This sermon was delivered to Holy Trinity Church in Ayr,
Ayrshire, Scotland on the 31st December 2023
(a Scottish Episcopal Church in the Dioceses of Glasgow and Dumfries).
“Please join me in my prayer.” Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of our hearts, be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, our strength, and our redeemer. Amen. (Ps. 19:14).
Introduction: A belated merry Xmas
Today is 31st December, the last day of 2023 and if I haven’t done so already, may I take this opportunity to wish you all a belated Very Merry Christmas.
Now I don’t know if it’s just me, but somehow Christmas just seems to go in quicker each year, and now suddenly, we have a New Year to face, so let us take a look at our readings this morning to see if that helps, and a reading where we hear the story about the angels appearing to the shepherds in the fields, a Christmas story that we have all heard a million times before, (normally during advent), however is not an advent story as it takes place after the birth of Jesus.
Introduce the kingdom from previous sermon.
Now I did not pick today’s reading, it was given for me in the lectionary, but it is a coincidence … as I can use this story as a continuation from my last sermon, where I spoke on the kingdom of God, remember that heavenly kingdom that is, right in front of us, yet we cannot see, feel, hear, smell or touch it … but that is God’s kingdom here on this earth … and do you remember me saying, “if I was to choose a scripture to introduce this kingdom of God, I would not use the one I was given that day, which started, “the kingdom of heaven is like …”” … . So, you may ask, what scripture would I use to introduce the Kingdom of God, and I would say this one. I know it sounds strange, let me continue.
The angels appear, but from where?
Let us start by looking at the very familiar verses 8 and 9 in Luke chapter 2, “And there were in the country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. … And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them … “:
Now, you have to ask, “if the angel of the Lord come upon them … where did it come from”? I mean, the angel appeared from nowhere … but it must have come from somewhere! … That place where it came from, I believe to be the Kingdom of Heaven, right here on this earth.
And it wasn’t just one angel, verse 13 goes on to say, “And suddenly there was with the angel, a multitude of the heavenly hosts praising God, and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men”. … Where did they all come from? … Well, obvious the same place, so this place where ever it is, must be big and substantial, and somewhere … right in front of our very eyes … a place that we can neither see, feel, hear, smell or touch, and it is right there in front of us, right now … and it is up to us whither we believe that or not.
An analogy to radio and TV waves
And to help appreciate that, here is an old analogy, and I apologise if you have heard this before but, what if I was to say that all around you right now, were electromagnetic waves, just where you are sitting right now, and many different types of electromagnetic waves, none of which you can see, feel, hear, smell or touch, but there are there, right in our midst.
And I can prove it, that is, if I have a radio, or television, I could tune into these waves and receive music, and pictures for example. The waves are still invisible, but by having a receiver, we can tune in to them, and we can prove they are there … and subsequently use them. And we all know this, but just because we cannot see, feel, hear, smell or touch the kingdom of God, it does not mean it is not there. Now I cannot give you definitive proof that it is there, but we are all here this morning because we know something is there, we all sense that something, a something that is all around us … and is all powerful.
A glimpse into this kingdom.
Now, I don’t believe any of us have seen this kingdom in its entirety, but I do believe many of us have had a slight glimpse of this kingdom, (in a variety of different ways), or we would not be here this morning to worship a living Jesus Christ, whom we can neither see, feel, hear, smell or touch, either.
And I am sure most of us, (if not all of us), have had strange experience where we have said, how did that happen? … How did I get through that? … How did I survive? … How did I know that was the right thing to do? … All of these experiences I am talking about, are not logical thoughts, but divine inspiration that came from apparently nowhere, or 2nd sight or what others may just simply say is a higher level of faith, in action. Whatever way you look at it, it supernatural, and is not of this world. … So, there must be another world, or worlds, here on this earth working with us … or against us, because the converse is true also … but I don’t want to focus on that today.
Staying with the positive, I said earlier, none of us have seen this heavenly realm in its entirety, but Jesus did … in fact Jesus made constant reference to this hidden realm, all throughout his ministry … right up to his death when he said, “my Kingdom is not of this world” … and even his final words referred to this kingdom, were “Father unto your hands, I commend my spirit” … because Jesus knew that he was headed for this other realm.
And all through his teachings, Jesus made constant reference to this kingdom, and yet, most bible scholars avoid talking about this kingdom like the plague … because it is rarely preached, yet it is at the very heart and ministry of Jesus, and mentioned throughout the bible … and right in plain sight may I add.
Don’t take my word for it, the next time you read your bible be aware how many times Jesus refers to this kingdom. … I mean, look at the mount of transfiguration alone, that’s a weird story that is, and it’s a very difficult story to explain, and I have tried to do so in more than one sermon.
And look at all the number of parables that start … “the kingdom of God is like … “. And look at every miracle and healing and deliverance, for something from this heavenly kingdom, because something not from this earth was involved … some ethereal power presented itself, and all for the glory of God, as people were healed and delivered. No wonder Jesus spent his ministry trying his best to engage us with that kingdom.
What we glimpse in the Kingdom.
Anyway, to move on, I have said we have all had glimpses of this heavenly kingdom, and I am going to trying and describe it, I am going to try and describe what we have all witnessed … and the first thing we know about this kingdom is it vastness and complexity.
