Christmas Eve, Saturday, December 24, 2016 Dr. Jan Rivero, preaching
Hear the words to this Advent hymn as our prayer:
Break forth, O beauteous heavenly light, and usher in the morning;
O shepherds, shrink not with afright, but hear the angel’s warning.
This Child, now weak in infancy, our confidence and joy shall be,
The power of Satan breaking, our peace eternal making. Amen.
A long time ago, in a village far, far away, where people were eking out an existence, trying desperately to get by, even as the oppression of the Roman government intensified, angels started showing up and interrupting people’s lives. You know the story. It began with a visit to a teenage girl who was engaged to marry a carpenter in training. Mary was an unlikely candidate for greatness, but the angel said “Hey girl, this is gonna happen.” She pushed back a little bit but finally acquiesced and said, “Oh, OK.” That little interruption changed her life — and the world — forever.
The next stop on the angelic visitation tour was a carpenter’s shop where a smitten teenage boy named Joseph was learning the trade. He was in love, with stars in his eyes, and preparing to marry the love of his life. But then an angel showed up. He was like “Dude, this is gonna happen.” Joseph, being an all around good guy, didn’t want to embarrass the love of his life, so he too signed on to the plan, though not without more than a little trepidation. That little interruption changed his life — and the world — forever.
Third stop on their tour was a visit to a band of shepherds. Now these guys were cold, sitting out on the hillside in the middle of winter’s night. Cold, and maybe even a little bit bored — you know, their had held devices were called shepherd’s staffs. They had no smart phones to distract them, but that was all right since they had to watch for predators that might swoop in and steal or even kill their flocks. Into their cold, boring vigilance swooped a different kind of creature, interrupting their silent night. “Hey fellas,” she said. “Wanna go see maybe the coolest thing happening on the planet tonight?” “Well sure, why not. We got nothin’ else to do. We’re just hangin’ here and it’s cold. And to be honest, it’s kind of a drag. We just have to bring our sheep with us.” Off they went following the directions of the world’s first GPS, one ginormous star. That little interruption changed their lives — and the world — forever.
About twelve days later those same angels finished up their tour, paying visits to some wise guys. We will hear about that visit next Sunday. In the meantime, suffice it to say, their lives were also interrupted and changed forever.
Two thousand years later, angels gather around us this night, poised to interrupt our lives. Our sight is dim and our ears are deaf to their chorus. Our lives are busy and filled with distractions, and we are likely to miss their grand gesture and their profound invitation. And that’s the problem, you see. The birth of this baby in Bethlehem two millennia ago was a disruption to business as usual. But in our age, Christmas is routine and nearly mundane. We go through the motions of gift giving and parties. We literally buy into the expectation of it all. And on Christmas Day, when the flurry of Christmas crazy is over, we find ourselves relieved and exhausted, instead of inspired and energized. The day after, the routine begins again, and we wonder if anything at all has changed. When we look around the world the change we see does not favor God’s kingdom.
What would be different in your life or in our world if Christmas really was an interruption? The kind of interruption that changed our lives the way it changed Mary’s and Joseph’s, the shepherds and the wise men. The kind of interruption that changed the world forever? What if we could hear the angels – what might they say? Imagine it with me, will you? “Pardon the interruption, people of Charlottesville. 2016 has been a bit of a rough year but there is something I want you to know. A life-changing, world-changing thing is happening, right here, right now — in this world, in this town, in your life. This is not business as usual. This is something that reverses the world order. It is strong enough to bring down the mighty. It is powerful enough to lift up the weak. It is a presence in the world, in your life that heals the broken heart, that transcends all hate, that shines light on the dark and corrupt places in the world. The power of this life-changing, world-changing presence is in you. You are the hands and feet of the Holy God of heaven now. You are the incarnate ones and through you, if you are willing, the world will be changed forever. The hungry and the homeless need you. The vulnerable and the oppressed need you. The marginalized, the war torn, the weary need you. The widow, the orphan, the lonely all need you. The planet you call home needs you. And God needs you to be for them.”
So push back on what Christmas has become to this world. Don’t leave Christmas this year to return to the routine and the mundane. Don’t leave this manger scene like a hit and run driver, or the rich one whose fortunes are able to block out the needs of this world. Whatever you do, don’t leave this place unchanged. Listen for and heed the angels. Embrace this interruption. They are calling us now to change our lives and the world … forever.