In Jesus Holy Name December 24, 2007
Text: Luke 2:4-7 Christmas Eve - Redeemer
“Mary Put God In A Box”
In the year 957 B.C, Solomon, The King of Israel, was preparing to build a temple in Jerusalem, a place for the children of Israel to gather for worship. When the temple was dedicated, “The priests brought the ark of the covenant to its place in the inner sanctuary of the temple, The Most Holy Place.” “When the priest withdrew from the Holy Place, the cloud (of God’s presence) filled the temple of the Lord.” (pomp, cymbals, music)
I Kings 8 records the prayer of Solomon.
“O Lord, God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven above or on earth below. You keep your covenant of love …” Then Solomon, in his prayer, asks a serious question. “Will God really dwell on earth?” The heavens cannot contain the Almighty God ,,, How much less this temple. Nine centuries later, King Solomon’s question of “Will God dwell on earth?” was answered. Yes, God chose to dwell on earth.
Joseph, the carpenter from Nazareth and his wife Mary, traveled from their home in Nazareth to Bethlehem. Another King, Ruler of Rome, had decreed that a census should be taken. So Joseph travels to Bethlehem, the town of David, the town of Solomon’s Grandfather, Jesse, because Joseph was a descendant of David. While they were there, Mary gave birth to her first born, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, a wooden box, in a cradle so rude and bare, because there was no room for them in the inn.
The Apostle Paul writes of Jesus, “In Him the full deity of God dwells in him.” The invisible God became visible. The baby in Mary’s arms, the baby lying in a manger is God in flesh.
Pope John Paul II wrote: “Christmas demands faith because Christmas is a mystery. Our reason can not understand how God could possibly love us to such a degree. The shepherds were given a sign. They will find the Savior in a manger box.
C.S. Lewis in “Mere Christianity” wrote: “The Son of God became a man to enable us to become the sons of God.”
Martin Luther loved the celebration of Christmas. One of his hymns captures the essence of the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem:
Welcome to earth, O noble Guest
Oh, Lord, You created all and yet became so small
You chose to lay your head where cattle lately fed.
I grew up on a farm in Missouri. It was one of those farms that had a big barn, hand hewn logs and wooden pegs. The barn had a center hallway with grain bins on one side in which was stored wheat or corn and mixed grain. The other side of the aisle was a corn crib that could be accessed from the outside, a wooden stair case that led to the loft, where hay was stored. To the right of the aisle one would pass a long feeding trough where the milking stantures were and then a stable for Dad’s two draft horses. Each horse had a small wooden box in which we placed their grain. Each box was about 18” x 24”, about 4” or 5” high. Between the tall boxes is where we placed the hay. So it’s easy for me to see the stable and the manger available to Mary & Joseph, a perfect box to hold the newborn infant.
Matthew and Luke focus our attention on God’s arrival and intervention into our human history with the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem. The Gospel of John sees beyond the birth to the living word of God who left eternity to reside on the very earth his fingers had created. “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. We beheld His glory.”
I love the word descriptions of Matthew and Luke – shepherds in the fields, angelic chorus, the visit of the Wise Men, a stable and manger. They capture our attention, our emotions, and open a window into the mystery of the incarnation.
The Omnipotent God of the Universe made himself breakable and vulnerable in the arms of Mary. When Joseph and Mary wrapped, in home spun cloth, the infant Jesus, God the creator was made visible. She placed the child in a box that cradled the sleeping child. Christmas is the celebration of God’s entry point – a demonstration of His love. His name will be Jesus for He will save His people from their sins.
Let me tell you another story. It begins on Christmas day years ago. A woman paid a holiday visit to the home of a friend. At that home was a little girl who had a most excellent doll collection. That collection had become, with the opening of Christmas gifts, considerably larger. Making adult conversation with the little lady, the friend asked, “Of all the dolls, which one of these is your favorite? The little girl brought out a doll that was the most tattered and pathetic thing the woman had ever seen. The face was disfigured because of a broken nose. One china arm was cracked and the other was missing entirely. The woman didn’t laugh, but she asked, “And why?” Why do you love this one the most? You have so many pretty dolls. To which the little girl could only confess: “I love this one the most because she needs it the most. If I didn’t love her, nobody would”
That little girl, without knowing it, was echoing the words of the Christmas angels. Christmas is God loving us when nobody else would. To the world, we are nothing more than a statistic. To our government, we are numbers to be processed, polled and tallied. To businesses, we are consumers with wallets and purses that need to be emptied … even when we really don’t need more trinkets and _________.
