December 24, 2006 – Pinewood Lutheran Church

Let us pray: Dear Savior, thank You for coming on this night so many years ago! Thank You for taking on our flesh and blood and shouldering the burden of our sin and our mortality. Thank You meeting us in a manger in love and humbleness. Thank You for reaching out Your hand to us filled with mercy and forgiveness. And thank You for sending us angels to announce Your birth so that there would be no doubt as to Your majesty and goodness. Amen

GRACE MERCY AND PEACE ARE YOURS FROM CHRIST, THE CHRISTMAS KING!

TEXT: Luke 2: 9-14: “An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 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. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.’ Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.’”

Fellow Redeemed In the Blessed Babe of Bethlehem:

Every year I write and receive Christmas letters from relatives and friends. We always get a kick out of those letters, too. That’s because most of them contain a lot of “spin.” They recount the past year and the family exploits in glowing terms. They make it appear as if everyone is always happy, every child is always golden, and their lives are to be envied. You know the type. You literally have to “de-code” them to discover the truth. And then you promptly forget their contents.

For the past few years I have injected humor into my Christmas epistle. (Yes, Pastor’s can and do have a sense of humor—usually!) This year Debra Ann and I talked over what we should include in our letter. I must confess we led a boring life. So, I began by talking about what we didn’t do in 2006 and wish we had. I’ve already received word from one person that they had a good laugh over it! So, I guess it was memorable after all!

Tonight’s text is memorable for another reason. That’s because it contains a timeless story about how God Almighty saves human beings. Everything in it is true. We don’t have to “read-between-the-lines” in order to decipher it. And yet, its glorious message is worth discussing again, again, and again because it is so glorious. So permit me to lay before you:

GOD’S CERTIFIED CHRISTMAS LETTER TO ALL HUMANITY

When I receive notice in my mailbox of a certified letter, I know that something is up. It means it’s important. It means the sender really wants me to receive it. On that first Christmas Eve in the Bethlehem hills, God literally sent a certified letter to all humanity. And to make sure we received it He sent it by heavenly post—through angels.

Angels are spirit-beings, created by God to honor and serve Him. A vital part of that service is their work of watching over us mortals and protecting us. That’s where the term “guardian angel” comes from. Additionally, they happily praise God and honor Him in heaven for His goodness and love—love now extended to lost humans in the form of the Christ-Child. And since all angels reflect God’s essence and are confirmed in His goodness, in the Bible they are all referred to as male. I’ve always liked that. I find it comforting to know that I have a spiritual warrior in my corner who’s not wimpy like modern art conveys them to be today. And by the way, if anyone ever finds a carved male angel to serve as a Christmas tree ornament, let me know. I’ll buy it! I’ve even searched on E-Bay and there’s none out there….

Angels are divided into ranks in heaven. You have regular angels, archangels, seraphims and cerubims. One archangel, Gabriel by name (which means: God is mighty) served as God’s voice to both Mary and Joseph. We don’t know whether or not he also was the one who appeared to the shepherds, but it seems likely. And God sent him because He wanted those humble men to know without any doubt the wonderful contents of His Christmas Letter to the human race. For you see, the heavenly angels never make mistakes.

When Gabriel appeared to the shepherds he reflected the unveiled glory of God. They were dazzled by his brilliance on that dark night. They were awed by his purity. And they were terrified—because his glory was in direct opposition to their own sin and mortality. And the first thing he said was: “Do not be afraid.” Those are words of love and kindness. Yes, such is the message of Christmas. And then comes the most important part of God’s Christmas letter: “I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you.”

God’s Christmas letter isn’t for a select few. It isn’t just for His “friends.” That’s because He had no human friends. By nature all people, all of us, were enemies of God. We were born into a condition of rebellion against the Creator inherited along with our pride from Adam and Eve. The chasm that existed between God and man is seen by the terror these men felt in the presence of an angel. And yet, God’s love for us overcame that chasm. He bridged it by sending us a Savior in the form of His Son—“wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” –No fear there….

Yes, God sent His Christmas epistle to all people because Christ came to save all people. That’s the depth of Godly love. And yet, the key words from those angelic lips were: “a Savior has been born to you.” “To you” is personal. It strikes the heart. There can be no mistake as to God’s intent. “To you” also elicits faith. As we think about the masses who hear the Christmas story and reject it as fanciful, or who walk away with a yawn—“been there, heard that” our hearts are saddened. For by throwing away God’s Christmas letter they are really throwing away His gift of eternal life. They are spitting on Jesus. Ah, but not you! For by God’s grace you have taken God at His word. Yes, “to you” means “to you!”

III

Then to reinforce, to certify, the profundity of what Gabriel said, an entire army of angels appeared in the sky and sang out the real meaning of Christmas. “Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.”

