a sermon for Christmas Eve 2007
on Luke 2.1-21
by David C. Mauldin
Westminster Presbyterian Church, Mobile, Alabama
Let me tell you about Advent. I went shopping to buy my wife a Christmas
present. I found just the right thing. I was in a department store, so I went
looking for a cashier. One register was closed. Another had a long line. Finally
I found one without too many people. There weren’t many of them, but they each
took a long time. Finally I reached the front, made my purchase, and headed off.
Something was amiss, however. I had used a coupon, but the price seemed a bit
higher than I expected. I double checked it, and sure enough, I had been
overcharged. So I went back to the cashier, who in less than a minute had
acquired a long line of customers. I waited again, longer this time. Finally I
made it back to the front and explained the problem.
It was a bit of a problem, actually, because the coupon could be used only once.
The easy thing would have been to refund the wrong price and ring up the right
one, but then the coupon wouldn’t work. The only way to fix it required a
manager’s approval. After a few phone calls upstairs, the cashier concluded the
manager was unreachable. He was suspected to be in men’s wear, so the cashier
gave me the necessary paperwork and off I went. The manager was easy to find and
very nice, and before I knew it I was back at the register again … behind
another long line. This is one of those situations where being a pastor helps me
be a better Christian. I fought the urge to be sarcastic and rude all the way up
the line. I was polite, though perhaps a bit dry. I thanked the cashier when the
transaction was finally properly made, and left. It actually took longer to buy
the gift than to find it in the first place. Still, leaving the store I was in a
good mood because I found just the right thing.
That is Advent. Advent is about waiting, impatiently, eagerly, because you know
in the end things will be just right. God’s people know about waiting. The time
from God’s promise to Abraham until the birth of Jesus was roughly 1800 years.
The time from King David until the birth of Jesus was roughly 1000. The time
from the exile and the prophets who spoke a word of hope into that desperate
situation until the birth of Jesus was about 650 years. The time from Gabriel’s
announcement to Mary until the birth of Jesus was at least 9 months. The time
from Jesus’ birth until his death and resurrection was over 30 years. The time
from his ascension to the right hand of the Father until his coming again to
raise the dead and make all things new has been nearly 2000 years and counting.
God is incredibly patient. Waiting is one of the things God’s people have to do.
We know, however, the question is never “if” but “when.” Not if God will save
us, establish peace, set the world right, and keep all his wonderful promises.
But when he will do so.
That’s Advent. Now let me tell you about Christmas. There was a family of modest
means. They had the basics and that was about it. The joy of the parents in this
family was their only child, a son. He was graduating high school and heading
off to college. Because he was a good student, he had some scholarships. He knew
his parents could not afford to pay for his education, but he hoped that the
combination of scholarships, work, and a few loans would cover the tab. What he
hoped they could provide for him was a laptop. That’s what he asked for as a
graduation gift, although he felt bad doing it because he doubted his parents
could easily afford one. He needed it though, and he hoped they would come
through.
Graduation day came and the celebration. When his father brought out the gift,
the son was disappointed. The box was much too small to be a computer. Trying to
hide his feelings, the boy opened the box. Inside was a key. “What’s this?” he
asked. “It’s a key, son.” “I know that. What’s it for?” “It goes to your new
truck!”
Stunned, the boy ran to the window and saw in the driveway a brand new top of
the line truck. His mother said, “That’s not all. Go look inside.” He did, and
he found on the front seat a brand new, top of the line laptop PC. Beside it was
a cashier’s check made payable to him for $100,000.
“How is this possible?” he asked, overwhelmed by his parent’s sudden wealth and
generosity. “Your father inherited some money,” his mother told him. “We would
have told you, but we wanted it to be a surprise.” It was. It was more than he
had dreamed was possible. He didn’t know what to say or do. He just hugged his
parents and cried.
That is Christmas. Christmas is getting not what you wanted or needed but
amazingly more—so much more you almost cannot believe it is real. When Jesus was
born, devout Jews were hoping for a Savior. If God had raised up a great hero,
they would have been happy. He didn’t have to be the Son of God, didn’t have to
be God-in-the-flesh. He didn’t have to be the Savior of the world. If he had
freed Israel from pagan control and established peace and justice, that would
have been enough. Someone like King David, that’s all they dared hope for. That
would have been enough for them … but not for God.
