Isaiah 9:2-7; Titus 2:11-14; St Luke 2:1-20
In the Name + of JESUS. Amen.
We all know the Christmas Gospel. Decrees and shepherds. Angels and mangers. Its familiar to us. Its nostalgic. It conjures memories of fires and hot cocoa. Of children reading from the family Bible in front of the Christmas tree. Even those who rarely attend church, they never miss Christmas Eve and the reading of Luke 2, because, for many, it offers a brief respite, a serene pause from an otherwise frantic and frenzied holiday season. And that’s fine.
Well, its not really fine. Our Lord wants you here every Lord’s Day. He desires for you to be gathered around the manger of His Altar, regularly hearing His Word and frequently receiving His gifts. Not just on the “special” days. Every Sunday. This is how you live from His Advent and Christmas. Not just a few times a year, but weekly. For every Sunday is a little Advent and Christmas, Epiphany and Lent, Holy Week and Good Friday. Every Sunday is Easter and the Ascension and the Return of Christ. Every Sunday is the entirety of Christ’s life, death, resurrection and ascension delivered to you! And He wants you to have it.
But you’re here now. And that’s good.
Even if you are a regular attender, though, there is a temptation inherent in this night and this Gospel text, I think. The temptation to hear it as a fable. A legend. A myth. To just imagine it as a fairy-tale story giving a sliver of Christmas cheer in a bleak world. Like ringing bells giving wings to angels. We half expect George Bailey to show up with Zuzu’s petals.
Luke wants you to be drawn into his narrative, to be sure. But he doesn’t want you to be drawn away from reality and into fantasy. Let’s be clear. Luke, and all the evangelists, are recording history. Real. Actual. History. Luke is especially concerned with compiling an orderly account from direct eyewitnesses. He has carefully done his research about everything from the beginning. He is concerned with precision, accuracy, and certainty. Not nostalgia, sentiment, and fond memories.
Caesar Augustus really lived. He really ordered a census of the entire Roman Empire. This is well known to historians. About the year 6 BC Quirinius was given the governing power of the East. And in about 4 BC a man named Joseph who was betrothed to a young, pregnant woman named Mary, traveled to their ancestral city to be registered.
And because they weren’t the only travelers who came to Bethlehem for the registration, there was no room for them in the village inn. And either no other home had a vacancy. Or, more likely, their families were ashamed of them, and so they were resigned to spend their nights in the stable with the animals. And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn Son and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths and laid Him in a manger.
Sure, its not a precise, secretarial record. The background information, though accurate, is stylized. All superfluous items recede into the shadows or into forgetfulness. Its not a stenographic account, but the Scriptures are speaking of history. Only, they tell the events in a fashion much like an artist painting a picture. And tonight you are invited to smell the Scriptures. To taste them. Feel them. Experience and participate in them.
So it’s not like reading Dickens or Seuss on Christmas Eve. Or even like reading the ancient histories of Eusebius or Josephus. Scripture, while history, isn’t mere information. The beauty of Luke’s account, and all the Scriptures, is that it is the inspired and inerrant Word of the Lord which is living and active. It not only invites you to behold the story, it actually enfolds you, like a Babe in swaddling cloths, into the narrative!
And what you begin to realize is that far from being an idyllic winter journey of a young couple on their way to their hometown, this Christmas story is one of displacement, loneliness, fear and discomfort. A story of a first time Mother giving birth in a stable without the comfort of a family around her.
And now its not memories of hot cocoa and carols. Its real. Its tangible. And its not that dissimilar to our world today, having gone through our own nine months of extreme uncertainty, fear, and loneliness.
But fear not, for Luke, the evangelist-artist, sharpens the focus. Caesar Augustus ordered the census that caused them to travel. But the Lord our God is the One who controls all things. He uses Augustus even as He will later use Pilate and Herod. The Scriptures record history because our God acts in history. He is the Author of history. He works all things according to His will and Word. The nations rage. The peoples plot in vain. The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and against His Anointed. But He who sits in the heavens laughs. The Lord holds them in derision (Ps 2; Introit).
And you begin to realize that Joseph and Mary didn’t end up in Bethlehem because of a census ordered by a pagan ruler. Or because its cutesy and nice. Christ is born in Bethlehem because it fulfills the Word of the Lord spoken through the prophet Micah: But you, O Bethlehem Ephratha, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come for Me one who is to be Ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days (Micah 5:2). And Isaiah, For to us a Child is born, to us a Son is given; and the government shall be upon His shoulder.
