96 Sermon Illustrations on Advent

The Christmas Story Retold

Twas in the moon of winter-time when all the birds had fled,

That mighty Gitchi Manitou sent angel choirs instead.

Before their light the stars grew dim,

And wand'ring hunters heard the hymn:

"Jesus, your King, is born. Jesus is born. In excelsis gloria!"

Within a lodge of broken bark the tender Babe was found,

A ragged robe of rabbit skin enwrapped His beauty round.

And as the hunter braves drew nigh,

The angel song rang loud and high:

"Jesus, your King, is born. Jesus is born. In excelsis gloria!"

The earliest moon of wintertime is not so round and fair,

As was the ring of glory on the helpless Infant there.

While Chiefs from far before Him knelt,

With gifts of fox and beaver pelt.

"Jesus, your King, is born. Jesus is born. In excelsis gloria!"

O children of the forest free, O sons of Manitou,

The Holy Child of earth and heav'n is born today for you.

Come, kneel before the radiant Boy

Who brings you beauty, peace and joy.

"Jesus, your King, is born. Jesus is born. In excelsis gloria!"*

This poem is an English translation of a Christmas carol written in the language of the Huron Indians by a missionary, Father Jean de Brebeuf, in the seventeenth century -- more than 300 years ago. Father Brebeuf wrote his answer to a question that each of us faces: How do we do justice to a story remote in time, place, and culture from our lives today?

Unlike the Huron Indians, we come to the Christmas story with some understanding of biblical archaeology, biblical history, and the texts of ancient writers, so it would seem that on this historical frame we could place the events of 2,000 years ago. Still, for those of us living in the dimension of human life -- threescore and ten -- even a span of 2,000 years is a difficult leap. A birth 2,000 years ago can be understood intellectually, but it is difficult to imagine the reality of life at that distance in time.

We may think that Father Brebeuf inappropriately stretched the details -- from shepherds to braves, from kings to chiefs, from gold, frankincense, and myrrh to pelts of fox and beaver skin. But that stretch is really nothing compared to the stretch that God our Father made in the gift of Christmas when the Word -- the abstract -- was made flesh -- the concrete -- and dwelt among us. While the dimension of 2,000 years of time is a challenge for us, it is a greater challenge to think of God, who does not even live in the dimension of time -- from everlasting to everlasting. This is even more abstract than the theory of relativity, which few of us can really comprehend. The story of Christmas is a great oversimplification of God; it was told 2,000 years ago so that we might catch a glimpse of the greater glory and story of God.

A birth in a stable, a Baby cradled in hay, is very quaint. In our imaginations we romanticize the scene at Christmas. Hundreds of reenactments are staged each December -- live crèche scenes with real sheep, donkeys, cows, actors dressed in period garb, and a plastic Jesus doll. Each Christmas these scenes across the nation create traffic jams of curious and, perhaps, devoted Christmas onlookers. But the reality of a lived-in stable is quite remote from the romantic reenactment on a clean church lawn. A lived-in stable is not even the cattle barn at the state fair where young 4-H'ers sleep in fresh straw beside their "baby beef." When we retell the story of Christmas we sanitize it, we romanticize it to meet our own image of what we would like it to be.

Without a vigorous exercise of our imagination, we retell the story of Christmas to ourselves as if it is set in the world of peace and prosperity in which we live. But the reality is that it was a hostile world into which this Baby came -- probably more like being born in a stable in Sarajevo in 1994 than in a stable on the lawn of a church in an American city today. Almost immediately there was a price on the Christ child's head. Even the act of taxation -- the purpose of the journey to Bethlehem -- is not quite a friendly, voluntary act.

We retell the Christmas story each year, but even out of the King James translation it is, for all its glory and wonder, only a poor humble symbolic hint of the real story of God. The words of the King James translation are, after all, only linguistic symbols -- we provide the images based on our previous experience with those words. The Christmas season crèche scenes are only visual symbols of the real Bethlehem stable, the real living animals, and the real Mary cradling Jesus -- God in the flesh -- in her arms of flesh. That scene, however, symbolizes a larger and greater Christmas story that centers on the love of a God who, because of our limitations, gave us the story in the flesh of a child that we might see beyond to understand Him better.

Like the Huron Indians, we too are limited in our ability to understand. But we should pray that we can retell the Christmas story to ourselves in a way that will penetrate the reality of the God behind the Baby in a manger. Then we can have a grand celebration of Christmas and more fully comprehend the Christmas message:

"Jesus, your King, is born. Jesus is born. In excelsis gloria!"

*Walter Ehret and George K. Evans, The International Book of Christmas Carols (Engle-wood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1963).

Kent Seltman is director of marketing for the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.

*

In her 1985 Christmas letter, Madeleine L’Engle wrote:

“Observe and contemplate.

Make real. Bring to be.

Because we note the falling tree

The sound is truly heard.

Look! The sunrise! Wait--

It needs us to look, to see.

To hear, and speak the Word.

Observe and contemplate

The cosmos and our little earth.

Observing, we affirm the worth

Of sun and stars and light unfurled.

So let us, seeing, celebrate

The glory of God’s incarnate birth

And sing its joy to all the world.

Observe and contemplate.

Make real. Affirm. Say Yes,

And in this season sing and bless

Wind, ice, snow; rabbit and bird;

Comet and quark; things small and great.

Oh, observe and joyfully confess

The birth of Love’s most lovely Word.”

*

I imagine young Mary, betrothed to Joseph, in a pasture in Nazareth musing upon her impending wedding or simply enjoying the cool grass on her feet. She is content. She is at peace.

Suddenly a glorious angel, Gabriel, appears — an arrival beyond any mere mortal's wildest expectations — and announces that she has found favor with God. Moreover, says he, “You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end” (Luke 1:31-33).

It's a stunning announcement, undoubtedly one that would induce panic in many. I admittedly would be terrified, stricken. If I were Mary I would think, “Me, a simple peasant, a teenager, and a human no less, will give birth to the Son of the Most High whose kingdom will have no end? It can't be.”

But her response is: “How will this be... since I am a virgin?” (v. 34).

Whenever I read this verse I am dumbstruck by her reply. Mary doesn't immediately wonder about the enormity of the trust placed upon her, but rather how this pronouncement from God will all come about. Her response is not “I can't possibly do this,” but rather, “How will God accomplish this through me?”

Her reply is particularly striking when compared to Moses' response to God Himself — not a “mere” angel — who spoke to Moses through a burning bush (see Exodus 3 and 4). And Moses is not a teenager but eighty-years-old when God appears to him here and promises a deliverer to his people, a promise that would come full circle in the birth of Jesus: “The LORD said, 'I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out... and I am concerned about their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey.... And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. So now, go. I am sending you [Moses] to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt'“ (Exod. 3:7-10).

Like Mary, Moses is stunned by this revelation, and he replies to God, “Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” Though Moses was raised in Pharaoh's father's palace, he is humbled by God's announcement, and he trembles before the trust God has placed upon him. However, Moses' subsequent questions are not just self-effacing, but also hesitant and pleading. Three times Moses speculates, “But what if, God”: “What if they do not believe me or listen to me and say, 'The LORD did not appear to you'?” (4:1). So God assures Moses of his presence and his power that will be at work through him by giving him not one but three miraculous signs (see vv. 2-9).

Yet in response, Moses finally blurts out what he really hopes, “O Lord, please send someone else to do it” (v. 13). And who of us who stumble and tremble cannot empathize with him?

But the Scriptures tell us that “the Lord's anger burned against Moses” (v. 14), and though we can understand Moses' fear, we sense that God is angry because Moses refuses to take Him at his word. He doesn't really believe that God's presence and power will accompany him in the task before him.

In contrast, Mary takes God at his word. And quite literally, I might add. Indeed, doesn't it strike you as odd that she immediately asks Gabriel how God would accomplish his promise “since (she reasons) I am a virgin” (Luke 1: 34)? To me, such a response reveals the tenderness of her youth and her unreserved trust in her heavenly Father: If God says it, He's going to do it, and do it now! An adult might reason that God implies that over the course of years — and here Sarah and Abraham and Mary's relatives Elizabeth and Zechariah come to mind — a child would be born to Joseph and to her. But Mary receives the news as God intends. She would have this child, the promised Deliverer of not only Israel but all nations, miraculously, without the aid of a man: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God” (v. 35).

Unlike Moses, she does not reply, “O Lord, please send someone else to do it,” yet rather, “I am the Lord's servant.... May it be to me as you have said” (v. 38). She takes God at his word, believing as He declares through Gabriel, “Nothing is impossible with God” (v. 37).