But to God we are sinful souls, marked and marred by our acts of disobedience. To God we are individuals in need of His mercy and grace. He loves us. He took upon Himself flesh and bone to rescue us from the grasp of Satan, who holds people in slavery to their fear of death. The angels brought goodness.. “For unto you is born in the City of David, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. God is love.
Someone might say – What does love look like? As a Pastor for over 30 years I’ve seen it. I’ve seen love at weddings. I‘m not talking about the love between the bride and groom. You won’t see it in the faces of the harried fathers and mothers. Look at the grandmothers. They have a smile that never leaves their face. They remember their wedding day years before They think of all the good and bad times that lie before their children. They have experienced the highs and lows of life. They could share their memories, but no one asks, so all they do is love.
I’ve seen love in the hand of a mother holding their child’s hand through the night of illness. I’ve seen the love in the eyes of a wife when her husband steps off the plane, returning from a soldier’s duty. But human beings have a difficult time sustaining their love. It is there. It is gone. It is a bright light that quickly faces.
God’s love has no such limitations. When Solomon asked, “Will God dwell on earth?” Yes, go to Bethlehem. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born……You will find the baby wrapped in homespun, swaddling cloths and lying in a wooden box, a manger.
When the shepherds arrived, they found it just as the angel had said. They saw God’s love, that love which had been promised to Adam and Eve. A love sent to save souls from sin; a love to save us from the wrath of a holy God so that we might have peace and eternal life.
In the years that followed, others would see God’s love. The mourning widow in the village of Nain, the sad sisters of Lazarus, the frantic father , Jairus, the lame, the blind, the deaf all touched by the hand of Jesus. Will God dwell on earth? Yes, walk with Mary to the cross, the hill of Calvary. God in Jesus dying, taking upon himself the sins you and I have committed. Walk with the women to the tomb. It is empty. The angel said, “I know you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth. He is not here. He has risen just as he said.”
If Christmas only recalls the birth of Jesus in a manger, we would not be here tonight. This child was no ordinary baby. God invaded our human time and space. Believers and non-believers all know it to be so. His arrival split history into A.D. and B.C. (A.D = Anno Domini) Some historians have tried to subtedly change A.D. Ad. Domio “The Year of Our Lord” to C.E. “Common Era” and B.C. Before Christ to B.C.E. (Before the Common Era). But any one with a curious mind must ask Why? What happened two thousand and seven years ago? Why will my new checks soon bear the date 2008? Is it from the founding of Rome? The founding of America? NO, we date our days and years from the birth of Jesus, when the invisible God invaded the earth he created. The shepherds saw Him in a manger. God wants you to know Him. That’s why Christmas will never disappear. Have you noticed? Even Target has replaced the empty words, Happy Holidays, with Merry Christmas. Watch their commercial carefully. Christmas is the story that tells us God’s grace is greater than our sins.
I am reminded of the story about the day that Abraham Lincoln was born in Kentucky. A neighbor stopped a man from town and said, “Any news down at the village, Ezra?”
“Well, Squire McLean’s gone to Washington to see Madison sworn in, old Spellman tells me that this Bonaparte fellow has captured most of Spain. What’s new out there?” Nothing, Nothing at all, except a new baby down at Tim Lincoln’s house. Nothing ever happens out here.” The birth of Abraham Lincoln was considered unimportant for those who did not know the future. The birth of Jesus was just another child born in Bethlehem to those who do not know God’s love and why our calendar change.
On that first Christmas the shepherds heard a new song. “Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace, good will toward men.” A Savior was born to save men, women and children from consequences of their list of broken commandments. His name is Jesus.
Someone might ask – How can I have peace in my soul? How can I have harmony with God? Can Jesus be my Savior? Yes, God offers the gift of Christmas to all who would believe. He will forgive your past, wipe your slate clean and enable you to start over.
The stories of Christmas – we know them well. Mary and Joseph. The infant in a manger where cattle lately fed. The visit of the shepherds. The angelic choir. We are drawn to investigate his life. He grew up. He died on a cross. He rose from the grave. We have forgiveness by faith.
The question of Solomon has been answered. “Will God dwell on earth?” Yes.
“To you this night is born a child,
of Mary chosen virgin mild.
This little child shall be the joy of all the earth.
Glory to God in the Highest and Peace to all the earth.
