. In that moment, the suffering of the Hebrew people and the promises of God intersected. The cries of thousands of years of God’s people suffering would soon be silenced by the cry of this baby… this tiny, fragile baby.

            So now, what are we called to do? The baby has arrived. We look in this manger and we see the baby through the eyes of Simeon. We see a baby that is God’s promise of peace and compassion made flesh. The answer to our cries, our heartache, our fears lie in this manger. For now, we enjoy the presence of a precious baby but tomorrow; tomorrow we must take the baby out of the manger. Tomorrow we must carry the Good News into the world and share the hope of God’s promises revealed. It’s not going to be easy, but we know that we are alone. When God came to us in the flesh, He felt the pain we feel and joined us in our dances of celebration. Through the Holy Spirit, God remains with us. God still feels our pain and still dances with us. God hears our cries and fulfills his promises to silence those cries but we must also join in. Much like Simeon, we hold in our arms something powerful and amazing. We hold the Good News of Jesus Christ and have the power to change the world. We have the power to bring hope into the darkest corners of the Earth and joy into the deepest crevices of despair. We have… a baby. A precious, joyful, promising baby. We have to teach the baby to walk, to talk, we have to help it grow… We must carry out the Gospel of Jesus Christ, preach the Good News of God’s promises fulfilled, and grow the body of Christ.

            In this time of new beginnings, answered promises, and unsurpassable joy, we must remember that all of this starts with a baby. Together, as the body of Christ, we must take baby steps.  A small step towards loving all of God’s children in the same way God has loved and continues to love each one of us can have a huge impact in the Kingdom of God.  Through the grace of God in Jesus Christ we have been saved and called to be worthy to carry out the Gospel, worthy to care for the baby. Once the presents have been opened, the cookies have been eaten, the candles have been repacked, and the manger is empty once again, we must remember that the manger is not actually empty nor will it ever be again. Each time that we see a teenager choosing to join the church instead of a gang, Jesus is born again. Each time that we see an elderly couple enjoying one more Thanksgiving than they had expected, Jesus is born again. Each time we see a formerly homeless man pay his first rent check, Jesus is born again. Each time that we see a cognitively disabled child make new discoveries and flourish, Jesus is born again. The birth of Jesus and celebration of the fulfillment of God’s promises occurs every single time that we see glimmer of hope triumph in the darkness of our Earthly lives. When we take baby steps to recognize that the Gospel is being carried out every single day, we celebrate the birth of Christ.

            We celebrate an empty manger not because we are still waiting on the Messiah, but because we know that the baby grew up. The baby grew up and brought light into a world that was once dark and has called us to be that same light. Tonight, we not only celebrate the birth of Jesus, but we also celebrate the life of Christ and the life that Christ gives to each and every one of us. Tonight, we bask in the hope that comes from a fragile, precious baby, who in turns makes us strong and worthy to be called the children of God. Tonight, we remember that sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ starts with baby steps.

Amen.