The Twelve Days of Christmas
Cardiff Heights Baptist
25th December 2000
(As we went through the twelve days of Christmas people were given
objects; instruments and instructions about what to do and asked to do
demonstrations. It created a fun celebratatory atmosphere and at the
end of the message we sung the song with all the people who were
“volunteered” doing their thing)
Knock! Knock!
(Whose there?)
Mary
(Mary Who?)
Mary Christmas
That’s my gift to you. A bad joke so that the jokes you are going to get
from those christmas bon bon cracker things won’t seem quite so bad.
One of the things Catherine did this year was to put all our Christmas
cards on the blinds of the window in the living room. There are quite a
few of them but everytime we get a descent gust of wind, something very
welcome with the heat we have been experiencing, but all these cards
would blow off. So I thought I would bring in a few and do a brief survey
of the different kinds of cards that we got this year.
The classic nativity scene was of course amongst the cards but the three
kings seemed to be the card of choice amongst the cards with a religious
orientation. This ingenius card managed to capture both. Thanks
Eleanor.
The scenery shots were also a popular choice, of course the scenery
was always snow covered houses and other scenes foriegn to my
Christmas experience.
Of course there were the Santa cards. This is a particularly jolly Santa
dancing and playing his flute with birds fluttering about. This ones from
Bob and Pam. Cool
Then there’s the icon kind of cards the Christmas tree and the wreath.
Oh the Brown’s
But these one’s are my favourite’s. “Season’s Greetings”. Don’t you just
love it when someone sends you a card that says, “Hi, its summer”. And
here’s another that says hi its summer. Wait a sec these caroler’s all
have winter clothes on. A confused season’s greetings.
The other thing that this card reminds us of at Christmas is the singing of
Christmas songs. While I have heard lots of Christmas songs sung this
year there is one that I haven’t heard. Well there are probably lots but for
the purposes of this sermon we’ll say one. And that song is the twelve
days of Christmas.
At first glance this song doesn’t seem to have much to do with
Christianity but this was intentional. From 1558 to 1829 Roman
Catholic’s in England were not able to practice their faith openly so they
had to find other ways to pass on their beliefs. The song “The Twelve
Days of Christmas” is one example of how they did it.
The last time through the song we sing: “On the twelfth day of Christmas
my true love gave to me...”
Can anyone guess who the true love might be. God.... God is our one
true and perfect love.
What was the Twelfth gift from the true love? “Twelve drummers
drumming”. The twelve drummers drumming were the twelve points of
the Apostles’ Creed. I won’t read it but it is a statement of the Christian
faith. It tells us about who the Father is...who Jesus is and who the Holy
Spirit is.
What was the Eleventh gift from the true love? Eleven pipers piping. The
“eleven pipers piping” were the eleven ‘faithful’ disciples. I love this Bible
over here. It has pictures. You have the eleven disciples all looking nice
and trustworthy and then you have Judas looking all weedy and evil.
Classic.
What was the tenth gift from the true love? Ten Lords a leaping. The ten
lords a leaping were the ten commandments.
No other Gods; no idols; misusing the Lord’s name; Rmember the
Sabbath; Honour your parents, don’t murder, committ adultery, steal, lie
or covet. A gift to know the will of God.
What was the ninth gift? Nine ladies dancing. The “nine ladies dancing”
were the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit found in the book of Galatians.
Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentlness
and self-control.
What about the eigth gift? Eight maids a milking. The “eight maids
a-milking” were the eight beatitudes. They gave importance to the week,
the poor and the meek... the opposite to where the world puts
importance. Just as Christ’s birth turned the world on his head so did his
message. His message was revolutionary to the way the world wants to
work.
What was the seventh gift? Seven Swans a swimming. The “seven
swans a-swimming” were the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit listed in
Romans 12:6-8.
Read Romans 12:6-8
What was the sixth gift? Six geese a-laying. The “six geese a-laying”
were the six days of creation. Reminding us that God is the creater of all
things... all life began with God.
And the fifth gift? Five golden rings. The “five golden rings” were the first
five books of the bible, the “Books of Moses”, the Pentateuch. This is the
account of the beginning of humanity’s relationship with God.
What was the fourth gift from the true love? Four calling birds. The “four
calling birds” were the four Gospels which sing the song of salvation
through Jesus Christ.
What about the third gift? Three French hens. The “three French hens”
were faith, hope and love - the three gifts of the Spirit that according to 1
Corinthians 13, abide. Who can tell me what we celebrate in one week’s
time. The centenary of Federation. The ceremony of federation and
signing of papers happened 100 years ago one week from today. It
happened in the gazebo in Centennial Park. Written on this gazebo are
the words faith hope and charity. Australia’s beginning as a nation
happened amongst the three abiding gifts faith, hope and love. And so
this Christmas we need to recognise what an incredible gift these are
and as we celebrate 100 years of federation put these gifts into action.
