Christmas 2011
This morning I read a news story about violence that had happened in various parts of the United States – I understand there was disorder in places as far apart as California and Georgia – in Seattle, Police used pepper spray on people causing trouble, elsewhere a policeman was punched, and in a number of places shops were broken into – the cause of this trouble though was not some deep grievance over poverty or anything like that – but because the people were desperate to get hold of a particular brand of training shoe ! ((Nike Air Jordan II Retro Concords)
It would be easy to take this as the start of another Christmas message criticising the commercialism, even madness, of our modern Christmas – but actually tonight isn’t a night about negative things, but about stressing the positive message of a Saviour born for all people. And this message is often missed – or perhaps not even stressed enough by Christians…
One of the most popular Christmas pop songs is Johnny Mathis singing ‘When a child is born’- lots of you will know it – it’s heard a lot at this time of year – yet the last words of that song are ‘It’s all a dream, an illusion now, it must come true, sometime soon somehow…’
It may be one of the most popular of Christmas songs – but it’s actually denying the reality of the Christmas story we celebrate, and denying the reality of a Saviour who came to live and die and rise again for every one of us… Let’s not, like the song, or like the people who make Christmas a shopping bonanza or nightmare, miss the message of Christmas – a message of love and hope and peace for everyone…
Some of our Christmas readings talk of a light – a light coming into the world, a light which will never be put out – and amidst the commercialism of Christmas, and amidst the loneliness and suffering some people face, this light still shines… It is a light to be celebrated and a light to be shared…
Tonight, we join with millions of Christians worldwide as we reflect on God’s greatest gift. The gift of Jesus…
One of my favourite parts of the Christmas season is Charles Dickens’ novel, ‘A Christmas Carol’. It is of course the story of Ebenezer Scrooge, the man who hated Christmas and everything to do with it, until he was visited by three spirits, the spirit of Christmas past, the spirit of Christmas present and the spirit of the Christmases yet to come.
This novel is particularly symbolic for Christians as we worship the God who was, and is, and is to come, and at Christmas time many of us will I suspect, if we get chance, stop at some time just for a moments thought or reflection on the past, the present and the future.
Looking back we may think of wonderful Christmas celebrations, of happy times with loved ones, of great presents, perhaps great parties… We may think of holidays we have taken or people we have met…
For some though, Christmas will be particularly difficult because of something that has happened in the past. Thinking about the past does some strange things to us. But there is one certainty and that is that dwelling on bad or sad experiences from the past doesn’t make the present or the future any better…
It is of course human nature to miss a loved one, that is just a measure of our love, or sometimes it is in our nature to regret something we’ve done in the past, but as we think of the past, we remember also the fact that God knows and understands that past, and he calls us to face today and tomorrow, not forgetting the past, but assured of his love, and comforted and strengthened by his presence.
And perhaps if we stop just to look at the present we will do so with probably all kinds of different emotions – some will look at our current situations with satisfaction, or some with disappointment… All of us if we consider our relationship with Jesus, whose birth we celebrate, may well think we can do more to get a little closer to him. Many people make New Year resolutions, but what about a resolution today as we celebrate the birth of Jesus, to get to know him better through prayer, through Bible study and through fellowship with other Christians over the coming year.
Perhaps it is a resolution we will struggle to keep, but if and when we do, there is nothing that can provide greater satisfaction.
And so maybe that is the future – the days, the months, the Christmases and the years to come, where we will try to get closer to Jesus. There’s a story about a boy called Danny who had recently passed his driving test and decided to ask his clergyman father if there was any chance of him getting a car for Christmas, which was yet some months away.
'Okay.' said his father 'I tell you what I'll do. If you can get your 'A' level grades up to 'A's and 'B's, study your bible and get your hair cut, I'll consider the matter very seriously.'
A couple of months later Danny went back to his father who said 'I'm really impressed by your commitment to your studies. Your grades are excellent and the work you have put into your bible studies is very encouraging. However, I have to say I'm very disappointed that you haven't had your hair cut yet.
Danny was a smart young man who was never lost for an answer. 'Look dad. In the course of my bible studies I've noticed in the illustrations that Moses, John the Baptist, Samson and even Jesus had long hair.' 'Yes. I'm aware of that...' replied his father '... but did you also notice they walked wherever they went?'
The future with Jesus may be unpredictable, we may have uncertain times, it may have sadness, it may have disappointments, as well as hopefully many joys, but Jesus is the God of the past, the present and the future, and whatever it is that we have to face in our lives, Jesus has been there, is there, and will be there.
The great joy of Christmas is that God was coming into the world not for the first time, but in the most visible way - that demands a response. Everyone who sees a baby responds in some way, whether it’s good or bad; everyone who sees a child cleverly talking to adults in the way Jesus did in the Temple thinks something about that child. Everyone who sees an adult taking a stand on behalf of love or justice, or who sees an adult risking all for someone else will inevitably respond. Everyone who sees a king has some opinion or not on the validity of that king’s throne…
As we think of Jesus the list is endless of the things and the people he represents… He demands a response – one of the loveliest carols sung at Christmas is, ‘In the bleak midwinter’, and the one verse that says,
‘What can I give him, poor as I am ?
If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb;
If I were a Wise Man, I would do my part;
Yet what I can I give Him: give my heart.’
Every one of us at this Christmas time can do that – give our hearts and our lives to Jesus – the God who has seen our past, who has been there for us, whether we realised it or not, throughout our lives; the God of the present, who is alongside today, and the God of the future, who promises never to leave us.
