Sermon for December 24th (Christmas Eve)

“Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid.’”

Sometimes the most glorious events of our lives are quite scary at first. Birth, engagements, marriage. Starting a new job, going to college, retiring. Glorious and scary at the same time. The best books and movies love to set us up for these types of events, by preparing us for the big finale, the big event, heightening our expectation with every passing moment, only to throw in a curveball at the very last minute and delay our happiness until the very end. And that curveball often happens because of fear.

Over Christmas vacation, you may have a chance to watch a few extra movies like this in your free time. One of my favorites is the movie, “Runaway Bride”. In the movie, Julia Roberts plays a woman who has been engaged three times and has bolted from each of her husbands-to-be at the very last moment calling off each wedding. She wants to be married, she sees the joy and glory that are supposed to be hers, but when it comes right down to it, she is just too scared. Marriage freaks her out and so she runs. Not be outdone, in the movie, “Bed of Roses”, Lewis and Lisa fall in love and, on Christmas Day, in front of his family, Lewis asks Lisa to marry him. But, suddenly, she gets very upset and runs out the door. What happened? We had been expecting a romantic ending! What went wrong? Well, nothing, except that sometimes when things seem so perfect, so wonderful, so glorious, we can’t imagine being worthy or being ready for any of it, and our fear destroys our hopes for happiness

That’s what happened to these poor shepherds at first, who after a lifetime full of ordinariness, and a lifetime full of expectations of a coming Messiah, they find their lives transformed into something miraculous. The glory of the Lord shone around them, but instead of staring in amazement and awe, instead of praising God or smiling, they were terrified. The Lord spoke through the prophet Isaiah saying, “The people who have walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness—on them light has shined.” But, at least for these shepherds, walking in deep darkness was a way of life and bringing light and hope into the equation didn’t necessarily mean that they were going to start jumping for joy. The darkness can be comforting and the light can be terrifying.

For Christians, Christmas is a time of great joy, remembering the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. It is a time to remember all that he has done for us and thank him for all that he is for us. But recognizing the terror that the shepherds felt is important too, so that we realize that Jesus doesn’t always create feelings of joy for people. Some of you may have family members who were baptized, taught in Sunday School, confirmed, married and then never stepped foot back inside a church again. Some of you may know a friend who either rolls their eyes or scowls whenever you mention your faith. Some of you may know someone who isn’t simply bored with the idea of Christianity, but downright hostile to Christians. Perhaps it is difficult for you to reconcile you faith with the unfaith of so many others especially at Christmastime.

When I used to work in customer service at the University of Nebraska, I spoke to people on the phone about their Financial Aid packages. Some would be kind, some would be really mad, but most were just confused and frustrated. My supervisor once told me to “Speak to their fear”. Most people are loving and kind, but when they don’t have enough money for college, or think they don’t, and they feel that their child’s education is at stake, they’ll get quite upset and who better to get angry with than the Customer Service guy. Even if a student knows that THEY did something wrong, they might get angry just because they are upset with themselves and are trying to do whatever they can to make sure they don’t get in even more trouble. The promise of financial aid is a promise that should fill parents and their children with hope, right? But, instead, it seems quite scary to a lot of people.

Jesus’ birth is an event full of hope. Why doesn’t everyone want to be a part of it? A pastor told me once about talking with a man who said he believed in God and Jesus Christ, but that he didn’t want to become a Christian because then he would have to change his life. The glory of the Lord isn’t so glorious when you see God’s judgment even when you know God’s love. The shepherds were not the first people to tremble at the sight of God’s glory and they certainly have not been the last.

But the angels have given us the text to use to speak to the fears people carry in their hearts, the sadness and even the hostility they carry with them day after day toward Jesus Christ. “Do not be afraid; for see I am bringing you good news—GOOD news—of great joy for all people.” There is more to being a Christian than judgment, there is forgiveness. There is more to being a Christian than a changed life, there is a new community. There is more to being a Christian death, there is the hope of resurrection. The shepherds stop their trembling and begin rejoicing! It’s good news they will hear today!

Faith can seem to be a very terrifying thing. It can seem like you must believe in all kinds of philosophical impossiblities. It can feel threatening to hear that you are a sinner in relation to God. There is so much history and so many traditions to understand that it’s easy to see why many people just choose to ignore it all. But at Christmas, there is an opportunity. At Christmas, you can point to how God started it all. He’s doesn’t start at the top, somewhere up in heaven, but starts the story of your salvation with a child sleeping peacefully in a lowly manger.

Christmas is a perfect time to hear God’s promises of love and peace for all people. At Christmas, you can see that God is full of glory, but also full of humility and tenderness. Tonight, you can point those you love to the baby Jesus—there is no need to be afraid of this God who has come down to share humanity, with all its fears and frailties. Tonight, you may cast your fears upon God who cares for you. So that you might hear the good news: tonight a child was born for you, your Savior, the Messiah, the Lord of heaven and earth. This child is Jesus Christ and in him is your salvation. It’s good news—do not be afraid. Amen.