The Christmas Spirit

Christmas 2006

              Well, the day has finally come, the day we call Christmas.  For many of us, including myself, we may have said, “It just doesn’t feel like Christmas.”  Somehow it snuck up on us.  I suppose it was mostly because of the warm weather we have been experiencing, the rain, and the lack of snow.  Even with all the store windows decorated so beautifully, the houses trimmed with lights and lawn ornaments, and the Christmas music being played over the radio, “It just doesn’t feel like Christmas.” 

              For some of you, the Christmas spirit may be tempered by events that have occurred within your family life this past year.  Perhaps a loved one has died and will not be with you this Christmas time.  Past memories and loneliness don’t make it easy to celebrate.  Maybe illness and poor health is effecting your celebration.  It is hard when you don’t feel well.  Family stresses and strained relationships also can affect your Christmas spirit, making for an uncomfortable, awkward time.  Certainly, the events in our world, the conflicts in the middle east, the war in Iraq, loved ones far away in dangerous situations, weighs heavily upon our hearts and minds, reducing the joy we might have.  And, yet, in spite of all of this, it is Christmas.

              What continues to make Christmas so wonderful and mysterious, calling us back here to this place year after year, is that it isn’t about us, but rather about God.  Christmas is about what God has done and is doing among in the midst of all the things that are a part of our lives.  Christmas is God’s story and the Christmas spirit depends upon God, not all the trappings that have come to be associated with the celebration and this time of year.  The Christmas spirit is about Jesus, the lover and Savior of the world.

              The Christmas spirit began one starry night long ago with these words of an angel to some lowly shepherds out in the field.  ”Do not be afraid; for see – I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord.”  In the midst of their daily life and their daily work, their trials and hardships, the word of God breaks in upon them, a word that will forever change their lives and the way they see and act in the world.  The Almighty God, distant and far removed, became close and personal.  Christ the Lord, the King of glory, has come down from heaven, taking on the flesh and blood of a little baby.  God has left his throne to come to earth and dwell among us.  As our Savior, God came to be with us for a little while in Jesus so that we could be with God forever into eternity.  Jesus came to save the world from its sin.  He came to seek and save the lost.  He came to provide comfort and peace.  He came to redeem us and this world so that we might once again belong to God.  As the king of glory, Jesus did not sit upon his royal throne waiting for us to come to him and knock on the door so that we might somehow gain entry to see him.  No, it is just the reverse.  Jesus, the Savior, comes knocking on the door of our hearts, desiring us to open our hearts so he can come in.  He comes to share with us his love.  He comes to offer to us his grace.  He comes in hope that there might be room in the inn of our hearts.  The Christmas spirit is expressed so beautifully by the heavenly chorus, the choir of angles who sing, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors.”

              It was God who instilled in the shepherds the Christmas spirit.  They went right away to Bethlehem to see this thing that God had done.  When they got there, they found Mary and Joseph and the little child lying in the manger.  They came to adore and worship the Christ child, the Savior of the world.  That is also what the Christmas spirit is all about, it’s about worship.  “Oh, draw us wholly to you, O Lord,  And to us all your grace accord; True faith and love to us impart, That we may hold you in our heart.”  We come to worship this gift of a Savior, just like the shepherds.  In this gift of Jesus, we are given all that we need, comfort, hope, and peace.  As our Savior, this child will give his life for us so that we might have life.  He will suffer upon the cross, forgiving the sins of the world, setting us free from guilt and shame.  He will be raised from the dead by the power of God, granting to us a new life now and the hope of everlasting life when we die.  The Christmas spirit is found in this One who gave his life for us and for the sake of the world.  The Christmas spirit is found in that giving and that we have received more than we ever deserve.  No matter what we are going through or how we might feel, this gift is given, comfort and peace are given, strength for the day is given as this child is named Emmanuel, which means “God is with us.”

              As we worship the giver of the gift, we realize that it is not only for us, but for all people.  The Christmas spirit is shared through us as we go out from this place and this time of worship to tell others and bring this gift to them.  “Go tell it on the mountain, Over the hills and everywhere; Go tell it on the mountain That Jesus Christ is born.”  After worshipping the new born child, the shepherds returned home to share the Christmas spirit with others.  This good news of great joy, that there is forgiveness, life, and salvation in this one named Jesus, is to be proclaimed by us in both word and deed.  The Christmas spirit is found not so much in the material gifts that we give and receive this night, but in the gift of ourselves that we give throughout the year in our loving and joyful service to others.  When we feed the hungry and clothe the naked, when we provide shelter to the homeless and visit the sick and lonely, there is the presence of the Christmas spirit.  It is a matter of a life time.  “Not what we give, but what we share, For the gift without the giver is bear.”  The Christmas spirit is found in the personal touch of our love, as we are touched by God’s love.  The Bible says, “We love, because God first loved us.”  What a revelation it is to discover that the Christmas spirit is not just a mere sentiment or a passion for the hour, but a life-long commitment of serving God by serving our neighbor.  Discipleship is about following.  It is following the example of Jesus who gave his life in loving service to the world.

              This, my friends, is the Christmas spirit.  It comes from God as a gift of a Son.  It is born in our hearts through the word we receive from God and in our worship of the Lord Jesus.  It is lived out in loving service to our neighbors and to those people in need, following the example of Jesus.  This is Christmas spirit.  May you experience and live in it always.  Amen.