Out of Darkness Shines the Light: A Sermon for Christmas Eve

I love it when something that I believe to be true can be proven. There are no opinions, hypotheses, or arguments. Just cold, hard facts. One such case is the popularity of Christmas. If you are a retailer, you can back this up by pointing to the increase in sales towards the end of the year. You have actual financial data to prove your assertion that Christmas is indeed a big deal.

In the church, we have attendance records. That is our data. Yes, we could talk about the warm, happy feeling we get around Christmastime. But when we turn in our church report to the national office every year, there isn’t a space to record our feelings. The Episcopal Church simply wants to know how many people came to church last year. So, we keep attendance records. And ever since churches have kept attendance records, Christmas and Easter are by far the most-attended worship services of the year. That isn’t a feeling or an opinion…it is a measurable fact.

It is undeniable that we love Christmas. But why do we love Christmas so much? Common answers are the wonderful hymns and carols, the festive decorations in our homes, churches, and around town, nativity pageants, nostalgic memories of family and loved ones, the joy of giving and receiving gifts…the list goes on.

For us to fully understand why Christmas is so uplifting I think it is helpful to look at what comes immediately before. A lot of the impact of a delicious, sweet desert is the savory meal that precedes it.

At Morning and Evening Prayer this past month we’ve been praying the collect for the first Sunday of Advent, which calls us to “cast away the works of darkness and put on the armor of light.”

The Advent scriptures and hymns also address the reality of the darkness of a fallen creation. The hymns are oftentimes in a minor key, with an eerie, haunting tone and message. The scripture lessons warn us of God’s coming judgment, imploring us to keep awake and prepare a straight way for the Lord.

So, after four weeks of brooding hymns and harrowing scripture lessons, the joy of Christmas is indeed palpable. “O come, all ye’ faithful, joyful and triumphant” is a genuine, heart-felt call to worship and adoration. The Christmas poinsettias jump out at us because we haven’t had flowers in church for the past month – only greenery. All the candles on the Advent wreath are lit and glowing brightly. The Christmas light has finally emerged out of the Advent darkness. And everything we see, hear, and smell this evening points to that proclamation of joy.

But what about that very first Christmas? Had the shepherds in the field been growing weary of Advent hymns in a minor key? What was the reason for their deep and abiding joy?

Our text tells us that on that very first Christmas evening, an angel of the Lord appeared to some shepherds in a field…and said to them, "Do not be afraid; for see-- I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people.”

The text goes on to say that after attending the impromptu concert in the field, the shepherds went to Bethlehem to see this newborn child that the angel announced to them. And afterwards, they “returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.”

Clearly this evening was a big deal not only for Mary and Joseph; and not only the shepherds; and not only the people of Israel; but for, as the text tells us, all people. Including us here today. But why is this so?

The beloved traditions of how we celebrate Christmas might be what we point to now. But God did not become incarnate and live and die as a mortal human being because he thought that we needed to write some uplifting, joyful hymns and take our decorations up a notch. God wasn’t tired of singing “O Come Emmanuel” and the lack of flowers on the altar.

God became incarnate to save the world from sin, evil, and death – the very things we focused on in Advent. God broke into our weary, dark world with the bright, shining light of his only begotten son, Jesus Christ, to put an end to the darkness.

For us to better understand the shepherds’ and the angels’ joy that we hear about in our gospel lesson, we need to look back at our lesson from the prophet Isaiah. This passage was written when Israel was in exile, under the rule of Babylon. In the midst of this barren time for the people of Israel, Isaiah prophesied that

“The people who walked in darkness
have seen a great light;

those who lived in a land of deep darkness--
on them light has shined.

…For the yoke of their burden,
and the bar across their shoulders,
the rod of their oppressor,
you have broken...

…For a child has been born for us,

…and he is named

Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

His authority shall grow continually,
and there shall be endless peace

for the throne of David and his kingdom.”

This is the prophecy that the people of Israel were waiting to be fulfilled. This is the long-expected messiah that they had been praying for. This was their Declaration of Independence. This was their Emancipation Proclamation. So that first Christmas evening, the angel of the Lord appeared to the shepherds and announced that the long-expected messiah had finally come:

"Do not be afraid; for see-- I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord.”

The profound depth and breadth of this incredible news for these oppressed, beleaguered people is, dare I say, almost impossible for us to comprehend here and now. Like their ancestors before, they were living under the oppressive rule of a hostile, foreign, pagan empire. They were crying out for Emmanuel to come and ransom captive Israel.

So, this news of a messiah who had finally come to break the rod of their oppressor was the sort of good news that was earth shattering and life-changing for those who heard it in 1st-century Palestine. It wasn’t about favorite hymns, decorations, or nostalgia. It was about God entering into a broken world and their broken, hopeless lives and making them whole and hopeful again. It was about God coming to save them.

We are not 1st-century Jews living under the heel of the Roman Empire. If anything, we are the empire now. But thankfully God doesn’t discriminate when it comes to brokenness. Our sin, our pain - our desperate need to be made whole again - are just as real to God as were the prophet Isaiah’s. And our yearning for God’s peace, justice, and righteousness are just as real to God as well. The Wonderful Counselor and Prince of Peace who God not only sent - but who God himself was and is today is why we are here this evening. We are here to celebrate Emmanuel – God with us.

Yes, we love the music; yes we love the flowers and decorations; yes we love the traditions, memories, and all that is associated with how we celebrate the good news of God with us.

But above and beyond all of that is the fact that the life-changing news that the angel announced to the shepherds can still be life-changing good news for us today. But we will be more likely to see and feel it as such if we can first recognize and acknowledge the darkness that resides within and around us.

The season of Advent is designed to help us do just that. It prepares us for the journey through the darkness. And after the harrowing journey through the darkness, we are greeted with the light of Christ that awaits us at Christmas. There is no darkness within any of us – no grief, depression, fear, brokenness, or despair – that cannot be overcome by the light of Christ. And so, with that good news, let us rejoice that the Christ who came to save the people of Israel 2,000 years ago is the same Christ who comes to save us today.

So let us cast away the darkness, and put on the armor of light. Let us Sing to the Lord and bless his Name; [and] proclaim the good news of his salvation from day to day.