He’s not wrapped in swaddling cloths and placed in a manger because it makes a sweet memory. But because even at His birth He is already preparing for His death. For when He will be wrapped in grave cloths and placed in a tomb. And this is all according to His will and Word. Not happenstance or political maneuvering. The Savior, who is Christ the Lord, choose to be born in the City of David. He who lacks nothing chose to be born in great poverty and wretchedness for us. To be found that night in a lowly cattle shed.
And where are we? Where are you in this story? How does Luke enfold you into the Nativity? You are in the same place you find yourselves now. You, dear Christians, are out in the fields with the shepherds. You are relegated to the outskirts and borders. To the margins of society. Pushed aside for being lowly and despised. But do not take offense at this nor be embarrassed.
For to you the Lord sends His messengers to bring you good news of great joy. And though you are filled with fear and anxiety and trepidation, His Word not only invites you to come to find Him at the manger of His Altar. His Word actually makes this place a Bethlehem, His “House of Bread.” For the Word of the Lord does what it says. It is not nostalgia. Not information. It is living and active. He speaks and it is so.
Its not memories, dear friends, or even mere historical accounts, but reality that here, a multitude of the heavenly host praise God saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom He is pleased!” The Gloria in Excelsis isn’t sentiment. You are actually joined to the angel choirs, lifting your voice in concert with theirs, as the One born in the City of David, your Savior, Christ the Lord, brings heaven down to earth.
At this great good news the shepherds left their flocks. Their livelihood and safety was no longer their chief concern, but they immediately rushed out to go and see the Little Child, the Lord, the Savior of all.
You too, dear friends, come over to this Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened! For the Lord has made known to you that salvation is not in heaven. It is on earth, where the Savior was not only born for us, but even now, comes to us. Heaven is not some distant place. It is here. It is in this place. Not only tonight, but each and every Lord’s Day. Every time the Word is read and preached. Every time the Body and Blood of the Savior given. Every time the holy liturgy itself brings Christ to you and you to Christ. Come with haste and hear and see and taste this thing which has happened.
And let the nations rage. But fear not. Let the rulers take counsel together. But do not be afraid. For the God who sets the boundaries for the oceans and restricts the planets in their orbits allows Himself to be bound and restricted by tightly wrapped cloths. He who sits in the heavens and laughs at the schemes of men, has, for us men and for our salvation, come down from heaven and joined Himself to us.
He brings peace on earth among those with whom He is pleased. A peace which the world cannot give. A peace that guards your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. A peace that surpasses all human understanding.
Beloved, such peace is bestowed upon you here in the Pax Domini. The Peace of the Lord which is yours now and always. The Peace that comes from His Body, born of Mary, wrapped in swaddling cloths, nailed to the Cross, wrapped in burial cloths, raised from the dead, ascended and glorified, now come to you here wrapped in Bread. He who was placed into a feed trough for beasts, places Himself into the manger of your hand and on your tongue that we, who have become beastly in our sin, may feed on Him.
This is peace between heaven and earth, between God and Man. In the God-Man Jesus Christ. In His Body and Blood.
No decrees from Caesar can keep you from journeying to this Bethlehem. No governors’ registrations can limit your access. The Lord desires your salvation. He desires you here. To regularly and diligently hear preaching and His Word, which alone creates and sustains saving faith. To hold firmly to all that He has spoken to you. Treasuring it and pondering it in your heart, even as Mary did.
My friends, keep on searching and studying God’s Word, especially in time of turmoil, confusion, fear and anxiety. For the longer you do this, the greater your understanding of His Word will become. And the greater comfort you will find in it. With each passing day, come what may, your faith becomes more sure. So that when the devil and your sinful flesh hound you and don’t let you have a moment’s peace, within or without, your mind is captive to the Word of Christ. And your conscience is at peace.
So that even if the whole world opposes you, rejecting Christ and His Word, you believe and confess that this Child, born of Mary, is indeed the Son of God, the Lord of all mankind, your Savior and Redeemer.
This is not sentiment or nostalgia. This is reality. This is your hope. This is all your life and salvation. Thus do we sing with angelic joy, Glory be to God on high and on earth peace, goodwill toward men.
