Christmas Day

The Lord Jesus is come. Today is His birthday. A holy day has dawned upon us. Come, you nations and adore the Lord. For today a great light has come upon the earth.

This is the day the Old Testament prophets spoke of, Isaiah said “The virgin shall be with child and she shall bear a son and shall call him Emmanuel. That is God is with us.”

Two concerns are before us this morning and they are: the circumstance of Jesus birth and to ask why through history the nations have not come to adore Him. Some have, most have not.

The Gospel of John is an explanation of who Jesus is “The word was with God and the word was God. The word became flesh and dwelt among us.”

What did Jesus himself say about his coming, “I came that they may have life and have it more abundantly.” JN 10:10 “What came to be through him was life, and this life was the light of the human race.” JN 1 “He who finds his life will lose it but he who loses his life for my sake will find it unto life even lasting.”

When we examine a nativity scene we see the stable in Bethlehem with the animals, Mary and Joseph and the baby Jesus in the manger. There is usually a little lamb in front looking at the crib. And of course the stars are shining brightly over all, and the shepherds.

The name Bethlehem means city of bread. The manger is feeding trough for the animals. The little lamb is gazing at Him who will become the Lamb of God. The bright star will draw the shepherds and later the three kings from the East. This is the beginning of the final chapter in salvation history, the new and everlasting covenant. “I came that they may have life and have it more abundantly.”

Christians are joyful today because God has entered human history to overcome the break, the estrangement with God mankind suffered because of the original sin of pride of Adam and Eve. Because of Christ’s taking on our human nature and redeeming it, we can, by taking on the humility and lowliness of Christ, and by living in the sanctifying grace that comes from the cross, become like Him and live in Him. And thereby grow in holiness so that heaven will begin to take shape in us in the here and now.

By a spiritual battle and struggle in cooperation with the grace Christ has won for us we can recapture our inheritance as heirs of the kingdom and sons and daughters of God our Father. Be steadfast in faith. And believe that what God promised us will be ours. Those who persevere and “endure to the end will be saved.”

The need we have is to rise to the occasion and not turn back. To not think we are self sufficient. Because Jesus reminds us: “That without me you can do nothing.”

St. Paul speaks to us of the Father’s words which refer to this new born child: “You are my son. This day I have begotten you.” “I will be a Father to Him, and He shall be a son to me. And let all the angles of God worship Him.”

Today the good news has come into our world, into our midst. But it is not the end of the story but only the beginning. The coming of the Messiah was prophesied to the Jews but it was not God’s plan to send them a worldly ruler, a warrior king, but a Savior who would suffer and die for God’s people. He would be the figure of the goat upon whose head the sins of the people would be placed by the Levitical priest and sent out into the dessert to die on the feast of Yom Kippor.

The sign of the Cross can be discerned this morning in the stable of Bethlehem. The figure of the high priest is to be seen in the manger. The battle for eternal life begins against the eternal prince of darkness. Observe the feasts, memorials and solemnities that occur within the Octave of Christmas and in the Christmas season. St. Stephen the first martyr, the Holy Innocents, the Holy Family, Mary, the Mother of God, the Epiphany and ending with the Baptism of the Lord.

Baptism, by Christ’s design, is the door, the entry way to eternal life. Christ, this new born child, is the door to the sheepfold in JN 10:1 Jesus says: “Amen, Amen I say to you, He who enters not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbs up another way, is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is shepherd of the sheep. To this man the gate keeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them forth.” The shepherds at the crib are pointing to the Good Shepherd. It is not our intention to lessen the joy of this great day. However all through Advent the two comings of Christ were emphasized. It is the second for which this day was made.

Jesus has said in JN 16:33 “These things I have spoken to you that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have affliction. But take courage, I have overcome the world.”

The second concern is “Why, through history have the nations not come to adore Him?” It is because we cannot serve two masters and the leaders of the nations find it more rewarding to serve themselves in this world than to serve Christ. People cry: “Peace, peace” but there is no peace.

The very essence and meaning of lowliness and humility is found this morning in the fact that almighty God has become a helpless child and placed Himself in the world of men who want to take His life

He who seeks love, peace, security and abundant life must be willing to lower himself in order to enter Christ, the babe of Bethlehem who is the door to heaven.