An Ugly Lie - Not an Ugly Duckling

Good evening,

Welcome to our Christmas homecoming event this year..

We're so glad that you're able to join us this evening, on a very unusual homecoming…

One that we're meeting virtually because of the current covid-19 pandemic…

The current form in which we're meeting is indeed quite different from previous years,

And probably in one form in which you probably would never have thought or recognised of a year ago…

For this evening's sharing, I was led to two main portions of Scriptures, namely John 1:1-5, 9-14 which are very commonly used verse for this time of the year, during what we call the Advent season, Phil 2:6-8,

then Col 1:15-20 and allow me to read the passages for us this evening…

Starting from John 1

" 1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2He was with God in the beginning. 3Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it." (John 1:1–5 [NIV])

"[He] 6…being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; 7rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross!" (Philippians 2:6–8 [NIV])

" [He was] 9the true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 10He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him... 14The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth." (John 1:9–14 [NIV])

" [He] 15…is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.... 17He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18And he is the head of the body, the church… [and] 19God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross." (Colossians 1:15–20 [NIV])

May the Lord bless the public reading of His words…

Friends, do you remember the story of the ugly duckling?

Well, whether you remember or not, let me recollect the main parts of the story…

The story begins with the hatching of the mother duck's eggs and all the ducklings look the same except for one little duckling..

He looked different from the rest, and the other birds and animals on the farm started to tease and extended much verbal abuse to the poor little duckling…

And soon enough, the label, 'the ugly duckling' stuck…

After suffering the constant torment, the ugly duckling decided to leave the farm and started to spend much time alone…

He spent most of the time alone, hiding in the cave next to the lake,

Way from the hassle and bustle of the lake so that he doesn't get any more taunting…

Winter came and the lake froze over, and the rest of the ducks flew away…

But the ugly stayed in the caves for fear of being ostracized…

Soon enough though winter was over, and the lake partially thawed…

And the one morning after spring came, one group of swans settled into the lake…

Intrigued by the group of swans, the ugly duckling wanted to join the group of swans but initially held back because he knew that he would be verbally abused by them like how he was abused by the other animals all his life…

Nevertheless, not wanting to live a life of solitude anymore he decided to throw himself at the flock of swans deciding that it is better to be killed by such beautiful birds than to live a life of ugliness and misery…

But he was shocked when the swans welcomed and accepted him, only to realize by looking at his reflection in the water that he had been, not a duckling, but a swan all this time.

He had suffered in silence all these while because he tried to fit in an environment that he didn't belong to…

He was a swan that tried to be a duck, which is why everybody thought he looked strange…

If you're looking at a swan, expecting a duck, of course your expectation wouldn't be met…

If you go to a bubble tea stall asking to have your car repaired, of course you'll get an empty stare…

So why am I talking about the ugly duckling here?

You see friends,

We are somewhat like the ugly duckling here…

The world that we live in right now is not what the world should be…

The world is broken…

Because of the disobedience of Adam and Eve, the world became broken and relationship between God and man,

As well as nature became strained and the image of God in us all became distorted…

We read in Genesis 3 that the ground, representing the world, was cursed because of the act of disobedience by man…

And because the world is broken, it is no wonder that there is sin and brokenness,

Which gets translated into crimes, and broken relationships and natural disasters, and I guess something that is on everybody's minds right now, viruses that plague us, which is why we can't meet face to face…

And because the world is broken, if you're looking for a prefect life, if you're looking for a painless life,

If you're looking for a life that is stress free, if you're looking for the perfect relationship,

The bad news friends is that you can't find it on this side of heaven…

The reason

Why there is quarrels, and fights in this world?

The reason why you have this horrible thing happening to you?

The reason why there is death in this world?

