God's Wondrous Word

Nativity of the Lord: Day – Cycle C

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. There is no Mary, no Joseph, no manger, no stable – there are no shepherds, no angels, no bright star leading the magi from far away. Instead, John introduces us to Jesus using poetry – wondrous images about the mystery and the glory of God:

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)

It is fitting that John the evangelist is symbolized as an eagle. His words soar, lifting us up on its wings, taking us back to the beginning of creation, when everything began with a word. God spoke and the world came to be. This all-powerful word of God created it all – galaxies so far and vast that their light takes centuries to reach us – cells so small that they cannot be seen except through a microscope – yet containing all the building blocks for life in our world.

After creation, God continued to speak. God spoke out of the stillness to Abraham, and two elderly people were chosen to parent a promise. God spoke to Moses from a bush aflame, and he led his people out of slavery to freedom. God spoke to others as well – to Isaiah, to Jeremiah, to Ezekiel, Amos and Micah. People listened for awhile … but then they would grow distracted, or bored or tired of the message. But God continued to speak in partial and various ways – until He spoke more explicitly.

God said, “Jesus.”

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

The world had been locked into an advent that lasted for centuries. It must have seemed like a dark and forsaken place. Then one glorious evening an angel appeared to a few shepherds living in the countryside with the announcement or wondrous news. And the world was made new.

The light of Jesus penetrated the darkness of a world that had had been waiting for so long. Darkness was not abolished, it continues to exist.

 

But the darkness cannot smother the Word. The light that is Christ continues to shine and we are witnesses – testifiers to that light. Sometimes our world chooses darkness – but the darkness will never extinguish the light that is Christ. To us, God continues to say, “Jesus.”

In the face of refugees fleeing the horrors of oppression, war and genocide, God says, “Jesus.”

In the face of racism, sexism, hatred and intolerance, God says, “Jesus.”

In the face of unemployment, poverty, hunger and homelessness, God says, “Jesus.”

Again and again and again, God says, “Jesus.”

And the Word becomes flesh. And the world is made new. Here in this place of worship and community, God says, “Jesus,” over the bread and wine that enters into our bodies. And the Word becomes our flesh and dwells within us all.

God's word is truth. God's word is strength. God's word is love. May we hear His word today and in the days ahead. May we make room for it to dwell in our hearts and fill us with grace and truth. 

Deacon Darryl J. Diemer

Nativity of the Lord 

December 25, 2015

Painting:  Detail from "Nativity at Night" bu Guido Reni, 1640