12/24/21                                                                                                

Isaiah 9:2-7 Titus 2:11-14 Luke 2:1-14(15-20) The angel said to the shepherds, “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.” In the Name of the one, holy, and undivided Trinity. Amen. This is the message. We are hearing good news of great joy. That news is that our Savior is born. This good news brings great joy to all the people. And there are two parts to this message. First, the Messiah we have been waiting for has finally come. We are all waiting for something. For peace on earth. For an end to the pandemic. For our political leaders to get their act together. For a cure for cancer. For our brother or sister to straighten up. For a new job. For God to do something good for us. And now it has come. All that we could desire has come to us in this promised Messiah. The one anointed by God to establish the reign of God’s compassion, justice, and mercy. To bring us the wholeness, peace, and shalom of God. God has come to us at last. This central truth of our Christian faith is expressed in many ways. “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son.” “In the beginning was the Word … and the Word became flesh and dwellt among us full of grace and truth.” “We believe in Jesus Christ the only son of God.” The second part of the message is the medium by which it came. How did God come? Where? As a baby? In a manger? What kind of an entrance is that? And who are the messengers who bring us this news? A bunch of grubby shepherds. The word “angel” is the Greek word for messenger. These shepherds are our angels announcing the coming of the Messiah. God come to us in humility, as an ordinary person. And the sign that will prove to the shepherds that this really is the messiah will be a baby in a feeding trough. That is pretty unimpressive. I read a wonderful phrase somewhere: God comes to us disguised as our life. God usually is present in the most ordinary things. When we are speaking with a friend. When we are doing the dishes. When we are stuck in traffic. God is always with us. Always Emmanuel. And the most important message of all is that God love us. God is love. God made creation so that there would be more creatures to share in the joy of giving and receiving love. This whole mad world is made as a playground for giving and receiving gifts. We give each other gifts at Christmas to celebrate the staggering fact that God gave Godself to us just because he loves us. As our Presiding Bishop, Michal Curry, says, “If it’s not about love, it’s not about God. In the words of Christina Rosetti: Love came down at Christmas, Love all lovely, love divine; Love was born at Christmas; star and angel gave the sign. God is always with us, loving us. God comes disguised as our life. God comes disguised as challenge and as blessing. God comes to us in our friends and in our enemies. God comes to us in every way imaginable and every way unimaginable. God comes to us as a baby in a manger. Merry Christmas.