On Christmas Eve Simple Storage Service (S3)
“On Christmas Eve” Christmas Eve Message, 2017 11:00 PM Service If you look at the front cover of the worship bulletin, you see a fairly typical image for Christmas Eve … deep, blue sky filled with stars, and the Bethlehem Star illuminating the way to the manger. I wanted to create that feeling – that mood -- that is captured on the bulletin cover. As you can see, I changed the star, and I intended to bathe the chancel in deep blue light. I ordered two really cool light fixtures, and the blue was intense! (You can check out the images I posted on my Facebook page.) But, it was too intense. I did not want to make the choir nauseous sitting up here. As I said, I wanted to capture the beauty and the drama of the deep, blue night and the brilliant, bright star. But, a couple of days ago, a friend and colleague of mine, posted an image on her Facebook feed. That is the image that I inserted into your bulletin this evening. I cannot stop thinking about it. The image is almost as if we zoomed in for a tight shot of the picture that is on the bulletin cover. As if we were to draw in close to the spot where the star was shining. The close-up image is so different that what we normally expect when we think of Christmas Eve. This image is so simple and pared down. On Christmas Eve, we usually think about the pageantry. We come to church to see the children acting out the story. We love to see them in all of the costumes. We love when things go cutely awry. We love the adorable imperfections in the pageant. We come on Christmas Eve to hear the words of the prophet. We hear the familiar and comforting words from the Gospel of Luke. We meet the shepherds once more. We imagine their fear and their confusion. We see the angel’s in our mind’s eye. We hear the angel songs … “Glory to God in the highest!” And we long to run to Bethlehem to see for ourselves what the angels proclaim. When we arrive at the stable, we see strong and sturdy Joseph. We see beautiful and beaming Mary. We see the baby in the manger. We see the animals gathered around, and we imagine all of the hullaballoo as the townspeople gather to see what is happening.
But, what if we considered the other scene instead; the scene depicted in the image inserted in your bulletin? There is no crowd gathered in the stable – no shepherds – no angels – no cute animals nudging the sleeping baby. There are no townsfolk peering in to see what all of the fuss is about. There is just that simple scene … Mary … exhausted and asleep beside her baby. Joseph … steadfast and true, faithfully following the Angel Gabriel’s instructions, faithfully watching over his wife and child. As much as we love the pageantry of Christmas, this is what Christmas Eve is all about … that Love in and around the manger. “God so loved the world that he sent his only Son.” God entrusted him to a simple peasant girl, a girl who was not so different than those of us sitting in this room. Up until her meeting with the Angel, she lived an ordinary life. God chose someone “ordinary” … plain folk … a peasant girl and a carpenter to usher his love into the world. Of course, we know that they were more than ordinary. We know that God chose two people who were strong and faithful. God chose two people who said ‘yes’ to what must have seemed like an unimaginably impossible request. Bearing the Light of the World into the world was not an easy task. In the image that I shared, Joseph does look as though he is concerned, possibly even troubled. When news of Mary’s pregnancy became known, Joseph ran the risk of being shamed within his community, even within his own family. Mary being with child before their marriage had been finalized would have brought Joseph’s family great dishonor.
Beyond that cultural and societal implications, the physical task of travelling to Bethlehem would have been an arduous task. Can you image riding on the back of a donkey and walking for several days? The roads in Israel are difficult enough to traverse now, imagine how much worse they would have been two thousand years ago. And then they had to find lodging in a city teeming with people. Thousands and thousands of people had made their way to Bethlehem to register for the census. Of course, Joseph was troubled. And the troubles did not end once the baby was born. Now imagine all of the questions that they must have had: What would it be like to raise the Son of God? What would be expected of them? Could they handle such a momentous task? What if they were not strong enough? Or faithful enough? It is no wonder that Mary was exhausted. It is difficult enough having an “ordinary” baby!! (Of course, no baby is truly ordinary. They are all precious gifts.) But there was nothing ordinary about that baby lying in the manger! However, Mary and Joseph would not have to go it alone. They carried the angel songs with them. They carried the promise of God in their hearts. They carried the Hope of the World. As you go off to enjoy your Christmas celebrations tomorrow, I encourage you to keep that image of Mary and Joseph in your minds, ponder it in your hearts. Focus upon the love captured there. Think about the power of the promise of God. The gatherings with family and friends are wonderful! The food, the fun, the fellowship, the gifts under the tree are all things to be treasured. They are the things that help to make Christmas so magical. But, Mary and Joseph and the baby in the manger are what give the day and the season meaning, they are the embodiment of faithfulness and love. And that is the message of Christmas … Love. Love so strong that it can overcome any obstacle. Love
so strong that it can do the seemingly impossible. Love so strong that it can break any darkness, and conquer any evil. God gave us the gift of Love on that first Christmas, and now we get to be the giftgivers; we get to be Mary and Joseph! We get to be the ones that bear the Christ Child into the world. We get to be the ones who are faithful and compassionate. The angels sing to us tonight! The Christ Child is born in us and through us. Every time that someone sees the Light, and every time that someone shares the Love, Christ is born again! Amen.
