CHRISTMAS SERMON 2022
How exciting! The day
we’ve been waiting for is finally upon us.
No doubt there are plenty of happy children and many happy adults
too. But this day also contains heart
ache, suffering and pain – even the very first Christmas was not without its
own share of the dark. However…
“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness
on them light has shined.”
Mary, was a young woman who said “Yes” to God and then become
pregnant by the Holy Spirit, but the man she was engaged to was going to
divorce her. In their culture Joseph
could have had her stoned to death for seemingly to have been an
adulteress. I suspect it must have felt
like a big dark cloud was looming over her at that time. However….
“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness
on them light has shined.”
Joseph was compassionate,
but when he had decided to quietly divorce Mary, an Angel confirmed that Mary
had been telling the truth about the child in her womb, so he took Mary as his
wife. Still Joseph must have heard the
whispers from others who didn’t believe and thought Joseph was taking on an
adulteress wife. They would have made jokes
about him and spoken cruelly about the situation. How clouded in darkness that time must have
felt. However…
“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness
on them light has shined.”
Mary and
Joseph had to travel to Bethlehem and there was no room for them there…. No
suitable place to stay… and Mary was in labour, about to give birth. This was a time of darkness and anxiety.
Mary had helped her cousin, Elizabeth, when Elizabeth gave
birth. Now it was Mary’s turn and she
was in a town, away from home… she was in nothing more than a stable… who would help her? Women were known to die in child birth…. This was a night of fear and darkness. However…
“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness
on them light has shined.”
What would a tiny candle mean to you in a black out? When you’ve spent a long time walking in a
dark tunnel or cave and you see a light, what does that feel like? Faith is like a candle in the dark. Faith is not always easy and doesn’t mean we
don’t have doubts or hard times. Joseph
and Mary had faith that kept them trusting in God’s provision, but I’m sure
that there were plenty of times they felt scared, unsure and like they were
walking in the dark of mystery and the unknown. But their faith was like a candle in that
dark and we know….
“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness
on them light has shined.”
The Shepherds in the field were not people of influence. They were not leaders or even religious
leaders. They cared for the sheep who
were mostly to be slaughtered…. Caring, protecting and even loving those whose
life was limited. And they worked in the
day and they worked in the night. While
others were in the embrace of loved ones, they were in the fields, exposed to
the elements and the dangers of the dark.
But..
“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness
on them light has shined.”
When it feels like all around you is hopeless and
meaningless, how important it is to have someone give you the gift of hope and
faith. Darkness is sometimes deep
darkness, where evil and lies are celebrated, justice is thwarted and truth is
condemned. At times we have all
experienced this, and our land and our community are subject to this. Unless we can see Gods light, it seems like
the darkness wins and all we can feel is the pain of injustice and the grief of
loss. But Christmas means that….
“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness
on them light has shined.”
At Christmas we celebrate that 2022 years ago something
happened in the history of the world. A
child was born. When Herod found out, he
tried to kill him and the darkness threatened and caused hurt to many. Herod, like us all, had free will and he
chose the darkness. But…
“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness
on them light has shined.”
“For a child has been born for us, a son given to us;
authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named Wonderful Counsellor,
Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Jesus was born and we came to understand that
this was no ordinary man, but this was the Son of God…. Christ, The visible
expression of our invisible God. This is
the word made flesh… he existed with God when the world came into
existence. He is the one who was, is and
will be - the alpha and omega… Though he
is the son, he is named wonderful Mighty God and Everlasting father ….Emmanuel
– He is God with us.
“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness
on them light has shined.”
God loved the world so much that he sent his only son to die
for us… to give us life. Life
eternal. The name Jesus means, “God
Saves”!. We live in the light of Christ,
but in a world where there is still darkness…. And suffering… and heartache and
pain. Into this darkness Christ wants
to bring his light to our world. The
Endless peace that Christ brings is not an earthly peace, but an eternal peace
between us and God. Love broke through and
now nothing separates us from the love of God.
“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness
on them light has shined.”
Christ is the light of the world. Who stepped down into our world of
darkness… He sent His Holy Spirit so
that he would always be with us and through us, continue to be the light of the
world. We, like Herod, have free will
and can choose the dark or the light. Will
we let Christ shine his love into the dark places in our own life where there
is discouragement, disillusionment and heartache?
“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness
on them light has shined.”
We are the body of Christ.
His Spirit is with us!
This day, let us consciously decide to shine the light of
Christ to the world. We receive the
light of Christ for our own healing and then we allow him to shine through us,
to light up all the dark places in this world where ever he would have us go. We simply, like Mary, say “Yes” – let it be
to me, according to your will. God is always knocking… no longer looking for
a room at the Inn, but on the door of our hearts. He calls us to respond to His love. Will you receive His love and light this day? And then we will see that…
“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness
on them light has shined.”
We give you an opportunity to mark
this occasion with an action. You are
invited, if you’d like, to show your response by lighting a candle. If you’d like to receive the light of Christ
for yourself or a loved one, you are invited to light a candle from the Christmas "Christ" candle. Our God who
became vulnerable to save us, wants to be the light in your life… to bring
healing and life. Most importantly we
respond in our heart, but we can also respond by lighting a candle.
We will play a song and while it is
playing you are invited to take the candle taper and take light from the Christ
candle and light your own candle up on the table.
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