1. Vastness, beyond our understanding complexity.
Now I am brave trying to explain this one, but what we can all agree on is that is its complex, very complex and difficult to understand or comprehend. Even Jesus did his best in his parables, and although we all have went yes, I think I understand that one, well we probably don’t, or we would hone in on it a lot more than we do, because we would realise its power. … I do know many physicists, astro or meta physicist or just very clever people have tried, and they have made a dent in this subject, but none of their studies have been definitive or conclusive, but they all agree, there is something there. So, for now I am content to say, this kingdom is well beyond our understanding, although one day, we all hope to live in this kingdom.
2. Power, its power to solve problems.
Next, the second aspect of this kingdom is its power, its power to solve problems. There is something very powerful about this kingdom that is not of this earth, in fact it is well beyond this earth and all its failings, because it is above all failings or faults. … Any problems we may have, will be dismissed in this kingdom, more especially, any problem can be resolved by the king of this kingdom himself, our Lord Jesus Christ, our saviour … “the name above every other name”. … If you can name something, then he is above it … sickness … cancer … debt … despondency (lack of hope) … poverty …. shame … rejection … you name it, he is above it, and he can cure it. The cure for all our ills can be found in this kingdom, with the king himself … who is Lord Jesus whom we are all here today to worship, and ask for his help.
3. Love.
And moving on … another aspect of this kingdom is love. … When we had our glimpse of this kingdom, we felt a great sense of love, and somehow our hearts melt into a peace that comes, with this love, “a peace beyond our understanding”, as the apostle Paul called it, a peace to know that everything will be ok, and everything is as it should be, and all is right with the world. … This is a kingdom of love, led by the king of love, whose father is God, who is love personified, and even better … we are his children … and it is this kingdom of love we are destined … that is, if we acknowledge Jesus Christ our Lord.
The shepherds in the field that day.
There is a lot more I can say on this kingdom, but I need to move on to show you the effects of this kingdom by looking at the shepherds in the fields that day, and what they must have been thinking.
Now in a sermon I did many years ago, I was really surprised to learn that these shepherds were the outcasts of society. They were men who were not welcomed anywhere and so we can guess what type of people they were, people you would avoid, but … it was to these dreadful people the angels appeared, and not to the well to do. … Do you see the grace of God at work here, the angelic beings appearing to the lowest of society … now that’s brilliant … the angels appearing first to the shepherds and what did they say, verses 10 and 11, “Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. … For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord”.
Fear not, and I believe that with the words “fear not”, came or radiated the love of that kingdom, and peace in their hearts, so much so, that verse 13 tells us that “suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly hosts praising God” … and they were all were good with this.
And I am sure these once horrible little shepherds looked at each other in a totally different way … there must have been a peace, a warmth in their hearts, and a hope for their future. … Think for a moment what we would think if we were suddenly surrounded by thousands and thousands of angels, all saying fear not, and all praising the same God we praise ouselves. … These shepherds weren’t horrible insignificant people anymore, not now that the kingdom of heaven opened up in front of them.
Verse 15, “as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us”.
There were now brave enough to leave their sheep, (or they did something with them), to allow them to go into town, (where the nice polite normal people lived), and meet with “the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger”.
Try and imagine what was going through their minds: they had just witnessed beings from another world, or another realm … thousands and thousands of them appearing from nowhere. … And these angelic beings spoke to them in a dignified manner, with respect, giving them an experience that we all aspire to. … They had been told personally, by someone from another kingdom or realm, that a messiah whom had been prophesised, was to be born on this earth, and that they,(these poor shepherds), were the first it be personally invited, invited to visit and attend this new messiah. …
What an honour. … Now add to that, the complexity, the power and the love of this kingdom, and that is what I am trying to get across this morning.
The only thing that matters.
We too, have been invited to that kingdom to meet that king, not in the way the shepherds were invited but, in a way that is personal to us. 2024 starts tomorrow, another new year, and for many of us, there is a lot of fear and trepidation. There are horrible wars going on just now; our political system has lost its edge; and of course, we may have personal problems of our own to face; so … who then do we turn? …
Our Politicians, our media, our church, our friends and family, no, the answer to all our problems, to all our ills are found in this kingdom, more especially with the king of this kingdom. … Jesus is our saviour, he, and only he will guide us through the new year. … The only thing that matters … in this life, is Jesus Christ … and him crucified, because only he can see us through … only he can solve our problems … only he can oversee our lives … as only he, is Lord of all. … We all have many problems, and many asks, but the answer to them all, lies with our relationship with him.
And do you know what? … See if we don’t make it through, who is the first person we hope to see when we pass through the veil of death? … Who is it, we will be looking for first, on the other side of this veil … and why would we look for him? … We all know why, because “he is the way, the true and the life”, and the Lord of all. There is not really a downside here.
I started this sermon by wishing everyone a belated Merry Christmas. … Let me be early, (in him), … in wishing you a very Healthy, Happy, Hopeful and Prosperous New Year. Amen.
Luke 2:8 And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field,
keeping watch over their flock by night.
Luke 2:9 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.
Luke 2:10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good
tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
Luke 2:11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is
Christ the Lord.
Luke 2:12 And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in
swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
Luke 2:13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly
host praising God, and saying,
Luke 2:14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will
toward men.
Luke 2:15 And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into
heaven, the shepherds said one to another, let us now go even unto
Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord
hath made known unto us.
Luke 2:16 And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph,
and the babe lying in a manger.
Luke 2:17 And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying
which was told them concerning this child.
Luke 2:18 And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told
them by the shepherds.
Luke 2:19 But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.
Luke 2:20 And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the
things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.