The novel ‘A Christmas Carol’ finishes with the words of Tiny Tim, ‘God bless Us, Every One!’ – And may God indeed bless us… every one, this Christmas time and always ! AMEN
It would be easy to take this as the start of another Christmas message criticising the commercialism, even madness, of our modern Christmas – but actually tonight isn’t a night about negative things, but about stressing the positive message of a Saviour born for all people. And this message is often missed – or perhaps not even stressed enough by Christians…
One of the most popular Christmas pop songs is Johnny Mathis singing ‘When a child is born’- lots of you will know it – it’s heard a lot at this time of year – yet the last words of that song are ‘It’s all a dream, an illusion now, it must come true, sometime soon somehow…’
It may be one of the most popular of Christmas songs – but it’s actually denying the reality of the Christmas story we celebrate, and denying the reality of a Saviour who came to live and die and rise again for every one of us… Let’s not, like the song, or like the people who make Christmas a shopping bonanza or nightmare, miss the message of Christmas – a message of love and hope and peace for everyone…
Some of our Christmas readings talk of a light – a light coming into the world, a light which will never be put out – and amidst the commercialism of Christmas, and amidst the loneliness and suffering some people face, this light still shines… It is a light to be celebrated and a light to be shared…
Tonight, we join with millions of Christians worldwide as we reflect on God’s greatest gift. The gift of Jesus…
One of my favourite parts of the Christmas season is Charles Dickens’ novel, ‘A Christmas Carol’. It is of course the story of Ebenezer Scrooge, the man who hated Christmas and everything to do with it, until he was visited by three spirits, the spirit of Christmas past, the spirit of Christmas present and the spirit of the Christmases yet to come.
This novel is particularly symbolic for Christians as we worship the God who was, and is, and is to come, and at Christmas time many of us will I suspect, if we get chance, stop at some time just for a moments thought or reflection on the past, the present and the future.
Looking back we may think of wonderful Christmas celebrations, of happy times with loved ones, of great presents, perhaps great parties… We may think of holidays we have taken or people we have met…
For some though, Christmas will be particularly difficult because of something that has happened in the past. Thinking about the past does some strange things to us. But there is one certainty and that is that dwelling on bad or sad experiences from the past doesn’t make the present or the future any better…
It is of course human nature to miss a loved one, that is just a measure of our love, or sometimes it is in our nature to regret something we’ve done in the past, but as we think of the past, we remember also the fact that God knows and understands that past, and he calls us to face today and tomorrow, not forgetting the past, but assured of his love, and comforted and strengthened by his presence.
And perhaps if we stop just to look at the present we will do so with probably all kinds of different emotions – some will look at our current situations with satisfaction, or some with disappointment… All of us if we consider our relationship with Jesus, whose birth we celebrate, may well think we can do more to get a little closer to him. Many people make New Year resolutions, but what about a resolution today as we celebrate the birth of Jesus, to get to know him better through prayer, through Bible study and through fellowship with other Christians over the coming year.
Perhaps it is a resolution we will struggle to keep, but if and when we do, there is nothing that can provide greater satisfaction.
And so maybe that is the future – the days, the months, the Christmases and the years to come, where we will try to get closer to Jesus. There’s a story about a boy called Danny who had recently passed his driving test and decided to ask his clergyman father if there was any chance of him getting a car for Christmas, which was yet some months away.
'Okay.' said his father 'I tell you what I'll do. If you can get your 'A' level grades up to 'A's and 'B's, study your bible and get your hair cut, I'll consider the matter very seriously.'
A couple of months later Danny went back to his father who said 'I'm really impressed by your commitment to your studies. Your grades are excellent and the work you have put into your bible studies is very encouraging. However, I have to say I'm very disappointed that you haven't had your hair cut yet.
Danny was a smart young man who was never lost for an answer. 'Look dad. In the course of my bible studies I've noticed in the illustrations that Moses, John the Baptist, Samson and even Jesus had long hair.' 'Yes. I'm aware of that...' replied his father '... but did you also notice they walked wherever they went?'
The future with Jesus may be unpredictable, we may have uncertain times, it may have sadness, it may have disappointments, as well as hopefully many joys, but Jesus is the God of the past, the present and the future, and whatever it is that we have to face in our lives, Jesus has been there, is there, and will be there.
The great joy of Christmas is that God was coming into the world not for the first time, but in the most visible way - that demands a response. Everyone who sees a baby responds in some way, whether it’s good or bad; everyone who sees a child cleverly talking to adults in the way Jesus did in the Temple thinks something about that child. Everyone who sees an adult taking a stand on behalf of love or justice, or who sees an adult risking all for someone else will inevitably respond. Everyone who sees a king has some opinion or not on the validity of that king’s throne…
As we think of Jesus the list is endless of the things and the people he represents… He demands a response – one of the loveliest carols sung at Christmas is, ‘In the bleak midwinter’, and the one verse that says,
‘What can I give him, poor as I am ?
If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb;
If I were a Wise Man, I would do my part;
Yet what I can I give Him: give my heart.’
Every one of us at this Christmas time can do that – give our hearts and our lives to Jesus – the God who has seen our past, who has been there for us, whether we realised it or not, throughout our lives; the God of the present, who is alongside today, and the God of the future, who promises never to leave us.
The novel ‘A Christmas Carol’ finishes with the words of Tiny Tim, ‘God bless Us, Every One!’ – And may God indeed bless us… every one, this Christmas time and always ! AMEN
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