Perhaps while we believe wholeheartedly that nothing is impossible with God, from time to time we find ourselves replying, “But what if, God?,” refusing to believe that his power and presence will accompany us. O, for the tender, trusting heart of one such as Mary. Might we remember and take comfort that the Christ child born to her has been born to each of us: He is Immanuel, “God with us.” And this Christmas, with whatever God has placed before us, might we take Him at his word, asking with humility and faith, “How will God accomplish this through me?”

________

Copyright © 2004 Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM). Reprinted with permission. "A Slice of Infinity" is a radio ministry of Ravi Zacharias International Ministries.

*

[Original illustration at this number was a duplicate of HolwickID #22018]

1. Silent night! Holy night!

All is calm, all is bright

Round yon virgin mother and Child,

Holy Infant, so tender and mild –

Sleep in heavenly peace,

Sleep in heavenly peace,

2. Silent night! Holy night!

Shepherds quake at the sight;

Glories stream from heaven afar,

Heav'nly hosts sing alleluia!

Christ the Saviour is born!

Christ the Saviour is born!

3. Silent night! Holy night!

Son of God, love's pure light

Radiant beams from Thy holy face

With the dawn of redeeming grace –

Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth,

Jesus, Lord, at Thy birth.

[Tune “Stille Nacht”]

On the afternoon of Christmas Eve in 1818, in a tiny village called Oberdorg, high in the Austrian Alps, Joseph Mohr, the local Catholic priest, wrote some appropriate stanzas for the season. The church pipe organ had given out and could not be repaired in time for that evening, so the church organist, Franz Gruber, wrote a simple tune, setting the words for a tenor, a bass, and two guitars. That very evening, at the midnight service, “Silent Night” was heard for the first time. The song soon made its way beyond Oberdorg, but anonymously, without mention of the composer or poet. Until the 1850s, neither Gruber nor Mohr, living in their remote village, knew that their song was rapidly becoming the most beloved piece of Christmas music ever written — nor did the world know of Gruber and Mohr.

Reader’s Digest Canada web-site - December 19, 2001

1. The first Noël, the angel did say,

Was to certain poor shepherds in fields as they lay;

In fields where they lay keeping their sheep,

On a cold winter's night that was so deep.

Chorus

Noël, Noël, Noël, Noël,

Born is the King of Israel.

2. They looked up and saw a star,

Shining in the East beyond them far;

And to the earth it gave great light,

And so it continued day and night.

3. And by the light of that same star,

Three wisemen came from country far;

To seek a king was their intent,

And to follow the star wherrever it went.

4. This star drew nigh to the northwest;

O'er Bethlehem it took its rest,

And there it did both stop and stay,

Right o'er the place where Jesus lay.

5. Then entered in those wise men three,

Full rev’rently upon their knee,

And offered there, in His presence,

Their gold and myrrh and frankincense.

6. Now let us all with one accord

Sing praises to our heav'nly Lord,

That made heav'n and earth of naught,

And with His blood mankind hath bought.

____________________

The Christmas song telling the story of "The First Noël" ("Noël" is the French word for Christmas and stems from the Latin natalis, meaning "birthday") is thought to date from as early as the 13th or 14th century, when the Miracle Plays, dramatizations of favorite Bible stories for special holidays, were popular. The tune, which may be English or French, is undoubtedly very old. It was first published with words by William Sandys in his 1833 edition of Christmas Carols, Ancient and Modern.

Reader’s Digest Canada web-site - December 19, 2001

*

1. Ring the bells, ring the bells,

Let the whole world know

Christ was born in Bethlehem

Many years ago:

2. Born to die that man might live,

Came to earth new life to give,

Born of Mary, born so low,

Many years ago.

3. God the Father gave His Son,

Gave His own beloved One

To this wicked, sinful earth,

To bring mankind His love, new birth:

4. Ring the bells, ring the bells,

Let the whole world know

Christ the Saviour lives today

As He did so long ago!

*

1. Joy to the world! The Lord is come!

Let earth receive her King;

Let evr'y heart prepare Him room,

And heav'n and nature sing,

And heav'n and nature sing,

And heav'n and nature sing.

2. Joy to the earth! The Saviour reigns!

Let men their songs employ;

While fields and floods, rocks, hills and plains

Repeat the sounding joy,

Repeat the sounding joy,

Repeat the sounding joy.

3. No more let sin and sorrows grow,

Nor thorns infest the ground;

He comes to make His blessings flow

Far as the curse is found,

Repeat the sounding joy,

Repeat the sounding joy,

Repeat the sounding joy.

4. He rules the world with truth and grace,

And makes the nations prove

The glories of

His righteousness

And wonders of His love,

And wonders of His love,

And wonders of His love.

[Tune “Antioch”]

__________

Though the triumphant words "Joy to the world" exemplify the Christmas feeling, the familiar text is actually a translation based on five verses from Psalm 98 in the Old Testament. Isaac Watts, the English hymnist and cleric, published his Psalms of David, which contains these verses, in 1719. More than a century later, in 1839, American composer and music educator Lowell Mason decided to set them to music, modestly including the phrase "From George Frederick Handel," apparently to honor his idol, the composer of Messiah and many other masterpieces. For nearly 100 years, the world accepted this ascription, until musicologists pointed out that not a single phrase in the music can be said to have come straight from any work of Handel's.

____________

Reader’s Digest Canada web-site - December 19, 2001

1. Come, Thou long-expected Jesus,

Born to set Thy people free;

From our fears and sins release us,

Let us find our rest in Thee.

Israel's Strength and Consolation,

Hope of all the earth Thou art:

Dear Desire of ev'ry nation,

Joy of ev'ry longing heart.

2. Born Thy people to deliver,

Born a child and yet a King,

Born to reign in us forever —

Now Thy gracious Kingdom bring.

By Thine own eternal Spirit

Rule in all our hearts alone;

By Thine all sufficient merit

Raise us to Thy glorious throne.

[Tune “Hyfrydol”]

*

1. O come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant;

Come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem;

Come and behold Him, born the King of angels:

Chorus

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

Christ the Lord.

2. Sing, choirs of angels, sing in exultation;

Sing, all ye bright hosts of heav'n above;

Glory to God, all glory in the highest:

3. Yea, Lord, we greet Thee, born this happy morning;

Jesus, to Thee be all glory giv'n;

Word of the Father, now in flesh appearing:

[Tune “Adeste Fideles”]

_______________________

Latin words attributed to John Francis Wade, music by John Reading

John Francis Wade was an 18th-century British exile who moved to a Roman Catholic community in France, where he eked out an income by copying and selling music and by giving music lessons to children. Perhaps he himself wrote the Latin stanzas, beginning "Adeste fideles," which have made his name known; perhaps they were a text he was called upon to translate. In any case, he combined the text with a bit of music, probably by another Englishman, John Reading, and published the resulting hymn around 1751. More than a century later, the English version, "O Come, All Ye Faithful," was turned out by Frederick Oakeley, a British clergyman who felt that if congregations had good literary texts to sing, they would sing well. This hymn proved his point.

_______________________

Reader’s Digest Canada web-site - December 19, 2001

1. What child is this, who, laid to rest,

On Mary's lap is sleeping?

Whom angels greet with anthems sweet,

While shepherds watch are keeping?

This, this is Christ the King,

Whom shepherds guard and angels sing:

Haste, haste to bring Him laud–

The babe, the son of Mary!

2. Why lies He in such mean estate

Where ox and ass are feeding?

Good Christian, fear – for sinners here

The silent Word is pleading.

Nails, spear shall pierce Him through,

The cross be borne for me, for you:

Hail, hail the Word made flesh–

The babe, the son of Mary!

3. So bring Him incense, gold and myrrh–

Come, rich and poor, to own Him:

The King of kings salvation brings–

Let loving hearts enthrone Him.

Raise, raise the song on high–

The virgin sings her lullaby:

Joy, joy, for Christ is born–

The Babe, the son of Mary.

[Tune “Greensleeves”]

One of the Boyar Estates' advertisements for its embryonic Blueridge brand has attracted 20 complaints, including one from the Church of England, according to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA). But its adjudication did not uphold the complaints against the line: "Jesus was born in a trough".

The adjudication stated: "The advertisers said the poster belonged to a campaign that showed important things could come from humble beginnings. Jesus was born in a humble environment but went on to be a great man.

"The advertisers believed the advertisement showed reverence for its subject and conveyed a Christian message by encouraging people to set aside preconceptions and prejudices and judge on merit, instead of origin.

"Although it acknowledged that the complainants had been offended by the poster, the authority considered the advertisement was unlikely to cause serious or widespread offence."

A spokesperson for ad designers M&C Saatchi said: "The tone is very much tongue-in-cheek; the message [is] that Blueridge is a good wine. The campaign is hard-hitting but fun and the message is definitely Christian: Judge on merit, not origin."

