Christ our Freedom is God’s Christmas Promise
Luke 2:1-20
2010 will be a census year for us, with all the multitudes of the United States counted. The registration that caused Joseph and Mary to travel to Bethlehem was another kind of census, but while our census serves an important purpose in the life of our nation and our government, I can assure you that Caesar’s census had nothing to do with determining proportional representation in the Roman Empire. No—the Emperor’s purposes for counting the people in the empire likely had more to do with questions like “How many people do I rule over?” “Where do most of them live, and are they being taxed accordingly?” “From where can I raise more legions, and where do I need to send the legions that I have recruited?” Caesar’s census was about control, about measuring power and the means to maintain power. To the mighty Roman Emperor, the little child born in Bethlehem was just another statistic, another jot on the tally sheet of subjects dominated by the power of Rome. There are nations today where census taking is more akin to the Roman census than it is to the U.S. census, where people are counted in order to be controlled. The world Jesus was born into was a dangerous place, and our world can still be dangerous—the boots of tramping warriors and the rods of oppressors have not passed away from the world, and the yoke of oppression still lies heavy on the shoulders of many people. The world of Jesus’ day needed a savior, and our day too looks for this salvation.
God has promised, in the words of the prophet Isaiah, that all oppression will be cast off, that the rods of unjust rulers will be broken, that people who live in darkness will see a great light. God promises that a savior has been sent. But God’s answer to the Caesars of the world is not the answer the world expected in Jesus’ day, and I daresay it is not the answer you and I would come up with if left to our own devices. Against the legions of Caesar, against tyrants of every age, God sends—not a strong and sturdy warrior, not a second Samson—but an infant, born in a stable. God’s answer to all the abuses of power in the world is a newborn infant, wrapped in bands of cloth, crying for his first meal at his mother’s breast.
It makes no sense to the human mind, and Jesus’ birth passed almost without notice in his own day—on that first Christmas, the Emperor Augustus was not quaking in fear that his empire would crumble and fall because of this baby. But God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength. Before the yoke of rulers and injustice can be broken, there is another enemy to be confronted, another form of oppression to be cast off—and that is the enemy within, the disorder of our desires; the passions that cause us to seek our own advantage over the needs of others, the selfish and self-centred impulses that we all feel and struggle against. The first enemy that Jesus comes to overthrow is the enemy that God and the Church have named sin—the tyrant of our hearts that seeks to rule over us and bend our will away from godliness and upright living, the enemy that encourages laziness when we can get away with it, undue pride in our accomplishments, anger against our neighbors, and envy of others’ good fortune.
Against the oppression of sin, the infant Jesus is the perfect conqueror, for what is more likely to inspire us to want to live a better life than a newborn child, with all the potential and promise of a new life? What parent doesn’t want to be a better person for the sake of her child? We may not always be able to live up to those noble aspirations, and children can be an aggravation as well as an inspiration, but the newborn Christ-child embodies the hope for new life in all of us. In the baby Jesus of the Christmas crib, the grace of God has appeared; and when Christ is born in our hearts, he inspires us to live lives that are upright and self-controlled, concerned with others needs and God’s desires before our own.
Once Christ has won the victory over sin—our spiritual oppression—the victory over tyranny and worldly oppression cannot be far behind, because the one relies on the other. Tyranny and corruption cannot last in the face of honesty and righteousness, the unjust ruler always relies on the self-interest of allies and subordinates. If someone can’t be bought or bribed or rewarded for loyalty, then the only tools that remain for the tyrant are threats and violence. But Jesus has overcome that power as well—not only as a child, but as a man. We have gathered here not only to celebrate Christmas, but to share the Easter meal—our holy communion—in which we remember that Jesus died for us and rose again to live forever and to share his eternal life with those who believe in him. And if we have been given the gift of Jesus’ life, then death can have no hold over us, unless we allow it. And if the followers of Jesus do not fear death, then what power do the tyrants of the world have anymore? Their rod has been broken, their oppression is lifted, because it is an illusion and a fantasy compared to the love and mercy of God. The world remains a dangerous place, but no matter what happens to us in this life, we have the confidence of new and greater life in Christ’s gifts of grace and love.
For the sake of one innocent life, God has redeemed the world. Jesus Christ, born today, is the victory over the enemy of our souls and the enemy of our bodies, he has overcome both sin and death, and he will share his victory with us if we trust in him and follow him as our lord and our God. God has kept his promise, he has sent us a savior: Christ the Lord. So come and worship, come and worship, worship Christ our newborn King!
Friday, December 25, 2009
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Christmas Eve - Skip Windsor
Luke 2:1-20
In the Shadow of the Manger
Every year at Christmas, we hear the story of Jesus’ birth according to the Gospel of Luke. As an historian Luke is very careful to place the Nativity of our Lord within the context of world history. We hear about the rulers of the time and the evangelist is explicit in making the point that the birth of one small child in Bethlehem occurs in the midst of timeless turmoil – war and rumors of war, economic disparity, and persecution and oppression.