Merry Christmas. In the Name of the Father and + of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
In the Name + of JESUS. Amen.
We all know the Christmas Gospel. Decrees and shepherds. Angels and mangers. Its familiar to us. Its nostalgic. It conjures memories of fires and hot cocoa. Of children reading from the family Bible in front of the Christmas tree. Even those who rarely attend church, they never miss Christmas Eve and the reading of Luke 2, because, for many, it offers a brief respite, a serene pause from an otherwise frantic and frenzied holiday season. And that’s fine.
Well, its not really fine. Our Lord wants you here every Lord’s Day. He desires for you to be gathered around the manger of His Altar, regularly hearing His Word and frequently receiving His gifts. Not just on the “special” days. Every Sunday. This is how you live from His Advent and Christmas. Not just a few times a year, but weekly. For every Sunday is a little Advent and Christmas, Epiphany and Lent, Holy Week and Good Friday. Every Sunday is Easter and the Ascension and the Return of Christ. Every Sunday is the entirety of Christ’s life, death, resurrection and ascension delivered to you! And He wants you to have it.
But you’re here now. And that’s good.
Even if you are a regular attender, though, there is a temptation inherent in this night and this Gospel text, I think. The temptation to hear it as a fable. A legend. A myth. To just imagine it as a fairy-tale story giving a sliver of Christmas cheer in a bleak world. Like ringing bells giving wings to angels. We half expect George Bailey to show up with Zuzu’s petals.
Luke wants you to be drawn into his narrative, to be sure. But he doesn’t want you to be drawn away from reality and into fantasy. Let’s be clear. Luke, and all the evangelists, are recording history. Real. Actual. History. Luke is especially concerned with compiling an orderly account from direct eyewitnesses. He has carefully done his research about everything from the beginning. He is concerned with precision, accuracy, and certainty. Not nostalgia, sentiment, and fond memories.
Caesar Augustus really lived. He really ordered a census of the entire Roman Empire. This is well known to historians. About the year 6 BC Quirinius was given the governing power of the East. And in about 4 BC a man named Joseph who was betrothed to a young, pregnant woman named Mary, traveled to their ancestral city to be registered.
And because they weren’t the only travelers who came to Bethlehem for the registration, there was no room for them in the village inn. And either no other home had a vacancy. Or, more likely, their families were ashamed of them, and so they were resigned to spend their nights in the stable with the animals. And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn Son and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths and laid Him in a manger.
Sure, its not a precise, secretarial record. The background information, though accurate, is stylized. All superfluous items recede into the shadows or into forgetfulness. Its not a stenographic account, but the Scriptures are speaking of history. Only, they tell the events in a fashion much like an artist painting a picture. And tonight you are invited to smell the Scriptures. To taste them. Feel them. Experience and participate in them.
So it’s not like reading Dickens or Seuss on Christmas Eve. Or even like reading the ancient histories of Eusebius or Josephus. Scripture, while history, isn’t mere information. The beauty of Luke’s account, and all the Scriptures, is that it is the inspired and inerrant Word of the Lord which is living and active. It not only invites you to behold the story, it actually enfolds you, like a Babe in swaddling cloths, into the narrative!
And what you begin to realize is that far from being an idyllic winter journey of a young couple on their way to their hometown, this Christmas story is one of displacement, loneliness, fear and discomfort. A story of a first time Mother giving birth in a stable without the comfort of a family around her.
And now its not memories of hot cocoa and carols. Its real. Its tangible. And its not that dissimilar to our world today, having gone through our own nine months of extreme uncertainty, fear, and loneliness.
But fear not, for Luke, the evangelist-artist, sharpens the focus. Caesar Augustus ordered the census that caused them to travel. But the Lord our God is the One who controls all things. He uses Augustus even as He will later use Pilate and Herod. The Scriptures record history because our God acts in history. He is the Author of history. He works all things according to His will and Word. The nations rage. The peoples plot in vain. The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and against His Anointed. But He who sits in the heavens laughs. The Lord holds them in derision (Ps 2; Introit).
And you begin to realize that Joseph and Mary didn’t end up in Bethlehem because of a census ordered by a pagan ruler. Or because its cutesy and nice. Christ is born in Bethlehem because it fulfills the Word of the Lord spoken through the prophet Micah: But you, O Bethlehem Ephratha, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come for Me one who is to be Ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days (Micah 5:2). And Isaiah, For to us a Child is born, to us a Son is given; and the government shall be upon His shoulder.