Steve Abrahams, Boyar Estates marketing manager, said: "We stand firmly behind the Jesus poster and all of the others.

"The brief to M&C was to get the brand noticed, and to state clearly that the wine is produced in Bulgaria," he said.

"It is a difficult task to introduce a new brand into the UK market, especially when trying to overcome preconceptions concerning Bulgarian wine, and I believe the posters do both.

"`Does it matter where it comes from' refers simply to initially tasting a wine. Where it comes from should not matter when forming an opinion of the taste," said Abrahams.

1. Good Christian men, rejoice

With heart and soul and voice;

Give ye heed to what we say:

News! News! Jesus Christ is born today!

Ox and ass before Him bow,

And He is in the manger now:

Christ is born today!

Christ is born today!

2. Good Christian men, rejoice

With heart and soul and voice;

Now ye hear of endless bliss:

Joy! Joy! Jesus Christ was born for this!

He has opened heaven’s door,

And man is blessed for evermore;

Christ was born for this!

Christ was born for this!

3. Good Christian men, rejoice

With heart and soul and voice;

Now ye need not fear the grave:

Peace! Peace! Jesus Christ was born to save!

Calls you one and calls you all

To gain His everlasting hall:

Christ was born to save!

Christ was born to save!

[Tune “In Dulce Jubilo”]

*

1. I heard the bells on Christmas day

Their old familiar carols play,

And wild and sweet the words repeat

Of peace on earth, goodwill to men.

2. I thought how, as the day had come,

The belfries of all Christendom

Had rolled along th'unbroken song

Of peace on earth, goodwill to men.

3. And in despair I bowed my head:

“There is no peace on earth,”I said,

“For hate is strong and mocks the song

Of peace on earth, goodwill to men.”

4. Yet pealed the bells more loud and deep:

“God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;

The wrong shall fail, the right prevail,

With peace on earth, goodwill to men.”

5. Then ringing, singing on its way,

The world revolved from night to day–

A voice, a chime, a chant sublime

Of peace on earth, goodwill to men.

[Tune “Waltham”]

*

1. It came upon the midnight clear,

That glorious song of old,

From angels bending near the earth

To touch their harps of gold:

“Peace on the earth, good will to men,

From heav’n’s all-gracious King!”

The world in solemn stillness lay

To hear the angels sing.

2. Still through the cloven skies they come

With peaceful wings unfurled,

And still their heav’nly music floats

O’er all the weary world:

Above its sad and lowly plains

They bend on hov’ring wing,

And ever o’er its Babel sounds

The blessed angels sing.

3. And ye, beneath life’s crushing load,

Whose forms are bending low,

Who toil along the climbing way

With painful steps and slow,

Look now! For glad and golden hours

Come swiftly on the wing:

O rest beside the weary road

And hear the angels sing.

4. For lo, the days are hast’ning on,

By prophets seen of old,

When with the ever-circling years

Shall come the time foretold,

When peace shall over all the earth

Its ancient splendours fling,

And all the world give back the song

Which now the angels sing.

[Tune “Carol”]

___________________

Oliver Wendell Holmes once declared this hymn to be “one of the finest and most beautiful ever written.” Sears, a retiring young Unitarian minister from Massachusetts, was dismayed by such public praise, saying he preferred to lead a quiet life in some half-forgotten parish. The poem was first published in 1849 in a church magazine and was adapted the following year to a tune composed by Richard Storrs Willis. Willis, by that time an eminent editor and critic for the New York Tribune, had studied music in Europe as a young man, with, among others, Felix Mendelssohn, who so much admired Willis’ work that he arranged some of it for orchestra.

Reader’s Digest Canada web-site - December 19, 2001

1. While by our sheep we watched at night,

Glad tidings brought an angel bright:

Chorus

How great our joy!

Great our joy!

Joy, joy, joy!

Joy, joy, joy!

Praise we the Lord in heav'n on high!

Praise we the Lord in heav'n on high!

2. There shall be born so he did say,

In Bethlehem a Child today:

3. There shall the Child lie in a stall,

This Child who shall redeem us all:

4. This gift of God we'll cherish well —

Jesus, our Lord Emmanuel:

*

Psychologist Thomas Holmes developed a Stress Scale and assigned numerical values to events that cause stress such as loss of job, moving to a new city, a new relationship. Christmas, Dr. Holmes decided, not a particularly difficult Christmas, simply living through December 25 in this culture, earns a hefty 14 stress points.

A writer by the name of Bridget Kuhns took Dr. Holmes' scale and applied it to Mary. Holmes calculated that any pregnancy earns 40 points: an unwanted pregnancy, add 20 more. A change in living conditions -- 25. (Mary stayed three months with Elizabeth). A marriage to Joseph: 50 points. A change in financial status: 38 points.

Surely there must have been words between them when she discovered that he had not made reservations at the inn: score 35 points for an argument with a spouse.

And then the birth -- 39 points: 16 for a change in sleeping habits; 15 for a change in eating habits. Not to mention all those uninvited guests: shepherds and angels coming and going and wise men from the East.

Holmes says that people get sick at 200 points. Ms. Kuhns calculates that Mary's ordeal earned her “stressed out” status at 424, a record.

Stress. Anxiety. Worry. Have you experienced any of these this Advent season? You don’t have to be the mother of Jesus to feel stress at Christmas. Where is the PEACE in our lives? Will it only come after December 25? And what kind of peace are we looking for? It needs to be said that there are two kinds of peace. For lack of a better term we’ll call them external peace and internal peace. It is possible to experience both at the same time. In fact many of us need peaceful surroundings in order to feel inner peace. But it is also possible to experience one without the other. We can be in a restful, quiet place but still be in turmoil in our hearts. And we can also be in a noisy, chaotic environment and still feel a peace deep in our soul.

*

As presented on the First Sunday of Advent, 1996. Prepared for Community Church of Fairfield and Hanover Prebyterian Church by the Rev. Denzel Nonhof copyright 1997.

The Rev. Denzel Nonhof

HC 3, Box 3580

Shell Knob, Missouri 65747-9114

This material can be used without permission when used in the local church. No permission is given to reprint any of this material for profit.

------- preparation ------

AN ADVENT MOBILE: Needed

1)A mobile with a Star of David, a descending Dove, an Alpha and Omega, an Angel with a Trumpet, and the Babe in a Manger.

2)Before the service, someone needs to hand the mobile securely from the ceiling in the Sanctuary.

THE MEANING OF ADVENT: Needed

1)Wreath holder already in place in front of the sanctuary.

2)Basket to hold items.

3)One Advent Wreath.

4)Three Purple candles.

5)One Rose candles.

6)One White Christ candle.

7)Holly, mistletoe, etc. for the decoration of the wreath.

8)A lighter.

PLACING OF THE EVERGREENS: Needed

1)Two people to put evergreen in the windows.

2)Two people to hold the basket for the two who are placing the evergreens.

3)Two baskets.

4)Enough evergreens for the windows and around the Bible in front of the sanctuary.

5)Tie bows and ornaments for accents in the greenery.

THE LEGEND OF THE CHRISTMAS TREE: Needed

1)Christmas tree assembled ahead of time, with lights, star and garland.

2)Gold or white tree skirt already in place.

3)Ornaments.

4)One person to help people down the stairs, (if needed)

5)One person to hand people an ornament.

6)One person to stand near the tree to provide assistance to smaller children to hand ornaments on the tree, or help place ornaments on the higher branches.

THE LEGEND OF THE POINSETTIA: Needed

1)Poinsettias in red and white, foiled in gold, about 25 in all. These will be stored in a cool place until they are placed in the sanctuary.

2)Members of the Sunday School classes to assist in placing the poinsettias throughout the sanctuary.

3)Plastic plant holders with red or white dots so the “placers” can locate the correct color and location to place their poinsettia. These plastic holders must be in place the day before. There should be enough poinsettias to be impressive and they are purchased by the congregation and the memorials are printed in the bulletin. After the “placers” have positioned all the poinsettias, the people should return to their seats.

SAINT NICHOLAS: Needed:

1)One man dressed in an old robe and stocking-style hat.

2)One small boy to walk around with Saint Nicholas.

3)Burlap bag with potatoes and boxes of raisins to be handed out.

4)An old robe and stocking hat for Saint Nicholas to wear.

THE SCRIPTURES: Needed

1)Sculpted Nativity set.

2)Blue, green, white, or gold cloth draped in front of the Bible. Greenery and poinsettias will already be in place.

CANDLE LIGHTING: Needed

1)Two children to be the candle lighters, and two teenagers or women to lift the hurricane candle glasses to light the candles. It would be a good idea if the two assistants have a lighter in case the acolytes forget and extinguish their candle lighters.

