God Works

Christmas Eve
with Luke 2:1-7, a bit of Isaiah, and Psalm 98:1-3

Psalm 98:1-3 Common English Bible (CEB)

1 Sing to the Lord a new song
    because he has done wonderful things!
His own strong hand and his own holy arm
    have won the victory!
2 The Lord has made his salvation widely known;
    he has revealed his righteousness
    in the eyes of all the nations.
3 God has remembered his loyal love
    and faithfulness to the house of Israel;
    every corner of the earth has seen our God’s salvation. 

• One of my favorite Christmas movies is A Charlie Brown Christmas. I'm not sure a move like that could be made today... it's tough to make a movie that's religious, much less that actually proclaims the Gospel. You know, when they come to the end and Charlie Brown cries out: “Isn't there anyone out there who can tell me what Christmas is all about?” and Linus calmly says, “Sure, Charlie Brown, I can tell you. Lights, please.”

And he launches into that reading from Luke that we shared earlier tonight: “And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the fields, keeping watch over their flocks by night. And lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them, and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not, for behold, I bring unto you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you this day is born in the city of Bethlehem, a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; you shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel, a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God, and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on Earth peace, good will toward men.'” That's what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown.

• No, I'm not sure a movie like that could be made today... I think there are a lot of things that have changed about Christmas since Linus answered Charlie Brown's question back in 1965... It seems that a lot of people are hypersensitive about people, especially public figures, even *mentioning* God... Somehow “freedom of religion,” which is rightly protected by the Constitution, has been twisted into “freedom from any public mention of religion that I may find offensive.” Somehow Christmas has become practically synonymous with a season of market frenzy, guilt, and overspending. Add to that the variety of economic stress, social pressure, and medical troubles that always seem to increase, and for many Christians it sure feels like we live in dark times.

• But these are not the only days of darkness the people of God have known, neither are they even the darkest days the world has known. There have been hundreds of thousands of people who have lived entire lifetimes waiting in the darkness for something light. And if that something light were left up to people alone, we'd be waiting in the darkness still.

• But God has done marvelous things. The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light, we read... those who lived in a land of deep darkness – on them light has shined. For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

• Indeed, the Lord has made his salvation known... The psalmist writes in Psalm 98: The Lord has made his salvation known. Do you know what that word “salvation” is in Hebrew? “Yasha.” Same root as the word Yeshua, the name of Jesus. God saves. God brings light into the world. God enters into a world filled with various darknesses and leads us into light. The Lord has made Jesus known, the salvation of the world.

• And we here at First Church are not afraid to say the name of Jesus. We're not afraid to bear that light into Barboursville and Huntington and beyond, we're not afraid to give God all the credit and all the glory, we're not afraid to say, Yes, the Lord has done marvelous things, the Lord has made his salvation known, and his name is Jesus. He is the light of the world, and it is the light of Jesus we celebrate and that we will shout to all the earth.

• In a moment we will celebrate God's light in a special way. We will pass out candles and then light our candles from the one light, the Christ light; we offer the light to you and ask that you would offer it to your neighbor. While the light is being passed, we'll join our voices together in the timeless classic “Silent Night.”

And at the 11pm service:
Before we do that, we'll take Jesus into our lives in a very special way as we participate in Holy Communion. We will join together with people across borders and centuries and say Yes, there is room in my heart for Thee, Lord Jesus.

I'll now ask some ushers to pass the baskets around. Please take a candle, and take a communion cup – the cup includes juice and a wafer as well, so that we might commune together. After these elements have been distributed I'll lead us in the communion liturgy.

• Friends, the light of the world is not ours to keep to ourselves, but to share with all the world. We nurture the light and allow it to grow in us and through us. Though we blow these candles out, we carry God's light in our lives.

• Joy to the world!

• And now may the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus, now and always. Amen. Merry Christmas

Please join us for Worship 11am Sundays
We will begin the year
with John Wesley's Covenant Renewal Service on January 5,

and Sunday School for all ages at 9:45am

Merry Christmas!