In Isaiah 49:6, God the Father says to the Son: “It is too small a thing for you
to be my servant to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Israel I
have kept. I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring my
salvation to the ends of the earth.” At Christmas, God sent not just a Savior
for Israel, but a Savior for the whole world. He sent someone who would not only
bring peace and justice, but would also make us a new creation. The broken
relationships we have with God, other people, and nature are healed by Jesus. He
gives life and life more abundant and free. He brings to us forgiveness and
healing, and he transforms us into the people God created us to be. He gives us
new hearts and a new covenant with God. God could have raised up a deliverer for
Israel from among his people. Instead he came himself. Humbling himself for our
sake, because of his great love for us, the Word took flesh and dwelt among us.
You see why I say Christmas is like the boy’s graduation. Who could have
imagined all this? Who would have believed it? In Jesus we find grace upon grace
upon grace. Take your deepest hope and aspirations—everything you could ever
want out of life—and present them before God. What does he say? Does he say, “If
you are good, you might get some of this stuff?” No, he doesn’t. He looks at the
desires of your heart, smiles, and says, “It is too small a thing. I have
something greater, something better, something you cannot imagine and would
never dare to hope for. It is my gift to you.”
Shepherds, living in the fields, keeping watch over their flocks by night—what
were their dreams? For what did they hope? What would it have taken to give them
lasting peace and joy? Suddenly an angel appears before them and says, “Do not
be afraid.” In scripture God’s grace is so overwhelming that his messengers
routinely have to tell people not to be afraid. Think of Jesus on Easter Sunday.
God’s grace so far exceeds our expectations that it scares us. The angel
continued, “I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.”
Not just some. Not just the rich or the young or the emotionally well-adjusted.
All the people. “Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is
Christ the Lord.” These shepherds, being Jews, knew God’s promises and knew what
this meant. Those special words town of David, Savior, Christ the Lord were
densely packed code words, each containing part of the story of God and his
people. Christ is the Greek word for the Hebrew title Messiah. It means
“anointed one.” The Messiah was God’s anointed ruler. More exciting news they
could not have received. “This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby
wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” This part may have been a shock.
David’s heir and God’s anointed might have been expected to enter the world in
more prosperous circumstances. But then again, David himself had relatively
humble origins. Like them he had been a shepherd. Have you ever wondered why
shepherds on the hills around Bethlehem were the first to hear the Good News of
Jesus’ birth? Only God knows for sure, but it was certainly fitting that those
who were shepherds as David had been and in the same place he had watched his
father’s flocks were the first to know when God kept his promise to David by
sending the Messiah.
Then the angel choir appeared and completely blew them away. Could they
comprehend it? No. Could they take it all in? No. That’s how God’s grace is. It
overwhelms us. All they could do was go and find the baby and worship him in awe
and wonder. That’s the right thing for us to do too. God overwhelms us with his
grace, perhaps when we least expect it, and all we can do is bow before him in
love and gratitude.
One final point I want to make. God knows us better than we know ourselves. He
says our dreams are too small, and they are. We think we will be happy and
content if only … if only we had a bit more money or a job we like more or
better health or a few more years or if we achieved some goal. Some of us dream
bigger than others. Some are content to be with the people they love, pay the
bills, and have a little left over. Other dream of running a successful
business, making a name in politics, winning a prestigious prize, leaving a mark
on the world. It doesn’t matter what your dreams are. Some may be sinful and
selfish; some may be inspired by God. God knows what we often do not realize,
that no matter what we have or achieve, we never find true and lasting
fulfillment apart from him. He made us in his image, and we will always be
missing something critical until we are reconciled to him and bow before him in
love. So on the one hand, God could have given much less than Jesus and the
first century Jews, the shepherds, and we ourselves might have still considered
him generous beyond our expectations. They and we might have gotten everything
we wanted and more. But on the other hand, without Jesus we would never have the
most important things—the new heart, those healed relationships, the new
covenant, and eternal life. God gave us more than we wanted or expected. Yet he
gave us exactly what we needed. Thanks be to God for his amazing, overwhelming,
glorious gift!
Tonight, I do not get the last word. Let the angel chorus conclude this sermon.
What did they sing? “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace
among those whom he favors!” Amen.