2)One person to turn up the lights when each hymn begins.

CANDY CANES: Needed

1)Candy canes in sufficient quantity that everyone who attends worship can have one to take home.

2)Baskets to put the candy canes into.

3)Two people to distribute candy canes at the door of the church.

--- Service ---

THE MEANING OF ADVENT

By the prophet Isaiah it stands written:

“Here is my herald whom I send and he will prepare your way.”

Prepare the way. Prepare the heart and mind. Let everyone stand silent. Let the stars and moon cease to move. Let the leaves of the trees and the tall browning grass cease to rustle in the wind. With expectant hush, and long awaiting yearning, we herald the coming of the long awaited Christ Child, the coming of the infant to Bethlehem.

Advent. A Latin word for “Coming.” Prepare the way. Prepare the heart to receive. Prepare the way. The Christ is coming.

Let us prepare for the advent, the coming of the Christ Child. On this first Sunday of Advent, this first of four Sabbaths, let us prepare with repentance. Let us prepare with hope. Let us prepare with faith. For the light will come into this world, as God has promised.

The Christ Child will come into the Bethlehem stable. The Christ Child will come into the world, into every life that waits, and into every hopeful heart. The Messiah comes to bring the Christmas to every waiting believer. Let us now prepare to receive Him.

Let us now begin our service of preparation. Come let us begin - our expectant waiting, for Christ, the Messiah. We acknowledge the prophesies and celebrate the coming with renewal of traditions, with remembered worship, with reverent waiting.

There are many symbols of waiting, of preparation. There are many practiced customs to hail the Advent, the Coming.

Foremost among the symbols is the Wreath of Coming. The circle of the Wreath has no end. A wreath is like the Eternal with no end and no beginning.

A circle of evergreen, a circle of meaning, a symbol of that which is as eternal as God, as victorious as the coming Christ, and as everlasting as the promises.

The Advent Wreath is a symbol of hope, a symbol of four Sabbaths, four Sabbaths of waiting.

Four candles light the wreath. Three are purple. Each purple candle is a symbol of waiting; repentant waiting, a symbol of our preparation, longing, and waiting. One for each of three Sabbaths of repentant preparation.

On the third Sunday of Advent, the rose candle is set aglow to symbolize hope; deep longing, fervent expecting hope rooted in promises made long ago.

The center candle is white. Pure symbolic white. Lighted when the Christ is come.

The wreath is made with carefully chosen materials, each a symbol of the Christ. Palm leaves symbolize the Peace he extolled. Palms for the Prince of Peace. Holly is used to symbolize the crucified Christ. Legend tells us holly was used to fashion the crown of thorns for the head of the crucified Christ. Legend has it that the berries were yellow until stained red by His blood.

Mistletoe symbolizes Christ the everlasting. Ancient Druids noted when all other trees were bare, Mistletoe was green. Thus it came to be in Christian legend a symbol of eternity; Christ the Everlasting, Christ the Eternal.

So in the wreath, we symbolized the coming of Christ, the Victorious Christ, the Prince of Peace; Christ, the Eternal; Christ, the Revelation of God.

He comes! Let us Prepare for His coming.

PLEASE STAND and sing the first verse of our Advent Hymn: “Oh Come, Oh, Come, Emmanuel.” 123/542

THE NATIVITY MOBILE (this could also be a series of banners hung during Advent)

STAR OF DAVID

At the top of the mobile is the Star of David.

God is acknowledged to be the Creator of all stars, planets, and constellations. As well as knowing their names and numbers, Biblical writers knew many of the constellations. The Lord asked Job, “Can you bind the chains of Pleiades, or loose the cords of Orion?”

Individual stars are mentioned. Probably the most famous and intriguing of all the stars mentioned in Scripture is the star of Bethlehem, told of in Matthew 2. Many theories have been posited regarding its identity. Scripture does not name the star. It is one of many miracles that attest to the power of our God and is similar to the pillar of fire used to demonstrate God's presence and might to the children of Israel as they made their way to the land of Canaan. In the final book of the Bible the Lord Jesus is called “the bright and morning star.”

The star we have is a six-pointed star, commonly called the star of David. God promised David that his throne should stand forever. In Jesus Christ, God fulfills this promise. Let us ever remember that Jesus was Jewish. Jesus was born a Jew to fulfill the law in perfect obedience.

DOVE

The term “dove” is applied rather loosely to many smaller species of pigeon. The first mention of the dove in the Bible occurs in Genesis 8:8- 12. Noah released a dove from the ark to determine if the flood waters had subsided from the earth.

All four Gospels describe the Spirit of God descending like a dove upon Jesus after His baptism. This familiar bird with all its rich associations was chosen to symbolize God's Spirit.

The term “turtledove” also is applied to any of the smaller varieties of pigeon. The turtledove played a significant sacrificial role in the Bible. For those who could not afford a lamb, the law prescribed that two turtle-doves or pigeons be offered for the sacrifice of purification after childbearing. Mary brought such an offering after the birth of Christ.

The dove in the mobile is placed there to remind us of the work of the Holy Spirit of God. It was by the Spirit that Mary became pregnant. The Spirit came upon Jesus at his baptism and by the Spirit of God, Jesus could do miracles. This Spirit, God and Jesus Christ gives to those who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. We are Christians only because we are anointed with the Spirit of the Lord.

ALPHA AND OMEGA

The ALPHA AND OMEGA are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet and are used in Revelation to describe God or Christ. The Alpha looks like our letter “A,” while the Omega has the appearance of a horseshoe on end. “Alpha and Omega” refers to God's sovereignty and eternal nature. God and Christ are “the beginning and the end, the first and last.” Thus, they control all history and all humans of all generations.

He who is beyond all time entered time. At Christmas it is appropriate to remember that Jesus came to give us eternal life. This is symbolized by the holly which is green and has berries of red. Life eternal is symbolized by the green, and the red berries remind us of how he gave his life on the cross for our salvation.

ANGEL

The term “angel” is derived from the Greek word angelos which means “messenger.” Angelos and the Hebrew equivalent, malak (which also means “messenger”), are the two most common terms used to describe this class of beings in the Bible. In general, in texts where an angel appears, the task of the angel is to convey the message or do the will of the God who sent him. Since the focus of the text is on the message, the messenger is rarely described in detail.

The angel's function as messenger or agent of God is acted out in proclamation, revealing the will of God and/or announcing key events. An angel announced to Joseph that Mary would have a child. Mary received a special messenger who told her that she would have a son and name him Jesus because he would save the people from their sins. At the end of time, the trumpet of the Lord shall sound and the dead in Christ shall rise first.

Allow God to use this mobile to remind you we await the coming of the angels of the Lord. They who sang glory to God in this highest when Jesus was born, shall also escort us into heaven.

THE BABE IN THE MANGER

A Manger is a feeding trough used for cattle, sheep, donkeys, or horses. Archaeologists have discovered stone mangers in the horse stables of Ahab at Megiddo. They were cut out of limestone and were approximately three feet long, eighteen inches wide, and two feet deep. Other ancient mangers were made of masonry. Many Palestinian homes consisted of one large room which contained an elevated section and a lower section. The elevated section was the family's living quarters, while the lower section housed the family's animals. Usually a manger, in the form of a masonry box or a stone niche, was located in the lower section. Mangers were also put in cave stables or other stalls. The manger referred to in Luke 2:16 may have been in a cave stable or other shelter. There Jesus was laid to sleep after his birth.

What wondrous love is this that God should come to live among us, to be born as a human being, to experience all which we have experienced? What wondrous love is this which came down from heaven? This love of God in Jesus Christ is unique in all the worlds, and when we celebrate the birthday of Jesus, the love of God comes into us in a unique and special way.

SPECIAL MUSIC: What Wondrous Love Is This #177

PLACING THE EVERGREENS

When all the earth is brown, when the leaves have departed the trees; Evergreens stand in lonely vigil until the earth again is green.

Evergreens shout to us about the hoped for coming of green again. Evergreens stand ever ready to remind us of joyous hope. The joyous reality of the eternal presence of the Christ Child; the eternal presence in all the world.

Legend tells us that long ago, the evergreens were not forever colored with verdant leaves. Before the birth of the Eternal One, before the coming, the evergreen was bare like other trees around.

Let us begin this legend with the recorded event written in Scripture and recorded by Matthew. The Gospel writer says,

An angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. And the angel said to him: “Rise up and take the Infant Jesus and his mother and escape with them to Egypt. Stay in Egypt until I bid you return. You are no longer safe. Go, for Herod sends his soldiers to seek out the Child and destroy Him.” So Mary and Joseph and their Infant Child left the warmth and security of their land and journeyed into Egypt.