He’s not wrapped in swaddling cloths and placed in a manger because it makes a sweet memory. But because even at His birth He is already preparing for His death. For when He will be wrapped in grave cloths and placed in a tomb. And this is all according to His will and Word. Not happenstance or political maneuvering. The Savior, who is Christ the Lord, choose to be born in the City of David. He who lacks nothing chose to be born in great poverty and wretchedness for us. To be found that night in a lowly cattle shed.
And where are we? Where are you in this story? How does Luke enfold you into the Nativity? You are in the same place you find yourselves now. You, dear Christians, are out in the fields with the shepherds. You are relegated to the outskirts and borders. To the margins of society. Pushed aside for being lowly and despised. But do not take offense at this nor be embarrassed.
For to you the Lord sends His messengers to bring you good news of great joy. And though you are filled with fear and anxiety and trepidation, His Word not only invites you to come to find Him at the manger of His Altar. His Word actually makes this place a Bethlehem, His “House of Bread.” For the Word of the Lord does what it says. It is not nostalgia. Not information. It is living and active. He speaks and it is so.
Its not memories, dear friends, or even mere historical accounts, but reality that here, a multitude of the heavenly host praise God saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom He is pleased!” The Gloria in Excelsis isn’t sentiment. You are actually joined to the angel choirs, lifting your voice in concert with theirs, as the One born in the City of David, your Savior, Christ the Lord, brings heaven down to earth.
At this great good news the shepherds left their flocks. Their livelihood and safety was no longer their chief concern, but they immediately rushed out to go and see the Little Child, the Lord, the Savior of all.
You too, dear friends, come over to this Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened! For the Lord has made known to you that salvation is not in heaven. It is on earth, where the Savior was not only born for us, but even now, comes to us. Heaven is not some distant place. It is here. It is in this place. Not only tonight, but each and every Lord’s Day. Every time the Word is read and preached. Every time the Body and Blood of the Savior given. Every time the holy liturgy itself brings Christ to you and you to Christ. Come with haste and hear and see and taste this thing which has happened.
And let the nations rage. But fear not. Let the rulers take counsel together. But do not be afraid. For the God who sets the boundaries for the oceans and restricts the planets in their orbits allows Himself to be bound and restricted by tightly wrapped cloths. He who sits in the heavens and laughs at the schemes of men, has, for us men and for our salvation, come down from heaven and joined Himself to us.
He brings peace on earth among those with whom He is pleased. A peace which the world cannot give. A peace that guards your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. A peace that surpasses all human understanding.
Beloved, such peace is bestowed upon you here in the Pax Domini. The Peace of the Lord which is yours now and always. The Peace that comes from His Body, born of Mary, wrapped in swaddling cloths, nailed to the Cross, wrapped in burial cloths, raised from the dead, ascended and glorified, now come to you here wrapped in Bread. He who was placed into a feed trough for beasts, places Himself into the manger of your hand and on your tongue that we, who have become beastly in our sin, may feed on Him.
This is peace between heaven and earth, between God and Man. In the God-Man Jesus Christ. In His Body and Blood.
No decrees from Caesar can keep you from journeying to this Bethlehem. No governors’ registrations can limit your access. The Lord desires your salvation. He desires you here. To regularly and diligently hear preaching and His Word, which alone creates and sustains saving faith. To hold firmly to all that He has spoken to you. Treasuring it and pondering it in your heart, even as Mary did.
My friends, keep on searching and studying God’s Word, especially in time of turmoil, confusion, fear and anxiety. For the longer you do this, the greater your understanding of His Word will become. And the greater comfort you will find in it. With each passing day, come what may, your faith becomes more sure. So that when the devil and your sinful flesh hound you and don’t let you have a moment’s peace, within or without, your mind is captive to the Word of Christ. And your conscience is at peace.
So that even if the whole world opposes you, rejecting Christ and His Word, you believe and confess that this Child, born of Mary, is indeed the Son of God, the Lord of all mankind, your Savior and Redeemer.
This is not sentiment or nostalgia. This is reality. This is your hope. This is all your life and salvation. Thus do we sing with angelic joy, Glory be to God on high and on earth peace, goodwill toward men.
Merry Christmas. In the Name of the Father and + of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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