Christmas Eve 2021

GREETINGS/WELCOME INVOCATION

O God of faithfulness, be faithful to us once again as we remember. Move our hearts as we remember how you came to earth through a peasant girl. Move our feet in the ways of justice and compassion to live out your love in the world. Move us not only to remember the past but also to look ahead to the future promise of your return, when all things will be made right. May the hopes and fears of all the years be met in you, once again, tonight.

HYMN: “O Come, All Ye Faithful”

OLD TESTAMENT READING Isaiah 9:2–7

Isaiah 9:2–7 NRSV

2 The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness— on them light has shined. 3 You have multiplied the nation, you have increased its joy; they rejoice before you as with joy at the harvest, as people exult when dividing plunder. 4 For the yoke of their burden, and the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor, you have broken as on the day of Midian. 5 For all the boots of the tramping warriors and all the garments rolled in blood shall be burned as fuel for the fire. 6 For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 7 His authority shall grow continually, and there shall be endless peace for the throne of David and his kingdom. He will establish and uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time onward and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.

LIGHTING OF THE FOUR ADVENT CANDLES

We light the candles of hope, peace, joy, and love once again. And, as we remember the fulfillment of these promises in Christ’s birth, we also look ahead to the day when all things will truly be made right at Christ’s return.

FIRST LESSON Luke 2:1-7

Luke 2:1–7 NRSV

1 In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered. 2 This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. 3 All went to their own towns to be registered. 4 Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. 5 He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child. 6 While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child. 7 And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

Hymn: “Away in a Manger”

PRAYER

SECOND LESSON

Luke 2:8–20 NRSV

8 In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: 11 to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.” 13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying, 14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors!” 15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.” 16 So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. 17 When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. 19 But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

HYMN OPTIONS

“The First Noel”

“O Little Town of Bethlehem”

COMMUNION

Transition: While we remember Christ’s birth as a little baby in a manger, we also remember the life this child will grow up to live and the ultimate sacrifice he will make for the whole world.

LIGHTING OF THE CHRIST CANDLE We journeyed through four weeks together of expecting the coming of Christ. Tonight we recognize and celebrate that coming. We rejoice in the One who came, not in the glory of a palace or with riches and power but as a peasant in a manger. We rejoice in the One who is the fulfillment of hope, the bringer of peace, the creator of joy, and love itself. We illustrate the presence of Christ with us with the lighting of this white candle, a symbol that light has come into the world, and continues to come. Light shone in the darkness that night, and continues to shine in the darkness of our world today. As we look upon this candle, may we be reminded of the true Light who came, but may we also look ahead in the hopeful anticipation of his return, when all shall be made right.

The Communion Supper, instituted by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is a sacrament, which proclaims His life, His sufferings, His sacrificial death, and resurrection, and the hope of His coming again. It shows forth the Lord’s death until His return.

The Supper is a means of grace in which Christ is present by the Spirit. It is to be received in reverent appreciation and gratefulness for the work of Christ.

All those who are truly repentant, forsaking their sins, and believing in Christ for salvation are invited to participate in the death and resurrection of Christ. We come to the table that we may be renewed in life and salvation and be made one by the Spirit.

In unity with the Church, we confess our faith: Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again. And so we pray:

Holy God, We gather at this, your table, in the name of your Son, Jesus Christ, who by your Spirit was anointed to preach good news to the poor, proclaim release to the captives, set at liberty those who are oppressed. Christ healed the sick, fed the hungry, ate with sinners, and established the new covenant for forgiveness of sins. We live in the hope of His coming again.

On the night in which He was betrayed, He took bread, gave thanks, broke the bread, gave it to His disciples, and said: “This is my body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of me.”

Likewise, when the supper was over, He took the cup, gave thanks, gave it to His disciples, and said: “Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. Do this in remembrance of me.” Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (Matthew 26:27–29, Luke 22:19)

And so, we gather as the Body of Christ to offer ourselves to you in praise and thanksgiving. Pour out your Holy Spirit on us and on these your gifts. Make them by the power of your Spirit to be for us the body and blood of Christ, that we may be for the world the Body of Christ, redeemed by His blood.

By your Spirit make us one in Christ, one with each other, and one in the ministry of Christ to all the world, until Christ comes in final victory. In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Amen.

Before the partaking of the bread, let the minister say:

The body of our Lord Jesus Christ, broken for you, preserve you blameless, unto everlasting life. Eat this in remembrance that Christ died for you, and be thankful.

Before the partaking of the cup, let the minister say:

The blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, shed for you, preserve you blameless unto everlasting life. Drink this in remembrance that Christ died for you, and be thankful.