Hastily, they gathered their meager belongings. Into the dark of night they stole away. Escape, they must, the jealous wrath of Herod and his men. Escape, they must, from the death decree handed down by Herod.

No word could be said of their hasty departure; no notice of a planned destination. Friends and family could not know of their going, lest they too come under the decree of death.

Over rocky hills and dusty roads, they traveled wearily; Mary and the Infant on the back of a donkey; Joseph, alert and watchful, walking beside them.

With heavy saddened hearts and fearful weary bodies, they made their way all night long and into the following long day.

Mid-afternoon, dust in the distance behind them came. Fast riding soldiers came, soldiers sent from Herod, sent to carry out Herod's dreadful mission.

Where could they hide? Where could the Holy Family find protection? The hillside was barren, offering no shield.

Quickly, a frightened Joseph guided Mary and her child into a clump of cedars on a hill. Immediately, the bare cedar twigs greened with color, thickened with growth to shield the Holy Family.

The white berries of the cedar tree turned to sapphire blue to match the robe that Mary wore that day. So Mary, mother of Jesus in a robe of sapphire blue could blend with cedar trees, and go unnoticed by passing, hunting soldiers.

Past the Holy family, went the band of Herod's men; never seeing, never knowing Mary, Joseph, and Infant Jesus were safely sheltered in a clump of green cedars with berries of sapphire blue.

Since that day, cedars and plants like them have never shed their leaves; never lost their green; for they sheltered the Holy Family. Forever green, to honor the day they received the Infant Christ Child.

Evergreen, everlasting, eternal, green branches are a part of our preparation, our waiting: a symbol of hope, a symbol of eternity, a reminder of love received. Evergreen is a symbol of the eternal promise of renewal, a symbol of the eternal and everlasting God.

STAND WITH ME to sing the first and third verses of our hymn: Hark the Herald Angels Sing. 133/537

THE LEGEND OF THE CHRISTMAS TREE

During this reading, we invite you to come forward and place an ornament on our Christmas Tree.

The Christmas Tree is widely used in our celebration of Christmas.

Green trees, blue trees, frosty snow-covered trees, inside a warm room. Lighted trees, living trees, all are trees of Christmas.

Our use of Christmas trees is so widespread, we have forgotten the beginning. Hear the legend of the first Christmas Tree.

Seven hundred years after the birth of Christ, Pope Gregory wanted to send a Christian missionary to the pagan tribes of Northern Germany. He called on Winfred of England (later known as Saint Boniface) to go to Germany for a three-year period to teach Christian ways to the pagan tribes who lived there. One day, as Winfred was traveling among the people there, he came upon a gathering for a pagan ceremony in the forest. With the ritual about to take place, the spirit of the forest was being worshiped with a human sacrifice. The usual ceremony involved the blood of an innocent child sprinkled around an oak tree to please the god of the forest. Winfred begged that the ceremony be stopped, but his words were ignored. In a desperate act to stop the ritual, Winfred grabbed the ceremonial ax and cut down the oak tree. The people were furious, but their anger turned to amazement as they saw a small fir tree spring up to replace the fallen oak.

A shaft of light caused each twig on the fir tree to glisten and the people listened and believed when Winfred told them the tree was a symbol of the birth of life through Christ.

Thus, began the custom among German people of using a fir tree as a symbol to acknowledge the birth of Christ.

It was another seven hundred years before Martin Luther put lighted candles on his tree to recapture the glistening twigs of the tree in the forest which Winfred had seen. He also topped his tree with a star to commemorate that star which was in the Bethlehem sky as recorded in scriptures:

“Behold, there came wise-men from the East to Jerusalem, saying, 'Where is He that is born King of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the East and we have come to worship Him.'“

Green trees, blue trees, frosty snow-covered trees, lighted trees, living trees; all are trees of Christmas.

THE LEGEND OF THE POINSETTIA

In the past two hundred years, a new element has found its place in our Christmas celebration. It is from the Christian practices and symbols in Mexico that we have adopted this tradition.

In the very early part of the 19th century, an American who served the United States as an ambassador, spent a tour of duty in Mexico. He admired the dramatic beauty of the bright red poinsettia that grew rooftop high and bloomed profusely at Christmas. He was awed when Mexican Christians told him why the bright red poinsettias were a part of their celebration of the birth and life of Christ.

In Mexico, the story goes like this: The Bethlehem star shone over the manger where Jesus was born. Its light so bright the earth responded, reflecting that star light, receiving that star light, mirroring that star light with a beautiful flower. Star shaped, radiant shaped, pure white petals, golden star centers. In Mexican lore, it was always the Flower of the Holy Night.

It grew on earth as a creation to glorify and commemorate that Holy Night “For the stars shout forth the glory of God.” Then came the tragic day when Jesus dies on the cross and the blossoms changed. Pure white petals remembered the sacrifice of the Christ born when the star was over Bethlehem.

Flower of the Holy Night, star shaped, radiant shaped, blood red petals, star flowers for the Holy Night. Now, everywhere, on cards and on trees, in churches and in our homes, the poinsettia takes its place; reminding us of a Holy Night, pointing to a Good Friday.

(The Section for Santa Claus can be inserted here.

See Appendix)

THE SCRIPTURES (ADAPTED FROM LUKE AND JOHN)

In the beginning was the Word.

In the very beginning was only the Word and the Word became the presence of God and came to live among the people of the earth. Hear the story of the birth of the Word - made living flesh as it has been told by those who followed the Word.

The coming of the Messiah had long been prophesied. And there were many who longed for His coming.

For the people of God were oppressed and the land was troubled with hunger and slavery and cruelty and oppression.

And fear hovered over God's people.

Emperor Augustus ruled the Roman Empire with a cruel hand and Quirinius, the governor of Syria, was a tool of the Roman tyranny.

More taxes were needed, more taxes to support the Roman rulers.

So the decree went out that a new census would be taken, and everyone must go back to his birthplace to be counted for tax purposes. For this purpose, everyone made his way to his own town. So Joseph went up to Judea from the town of Nazareth in Galilee, to be registered at the city of David, called Bethlehem, because he was of the house of David by descent.

And with him went Mary who was betrothed to him. She was expecting a child.

And while they were there, the time came for her child to be born, and she gave birth to a son, her firstborn. She wrapped him 'round, and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them to lodge in the inn. No room for a child in the inn.

Now in this same district there were shepherds out in the field - keeping watch through the night over their flock. When suddenly there stood before them an angel of the Lord - and the splendor of the Lord shone 'round them. They were struck with terror!

But the angel said, “Do not be afraid. I have good news for you. There is great joy coming to the whole people. Today, in the city of David, a deliverer has been born to you; the Messiah, the Lord. And this is your sign; you will find a baby lying in a manger, wrapped in swaddling.”

All at once, there was with the angel, a great multitude of angels singing the praises of God.

“Glory to God on high - and on earth, His peace and good will to all people!”

After the angels had left them and gone into the heaven - the shepherds said to one another, “Come, we must go straight to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.”

So they went with all speed, they found their way to Mary and Joseph, ... and the baby lying in a manger. When they saw him, they recounted what they had been told about this child. And all who heard were astonished at what the shepherds said. But, Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them.

Ponder we also over the birth of Jesus, For the Bread of Life is the Word- Made-Flesh. Born again is the nurture of life, the Bread upon which all may feast.

WE STAND NOW to sing the first and second verses of Silent Night, Holy Night! 147/530

LIGHTING THE CANDLES

The birth of Jesus and the life He lived brought many changes to the world. The life He lived, the truths He taught, the example He gave, the love He generated; His life, His teachings, His truth. These are the guide posts for all.

We symbolize these truths, by the use of two candles. One candle to symbolize the life He lived; the example he gave, the wholeness of His life, words, and deeds. One candle, a constant symbol of the human life Jesus lived. The flame reminds us of his teachings, the truths He shared, the Parables He told, the Wisdom he gave. One candle reminds us of the man, Jesus.

The other candle reminds us that Jesus is the second person of the Trinity. He was with the Father in the Beginning. He is Very God of Very God. He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Jesus came from God, dwelt among human beings, giving his life for the sins of the world, to be resurrected on the third day. Jesus ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father. The second candle reminds us that Jesus is God.

These two candles stand as symbols of Jesus the Christ, whose coming brought hope to human kind in the life and teachings of Jesus. He brought hope to the world. As these candles give their light for others to see, may we bear the light of Christ to others. As light comes from Christ and so travels throughout the world, so light is taken from the candles which always remind us of Jesus, son of Mary and son of God. We carry the light, that others may bear the light.

Amen! Jesus, light of the world. Jesus, the truth of the world. Jesus, the life in the world. Jesus, the light of all lights!

