Luke 2:1-14

In those days a decree went out from Caesar 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 in the guest room.

Now in that same 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!”

Sermon Text

Cold wind blows, lifting dust and sand with every gust. The creak of old wood, the stink of wet straw and dug. The sounds of birth, not of an animal, but of a woman break through the night. The most significant birth in history is about to take place, and it is strangely the birth of someone who predates all of time and space.

Into a humble stall, with poor parents surrounded by scandal, eternity became temporal. Part of the infinity of God took on human form, not just in appearance or as a cloak, but into the deepest parts of his being. The eternal Word of God, now took on a human name. With the cry of his mother, with his own tears in the face of the cold world he now entered, Jesus the Christ was born into the world he was now coming to save. God who knew only the splendor of eternity, now could feel what it was to be limited and cold. God who could see all creation, now knew what it was to barely be able to see past his nose. God, through Christ, now knew what it was to be human.

Angels would sing of the wonder of that night, shepherds would leave their flocks to celebrate something they did not fully understand. Yet, when the noise of the night and its many strange visitors had left, all that remained was a mother, a father, and a child. That child contained a great contradiction – the infinite made finite, the eternal now wrapped in mortal flesh, the Creator now wearing his creation. As the fear of birth gave way to the joy of a child, as Joseph held this baby – not his by blood but wholly his by choice – and as the night slowly gave way to dawn, something had shifted in this world.

We come together today to celebrate that God did not stay in Heaven. God came to be among us. A miracle beyond comprehension took place some two thousand years ago, and we sing about it today because that miracle has changed everything. Salvation was born that night, life was given to a dying world, and all of that potential and wonder was to be found in the most fragile thing imaginable – a newborn, clinging to his blanket, seeking life and warmth and love.

Today, as recipients of this life, as people who have seen the light that broke out in the darkness of our world, let us see ourselves similarly. Though we are people who must go out, to work and to live and to share the light and love of Christ, we are also as dependent as a baby upon that gift we first received from Christ. We cling to God, we seek the warmth and love and life which we are given, we are helpless apart from our source and our salvation. Tomorrow, the work will begin – to feed the hungry, to preach the gospel, to show the world what this night really means. Tonight, however, let us remember our helplessness, treasure the care God shows us because of our helplessness, and remember that eternity chose to be born, to share in that fragility, all so that we might experience a truly joyful, eternal, and loving life.

Wrap your arms around your loved ones, enjoy every bit of comfort and joy you have been blessed with, and give thanks to the God who came down into the mess of our lives, that we may truly live. – Amen.