SCRIPTURE READING Titus 2:11–14

Titus 2:11–14 NIV

11 For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. 12 It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, 13 while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, 14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.

SERMON

This text, may at first glance appear to be out of place among the shepherds, angels, and the virgin Mary about to give birth to Jesus, the Christ child. But we see here the hope that comes because of the birth of our savior. “For the grace of God has appeared!”

The story was passed on over internet about Little Billy, a Jewish boy, who was failing his math lessons. His parents tried everything they could to get him to do better in this subject, but he continued to fail. At last, they took him down to the Catholic School, and enrolled him. After the first day, Billy came home and went up to his room, closed the door, and went to work on his math. His parents could hardly get him down for supper. After supper, he went back and "hit the books again." When his report card came next time, he laid it on the table for his parents to find. When his mother read it, she was amazed. He had an "A" in math. She questioned him about it wondering how such a change had come about. She asked him if it were the teachers, or the kind of books they used, but he said "no." Then why the change in his math scores? He said, "That first day at school, I looked up on the wall, and I saw a man nailed to a plus sign, and I knew that they were not fooling around here. So I went to work on my math."

That’s not exactly the right message from the crucifixion of Jesus. But in some ways, we act in much the same way. We have to work harder to be better - to set aside our human tendencies in order to be worthy of His grace. At first glance, Titus seems to be saying just that. If we’ll just hunker down and work harder, we can live the kind of lives that are exemplary to everybody. But what we find is that no matter how hard we try, we find that we are unable to do that in our strength.

Jesus didn’t come so that we would have to work harder - Jesus came to redeem us by offering His life on that “plus sign” and give us hope that we can be changed by His power to live the kind of lives He has called us to live. He has purified a people for Himself - so that we are enabled to do live lives of holiness and work together to do good. The message of this night is that Jesus came down to pour out grace on you and me - and on all people! No matter what kind of life we have lived, there is hope in Christ because He gives us the desire to do what is good and right, not out of fear or because we are made better than others, but out of a deep desire to honor this Christ child that was born on that first Christmas night.

I found this on a friend’s Facebook post: “Have you ever thought about the swaddling clothes Mary wrapped Jesus in at the time of his birth? Specifically, "WHERE" did she get the swaddling? Have you ever wondered about "swaddling clothes"? Thought this was interesting.....

Everyone knows that Jesus was born in a manger, and the 2nd chapter of the gospel of Luke says that he was wrapped in "swaddling clothes" and laid in a manger. Even today, hospitals use a cloth that they call a "swaddling" cloth. Unfortunately, it's a misnomer that will soon be over 2,000 years old, because "swaddling clothes" have nothing to do with a child being born!

In the Middle East, people traveling long distances were often met with many hardships and trials on their journeys. In the event of a death in travel, the body could not continue to be transported for many days. For that reason, travelers wrapped a thin, gauzelike cloth around their waist many times. If someone died on the journey, the others would use this cloth, referred to as "swaddling clothes" to wrap the body in before burying them.

When Jesus was born, there was no room in the Inn, and so Mary and Joseph used a nearby stable for Jesus' birth. With no other cloth to use, Jesus was wrapped in Joseph's "swaddling clothes" - the cloth normally reserved for a person's death.

The King of Kings and Lord of Lords came into this world in a lowly manger and was wrapped with burial clothes - in truth, He was born to die. To die for the sins of all mankind. Even in birth, He was preparing for death - his ultimate reason for coming to earth....

To save us from our sins.

SHARING LIGHT FROM THE CHRIST CANDLE Tonight we remember that Christ entered the world as a gift of love for the world. He is our ultimate example of hope, peace, joy, and love. He is love. His love was poured out in humility and sacrifice for the whole world. So, as we celebrate this amazing gift of love, we also look ahead to share it with the world and to love one another well.

The true gift of Christmas is that this light and this love are for the whole world. As we prepare to leave this place, returning to the hustle and bustle of Christmas, may we remember that we are to be a light to the world. We are to love our families, our friends, our neighbors, and even our enemies—that they too may know of this great gift of light and love. So we will light our candles from the Christ candle as a reminder that we bear the light of Christ to the world around us.

*Light candles while singing “Silent Night.”

BENEDICTION

“The Work of Christmas,” by Howard Thurman When the song of the angels is stilled, When the star in the sky is gone, When the kings and princes are home, When the shepherds are back with their flock, The work of Christmas begins: To find the lost, To heal the broken, To feed the hungry, To release the prisoner, To rebuild the nations, To bring peace among others, To make music in the heart.