STAND TO SING our hymn of Gladness: “Joy to the World”

THE STORY OF THE CANDY CANE

A CANDYMAKER'S WITNESS

A Candymaker in Indiana wanted to make a candy that would be a witness, so he made the Christmas Candy Cane. He incorporated several symbols for the birth, ministry, and death of Jesus Christ.

He began with a stick of pure white, hard candy. White symbolizes the Virgin birth and the sinless nature of Jesus, and hardness symbolizes the Solid Rock, the foundation of the Church, and firmness of the promises of God.

The candymaker made the candy in the form of a “J” to represent the precious name of Jesus, who came to earth as our Savior. It could also represent the staff of the “Good Shepherd” with which He reaches down into the ditches of the world to lift out the fallen lambs who, like all sheep, have gone astray.

Thinking that the candy was somewhat plain, the candymaker stained it with red stripes. He used three small stripes to show the stripes of the scourging Jesus received by which we are healed. The large red stripe was for the blood shed by Christ on the cross so that we could have the promise of eternal life.

Unfortunately, the candy became known as a Candy Cane a meaningless decoration seen at Christmas time. But the meaning is still there for those who “have eyes to see and ears to hear.” I pray that this symbol will again be used to witness To The Wonder of Jesus and His Great Love that came down at Christmas and remains the ultimate and dominant force in the universe today.

end see below for appendix --- end

AN APPENDIX FOR SAINT NICHOLAS: This may be included after the Poinsettia Section, but another section or two sections must be omitted to make room for it.

For many Americans, Christmas is Santa Clause, that jolly old elf. But, Is Christmas, Santa Claus? Does Santa Claus belong?

He has many names: Santa Claus, Kris Kringle, Father Christmas, St. Nick, Saint Nicholas.

Once upon a time, there was a real Saint Nicholas. Saint Nicholas, the most human of the early Saints. Saint Nicholas, remote, elusive, mystical, reflecting the hopes and needs of people since earliest time.

Born in the area where Jesus was born, Nicholas became bishop of Myra while still a young man. The stories of his deeds are factual from records of the fourth and fifth centuries.

He calmed a stormy sea and became the patron saint of sailors. He saved three boys from death and became the patron saint of children. He gave a dowry to three young women and became the patron said of the poor.

He convinced the captain of three grain ships to give part of their cargo to the poor. They gave and gave to feed the hungry, but their ships remained full. He became the patron saint of the hungry.

He became the symbol of giving. Giving to those in need, sharing with others, a symbol of human longing and fulfillment of human need.

The tradition of giving and sharing was kept alive by those who remembered Saint Nicholas. From father to son, from sailor to shopkeeper, from priest to alter boy, the story was told.

Then - Santa Claus is real. He's not just American, created by Madison Avenue, packaged and marketed along with Christmas merchandise.

Santa Claus, as we know him, was revived in Holland in 1508, on December 6, the anniversary of the birth of Saint Nicholas, Bishop of Myra. The Dutch were at war with Spain; fighting a long hard war for their independence. The Spanish blocked their seaports and destroyed their fields. The people were hungry, the people were starving, a terrible famine was over the land.

Bishop Nicholas, Bishop of Spain, came to Holland on a boat. Leavening his boat at the dock, he rode over the countryside on a white horse, directing his Moorish servants to give potatoes to the people. He gave potatoes to the starving Dutch. He gave figs and raisins to the children.

In the Dutch language, Saint Nicholas is Sinterklass (pronounced, “Center-Claws”) Each year since that day, December 6 is Sinterklass Day; a day for giving, to meet all human needs. A day when Sinterklass comes again on a boat from Spain; and rides his white horse to every home with embellished potatoes and gifts, simple, but rich in symbolism. Dutch settlers came to our shore. With them came Sinterklass, who has grown with the years.

Changing with the years, Santa Claus now comes with reindeer. Santa Claus, of the North Pole; Santa Claus, a secular elf, a jovial, jolly, St. Nick. But the symbols of giving, giving to the needy, giving of self where there is want is the true meaning of Santa Claus.

Saint Nicholas, from Myra, to Spain, to Holland, to America, every Christmas for seventeen hundred years. The spirit of Saint Nicholas lives when we give, give of ourselves, giving to meet to the needs of other.

copyright - Rev. Denzel Nonhof copyright © 1997.

Kir Shalom - Rev. Richard J. Fairchild 1997

use only with proper acknowledgement

*

1. Hark! the glad sound! the Saviour comes—

The Saviour promised long:

Let ev’ry heart prepare a throne

And ev’ry voice a song!

2. Joyful hosannas, Prince of Peace,

Thy welcome now proclaim,

While heav’n’s eternal arches ring

With Thy beloved name!

[Tune “Richmond”]

There is something comforting about the many lives in Scripture of which we know very little. There was more to the story of the woman who knew that if she could just touch the fringe of Jesus' robe she would get well. There was more to tell about the woman who anointed Jesus with a jar of perfume, or the thief who hung beside Jesus on the cross. Yet we are told only that they will be remembered. And they are. However insignificant their lives were to society, they have been captured in the pages of history as people worth remembering, people who had a role in the story of God on earth — people remembered by God when multitudes wished them forgotten. It is to me a tender reminder that our fleeting lives are yet infinitely significant because we are remembered by the One who hears our prayers and sees our very hearts long before others notice, long after they have stopped listening. It is a reminder, both wonderful and startling, that we live out our lives as a part of God's story.

We know very little about the man named Simeon but that he was in the temple when he realized that God had remembered him. Reaching for the baby in the arms of a young girl, Simeon was moved in praise. It is fitting that his words were sung as Simeon's wrinkled hands cradled the infant.

Sovereign Lord, as you have promised,

you now dismiss your servant in peace.

For my eyes have seen your salvation... (Luke 2:29-30)

Purposefully and powerfully, Simeon uses the language of a slave that has been freed. There is a sense of immediacy and relief, as if a great iron door has been unlocked and he is now free to go through. God had remembered his promise even as He remembered the aging Simeon. He would not die before he saw the Lord's salvation, the Lord had promised. Seeing and holding the child named Jesus, Simeon knew that he was now dismissed to death in peace.

Mary and Joseph stood in awe, marveling at the bold reaction of a stranger. Upon laying eyes on their child, a man unknown to them pronounces that he can now die in peace! Mary and Joseph were well aware of God's hand upon Jesus, yet here they seem to discover that the arm of God, which is not too short to save, extends far beyond anything they imagined. They are again aware of their fleeting position in the unfolding story of God.

Simeon's blessing and words to Mary only further this certainty: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too” (Luke 2:34-35). At these words, too, with their baby tenderly embraced, Mary and Joseph marveled.

On this Good Friday we recall the symbol of the Cross, the sword that pierced a mother's heart, and the passion of the one who continues to be spoken against. An old man in the temple hundreds of years ago, through a fraction of a scene in his life, brilliantly reminds us that to look at Jesus is to look at the salvation of God. The human heart is ever revealed in our response to him. It is a mysterious irony that runs through the Christian message; though our sins put him on the cross, it is our response to Christ that God has chosen to remember. In the unforgettable words of Isaac Watts:

Thus, while His death my sin displays

In all its blackest hue,

Such is the mystery of grace,

It seals my pardon too.

With pleasing grief, and mournful joy,

My spirit now if fill'd,

That I should such a life destroy,

Yet live by Him I kill'd!

Perhaps the small excerpts of the many lives we find in Scripture were meant to capture the most significant moment of a fleeting life — their response to Jesus Christ. As the thief peered into the bruised eyes of Jesus, he saw, like Simeon, the salvation of God. May his words echo our response to the one on the Cross: “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom” (Luke 23:42).

__________

Copyright © 2004 Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM). Reprinted with permission. "A Slice of Infinity" is a radio ministry of Ravi Zacharias International Ministries.

======================

Version from 12/18/06:

There is something comforting about the many lives in Scripture of which we know very little. There was more to the story of the woman who knew that if she could just touch the fringe of Jesus’s robe she would get well. There was more to tell about the woman who anointed Jesus with a jar of perfume, or the thief who hung beside Jesus on the cross. Yet, we are told only that they will be remembered. And they are. However insignificant their lives were to society, they have been captured in the pages of history as people worth remembering, people who had a role in the story of God on earth -- people remembered by God when multitudes wished them forgotten. It is to me a tender reminder that our fleeting lives are yet infinitely significant because we are remembered by the one who sees our hearts and hears our prayers long before others notice and long after they have stopped listening.

We know very little about the man named Simeon, but we know he was in the temple when he realized that God had remembered him. Reaching for the baby in the arms of a young girl, Simeon was moved to praise. As his wrinkled hands cradled the infant, Simeon sang to God:

“Sovereign Lord, as you have promised,

you now dismiss your servant in peace.