It is in this historical context that Luke writes the immortal words of hope: “Today a Savior has been born! He is Christ the Lord” (2:11). Our Christian faith tells us that God came into the world in an unexpected way – God did not come into the world as a prince but as a pauper. God did not come into the world as a powerful warrior but as a vulnerable baby. God did not come into the world to be the leader of the principalities and powers but to save and rescue the world from sin and death. God came to be with you and me.
The 20th century poet, Robinson Jeffers, writes:
The mystery of Christmas is about the majesty of God who loves us so much that God became one of us in Jesus; and the simplest way for me to understand this mystery is to share a story with you.
Once upon a Christmas Eve, a man sat in reflective silence before the fireplace, pondering the meaning of Christmas. “There is no point to God who becomes man,” he mused. “Why would an all-powerful God want to share even one of His precious moments with the likes of humanity? And even if he did, why would he choose to be born in an animal stall? No way! The whole idea is absurd! I’m sure that if God really wanted to come down to earth, He would have chosen some other way.”
Suddenly, the man was roused from his ruminations by a strange sound outside. He went to the window and saw a small gaggle of Canadian geese frantically honking and aimlessly flopping about in the snow. They seemed disoriented and dazed. Apparently, they had dropped out of exhaustion from the flight formation of a larger flock on its way from north of Newfoundland to the warmer climes of the Gulf of Mexico.
Moved with compassion, the man tried to shoo the poor geese into his warm garage; but the more he shooed the more they panicked. “If they only realized I’m only trying to do what’s best for them,” he thought to himself. “How can I make them understand my concern for their well-being?” Then, this thought came to him: “If for just one minute, I could become one of them, an ordinary goose, and communicate with them in their own language, they would know what I’m trying to do.”
And suddenly, he remembered Christmas and a smile came over his face. Suddenly, the Christmas story no longer seemed absurd. Suddenly, he pictured that ordinary-looking infant, lying in a manger, in the stable in Bethlehem, and he knew the answer to his Christmas question: God had become one of us to tell us He loves us and to point us home.
As I have reflected upon this story, the more I think it is a parable of Christmas.
Like the birds that have flown south for the winter, we tend to migrate to those places where we will find warmth and comfort, healing and hope. Like them, we seek a resting place of peace. Like them we are also frozen with fright by the events that assail us. And like them, we have a yearning for home.
At such times, when we, like the birds of the air, seek to fly yearning to be free, it is God who also yearns – yearns to be with us and share in His creation. The wonder of Christmas, the mystery of Christmas, is that God left heaven to be with us.
So God came down from heaven to Bethlehem to be born in a manger with the ox and the ass, the shepherds and the sheep, to be with us. A Merry Christmas, a happy life, and good fortune are not why God comes to be with us. God loves us more than this.
God says, “I do not wish to take away people’s desires or even their emptiness. Rather, I wish to share their desires and their emptiness by being by their side. I want to fly with my flock, to help them seek what they mostly deeply need.
“I want to help their yearning to reach into the farthest corners of heaven and to help them find part of heaven that is already within themselves. I desire to embrace with my wings all the ill-winds of death, all the winds of doubt and despair that buffet them; and I will transform them into currents of love.”
This Christmas Eve, we join hands and hearts around the manger of Jesus. The light from the manger gives sight to the world. It is a place that holds not only a little baby but cradles the whole world. The real manger on this Christmas Eve is the human heart. That is where the Christ of Christmas is born and known to be real and true.
For the enduring invitation of Christmas for us is how we will cast the shadow of the manger everyday. Its outline is traced by the way we live our lives with generosity and compassion not only at Christmas but everyday of the year. As it is written in the Letter of Titus, “We are a people who are zealous for good deeds.”
Shortly, we will depart from this place. We will go with family and friends out into the night. We will return to our homes filled with bright lights and trees, good food and presents. Let us take with us the meaning of this night. Let always keep Christmas in our hearts.
The life we live is in God. The life we praise is to Jesus – just as the words from the Christmas carol, O Holy Night, remind us:
God of light who breaks into the darkness of the world each day, break into our hearts anew. As we learn to live in your light, help us to serve you in holiness and righteousness. Guide us in the way of peace. All this we ask in the name of Christ, the light that we pray.
Amen.
In the Shadow of the Manger
Every year at Christmas, we hear the story of Jesus’ birth according to the Gospel of Luke. As an historian Luke is very careful to place the Nativity of our Lord within the context of world history. We hear about the rulers of the time and the evangelist is explicit in making the point that the birth of one small child in Bethlehem occurs in the midst of timeless turmoil – war and rumors of war, economic disparity, and persecution and oppression.
It is in this historical context that Luke writes the immortal words of hope: “Today a Savior has been born! He is Christ the Lord” (2:11). Our Christian faith tells us that God came into the world in an unexpected way – God did not come into the world as a prince but as a pauper. God did not come into the world as a powerful warrior but as a vulnerable baby. God did not come into the world to be the leader of the principalities and powers but to save and rescue the world from sin and death. God came to be with you and me.
