Roger's Postings

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Luke 2:10-14. A Saviour has been born to you! 25/12/08

{10) But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. {11} Today in the town of David a Saviour has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. {12} This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." {13} Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, {14} "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favour rests."

Christmas is here once again. It is a special time of the year – a great time. It is the one time of the year that promises us so much. There is so much expectation, excitement and hope. There is the possibility of something more; something better; something that will lift us out of the doldrums of life.

But sadly everyone has gotten in on the act. The last weeks have bombarded us with Christmas messages: ‘T’is the season to be jolly:’ ‘A time of giving and sharing:’ ‘A time of family:’ ‘A season of peace, joy and goodwill.’ We have also had our prime minister get in on the act; giving us his gifts and telling us that this is the season to spend so that we can help our Australian economy. We are bombarded with all kinds of messages telling us what Christmas is all about.

Yet almost all of these messages are not the message of Christmas: they may be the consequence of Christmas; but when they become the main and only message of Christmas they become extremely destructive. As always when side issues become the main message then people are led into deep trouble: people are left feel empty and cheated; conned once again.

Think about it: How can many people be jolly when they are in the midst of the loss of a loved one, or suffering extremely with cancer or some other painful ailment? When we think of giving and sharing, to some who has everything or the expectation is for expensive gifts that you know will only thrown in the corner and not really appreciated; yet we hear of recessions and hard times; our giving and sharing seems somewhat empty meaningless. For many the family Christmas is a disaster; a couple to many drinks and things are said and done which creates even further division and heartache. Not to mention the fact that for many others divorce or the loss of a loved one makes Christmas a very painful time.

So as we go down the list, that which is promised in most of these messages leaves many people frustrated and badly disillusioned about Christmas and how good it really is. In fact for many because of these messages this time of the year is one of fear and loneliness; for the messages are all wrong. By themselves these messages are nothing but destructive. They promise much, but so often fail to deliver the goods. Without the true meaning and message of Christmas undergirding it all, the rest is very problematic.

So hear again God ‘s message to us this Christmas. "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Saviour has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."

His message is ‘jam-packed’ with great things that truly makes the mind boggle and brings true joy into our lives, even today. This simple but deeply profound message is one of Good News to all people. It is not a promise that may or may not come to fulfilment: that may or may not be Good News of great joy to all people. It is; just as he says. As we truly listen and take on board this message, no matter who we are and what our situation might be, it makes for a blessed Christmas; guaranteed.

Today we again celebrate the fact that it is so. Two thousand years after the event the world still attests to the fact that Jesus was born in Bethlehem. God’s message still goes out into the midst of a fearful and lonely people: The promised Messiah; the Anointed One of God has come into the world to do what was necessary for our salvation: to give meaning and purpose to everyone, no matter who they are.

Here let me emphasise again what the angel said: I bring you good news….. a Saviour has been born to you ….. this will be a sign for you.
Yes, this message is personally addressed to each one of you. Again, it does not matter who you are or what your situation in life might be. You all individually and corporately are the beneficiary of this great gift. This is not just a message to the shepherds, or of a distant event to a few people. To each of you this Christmas and each day of the rest of your life you have this message of good news. To you; each one of you, a saviour has been born.

God knows that you/we are sinful human beings who deserve to be sent to Hell for our rebellion. He knows that not one of us comes anywhere near being good enough to be acceptable to him. But out of love for us he sends his very own Son, for the express purpose of punishing him for all that we have done wrong. He takes on himself all that we deserve and in its place gives the full forgiveness of all our sin. Now nothing stands between us and our being acceptable to God.

Here we need to also understand the profoundness of the title, Messiah or Christ that is given to this little baby. This is the promised one that God would send to be the Lamb which takes away the sin of the world. Here is the one who would be anointed to establish and lead God’s people in his new kingdom. This is the one that God’s people had been looking forward to for years and years, and there was the fulfilment of this promise, here in the babe of Bethlehem. Here then for us, for you, is the great one that God has sent for our salvation.

But not only is he the Christ, but he is the Lord. God himself come to be with us. God come into our world to do what was needed so that we might be redeemed, bought back, with the blood that he himself shed on the cross. Not only does that assurance go with us today; but that reality is there for all who do not turn there back on this presence. Through our baptism and the bread and wine of Holy Communion we now have God with us each and every day of our lives. What a Christmas present that is for you and me – God with us.


So here we do have a Christmas message and gift that truly does make a difference to each one of us; no matter who we are. The recession makes no difference to this gift: the broken family does not mean that we are broken off from this God who has come to be with us. The pain of illness and the imminence of death does not change the reality that in Christ we have the assurance of eternal life with God in eternity. In our loneliness we are now never alone as God assures us that he with us always. Now there is meaning and purpose in life as we live the life that Jesus himself has for us; even if it is a cross-filled life.

Always now we can live in light of this wonderful message that the angel has for you and me and all people. "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Saviour has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."

Now we can be jolly, even though outwardly it cannot always be seen. Now we have a real sense and reality of peace, joy and goodwill, in the midst of a hurting, broken world. Now we make time for family; not just the immediate family but our family of humanity, even when it goes against the grain at times. Now we can give with gratitude in our hearts for all that we have received even though we doe not deserve it. Now we can spend for the benefit of our country, doing all that we can so that they too can know this wonderful Good News that God has for us all, and which truly allows us to have Christmas every day of the year.

What a wonderful time Christmas is for us all. God himself has come to be with us so that we truly can have all the blessings of God. So may you go from here today and go forward through the rest of your life here on this earth with the reality of this message going with you and giving the peace, joy and goodwill that he has for you. And the blessing of almighty God, Father Son and Holy Spirit, go with you always. AMEN.

Pastor Roger Atze
Redeemer Lutheran Church
Toowoomba

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