For my eyes have seen your salvation” (Luke 2:29-30).

Simeon uses the language of a slave that has been freed. There is a sense of immediacy and relief, as if a great iron door has been unlocked and he is now free to go through it. God had remembered his promise even as He remembered the aging Simeon. The Lord had promised he would not die before he saw the Lord’s salvation. Now seeing and holding the child named Jesus, Simeon knew he was dismissed to death in peace.

Marveling at the bold reaction of a stranger, Mary and Joseph stood in awe. Upon laying eyes on their child, a man unknown to them pronounced he could now die in peace! They were well aware of God’s hand upon Jesus; yet here they seem to discover that the arm of God, which is not too short to save, extends far beyond anything they imagined.

Simeon’s blessing and words to Mary only furthered this certainty: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too” (Luke 2:34-35). To these words as well, Mary and Joseph stood in awe.

In this season of Advent we recall the strange events of God’s coming to earth -- the birth of a baby, the short life of God’s Son, the defying impact of a carpenter. An old man in the temple hundreds of years ago, through a fraction of a scene in his life, reminds us still today that to look at Jesus is to look at the salvation of God. Whether peering at the child in the manger or the man on the Cross, the human heart is yet revealed in its response to him. This is, in fact, our most memorable feature. Though our sins put him on the Cross, it is our response to Christ that God has chosen to remember.

Perhaps the small excerpts of the many fleeting lives we find in Scripture were meant to capture exactly this sentiment. As the thief peered into the bruised eyes of Jesus, like Simeon, he saw the salvation of God. May our response to the one born in our midst echo this man’s words to the one on the Cross: “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom” (Luke 23:42). And so it was.

________

Copyright © 2006 Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM). Reprinted with permission. "A Slice of Infinity" is a radio ministry of Ravi Zacharias International Ministries.

Theme: Jesus brings us the gift of love. ( Fourth Sunday of Advent)

Object: A toy Santa, if you choose, but none is really needed.

Scripture: She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins. Matthew 1:21 (NIV)

________

One morning last week a tune started going through my mind. As you might imagine, that is not unusual. I love music, so I often wake up in the morning with a song on my mind and I often go to bed at night with a song on my mind. This particular morning was different. I woke up with the tune “Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town” running through my mind, but the words that came to my mind were not the usual words to the song. Here are the words that came to my mind.

Wipe away your tears, get rid of your fears;

Here's the best news you've heard in years!

Jesus Christ is coming to town.

He's makin' a list in the Book of Life,

That'll be the end of your trouble and strife!

Jesus Christ is comin' to town.

He loves you when you're sleepin',

He loves you when you're awake;

He loves you when you're bad or good,

But be good for Jesus' sake!

Now put on a smile, get rid of that frown,

Spread the “Good News” all around;

Jesus Christ is comin' to town.

At this time of year, many people are thinking about Santa Claus coming to town and thinking about all of the great gifts that Santa will bring them. But the real reason for this season is the celebration of Jesus Christ's coming -- and he brings us the greatest gift of all. He brings the gift of God's love. The Bible says, “But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy.” Yes, he loves us when we're bad or good, what a great love that is!

Today, we light the fourth candle on the Advent wreath. It is the candle of love. It reminds us that God loved us so much that he sent his Son to save us.

Dear Lord, we thank you for your great love. We thank you that you showed us that love by sending your son, Jesus, to save us. Amen.

During the Advent season we take notice of the blessings of Christmas: the coming of the long-awaited Messiah and the gifts he offers for those who would receive them. And even those who may not pause much longer than to consider their shopping or wish lists cannot help but notice the glowing lights, the sparkling tinsel, and the joyful sounds. We observe all around that something is different; for a few weeks, our world is transformed by a triumphant visitation of Christmas.

Nearly two thousand years ago, a young girl named Mary was first transformed by this holy visitation, and from no less than the angel Gabriel himself. No doubt she couldn’t help take notice of him, for his sudden presence and words “greatly troubled” her (Luke 1:29). But Gabriel assured her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God” (v. 30). Mary was amazed — God had chosen her, a mere peasant girl, to bear his royal son, the promised Prince of Peace. Her amazement soon turned to song:

“My soul glorifies the Lord

and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,

for he has been mindful

of the humble state of his servant.

From now on all generations will call me blessed,

for the Mighty One has done great things for me —

holy is his name.” (verses 46-49)

Mary magnifies the Lord because He has taken notice of her. The intimate word she chooses to express this (“he has been mindful”) is used only two other times in the New Testament. It means “to turn the eyes upon,” “to gaze at,” and “to pay special attention.” In fact, a few chapters later in Luke 9, a desperate father utters this same word when he begs Jesus to look upon — that is, to ultimately touch and heal — his demon-possessed son (see V. 38). And Jesus does.

Martin Luther comments on Mary’s song, “Mary confesses that the foremost work God did for her was that He regarded her, which is indeed the greatest of His works, on which all the rest depend and from which they all derive. For where it comes to pass that God turns His face toward one to regard him, there is nothing but grace and salvation, and all gifts and works must follow.”

Throughout the Scriptures we read of God regarding his people; He sees their frailty and shows forth his mercy. Isaiah 40, which Mary echoes in her song(1), says, “Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem” (verses 1-2). Here the prophet poignantly asks, “Why do you say, O Jacob, and complain, O Israel, ‘My way is hidden from the LORD; my cause is disregarded by my God’” (v. 27). In response he reassures us of God’s promised Deliverer and of strength and hope for the weary.

Thus, the wonder of Christmas is not only that God took notice of a young peasant girl, but also of you and of me. Like the demon-possessed boy and many others, Jesus turns his eyes upon each of us singularly. And as one poet observes of Jesus’ gaze,

One might live long

just to be looked at once this way,

judged, forgiven, and blessed,

taken in, recognized — a prayer answered

in eyes that meet longing and assuage it:

“Lord, remember me

when you come into your kingdom.” (2)

And Jesus does.

So might we like Mary take notice of Him, treasuring and pondering all these things in our hearts, and sing songs of joy to God our Savior.

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1. Compare Luke 1:51 with Isaiah 40:10,23.

2. Marilyn Chandler McEntyre, “Head of Christ” from her book Drawn to the Light: Poems on Rembrandt’s Religious Paintings (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2003).

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Copyright © 2004 Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM). Reprinted with permission. "A Slice of Infinity" is a radio ministry of Ravi Zacharias International Ministries.

*

At the outset of the Christmas season a few Sundays ago, I was preparing to teach a Sunday School class in a series from Revelation on Jesus as a conquering Warrior Messiah, dripped in blood and destroying His enemies. Somehow it seemed a little inappropriate for this time of year.

Shouldn't I take a break from the Apocalypse to highlight the little Lord Jesus asleep on the hay? Isn't there something kind of, well, unseasonable about teaching, at this time of year, about a Christ who bears a sword and a cosmic entourage, who prepares His people a messianic banquet and then prepares for the birds a banquet of the flesh and blood of His enemies (Revelation 19:17-19)? It is hard to imagine Tiny Tim exclaiming, “God bless us every one,” after hearing my lesson on southern-fried Gog and Magog.

But my discomfort only revealed to me how much my Christmas imagery is more shaped by Currier and Ives than by apostles and prophets.

The infant Jesus is not as conspicuous in American pop culture as He once was. Claymation Burl Ives is a little more palatable to contemporary religious pluralism. But the baby Jesus still exists in the American Christian subculture as a kind of non-threatening mascot for everything warm and sentimental about the holiday season. The only problem with this is that the Bible doesn't present the baby Jesus as warm or sentimental at all. As a matter of fact, the sentimental Jesus of the Christmas season often chills our evangelistic fervor because we forget that the Bethlehem event is the exact opposite of blessing the good feelings of contemporary American culture.

The virgin birth prophesied in Isaiah is a sign, the prophet tells us, of God defeating His enemies and restoring His kingship (Isaiah 7:10-25). The young Galilean couple travel to Bethlehem, it must be remembered, because from that city of David will come a Conqueror who will drive back the Assyrians and shepherd the people of Israel (Micah 5:1-6). That's why the angel tells Mary not just that she will bear a holy Child but that he will sit on the throne of His father David (Luke 1:32-33), a throne it must be remembered that came through the severed head and bloody foreskins of not a few Philistines. This is also why Herod didn't greet the oracles of the Magi with a hearty “season's greetings,” but with a bloody threat to root out this threat to his kingship (Matt 2). And all of this is rooted in an ancient promise that the son of the woman would crush the head of the serpent of Eden (Genesis 3:15).

