Loving Christmas v. Needing Christmas

Text: “30 And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”” (Luke 1:30-33)

So much about this night may seem like a mirage. How many who are lighting candles tonight and talking about peace on earth, good will to men, spent the past year screaming at one another on social media?

How many singing “Joy to the world” tonight have spent that time either controlled by fear or trying to control others through fear?

How many trying to celebrate this season of love find their hearts pierced by broken promises; torn by disappointment; or shattered by grief and loss?

And it’s not just an issue this year. Every time December rolls around, we decorate our homes as if, somehow, we can magically transform them into the world of the Hallmark movies that we desperately want to join.

Even at the best of times, there is a yearning for a world that seems perpetually just out of our grasp. That place of peace, a place of hope, a world of love, a world of joy just beyond our fingertips. We try— we display

“The cozy little manger holding a baby with his mom and dad looking down with awe. The [star’s] light resting on all the adoring creatures[, inviting] onlookers to come closer. Babies, presents, office parties, and gently falling snow [seduce us] every year. Like a mirage, [we chase] the images, the sounds, the feelings of joy, only to have them disappear as [we approach].” (Hess, Joel. “Some People Love Christmas, Some People Need It.” www.theJaggedWord.com. 7 December 2021.)

And would you or I even fit in that world? There’s no place in that kind of a world for the jealousy, the lust, the anger, the greed, and everything else hidden in your heart and mine.

There is so much about this night that seems like a mirage. Even at the best of times, it seems like mirage, a cruel yearning that this world cannot satisfy.

I would suggest to you that that yearning that this world cannot satisfy is not necessarily a bad thing. As C.S. Lewis once said, “The fact that our heart yearns for something Earth can't supply is proof that Heaven must be our home.” That, in a nutshell, is the promise of Christmas.

Tonight the words of the angel ring out: Do not be afraid. You have found favor with God.

As another pastor put it beautifully: “Some people love Christmas, Some people need it.”

You need this child to come. This sinless one. You need him to succeed. You need a new man to be born who won’t let you down. You need someone to be a hero with no skeletons in the closet. You need some way to make up [for everything you’ve tried to sweep under the carpet]. You need a cure to this disease.... This year you need Christmas to happen. With shepherds, prostitutes, tax collectors, [with grieving] widows.... (Hess)

He has come. And He has done His work.

Christ has come. He has died and risen for you. You are forgiven and you will rise again where [you] will finally enjoy Christmas feasts and parties without guilt or fear of the past or future.

That world is not a mirage. Nor is it just out of your reach. He came to bring that world— His Kingdom— to you. It is as close at hand as the baptismal font; It is as close at hand as this altar; It is as close at hand as this pulpit; where the Kingdom that was begun at the cross comes and claims you.

He comes bringing peace— both between you and God and even with your enemies. He comes bringing the joy of God’s eternal promises to a world of seeming chaos. He comes into this world with a love that is truly stronger than death. He cleanses all your sins so that you can stand in that Kingdom, unafraid and unashamed.

Or, in the words of the angel: Do not be afraid. You have found favor with God. The virgin has conceived and given birth to a son and has called His name Jesus. He is the Son of the Most High. The Lord God has given to Him the throne of His Father David, and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever. Of His kingdom there will be no end.

So enjoy the lights. Savor the decorations. Dream of a white Christmas. Because it’s no mirage. It is God’s promise to you in Jesus Christ.