Is because, fundamentally, the world is broken…

And that is also the reason why it is hard to be a Christian,

Because we are like that swan that is not in his natural environment…

We are surrounded by brokenness - broken world and broken people expecting us to be like them,

Being conformed to the broken world…

That is the bad news…

But listen to the good news…

Even though we are surrounded by broken people and live in a broken world,

Our God didn't leave us abandoned my friends…

This God of ours, who we read about just now,

Who created the heaven and the earth, even though he was very God,

Decided to give up his rights and privileges as God, emptied himself of everything,

Took the form of weak, vulnerable and broken man to come and lived among us man,

Weak and vulnerable so that he was able to overcome all those temptations and difficulties we faced, and show us that it was possible to overcome all those difficulties in our lives,

Came so that we are able to know that this brokenness is not the way it is to be, but the world is the way it is right now because of the brokenness in the world…

And allow us to have a glimpse of how the world was meant to be… free from pain, free from broken relationships, free from death, free from crimes…

And those are captured in our scriptures and our traditions…

Jesus came as a person that lived among us so that the physical separation between God and man was removed and man can be reconciled to God physically…

And perhaps most importantly,

Jesus came as a weak and vulnerable person so that he could die on the cross so that the world could be legally reconciled with him, and according to Col 1:20, allow peace was made…

So that we will no longer be blinded by our wrong perception that we are ugly ducklings,

Fated to live life away from God, fated to live life as a broken, inclined to the ways of the world…

Fated to live life in pain, suffering and facing death,

But instead we are awakened to the fact that we are instead wonderful swans, "made a little lower than angels… [and to be] crowned with glory and honour" (Heb 2:4)

And even today, the very fact that there is love in this world is because of the fact that God had come through Jesus to start this reconciliatory process between God and man…

And that is why there is grace in this world…

And that is why the world have glimpses of care and concern in this world…

And that is why you see hope in this world…

Because of Jesus coming to the world as a baby 2000 thousand years ago, during the first Christmas…

In the first advent…

But the time will come, when Christ will come again to call us all home…

In the second advent…

And when the Kingdom of God fully comes and remove completely all the things that are wrong in this world…

And all of us who are Christians can look forward to that…

Where we will be completely surrounded by fellow swans and there will no longer be any condemnation and pain and persecutions and death anymore…

But in the meantime, we thank God for having come in the first advent, and let us continue to spur each other one…

Encouraging one another when sometimes we forget that we're swans and when we start to think that we're ugly ducklings…

Pointing one another to the time when all these persecutions, pain and death will be a thing of the pass…

Be a source of life in this world…

And helping other people who have not heard the Gospel and the wonderful news that they are not ugly ducklings know that they are wonderful swans, come home to the Lord and to help them look forward to a wonderful life everlasting with God…

So, this Christmas, I invite you to embrace the message of the Advent, the coming and enact on it…

Whether you are already a Christian and already have an on-going relationship with God,

Or not yet a Christian, and is the first time you're hearing about God…

The invitation goes out to you… the message of advent, the coming of God, is relevant to you…

If you're a Christian, embrace the message that there is hope that the world we live in today is not all there is to be….

Embrace the message that there is grace in our world right now because of the first coming of Jesus whereby the grace of God has come into our world…

The Lord will grant you the ability to overcome all the difficulties that come your way… He will not leave you abandoned…

And we have the ability to overcome sins and challenges of the world… and we have been given the mandate to be instruments of grace and love in this world…

Be a face of God in this world…

If you're not yet a Christian, the invitation is for you to accept this God who love you so much

He was prepared to give up all His glory and did so to come among us, becoming a weak, fragile and vulnerable person,

So that he can die on the cross and give us the grace so that we are able to overcome the difficulties of this world…

So that you know that this world is not all that is to be, and you don't have to lower your expectations to accept this broken world and its standards…

But the fact that you are a beautiful swan, not an ugly duckling…

Embrace your true identity… accept God's invitation of grace and allow yourself to be all that you are truly meant to be…

A child of the living God…

A person God loves so much he came and died on the cross for you…

And if you want to learn more about it… connect with us and we can have a chat about it…

So friends, embrace God's message of advent…

Embrace hope…

Embrace his gift for you…

Amen