That’s what tonight is about—God’s glory and His gift of eternal peace to those who long for it in humble faith. So, as much as part of us wishes we could have been there that night and seen and heard this message with our own eyes and ears, in the end it really doesn’t matter. That’s because we possess God’s certified letter to all humanity! That Christ Child is ours! Yes, that angelic message still resounds here this very night! Amen

Let us pray: Dear Savior, as we stand on the verge of Your birth in human form, we’re in awe of that miracle! It boggles our minds to think that You, Whom the heavens cannot contain, agreed to take on our flesh and be born in poverty and meekness. And yet, even today that is how You meet us poor sinners.—In the meekness of Your powerful Word of truth, in the meekness of the waters of baptism, and in the meekness of bread and wine in Your holy supper. Lord, thank You for having such compassion on us! Thank You for not overpowering us. Thank You for connecting with us in humility and love. Amen

GRACE MERCY AND PEACE ARE YOURS FROM CHRIST, THE BABY BORN TO SAVE YOU!

TEXT: Luke 1: 39-55

Fellow Redeemed Sinners:

The miracle of birth—that’s what we call it. And that’s because it is! From early teenage years we are taught the mechanics of it—one sperm cell and one egg meet, conception occurs, and nine months later a baby is born. We see the same thing occurring in nature among the lower animals. It has happened billions of times. And yet, when you first hold a new-born baby in your arms and cut the umbilical cord, the miracle of birth becomes real, personal, and strikes awe in your heart. For that little baby is a part of you and all the generations of your family tree. That little baby epitomizes hopes and dreams.

Today we have baptized little baby Nikolas. And another miracle occurred as we did so. For God Almighty sent His Spirit of love to work faith into his heart and make him a heavenly child—a member of God’s family. Every soul, from conception on, is important and valuable to God. But now his little soul takes on a new value because as of today he’s a certain heir of eternal life! Yes, precious is this child!

This morning we stand on the verge of Christmas. And in order to prepare our hearts to meet the Baby Jesus, God has given us this wonderful little text from St. Luke’s gospel. In it we meet two mothers carrying two babies, both of which were miracles beyond our understanding, and both of which changed the world, our world for the better. Yes,

PRECIOUS IS THE CHILD!

The virgin Mary had a cousin named: Elizabeth. She was married to a rural priest named: Zechariah. They were expecting a child in another 3 months. Mary is now pregnant with the Christ child. She goes off the visit Elizabeth, apparently under God’s guidance. We don’t know if Mary sent advance notice of her coming. We don’t know if the relatives heard of Mary’s pregnancy and told her about it, or if God did so. Personally, I believe God did it as Elizabeth has knowledge that Mary is carrying the Messiah. In any event, when they first come together and greet each other, Luke tells us this: “When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. In a loud voice she exclaimed: ‘Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished.’”

Elizabeth was carrying John the Baptist. He was to pave the way for Jesus’ ministry. And right here, even before they are born, John of whom Christ later says: “No one greater has ever been born of a woman” pays homage to his Savior! Yes, even before birth Christ is precious to Mary, to Elizabeth, and even to John! Is He equally precious to you? Are you thrilled to your core at His coming? Do you plan on paying homage to Him with your time and energy over the next 24 hours? You should. For both our hopes and our fears, our longing for deliverance from a pain-filled world and our deep-seated wish for a blessed future are met in the Christ child! For He, and He alone came to make peace between God and man. He alone came to free us from death and despair. In Him alone we can reach our full potential as human beings, as children of our eternal Father. What a Christmas gift! Yes, precious is this Child!

The second half of our lesson is Mary’s song of praise to God over this miracle—both as to her miraculous conception and the pending birth of God’s Son. Although I have never given birth and never will—such is the condition of all males!—I’ll bet that every single mother’s heart is stirred by Mary’s words. For in a grandiose, majestic manner they encapsulate a new mother’s emotions—just a bit.

And her first few words set the tone for the entire “Magnificat” as it is termed. “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” If every birth is a miracle, than this birth was the miracle of miracles! For Mary is carrying God’s eternal Son! She knows and believes the many Old Testament passages about His coming, too. And of course, God caused those prophecies to be written because He wanted people to have advance notice of the greatest event in human history. She knows He will save souls, restore broken bodies, and cut through the blindness of human pride and arrogance with perfect love and perfect forgiveness. Yes, God always keeps His word, and in Christ He proved it! For this Mary honors God. She seeks to enlarge His name. She wants everyone to know just how precious is the Child!

Every one of us, but especially his family, would say that little baby Nikolas it precious—to us and to God. For that is what baptism means.—He’s precious to God because God now dwells within him. But what baby is precious to little Nikolas? You know the answer since Mary provides it. If he could talk, little Nikolas would say: The Baby Jesus is precious to me!” So, learn from the mouth of an infant, have your soul stirred this Christmas, leap for joy at His presence in your heart of hearts, and be saved! Amen