You may remember that story of the man hearing a choir sing "O Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world," and he thought to himself, "If only he COULD take away the sins of the world. What a tremendous and joyful thing that would be --no more wars, no more broken homes, no more abused children, no more hatred, envy, bitterness and strife. If only he COULD take away the sins of the world.
Christmas has become more of a secular holiday than a sacred one. It has become an occasion for blatant materialism & superficial piety. Persons who never think of Jesus the rest of the year put stars on their trees & maybe even a creche scene on their mantle. It is an ideal excuse for ceaseless parties & stolen kisses under the office mistletoe. Amid all this celebrating & sentimentality, it is easy for us to lose sight of the true meaning of His coming into the world. We read in Matthew's Gospel,
"....she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call His name Jesus: for He shall save His people from their sins." What would it take for Jesus to take away the sins of the world? It has become a cliche to ask, "How can we keep the Christmas spirit all year round?" But there is a more profound question at stake here. How can we as the body of Christ tell the Christmas story in such a way that the real meaning of Christmas is understood by the world? How can we tell the story in such a way that people really are saved from their sins? Indeed, how can we tell the story in such a way that we are saved from our sins?
I heard about a lady who was Christmas shopping with her daughter. The crowds were awful. She had to skip lunch because she was on a tight schedule. Now she was tired, hungry, her feet were hurting, & she was more than a little irritable. As they left the last store, she asked her daughter, "Did you see the nasty look that salesman gave me?"
Her daughter answered, "He didn't give it to you, Mom. You had it when you went in."
Life can do that to us. It is hard to keep the Christmas spirit just thru the holidays. Can Jesus save us? Can he give us a new heart, a new attitude, a new spirit?
He can if we understand the meaning of His coming into the world. There are 3 truths concerning the incarnation--the word becoming flesh--the birth of the Christ child--that we need to see.
The first is the dignity it gives to the human race. The story of man's sojourn on earth is not a pretty one. It is a story of greed and violence, of lust and envy, of power and of prejudice. Even today, in the familiar words of one observer, we are technological giants and moral midgets.
Yet into this sin-filled world God sent His only son. That is a vote of divine confidence that we most certainly did
not deserve. It must be that God has higher expectations for humankind than we have ourselves. What an important truth this is. Persons have a tendency to live up to--or down to as the case may be--expectations.
There was an Australian tennis coach named Harry Hopman. He built the Australian team to the point that at one time it dominated the tennis world. He emphasized what he called "coaching by affirmation." He had a slow-footed boy. He nicknamed him "Rocket." He had a weak, frail player. He named him "Muscles." Rocket Rod Laver and Ken Muscles Rosewall became champions in the tennis world. Their coach saw more in them than they saw in themselves.
You remember the wonderful story of the Wizard of Oz. In the story several characters illustrate how persons learn & believe in unfounded assumptions about their personal limitations. Dorothy & her dog Toto want to return to Kansas, the Scarecrow wants a brain, the Tin Woodman wants a heart, & the Cowardly Lion wants courage.
The Scarecrow learned he had no brain. An old crow said to him, "If you only had brains in your head you would be as good a man as any of them. Brains are the only things worth having in this world, no matter whether one is a crow or a man."
The Tin Woodman loved a Munchkin girl & was prevented from marrying her by the Wicked Witch of the East. She caused a series of accidents followed by a succession of replacement operations by a tin-smith until the woodman was all tin.
He was convinced that without a "heart" he couldn't care for anyone.
The Cowardly Lion was convinced that he lacked the courage shown by other lions. He was constantly afraid of everything.
All the characters felt that only the Great Wizard of Oz could solve their problems. They were most distressed when the never-seen wizard was exposed as an impotent charlatan. He said, "I'm just a common man!" In response to their continuing insistence he finally gave the Scarecrow a diploma, the Tin Woodman a small clock "heart" & the Cowardly Lion a medal. When the story is examined it can be seen throughout the adventures that the Scarecrow was the problem-solver, the Tin Woodman was continually weeping over the plight of the crushed beetle & other misfortunes, & the Cowardly Lion was consistently courageous. In short, each possessed those capacities he had been taught, either by others or by experience, that he lacked.
If for some reason you have always thought that church was the place you came to find out how bad you are, you are sadly mistaken. The coming of Christ into the world was an affirmation of faith by God in man. The babe lying in the manger is God's way of saying to each of us, "I believe in you. You don't have to settle for second-rate dreams. I have placed within you divine dignity. You no longer have to grovel in the muck & mire of life. Accept the gift of my love. Walk in it. Glory in it. Share it with others. I believe in you." The incarnation gives dignity in our lives as human beings.
The incarnation also defines who we are. We are part of
the family of God. If there is any desperate need we have in the world today, it is to recognize that we are a family. Why can't the Moslem & the Christian & the Jew in Lebanon today, who share so much of God's word in common, recognize that we are a part of the same family? Why can't the Sandanistas & the Salvadorans in Central America who share the same basic heritage & language recognize that they belong to the same family? How long will it be until each of us sees that the birth of the Christ child is a family affair?
A black man came & took the chair on the other side of the table. Ignoring him, the woman reached out & opened the package of cookies in the middle of the table & ate one. To her amazement, the black man also helped himself to one of the cookies.
In indignation, she pulled the cookies closer, & put her newspaper like a fortress. She took a 2nd cookie for herself. A black hand soon reached over the paper & took a cookie also. The woman was really angry now. She put down her paper, glared at the man...but as she did, he took the last cookie from the package, broke it in two & offered her half.
That was the last straw. She was so angry that she stormed out of the delicatessen, hailed a taxi, & took off for someplace else. She was upset by this rude man. How dare he do what he had done. She began to cry, she was so worked up. So she reached into her purse for a handkerchief. There she found a package of cookies...the one which she had bought. And she realized that she had been eating the cookies that belonged to that man.
She vowed to find that man & apologize to him, but it was too late. The damage had been done. The Christmas story is a reminder that we are all one family.
There is one thing more to be said: The Christmas story tells us that love works. That is a simple message but it is undeniably true. Love works.
The message of Jesus' whole life was: Love works. Love is stronger than fear. Love is stronger than hate. Love is stronger than death.
We are afraid to try love. We are afraid it indicates weakness. We are like the patient in the psychiatrist's office who says: "Lately I feel that everyone takes advantage of me." Answers the psychiatrist: "Don't worry about it. That's perfectly normal." With a sigh of relief the patient says: "Really? I didn't know that. Thanks a lot. Now, how much do I owe you, Doctor?" Answers the psychiatrist: "How much do you have?"
We are afraid of being the warm loving people God calls us to be. We are afraid someone will take advantage of us. And yet love works.
H.S. Vigeveno tells about a couple who moved into a small town in Massachusetts. Norma grumbled to a neighbor about the poor service at the library. She hoped that her friend would repeat her complaint. The next time Norma entered the library, the librarian was indeed all smiles & extremely helpful! Norma reported the miraculous change to her neighbor.
"I suppose you told her how poor we thought the service was?"
"No," confessed her friend; "I hope you don't mind, but I told her that you were amazed at the way she had built up this small town library, & that you thought she showed good taste in the new books she ordered."
Love works. Not the cheap shoddy combination of sentimentalism & lust that the world calls love. But the spirit of good will & faith which we normally characterize as the Christmas spirit.
Jesus can save us from our sins when we remember that all persons are part of His family--and when we live in our daily lives that love He brought into the world. "...thou shalt call His name Jesus for He shall save his people from their sins." Indeed He shall!