The 20th century poet, Robinson Jeffers, writes:
For an hour on Christmas EveEach and every Christmas, we hear Luke’s story and again are reminded that the Creator God condescended to take on human form and came into the world as a homeless child. When we sing the familiar words of the carol, “Away in the manger,” we sing sweetly the words, “Away in a manger no crib for his bed, the little Lord Jesus, laid down his sweet head.” Yet, behind the words and behind the holiday sentiment stirs an enduring reality that God came to be identified not with Augustus Caesar but with the lost and homesick, the homeless and the exile.
And again on the holy day,
Seek the magic of past time,
From this present turn away.
Dark though our day,
Light lies the snow on hawthorn hedges
And the ox knelt down at midnight…
Caesar and Herod shared the world
Sorrow over Bethlehem lay,
Iron the empire, brutal the time
Dark was that first Christmas Day,
Light lay the snow on the mistletoe berries
And the ox knelt down at midnight.
The mystery of Christmas is about the majesty of God who loves us so much that God became one of us in Jesus; and the simplest way for me to understand this mystery is to share a story with you.
Once upon a Christmas Eve, a man sat in reflective silence before the fireplace, pondering the meaning of Christmas. “There is no point to God who becomes man,” he mused. “Why would an all-powerful God want to share even one of His precious moments with the likes of humanity? And even if he did, why would he choose to be born in an animal stall? No way! The whole idea is absurd! I’m sure that if God really wanted to come down to earth, He would have chosen some other way.”
Suddenly, the man was roused from his ruminations by a strange sound outside. He went to the window and saw a small gaggle of Canadian geese frantically honking and aimlessly flopping about in the snow. They seemed disoriented and dazed. Apparently, they had dropped out of exhaustion from the flight formation of a larger flock on its way from north of Newfoundland to the warmer climes of the Gulf of Mexico.
Moved with compassion, the man tried to shoo the poor geese into his warm garage; but the more he shooed the more they panicked. “If they only realized I’m only trying to do what’s best for them,” he thought to himself. “How can I make them understand my concern for their well-being?” Then, this thought came to him: “If for just one minute, I could become one of them, an ordinary goose, and communicate with them in their own language, they would know what I’m trying to do.”
And suddenly, he remembered Christmas and a smile came over his face. Suddenly, the Christmas story no longer seemed absurd. Suddenly, he pictured that ordinary-looking infant, lying in a manger, in the stable in Bethlehem, and he knew the answer to his Christmas question: God had become one of us to tell us He loves us and to point us home.
As I have reflected upon this story, the more I think it is a parable of Christmas.
Like the birds that have flown south for the winter, we tend to migrate to those places where we will find warmth and comfort, healing and hope. Like them, we seek a resting place of peace. Like them we are also frozen with fright by the events that assail us. And like them, we have a yearning for home.
At such times, when we, like the birds of the air, seek to fly yearning to be free, it is God who also yearns – yearns to be with us and share in His creation. The wonder of Christmas, the mystery of Christmas, is that God left heaven to be with us.
So God came down from heaven to Bethlehem to be born in a manger with the ox and the ass, the shepherds and the sheep, to be with us. A Merry Christmas, a happy life, and good fortune are not why God comes to be with us. God loves us more than this.
God says, “I do not wish to take away people’s desires or even their emptiness. Rather, I wish to share their desires and their emptiness by being by their side. I want to fly with my flock, to help them seek what they mostly deeply need.
“I want to help their yearning to reach into the farthest corners of heaven and to help them find part of heaven that is already within themselves. I desire to embrace with my wings all the ill-winds of death, all the winds of doubt and despair that buffet them; and I will transform them into currents of love.”
This Christmas Eve, we join hands and hearts around the manger of Jesus. The light from the manger gives sight to the world. It is a place that holds not only a little baby but cradles the whole world. The real manger on this Christmas Eve is the human heart. That is where the Christ of Christmas is born and known to be real and true.
For the enduring invitation of Christmas for us is how we will cast the shadow of the manger everyday. Its outline is traced by the way we live our lives with generosity and compassion not only at Christmas but everyday of the year. As it is written in the Letter of Titus, “We are a people who are zealous for good deeds.”
Shortly, we will depart from this place. We will go with family and friends out into the night. We will return to our homes filled with bright lights and trees, good food and presents. Let us take with us the meaning of this night. Let always keep Christmas in our hearts.
The life we live is in God. The life we praise is to Jesus – just as the words from the Christmas carol, O Holy Night, remind us:
Truly He taught us to love one another,Let us pray:
His law is love and His gospel is peace.
Chains he shall break, for the slave our brother.
And in His name all oppression shall cease.
Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we,
With all our hearts we praise his holy name.
Christ is the Lord! Then ever, ever praise we,
His power and glory ever more proclaim!
His power and glory ever more proclaim!
God of light who breaks into the darkness of the world each day, break into our hearts anew. As we learn to live in your light, help us to serve you in holiness and righteousness. Guide us in the way of peace. All this we ask in the name of Christ, the light that we pray.
Amen.
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