But, what if we considered the other scene instead; the scene depicted in the image inserted in your bulletin? There is no crowd gathered in the stable – no shepherds – no angels – no cute animals nudging the sleeping baby. There are no townsfolk peering in to see what all of the fuss is about. There is just that simple scene … Mary … exhausted and asleep beside her baby. Joseph … steadfast and true, faithfully following the Angel Gabriel’s instructions, faithfully watching over his wife and child. As much as we love the pageantry of Christmas, this is what Christmas Eve is all about … that Love in and around the manger. “God so loved the world that he sent his only Son.” God entrusted him to a simple peasant girl, a girl who was not so different than those of us sitting in this room. Up until her meeting with the Angel, she lived an ordinary life. God chose someone “ordinary” … plain folk … a peasant girl and a carpenter to usher his love into the world. Of course, we know that they were more than ordinary. We know that God chose two people who were strong and faithful. God chose two people who said ‘yes’ to what must have seemed like an unimaginably impossible request. Bearing the Light of the World into the world was not an easy task. In the image that I shared, Joseph does look as though he is concerned, possibly even troubled. When news of Mary’s pregnancy became known, Joseph ran the risk of being shamed within his community, even within his own family. Mary being with child before their marriage had been finalized would have brought Joseph’s family great dishonor.
Beyond that cultural and societal implications, the physical task of travelling to Bethlehem would have been an arduous task. Can you image riding on the back of a donkey and walking for several days? The roads in Israel are difficult enough to traverse now, imagine how much worse they would have been two thousand years ago. And then they had to find lodging in a city teeming with people. Thousands and thousands of people had made their way to Bethlehem to register for the census. Of course, Joseph was troubled. And the troubles did not end once the baby was born. Now imagine all of the questions that they must have had: What would it be like to raise the Son of God? What would be expected of them? Could they handle such a momentous task? What if they were not strong enough? Or faithful enough? It is no wonder that Mary was exhausted. It is difficult enough having an “ordinary” baby!! (Of course, no baby is truly ordinary. They are all precious gifts.) But there was nothing ordinary about that baby lying in the manger! However, Mary and Joseph would not have to go it alone. They carried the angel songs with them. They carried the promise of God in their hearts. They carried the Hope of the World. As you go off to enjoy your Christmas celebrations tomorrow, I encourage you to keep that image of Mary and Joseph in your minds, ponder it in your hearts. Focus upon the love captured there. Think about the power of the promise of God. The gatherings with family and friends are wonderful! The food, the fun, the fellowship, the gifts under the tree are all things to be treasured. They are the things that help to make Christmas so magical. But, Mary and Joseph and the baby in the manger are what give the day and the season meaning, they are the embodiment of faithfulness and love. And that is the message of Christmas … Love. Love so strong that it can overcome any obstacle. Love
so strong that it can do the seemingly impossible. Love so strong that it can break any darkness, and conquer any evil. God gave us the gift of Love on that first Christmas, and now we get to be the giftgivers; we get to be Mary and Joseph! We get to be the ones that bear the Christ Child into the world. We get to be the ones who are faithful and compassionate. The angels sing to us tonight! The Christ Child is born in us and through us. Every time that someone sees the Light, and every time that someone shares the Love, Christ is born again! Amen.
