Christmas Eve 22

Shepherd

Night duty was always the hardest. The older I get, the longer those nights feel.

Though I do look at them a little different since that night…oh that night.

In the fields near Bethlehem we cared for the sheep being raised for temple use. Yes, it was cold, lonely, and odorous work, but at the same time…we knew it had purpose.

Our work helped the priests as they covered the sins of our people. These lambs, were specially raised for that purpose.

And it was our job to protect and care for them.

At birth, we would wrap each of the lambs in a swaddling cloth to protect them from any blemish they might get struggling around.

We fed them, protected them, and cared for them.

Until that time when they would be needed for the service in the temple. Atoning…coving the sins of the people before the Lord.

I’ll be honest, it was always hard to pass along a lamb to the priests. Delivering the baby, wrapping it, feeding it, protecting it…It sounds silly…it’s just a lamb…but in a small way each one is like my kid.

But, they were born for this purpose. Their life matters, but so does their death.

Anyway…that night.

That night we stood guard over the sheep as usual. Eyes up and ears alert to any noises or changes in the night that whispered of danger from thieves or predators. By this time of night it was dark, but our eyes were well adjusted and trained to see by the stars and moon.

And then light. Like the light of dawn except hours too early. Like the sunrise, but…more. Cleaner, clearer, more bright, more…I can’t…it was just more.

And in that light I felt…exposed…like every deed of my life was laid bare for all to see. I worried that the others would see my darkness in this light, but I quickly realized they were as fixed on the light as I was and were feeling the same pain.

…And yet…pain is the wrong word. It hurt…but it also healed. Exposed…but loved… like the dark places and torn places down in my soul were being healed…

Then I saw him…or her…honestly, I couldn’t tell for certain…so much light…so much power in the presence…and that voice…like nothing I’ve ever heard.

“Don’t be afraid” - And I wasn’t. Lots of fear…but somehow in the midst of the most intense fear I have ever felt, I also experienced a confidence that I was completely safe. It was wonderful.

“Don’t be afraid, for look, I proclaim to you GOOD NEWS of GREAT JOY that will be for all the people:”

My heart caught in my throat.

“Today in the city of David a Savior was born FOR YOU, who is the Messiah, the Lord.”

Oh that night. Since childhood I had been taught to look for this moment. But so had children for hundreds of years. My parents and the rabbis who spoke of it, did so without urgency or…dare I say…they taught me to look for this day…but without heart behind it.

Almost like they didn’t really believe that day would come…so I was not looking…not waiting…and it felt like my heart and mind burst within me. That I might see this day!

Not only see it, but have it presented to me…Those thoughts ran through my head in a moment’s time…but I couldn’t reflect on them until later as the angel continued:

“This will be the sign for you: You will find a baby wrapped tightly in cloth and lying in a manger.”

Before I could ask why a baby would be laid where and how we lay a newborn lamb, the sky exploded and was filled with angels…filled with light, voices, song like a thousand melodies and the oceans waves, and the wind on a summer day all at once...

“Glory to God in the highest heaven and peace on earth to people he favors!”

The last note faded, the light was gone, and it felt like all air had been sucked from the world…I don’t know how long we stood there…but in the end without fuss we ran into the town of Bethlehem and on the second street we heard the cries of a new born child.

We announced ourselves and they invited us in. I don’t know what I was expecting…but it wasn’t this young couple. Simple, afraid, and as in awe of the moment as we were. I could see it in their faces.

After seeing the words of the angel in life, we went throughout town in the early morning telling everyone we saw what the angels had spoken and what we had seen.

Our worship around the fire was lively that next night. And it still is.

As I think back on that night, the memories still fresh, there was one other thing that stood out.

As I looked at the face of the mother, I felt a kinship with her. Like somehow she and I had the same role. Maybe it was the way the baby was wrapped like one of our lambs…it even looked like the same cloths the priests provided for us...

But I think it was more…the way she looked at her child… it was like she felt the same sense of deep love I had for the lambs…with the bitter knowledge that a day would come when I would be required to hand that lamb over to the priests for the sacrifice.

It doesn’t feel possible…but somehow...

(8 min)

Close

You just heard from John chapter 1.

John 1:9-10 “The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was created through him, and yet the world did not recognize him.”

At Christmas we celebrate and tell the story of the day the true light came into the world.

(light my candle)

The light behind the light the shepherds saw.

The light that exposes and heals

The light that turns darkness to color

The light that both convicts us of our brokenness AND invites us to be forgiven and made whole.

Later on, John will write a letter to a church where he will revisit this picture of Jesus:

1 John 1:1-2 “What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have observed and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life—that life was revealed, and we have seen it and we testify and declare to you the eternal life that was with the Father and was revealed to us—”

1 john 1:5 “This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light, and there is absolutely no darkness in him.”

Christmas time is special. The traditions, the family time, the moments like this...

But the real power of Christmas is in the life of Jesus all year long. The calling of the church to not just receive the light, but in turn as Jesus fills us and changes us from the inside out to become the light.

Whether you are a part of our regular HCC family, or visiting tonight, I encourage you to not let this be a once a year “moment” but instead a renewal of a life surrendered to Jesus.

Tomorrow morning, we will gather to reflect on the courage we find in the Christmas story that we can carry into every moment of the year. For that is what this night is about.

An eternal confidence and life that like the light here (hold candle) not only holds it’s own, but changes the room around it.

I invite you to join us or your local church throughout the year to be a part of a movement that takes the light to the world.

As we do each year, we finish our service remembering that not only did the light come into the world, but came to be shared by practicing that sharing right here and now. As we begin to sing, I’ll light the candles at the front, then begin to share with those around and behind you until every candle is lit.

As you share the light, be sure that the unlit candle is the one that tilts in to the lit one to prevent drips. Parents, keep an eye on your little ones and help them keep the candle upright.

Pray

Light.