The second gift? The “two turtle doves”. The “two turtle doves” are the
gifts of the Old and New Testaments. The gift of revelation from the
creator God.
And the first gift was... The “partridge in a pear tree”. The “partridge in a
pear tree” was Jesus Christ who died on a tree as a gift from God. Jesus
Christ coming to earth is an incredible act of grace. Jesus came to a
people who were abandoned. He did not enjoy the privledges of royalty
but knew the hardships of poverty. At Christmas we are reminded that
when God became human he revealed that he was a humble God. The
God who came to earth came not in a raging whirlwind nor in a
devouring fire. Unimaginably, the Maker of all things shrank down, down,
down so small as to become an ovum a single fertilized egg, barely
visible to the naked eye, an egg that would divide and redivide until a
baby took shape, enlarging cell by cell inside a nervous teenager.
God’s visit to earth took place in an animal shelter with no attendants
present and nowhere to lay the newborn king but a feedtrough. Indeed,
the event that divided history, and even our calendars, into two parts
may have had more animal witnesses than human ones. A mule could
have stepped on him. How silently this wondorous gift was given. It was
almost as if God wanted it to be secret. But the angel’s couldn’t keep it a
secret. That’s what I like about angels, they can’t keep a secret either.
My idea of keeping a secret is telling one person at a time. The angels
made sure that there were some human witnesses.
But this person who had such a lonely, obscure and almost unheralded
birth is the same one that was the gift who would restore humanity from
its lonely abandoned state.
In 1994, two Christian missionaries answered an invitation from the
Russian Department of Education to teach morals and ethics in a large
orphanage. About 100 boys and girls who had been abandoned, abused,
and left in the care of a government-run program were in the orphanage.
It was nearing Christmas and they decided to tell them the story of
Christmas. It would be the first time these children had heard the story of
the birth of Christ. They told them about Mary and Joseph arriving in
Bethlehem. Finding no room in the inn, the couple went to a stable,
where the baby Jesus was born and placed in a manger. Throughout the
story, the children and orphanage staff sat in amazement as they
listened. Some sat on the edges of their stools, trying to grasp every
word.
When the story was finished, they gave the children three small pieces of
cardboard to make a crude manger. Each child was given a small paper
square, cut from yellow napkins that they had brought with them since no
coloured paper was available in the city.
Following instructions, the children tore the paper and carefully laid strips
in the manger for straw. Small squares of flannel, cut from a worn-out
nightgown an American lady was throwing away as she left Russia, were
used for the baby’s blanket. A doll-like baby was cut from tan felt which
the missionaries had also brought with them.
It was all going smoothly until one of the missionaries sat down at a table
to help a 6 year old boy named Misha. He had finished his manger.
When the missionary looked at the little boy’s manger, she was startled
to see not one, but two babies in the manger. Quickly, she called for the
translator to ask Misha why there were two babies in the manger.
Crossing his arms in front of him and looking at this completed manger
scene, Misha began to repeat the story very seriously. For such a young
boy, who had only heard the Christmas story once, he related the
happenings accurately until he came to the part where Mary put the baby
Jesus in the manger.
Then Misha started to ad-lib. He made up his own ending. He said, “And
when Maria laid the baby in the manger, Jesus looked at me and asked
me if I had a place to stay. I told him I have no mamma and I have no
papa, so I don’t have any place to stay. Then Jesus told me I could stay
with him. But I told him I couldn’t, because I didn’t have a gift to give him
like everybody else did.
But I wanted to stay with Jesus so much, so I thought about what I had
that maybe I could use for a gift. I thought maybe if I kept him warm, that
would be a good gift. So I asked Jesus, “If I keep you warm, will that be a
good enough gift” And Jesus told me, “If you keep me warm, that will be
the best gift anybody ever gave me.” “So I got into the manger, and then
Jesus looked at me and he told me I could stay with him-for always.”
As little Misha finished his story, his eyes brimmed full of tears that
splashed down his little cheeks. Putting his hand over his face, his head
dropped to the table and his shoulders shook as he sobbed and sobbed.
The little orphan had found someone who would never abandon nor
abuse him, someone who would stay with him-FOR ALWAYS.
The most incredible gift of christmas is that we can also find someone
who will never abandon us, never abuse us and would stay with us for
always. That someone is Jesus.
Why don’t we sing the song “The Twelve Days of Christmas”. And those
of you with parts could stand at the appropriate times and do your thing.
