Silent Night; Loud Proclamation
Notes
Transcript
Service Opener: The Bible revolves around Jesus and can be divided into three categories:
Jesus is coming. (Genesis - Malachi)
Jesus has come. (Matthew - John)
Jesus is coming again. (Acts - Revelation)
In 1818, a roving band of actors was performing in towns throughout the Austrian Alps. On December 23 they arrived at Oberndorf, a village near Salzburg where they were to re-enact the story of Christ's birth.
Unfortunately, the St. Nicholas' church organ wasn't working and would not be repaired before Christmas. These events put Josef Mohr in a meditative mood. Instead of walking straight to his house that night, Mohr took a longer way home. The longer path took him up over a hill overlooking they village.
From that hilltop, Mohr looked down on the peaceful snow-covered village. Reveling in majestic silence of the wintry night, Mohr gazed down at the glowing Christmas-card like scene. His thoughts about the Christmas play he had just seen made him remember a poem he had written a couple of years before. That poem was about the night when angels announced the birth of the long-awaited Messiah to shepherds on a hillside.
Gruber only had a few hours to come up with a melody which could be sung with a guitar. However, by that evening, Gruber had managed to compose a musical setting for the poem. It no longer mattered to Mohr and Gruber that their church organ was inoperable. They now had a Christmas carol that could be sung without that organ.
On Christmas Eve, the little Oberndorf congregation heard Gruber and Mohr sing their new composition to the accompaniment of Gruber's guitar.
Weeks later, well-known organ builder Karl Mauracher arrived in Oberndorf to fix the organ in St. Nicholas church. When Mauracher finished, he stepped back to let Gruber test the instrument. When Gruber sat down, his fingers began playing the simple melody he had written for Mohr's Christmas poem. Deeply impressed, Mauracher took copies of the music and words of "Silent Night" back to his own Alpine village, Kapfing. There, two well-known families of singers — the Rainers and the Strassers — heard it. Captivated by "Silent Night," both groups put the new song into their Christmas season repertoire.
The Strasser sisters spread the carol across northern Europe. In 1834, they performed "Silent Night" for King Frederick William IV of Prussia, and he then ordered his cathedral choir to sing it every Christmas eve.
When mohr took credit for his work he was scoffed surely a great song as this was written by one of the greats maybe Mozart or Handel. When an original was uncovered in that that little mountain town. Sure enough stood the signature of Josef mohr.
When you hear the Christmas story, you get a picture in your head of what things must have looked like at the birth of Jesus. Sometimes it’s interesting to find out how others envision that scene. I read recently about a children’s Sunday School class that heard the Christmas story and sang the beloved Christmas carol, “Silent Night”. They were then asked to draw what they thought the nativity scene might have looked like. One little fellow did a good likeness of Joseph, Mary and the baby Jesus, but off to the side was a roly-poly figure. The teacher, thinking that the boy had somehow worked Santa Claus into the scene, asked him who that was. She wasn’t sure whether she was relieved or even more worried when the boy responded, "Oh, that’s Round John Virgin!" (1)
2w
Luke 2:1-20
Introduction:
As we approach the celebration of the birth of Christ, the beautiful scenes depicted on countless Christmas cards swirl in our heads: A quiet winter’s night; a celestial spotlight from a star shining down on a lowly stable; a reverent birth; livestock in awe; shepherds in humble worship; a drummer boy drumming; angels hovering nearby; and three kings on camels traveling from afar bearing expensive gifts. One of the best loved carols solidifies this picture of the beauty of Christmas: "Silent night, holy night, all is calm ...sleep in heavenly peace."
1. It was not silent in Bethlehem (Luke 2:1-7)
A Roman census and taxing forced the town to burst at its seams. Neither the locals nor the visitors would have been very happy about the decree. Tempers were short, words were spoken in anger, people were taken advantage of, and rooms were at a premium. Mary was obviously in labor when she and Joseph arrived in Bethlehem. But there was no hospital. There was no birthing center. There were no vacancies anywhere in town. There was just a stable, full of the other travelers’ sweaty, tired animals. Joseph had to be completely frustrated at the circumstances. Was this any way to celebrate the first Christmas?
Christmas’ can get like this? Too many expectations, too little time, too few dollars, too many hurt feelings. Despite our best efforts to hit the artificially high goal of a perfect Christmas, we always seem to miss the mark. Any number of things spoils our preconceived notions of the holiday:
Not enough money;
Ruined relationships; or
The illness or death of a loved one.
Another Christmas winds up being scuttled. But it does not have to be that way! Let’s take our eyes and emotions off all the trappings of a secular holiday and return to the holy day where we not only remember a manger, but we remember a cross, a tomb, and a resurrection.
Let’s not be afraid or ashamed to make some noise about the wonder and blessing of the coming of God in the flesh! Let’s celebrate Bethlehem!
