Lessons

Isaiah 9:2-4,6-7, Psalm 96:1-4,11-12, Titus 2:11-14, Luke 2:1-20

Collect

O God, you make us glad by the yearly festival of the birth of your only Son Jesus Christ: Grant that we, who joyfully receive him as our Redeemer, may with sure confidence behold him when he comes to be our Judge; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Gospel

In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. All went to their own towns to be registered. Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

Gospel

In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for see-- I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger." And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying,

"Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors!"

[When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us." So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them. ]

Homily

It was dark and cold that night as a small group of men huddled near their fire to keep warm. In the social ladder of the day they were near the bottom rung. They were shepherds, probably with little formal education but they were aware of the political and social situation of their country. The occupying forces were there on what would now be called a “peacekeeping exercise”. This was not a time of all out war. Rome was the superpower of the times. Rome had extended her control into this area in the Middle East and had even set up local politicians to rule the area in her name. But still these peacekeeper soldiers were required because of the discontent and volatility of the residence in the area. Theirs was a nation under foreign control and this group of poor shepherds knew that there would never really be peace while foreign soldiers were positioned in the capital. And they knew that if ever it came to war again, they were the ones who would get placed in the front lines.

How they longed for peace. How the longed for the time when their country could return to peaceful days! If only the prophecies of Isaiah could come true. Hadn’t they heard the scribes read those verses: “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light: for the yoke of their burden, the bar across their shoulders, and the rod of the their oppressor have been broken…For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders and he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace….there shall be endless peace for the throne of David and his kingdom. He will establish and uphold it with justice and the righteousness from this time onward and forevermore.”

Well that day seemed a long way off as they sat out on the hills that night talking about the occupying soldiers who made their presence felt all over the countryside. Suddenly their conversation was interrupted by a blinding light as the dark hillsides were flooded with brightness and a gleaming figure stood before them. There was not a sound. The men were too terrified to even breathe. And then this apparition spoke. I can just imagine that their hearts were pounding right up in their throats. Then the angel spoke (we know now that this was an angel with a message from God - but these shepherds could not have known. God had not spoken to anyone since the olden days of the great prophets). “Do not be afraid; for I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah.” Then the situation went from merely frightening to absolutely unbelievable. The heavens were filled with angels singing praises to God and proclaiming the good news of Jesus’ birth? These insignificant shepherds out on the hills were stunned as they listened and watched in utter amazement—not only were the prophecies being fulfilled, but they were the ones to hear it first: “On earth peace among those whom God favors…On earth peace among those whom God favors!” Imagine their hopes rising as they began to comprehend what they saw and heard...An end to war, a return to self-determination, and an end to fear.

Today we too listen to these words and long for peace on earth; peace in our time. Yet we look around the world and still we see a continuation of war after war after war. When surveys are taken in our country and other countries, one of the questions asked is; “Do you have any concerns or needs for which we could pray?” Do you know what the most common answer is to that question? I’m sure you have no trouble guessing. The most common concern or need mentioned is “for world peace, for a cessation of war and terrorism.”

So we ask ourselves, “what happened to ‘peace on earth?’’’ What was this peace that Jesus was supposed to bring?

Clearly it wasn’t an end to wars and terrorism. Not in this world at least. In fact Jesus warned that there would be wars and rumors of wars, and that they would go no for ages before the end of the world came. But we want to know “what about now?” Is there peace for us now? Can we expect to find peace in our lives? On one level we would have to answer no. As long as there continue to be gender, racial, cultural, religious, or political boundaries there will continue to be conflicts in the world.

But at the same time Jesus also told his disciples: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.” (John 14:27) What sort of peace is this that Jesus assures us of? It is a lasting peace that remains with each of us even when times are difficult. And it is a real peace, a peace that will see our hearts being put at ease.

First Jesus coming brings us peace with God. We all struggle at times with a guilty conscience. It may even be that the more spiritual we are the more our conscience bothers us. But the birth of that baby boy that cold night long ago provides the means by which our consciences can be cleared, and we can go to sleep each night knowing that God holds nothing against us. This is the most important thing we should take away from this Christmas service. “There is peace with God available to all people today. We don’t have to die to receive this reward. We – alive – today – here- are the objects of God’s favor. God’s favor rests upon us.

The peace that Jesus brought is also a peace that extends to those around us. It’s a peace that affects our relationships. One of the most troubling ideas of our times is the use of religion as grounds for war. Jesus came to bring people of all races together. Let’s face it; peace between people doesn’t come automatically. Sometimes it’s easy but more generally we have to work at it. Are we each working to bring Christ’s peace to bear in our part of the world? Do we apply the principles of peace in our relationships, our family lives, our work place situations? God has put us here to continue the work of bringing peace to the world.

Finally, Christ’s coming means that we can have peace in our own hearts and minds. It means we can stop worrying. Why can we stop worrying? We can stop worrying because we know that God has done everything needed to keep us in a right relationship with God and with all creation. God gave it to us in the birth of a baby boy all those years ago.

There is a story of a rich art collector who had one of the greatest collections of art in the world. It was full of such beauty that you would think he would have been one of the happiest people in the world. But in fact that wasn’t the case. His only son had been killed in a car accident at a young age and the father had never really gotten over it. You see, he had loved his son so much and was proud of him when he graduated from the University. He had great plans for the boy to follow in the family business. When the son died the father was devastated. So he put all his energy into compiling the best art collection he could mange in memory of his son. Finally the man died without an heir and when the will was read it was announced that his art collection would be auctioned off. On the day of the great sale, art dealers came from far and wide hoping for a bargain and desiring to own part of this fabulous collection. There were people on mobile phones, the Internet connections had been made and everyone was prepared. The first item for auction was a painting by an unknown artist, it was a portrait of a young man and it wasn’t a particularly good portrait. None of the dealers was interested in it. They were waiting for the real art to come up for sale. The auctioneer called for bids…and there was silence. Not a hand moved. He lowered his suggested amount. Eventually an old man in the back bid a small amount for it. He was the art collector’s butler. He realized that the portrait was that of the man’s son, whom he too had loved. It had been painted just before the young man died. He valued the painting, not for its great artistic value but for its sentimental value. The art dealers all breathed a sigh of relief. That was out of the way, now they could get on with the real sale. But the auctioneer announced, “Ladies and Gentlemen, I am required to read the following clause of the will. It reads ‘whoever buys the portrait of my son gets everything else as well.’ The auction is now over.” Whoever has the Son has everything!

How do you respond to stresses in your life? Do you worry about them, or do you pass them on to God? Do you trust God to provide everything you need? Jesus came to bring peace…Peace with God… Peace of mind…Peace which passes all understanding…Peace that comes from knowing that the God of the whole universe cares about me, cares about you. The proof of that care is seen in that tiny baby lying in a feeding trough in a stable in Bethlehem all those years ago.

Have you ever placed your finger inside the hand of a tiny baby and felt its grip? When they grip you finger, they also tug at your heart. At Christmas, Jesus reaches out with the tiny hand of an infant…grabs hold of our hearts and pulls us back to God.

Amen