(Sermon by Vicar Kelly Huet 12/25/07)

INTRODUCTION:

Grace and Peace to you in the name of Jesus whose birthday we are gathered to celebrate.  Amen!

In the days and weeks following Christmas the ritualistic question is asked, “So what did you get for Christmas?”  Or the question is worded, “Did you get anything good this year?”  Then the next step in the ritual usually consists of the person either telling you about a present they received or they show you the present and then proceed to tell you about it anyway!  This is what we know as the "Show and Tell" time.  The whole ritual centers around what you have received and then telling all about it.  What if the gift you received started to give the show and tell?  That would be odd, wouldn’t it?  Well, this morning and every time we gather around the manger that is exactly what happens, the Gift in the manger offers us a "Show and Tell" lesson!

Now some of you may be wondering as you walked in and saw the manger sitting in the back of church why there was a Bible in the manger and not a doll or a child.  You see the Apostle John this morning gives Jesus a very unique name; he gives him the name, The Word.  At first this may seem like a rather unusual name for the King of kings, resting in the manger but think for a second, what exactly do words do?  Words communicate a message. Whether the words are spoken, typed, texted, emailed, or written the old fashioned way (by hand), they convey a message.

The Apostle John uses this unique name for Jesus, The Word, because Jesus communicates to us God’s Love.  Jesus tells us that God is love and shows us that God is love!  Who better to communicate with us humans who and what God is than his Son who is from his side?  Jesus, the Word, is God and came to tell us that God is love.

He tells us that God is love by reassuring us that he is God’s equal and has existed from eternity.  As John says, “Through him all things were made.”  Jesus, the Word, was present at the creation of the world.  There is nothing in this world that he did not have part in creating.  The majestic mountains, the vast oceans, the microorganisms, and you, were all part of his work.  His work was not just to create the world and then leave it, but he also gave it life.

The life he gives tells us that God is love in that he wants all mankind to have life.  The life talked about in this verse isn’t just the take a deep breath to realize you are alive, life.  The life talked about here is “the life that was the light of man.  The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world.”  The life is first and foremost the life that is being a child of God, the everlasting life that is only found in Christ.  The life given opens our eyes and our hearts and offers us a true purpose and meaning for our lives.  We no longer wander with no purpose in our life wondering what will become of us, but we have the assurance that we are his children who will live our lives for Christ and live and rule with him in eternity.  This is the purpose Christ gives to our lives, to live our lives as his children and share his love with others.

But what then of the verse, “The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.”  You know about this darkness.  It is the darkness of all people naturally being in unbelief.  It is the sinful nature within each of us that is absolutely hostile to God.  The sinful nature within us wants to hear nothing of God.  It does not want to hear Christ’s teaching that there is a God, that we are sinful, that we need a savior; much less that Christ is our Savior.  Our sinful nature cringes at the hearing of God’s Word.  It is this darkness that caused God’s own chosen children, the children of Israel to not know him.

Imagine a father who has been with his children for years.  Raised them, provided for them, protected them, led them and did everything a father could do to properly raise his children, only to come home from a trip bearing a suitcase full of presents only to have the kids say, “Um, Who are you?”

Jesus came to his own but his own didn’t receive him.  After preaching in the Synagogue at his home town that he was the savior, they took him to the edge of the cliff to kill him!  This is how our sinful nature acts towards him as well.  It kicks and screams.  It doesn’t want to believe we need a savior.  We struggle with our sinful nature daily.  When we examine ourselves we must say, my goodness, I have done nothing today that could please God.  “I have turned him away.  I deserve to be the one left in the eternal darkness, with no hope of seeing any light.”

Yet, God chose me, he made me his child.  He gave me life! He shone his light on my heart and broke through the darkness.  Though I don’t deserve it, by any means, he gave me the right to be called his child!  At my baptism the adoption papers were signed that I was no longer a child of sin and Satan but I have a new Father, who loves me and Jesus tells me of his love!

Jesus tells me of God’s love as he tells me he is life and the light that has shown in the darkness.  Jesus tells me of God’s love as he reminds me that I was in darkness and still struggle with the darkness of my sinful nature, my sinful nature which is completely hostile to God.  Jesus tells me of God’s love when he pronounces that despite my sinful hostility toward God, God in love adopts me even though I don’t deserve it.  Jesus shows me God is love when he became flesh.  This is why we are gathered on a Tuesday morning, to see God’s love incarnate, to see God’s love in the flesh.

Let us read verse 14 of John 1 together this Christmas morning.  Let us see God’s love!  We read, "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.  We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth."

The Word became flesh.  Jesus became a human that he could show us who the Father is and what the Father is all about.  Think about it this way.  Try to describe for me the feeling and the view of standing on top of Mount Everest.  I have seen pictures, I have even seen video, but I cannot describe to you the feeling or the beauty of standing on the roof of the world.  Now if someone who had climbed Everest came and told you about it, you would have a small sense of what it was like through their experience.

That is why Christ came.  He is the only one who has seen the glory of God the Father!  He is the only one who fully knows his love and truly knows the heart of the Father.  So, the Father sent him to earth, to be a human, just like you and me, only without sin, so that we too may see and be told of the Father!

John writes, “We have seen his glory…”  As we look at the manger, his life, his ministry, and especially his death, glory is not often a word used to describe Jesus.  He was born in a stable and his bed was a manger, hardly what I would consider a glorious start.  He had no home during his years of ministry, no glory there!  And there was certainly nothing glorious about death by crucifixion.

Yet, John writes, “We have seen his glory…” where?  His glory was visible in the manger, in that the Son of God became flesh to save us.  This is where he shows his love to you.  His lowliness in life was his glory!  His glory was visible during his ministry as he showed his love when he calmed the storm, or multiplied food, or healed people all to show that he had come to rescue his people.  His glory was seen on the cross as he hung there, not held to the wood by nails and rope, but by his love.  There is no greater way Christ could show God’s love for you than willingly going to the cross!  His glory was seen and he was full of grace and truth, we are told.

“Full of grace and truth.”  Full of grace, what better way to describe Jesus?  He came to show us God’s love, the love that credits his perfect life and innocent death, for my sin laden life.  The love that reassures each of us that we can say, “I am loved and I am forgiven.  And no matter what happens in this life, God loves me and has forgiven me and I am his!”  Jesus’ grace shows you and me that our Father is gracious and loves us sinners who deserve nothing but hell.  Jesus shows us that God is love when he shows us God’s grace!

The result of being shown God’s love is knowing that it is true.  Jesus is the truth, the truth that the Father loves us and has gathered us to himself.  Jesus says in John 14, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.”  Philosophers, theologians, and the common man often ask, what is life all about?  What is the truth?  Jesus is the only truth!  And he’s shared the truth with you.

I don’t know about you but I have really enjoyed the show and tell lesson from the manger this morning.  What a joy it has been to gather around the manger to learn of God’s love for us and especially how comforting it is to see God’s love for us in action.  Listen to the Word speaking to you and believe: In him you have life!
 

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