Christ Episcopal Church
December 24, 2015
Christmas Eve
When our children were little, their last request before going to bed at night was "Tell me a story." Sometimes "Green Eggs and Ham," or "Mike Mulligan and his steam shovel" or a chapter of "Captain Underpants" would suffice. But most of the time, they wanted a real story; a story about themselves when they were little. They wanted stories about how they welded power over us when they were infants, keeping us up all night at will. They wanted stories about their unique ways of playing soccer in kindergarten, or their own peculiar version of the monopoly rules, or the way they sang, or actually did not sing, in the preschool Christmas pageant. We'd tell the same stories over and over again, night after night, and every time we got to the punch line, they'd squeal with laughter, like they had never heard the story before. In short, they wanted stories about themselves from before a time they could remember. Now Slocomb and Caldwell are adults, but we all still love sitting around the table, telling stories from the past about many different generations of family. The stories of our past, both of ourselves and those who have gone before us, help shape our lives as they give us some understanding of who we are and where we come from.
This afternoon/Tonight we hear another story that transports us back in time. The Christmas story has players like an Emperor, a Governor, shepherds, angels, and young parents who had to walk for miles to register with the government. Not much of that strikes a chord with any of our own stories, yet this is our treasured story that we hear over and over again, year after year. What do we learn about ourselves from this story about people we do not know, 2000 years ago, in a place most of us have never seen? How is this story our story?
The story begins "In those days, a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria." Luke locates the Christmas story at a particular moment in history, not because either Augustus or Quirinius had anything to do with the birth of Jesus, but because for whatever reason, God acted at that moment in history. And at that moment in history, we are called to see the contrast between the power of the world and the power of God. Who will bring peace? The emperor of Rome or the baby born to unwed parents, miles from home, in someone's stable? The story reminds us that true power and greatness are not about the ability to make people's lives difficult by requiring them to travel long distances at an awkward time to tend to bureaucratic red tape. In this story, the baby born in this inconvenient birth is the Prince of Peace. We hear from the angel that this humble beginning is actually a sign that the Messiah has been born. We learn from this story that God acts within human time and uses ordinary people doing ordinary things to reveal real power in the world.
The story continues "In that region, there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified." Anyone with a better option does something other than be a shepherd. Shepherding is dangerous and dirty work. But in our story, the angel comes to shepherds. The angel did not go to Augustus or Quirinius. In fact, Augustus and Quirinius seem to have no clue what is going on in this little corner of the universe. Again, God is at work in the lives of unknown and unlikely people, in a tiny corner of the world, unbeknownst to the powers that be.
The angel says to the shepherds "Do not be afraid; for see-I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born today in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord." Today, right now, this very moment, a savior is born. The prophets foretold the coming of the Messiah at some point in the future. The angel proclaims that this moment is now. The child whose birth is being reported is a savior today, not just at some point in the future when he grows up. The birth of the Messiah makes a difference today, as God becomes flesh and dwells among us, as Emmanuel "God with us" is born. Today, God is born in our midst.
The Christmas story is our story. We hear this story over and over again, year after year, like little children who know that life as they know it now isn't all that there is to who they are. Because God acted during the time of Emperor Augustus and Governor Quirinius, we know that God acts in our time. We hear that, even when the great leaders of the world seem to have all the power, God acts in the lives of unlikely people to reveal true power. So, we look around us to see where true power might be revealed in our own world. And we hear that while the world looks for salvation to come in large and expensive packages, and sometime in the future, the message of the angels tell us that a savior has been born today. In what unlikely place might salvation arrive in our midst? From the story of Mary and Joseph, the birth of Jesus, and the song of the angels, we know that just as the Christ Child was born in the midst of their complicated lives, so the Christ child can be born in the midst of ours.
Do not be afraid, says the angel. For to you, on this very night, in Springfield, Ohio, in the midst of whatever is going on in your life, is born a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord.
Amen.
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