Good morning Sunrise! We are rapidly approaching that point of time when, ready or not, Christmas is here. That's what this season of Advent helps us to understand. Most people think that Advent is a season of preparation because Christmas is coming, but in reality, it means it is upon us, it is at hand, and for all of our pretenses today, it is next week! Are you ready?! As some of the last minute and final touches that we are putting on our spiritual and theological understanding of Christmas, we are finishing up a Advent series called, (I'll Have a) Blu-ray Christmas, in which we look at some clips form the classic Christmas movies that most of us will sit down and watch at some point during this holiday season. In most of these films, if you look, it's not too hard to take from them a bit of the gospel truth.
It is amazing to me how many people will envision what they consider a perfect Christmas. They tend to daydream that they can live out scenes from Norman Rockwell's illustrations, but there is a problem with that though - it involves other people, other messed-up, opinionated people.
(Video Clip from Christmas Vacation shown - inlaws arrive)
Yet, year after year, idealists from all walks of life still dream and strive for that Christmas to be the best, the most memorable Christmas. But you know what? You don't have to be an idealist or to have your heads in the clouds to want to have a meaningful Christmas. I truly believe that most people do. That's why each year, most of us worry about how we are going to get to Bethlehem this year. Most pastors will fret over what methods and means will we employ to make fresh a story that most know well, albeit distorted for some. But this is not a problem that only pastors face. Anyone who yearns to deepen their faith in Jesus will ask in some fashion, "How are we going to once again encounter that moment where God broke forth and broke out to be known as, Immanuel, God with us?"
The problem is that for whatever reason, many will tend to emphasize the decorations of Christmas rather than the baby. Many folks will point to the movies, the Christmas functions, the parties, the presents, and while not forgetting, will basically ignore Jesus. Think about many of the songs that are played on the 24-hour Christmas music stations.
My all-time least favorite Christmas song is Last Christmas. You know the one I'm referring to? If you aren't familiar with this song, I'm sorry, but I don't believe I can stomach any more of it. You may ask why I loathe this song so much, to which I reply, Really? No, I think I probably have vested upon it all of my frustrations with the world missing the point of Christmas. I mean think about it, you could change in the song the word "Christmas" to any other day and it would not change the intent of the song.
Last Friday, I gave you my heart.... Last Groundhog's Day, I gave you my heart...
So, this morning, I want us to take just a moment to look beyond all of that to the crux of Christmas. We'll find it in the Gospel According to Luke, chapter 2:8-14
8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." 13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, 14 "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."
[Prayer]
Luke probably has the most well-known birth narrative of Jesus. When churches present their Christmas pageants or nativity scenes, they usually base them mostly on Luke's rendition. It is filled with images that we hold near and dear: Mary, Joseph, the newborn baby lying in a manger, angels, and shepherds (no wise men though - that's Matthew's version). When you think of Jesus birth, you can thank Luke for giving us the images of which we envision. Although this story of the shepherds evokes a positive pastoral image for those of us who read and hear the story today, in the first century it caused quite a shock.
No, it wasn't the scandal of the unwed mother, virgin or not. It wasn't the angels proclaiming the birth of a new king. The shock simply came about because of the shepherds. Shepherds were considered to lowly, shiftless, and dishonest people who grazed their flocks on other people's land. These were not people that any good Christian man, woman, or child would associate with. Yet, it was to this group of people that the birth of Jesus is announced.
I think that's why I love Luke for including this scene in his gospel, because it dramatically revels God's intention with Jesus. It underscores that Jesus is for everyone - not just for the rich and powerful, nor just for the poor and outcasts. How easy would it have been for the upright religious people to say that Jesus came just for them. Then again, the outcasts could have exclaimed that God only cares for them because Jesus was born in humble conditions and the first to come to worship were shepherds. But he familiarity of theses words should not prevent us from overhearing that, first and foremost, the birth of Jesus is a sign of God's abundant grace. That sounds almost too good to be true, doesn't it? A God who loves the poor and the rich, the powerful and the despised, the faithful and the wretched...Maybe, just maybe, that could be the source of some of the wonder and mystery that the world embraces during the season.
(Video Clip from Christmas Vacation is shown - supper scene when Clark announces Santa's sleigh has been spotted)
You have to love Eddie's response there, "You serious, Clark?" Could fantastic tales of Christmas be true? Familiar as it may seem, for the most part, Christmas often seems to be just a bit more than a fairy tale, a wonderful story that provides us with a brief escape from the chaotic world we live in and face day after day.
The world of two millennia ago, in which we read about, progressed each day under the guidance and auspices of Caesar Augustus, who was hailed as the great bringer of peace. But on a night when the world was not expecting anything special or out of the ordinary, real peace, God's peace was birthed to a transient family, in the small and trifling town of Bethlehem. The Peace of which we embrace today is knowing that God has not forgotten anyone. God has not abandoned us to the brokenness we have created. That's the Peace of Christmas.
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