Emmanuel – God Is With Us

Nativity of the Lord: Day – Cycle B

Isaiah 52: 7-10; Hebrews 1: 1-6; 

John 1: 1-18

The author of today's gospel reading tells a different story than we are used to hearing on Christmas. We do not hear about the familiar images that everyone associates with the birth of Jesus. There is no census from Caesar Augustus, no manger scene and no star to lead far-away travelers to Bethlehem. Instead, we get poetry from the evangelist.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came through him, and without him nothing came to be.” (John 1: 1-3)

The world had been locked into an advent that lasted centuries. The Jewish people had been awaiting the birth of the Christ child ever since Isaiah had prophesied it more than seven hundred years earlier. The world must have seemed like a dark place back then. Can you imagine waiting as a people for so long?

With the birth of the Christ child, the first Christmas, the waiting was officially over. But the world still did not know. Other than the Holy Family, a handful of shepherds and a Magi or three, the world remained woefully in the dark. The people of God did not know that what had been foretold had come to be. The Gentiles and the rest of the world for whom Jesus came remained in the dark. The world continued to wait.

Waiting is something we can all understand. Who among us has not longed for something? The youngest of us eagerly await Christmas morning and the wonders that it brings. Parents, do you recall waiting up for the teenager who has missed curfew? We wait for test results and traffic lights. Waiting is a part of life – there is no escaping it.

It was not until the spread of Christianity that the story of the Jesus came to be known near and far. Today the gospel is preached worldwide.

All the ends of the earth have seen the saving power of God. (Psalm 98)

The other day, as I was standing in line to purchase a gift, I noticed the man in front of me bristle when the sales clerk wished him a Merry Christmas. He proceeded to say that he does not celebrate the holiday because what happened two thousand years ago has no bearing on our world or our lives today. The birth of Jesus did not change the world.

The truth of the matter is that the man was essentially correct – the birth of Jesus did not change the world. It was not supposed to! Emmanuel did not come into the world to change it. God had another goal in mind.

What came to be through him was life, and this life was the light of the human race; the light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it. (John 1: 3-5)

Some may look at the world today and see only darkness. They see insurmountable problems and wonder why God has forsaken us. Please remember that the world in Jesus' time had its share of problems also. The holy lands were occupied by a conquering Roman army. Slavery and corruption were commonplace. The poor and afflicted lived as outcasts.

So why do we celebrate the birth of a child that occurred more than two thousand years ago? Why does this feast day hold such significance for us?

And the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among is, and we saw his glory, the glory as of the Father's only Son, full of grace and truth. (John 1: 14)

The word of the Lord endures because God has set it loose and nothing can stop it. Nothing can stop it.

He did not come to change the world. The plan was much more elegant than that.

The Word – Emmanuel – Jesus the Christ. His love and grace still effects us, still influences us, still inspires us. The Word does not change the world, it changes me. The Word does not save the world, it saves me.

In the course of the coming liturgical year we will see that Word blossom in the desert like a rare flower, healing the sick and making whole what was once lost. He will confound and illuminate in parables, and He will preach the Kingdom of God.

This day comes with the promise of new birth. Such is the gift given to us this Christmas day. As we open the many gifts that God and our family and friends have given to us, let us remember that these tokens bring hope and promise and lasting love. We are poised here to give thanks and praise as we lift up our hearts in gratitude to the God who comes yet again into our midst.

Deacon Darryl J. Diemer

Christmas Day

December 25, 2014

Painting: Adoration of the Shepherds, 1646, by a pupil of Rembrandt