2. It was not silent with the Shepherds (Luke 2:8-12, 16-20)
The shepherds were the first to hear the Gospel message. They were the first to lay eyes on their Messiah. After receiving the angelic birth announcement of the Savior, they had to find him.
Most people want to celebrate with others when there is good news in the community. What do people do when a war ends? They gather together to celebrate. What do they do when their favorite sports team wins the championship game? They gather together to celebrate. What did the shepherds do? They had to find this baby!
Even the Shepherds response wasn’t silent
They were first people to share the good news of Jesus’ arrival. After leaving the stable, they could not be quiet. They broadcast their experiences to anyone and everyone who would listen.
Are we as excited as those despised shepherds about Jesus? Are we telling others of the King who came, conquered, and will return? They proclaimed Christ to their community. Let’s make some noise about Jesus where we live.
3. It was not silent with the Angels (Luke 2:13-14)
Angels by their nature worship, serve, and represent God. Now the promise of the ages to all mankind had come.
When we watch the story of Jesus’ birth, there are always a few angels showing up at this part. But we really cannot grasp the picture of what the shepherds experienced. The angelic appearance was sudden and unexpected.
We too have news that cannot and must not be contained. We must make some noise by joining the heavenly host and singing for joy!
The Song isn’t an Epic Fail
It was a Holy Night
God’s Word was in action.
It was a Holy Night because in the birth of that little child, God had fulfilled a promise made to the people of Israel thousands of years before.
God had promised to send a savior, a Messiah, an anointed one who would deliver the people from their oppressors and would free them from their sins. And this was not a joy meant only for Israel - the prophets had proclaimed that the Messiah would come, not only for the sake of Israel, but for the sake of all the nations, all the people of the world. On that Holy Night, a baby was born who would grow up to be that promised Messiah.
Hell took a Loss.
It was a Holy Night because all of God’s plans and purposes were coming together. The glorious night of Jesus’ birth was but the beginning of the story, that would lead some thirty years later to the glorious morning of Easter! The child that was born would grow up to be a teacher, a preacher, a healer, and most of all, a savior. The child Jesus would grow up to take upon himself the righteous punishment of God for the sins of all humanity - dying on our behalf, cruelly tortured and killed on a cross. But that was not the end of the plan, of God’s plan - for death could not hold the son of God! Jesus was resurrected by the power of God, he rose from the dead, he rejoined his Father God in the heavenly places, and he promised that he will come again to bring final peace to our world. On that Holy Night, a baby was born who would grow up to be our Lord and Savior.
God came Close.
Accor ding to the Dawson creek mirror…Migdal Eder, the Tower of the Flock, was where the lambs set aside for temple sacrifices were raised. The flocks in the surrounding fields were vast, because there was an estimated population of around 5 million people in that area. During Passover, the annual celebration of the Hebrew nation’s deliverance from captivity in Egypt, one lamb was needed for every household. An estimated 250,000 sheep were needed every year to accommodate the Passover sacrifices and feast. The tower of Migdal Eder provided the perfect vantage point from which the shepherds could, quite literally, watch over their flocks from above.
Every firstborn male lamb was considered holy and was set aside for sacrifice in Jerusalem. Sheep herding was a hereditary occupation, and generations of shepherds were trained to care for these special lambs. They literally risked their lives to protect the sheep from predators, and keep them from falling into the many crevasses and ravines in that rocky hill country.
The newborn lambs would be wrapped tightly… swaddled… in specially designated temple cloths, and they would be laid in a manger to keep them contained while they were being examined for blemishes. At the appointed time, the shepherds would separate the lambs, selecting only the firstborn males that were without mark or blemish, and would lead them to Jerusalem, where they would be purchased by people wanting to present a sacrifice before the Lord to atone for their sins.
When the angel appeared to the shepherds in the fields, he told them that they would find the newborn King wrapped in swaddling cloths and laying in a manger. They knew exactly where He would be found, because swaddling cloths were only used in one particular location, and for one particular purpose… Migdal Eder, the place where sacrificial lambs were wrapped and examined for perfection before being set apart for the slaughter that would atone for sin and make peace with God.
Three decades later, the apostle John pointed out his cousin Jesus and said “Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”. And more than two millennia later, Jesus is still taking away the sins of all who accept His sacrifice that makes peace between them and God.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
No wonder the angels sang,
Luke 2:14
Glory to God in the highest,
And on earth peace,
Good will toward men.
On that Holy Night, a baby was born who was God Himself.
Conclusion:
The Son of God, the redeemer, the deliverer entered a noisy, dirty, confusing, sin-filled world. He did so for noisy, dirty, confused, sin-filled people...for you and for me. This Christmas, and throughout the year, let’s not be silent about this friend of sinners, this Savior, this Lord: this Jesus.