We must remember the infancy of Jesus. We must cherish in our hearts that He took on flesh and blood for us, that He bore our humanity in all of its fullness, even in the dependencies of a baby in a feeding box. But we must never allow this baby to be defined as non-threatening. Indeed, the shadow of Bethlehem threatens the frenzied buying of our consumeristic Christmas season. We must remember that ultimately we will not coo over Him in a cradle beneath us, but give an account to Him as our sovereign Judge and give glory to Him as our sovereign King. We must remember that our love for family and friends and Christmas includes our responsibility to plead with them to be found in Christ before the great and terrible day of the Lord.

I suppose that's why I decided against taking a break from Revelation this season. The young virgin Mary, after all, set the tone for our Christmas thoughts when she reflected on the angel's announcement of the birth of Jesus. She sang of God's mercy to His people, of His faithfulness to His covenant promises. And then she sang also of the fact that, in this fetal Incarnate One within her, God “has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts; he has brought down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted those of humble estate; he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent empty away” (Luke 1:51-53 ESV).

With Bethlehem before her, Mary also had Armageddon on her mind. So should we.

*

In the process of moving and reorganizing some bookshelves recently, I recovered something long out of place. A small Nativity scene carved out of olive wood had been inadvertently left behind from last year's Christmas. Holding it in my hand, I cowered at the thought of digging through boxes in the garage long buried by post-Christmas storage. At this point, it seemed better to be two months early in setting it up than 10 months late in packing it away. I decided to keep the carving out.

Strangely enough, my decision then coincided with a friend's mentioning of a good Christmas quote. Advent was suddenly all around me. In a Christmas sermon given December 2, 1928, Dietrich Bonhoeffer said, “The celebration of Advent is possible only to those who are troubled in soul, who know themselves to be poor and imperfect, who look forward to something greater to come. For these, it is enough to wait in humble fear until the Holy One himself comes down to us, God in the child in the manger. God comes. The Lord Jesus comes. Christmas comes. Christians rejoice!” To be early with my Nativity scene suddenly seemed a wise, but convicting thought. I had kept it up for the sake of convenience, what about the sake of remembering? If Advent reminds us that we are waiting in December, what reminds us that we are waiting in October?

The story of the Nativity, though beautiful and familiar, though admittedly far-reaching, is as easily put out of our minds as Christmas decorations are put in boxes. On this side of the calendar, a carved Nativity scene looks amiss. Sitting on my mantle, it seems somehow away from home, far from lights and greenery. But looking at it with thoughts of Advent near, I am struck by the irony that “far away from home” is often my sentiment amidst the lights and greens and sounds of Christmas.

Bonhoeffer continues, “When once again Christmas comes and we hear the familiar carols and sing the Christmas hymns, something happens to us... The hardest heart is softened. We recall our own childhood. We feel again how we then felt, especially if we were separated from a mother. A kind of homesickness comes over us for past times, distant places, and yes, a blessed longing for a world without violence or hardness of heart. But there is something more-a longing for the safe lodging of the everlasting Father. And that leads our thoughts to the curse of homelessness which hangs heavily over the world.”

Unlike any other month, December weighs on my heart the reality of my own homelessness. In the cold and in the hymns, I remember that I am troubled in soul and looking for something greater; I remember that I am poor and imperfect and out of place, and I hear again the gentle knock at the door. Like the Nativity scene on my mantle, I am a stranger in a foreign country, but I have been invited home. Advent is about waiting for the one who embraced homelessness to show us home. It is not December that reminds us we are homeless but the Nativity of God, the Incarnation of Christ. And each day is touched by the promise that God came near, and that Christ will again come breaking through, into our world, into our homelessness, into our sin, and into our death.

In his sermon on Advent, Dietrich Bonhoeffer offered a prayer worth praying in October. “Lord Jesus, come yourself, and dwell with us, be human as we are, and overcome what overwhelms us. Come into the midst of my evil, come close to my unfaithfulness. Share my sin, which I hate and which I cannot leave. Be my brother, Thou Holy God. Be my brother in the kingdom of evil and suffering and death. Come with me in my death, come with me in my suffering, come with me as I struggle with evil. And make me holy and pure, despite my sin and death.” Every day, despite its location on the calendar, a still, small voice answers our cry persuasively, “I stand at the door and knock” (Rev. 3:20).

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Copyright © 2005 Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM). Reprinted with permission. "A Slice of Infinity" is a radio ministry of Ravi Zacharias International Ministries.

*

The alarm of discovering your house has been broken into is one I imagine stays with you long after the thief has gone home. Though most are not eyewitnesses to the looming figure that wrongfully entered, victims of such crimes often report seeing shadows in every corner and silhouettes peering through their windows. Signs that SOMEONE HAD BEEN THERE are enough to call them to alertness.

Whether you have experienced the shock of burglary and its lasting effects or not, the portrayal of Christ as one who will come like a thief in the night is a startling image. The description is one that seems uncouth amongst images of the quiet baby in a manger and the star that guides men in the obscurity of night. How could one who came as a child of hope return like a looming, unwanted figure? Yet this is the counsel from Christ himself: “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him” (Matthew 24:42-44).

The cry of Advent is the cry of wakeful vigilance. One of the key figures in celebrating the season, John the Baptist's probing message continues to cry in urgency: “Are you ready?” Are you ready to respond to the infant that came to dwell in the midst of night and suffering? Are you ready to hear his invasive message? Are you ready to recognize God among you, the hunter, the thief, the King? During the season of Advent, we are called to keep alert, to read again the fearful signs that SOMEONE HAS BEEN HERE moving about the places we dwell. And we are called to stay awake to the startling possibility of his nearness even now. “I say to all,” Christ instructed, “Stay awake” (Mark 13:37).

The owner of a house that has been disturbed once by a thief lives with the wakefulness that the thief will come again, however persuasively he is urged to see otherwise. He remembers the signs of a presence other than his own — prints left behind, a door left open, the memory of a life turned upside-down — and he vows to keep watch, knowing the thief will be back. In the same way, we are called to be ready.

The child who was born in Bethlehem came quietly in the night, unbeknownst to many who dwelled near him, yet leaving prints behind in history and signs upon our lives. Like a thief, he shattered barriers that told us we were autonomous and invaded hearts we thought were protected. Yet, he came not to steal and destroy, but to dwell in all that overwhelms us, and to live in a world groaning in death. He became human as we are that he might offer us the abundant life of knowing him. “He was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5). The signs that he has been here are enough to call us to alertness. Like a thief in the night, he will come again. Let us therefore keep watch.

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Copyright © 2005 Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM). Reprinted with permission. "A Slice of Infinity" is a radio ministry of Ravi Zacharias International Ministries.

*

Advent is a strange season, strange because it invites us to look forward to something that has already happened. The word “advent” literally means “coming.” Advent is a time of waiting, waiting for the birth of a child who was born two thousand years ago.

Is this a flaw in the whole concept of the Advent season? Not at all. In Advent, we don’t simply look back and pretend that we are waiting, imagining what it would have been like to wait for the Messiah prior to the Incarnation. We are also meant to truly and sincerely look forward to Christ’s second coming.

I’ve told this story before, but I think it bears repeating. Some time ago I was participating in a Bible study at a drop-in center for homeless men. We had sung a few praise choruses, and after the last one a man timidly raised his hand and said, “I need to get one thing straight; is Jesus coming back or something?” I’ve never had a greater privilege than imparting this “news” to him, stammering in surprise, “Yes...as a matter of fact he is!”

That may be the closest I’ll ever come to feeling like the angel who appeared to the shepherd of Bethlehem, bringing good tidings of great joy. For this man whose life had been a story of abandonment, addiction, sin, and shame, the news that Jesus was coming again to make a new heavens and a new earth was tidings of the very best kind.

The last words of Jesus recorded in our Bibles (in the very next to last verse of the book of Revelation) are a promise and a warning: “I am coming soon!” Because we have this promise as our hope, when we sing, “O come, O come, Emmanuel,” we are not simply engaging in a role-playing exercise. It may help us to imagine what it felt like to be Zechariah or one of the other priests whose fathers and their father’s fathers had been praying for the Messiah for as long as they could remember. But their waiting is more like ours than it is different, with one great exception: Christ has already come once. This gives us the very best grounds for believing that the prophecies of his second coming will be fulfilled.

This Advent, I hope that you will pray and long for the return of Christ. When you sing these haunting words, let them be your own:

O come, O come, Emmanuel,

And ransom captive Israel,

That mourns in lonely exile here

Until the Son of God appear.

Rejoice! Rejoice!

Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.

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Copyright © 2006 Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM). Reprinted with permission. "A Slice of Infinity" is a radio ministry of Ravi Zacharias International Ministries.