In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 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: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors!” 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.” So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.
(Luke 2:8-20)
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One of my favourite verses of Scripture is Matthew 18:3. It’s not a Christmas reading. The event it describes takes place long after the birth of Jesus. In the passage, Jesus is gathered with his disciples, who ask him the question, “Who is the greatest in the Kingdom of heaven.” And Jesus’ answer, at least in part, was “unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the Kingdom of heaven.” No - it’s not a Christmas reading - but, gathered here on Christmas Eve and gathered with the Communion table set, that verse makes me think of Christmas.
How often do we hear people say at this time of year that “Christmas is really for children.” When we say that, we’re usually thinking of Christmas in the secular sense. It’s fun to be a child at Christmas, and when you’ve grown up it’s fun to watch children at Christmas. Lynn and I were married for over 13 years before Hannah came into our lives, and although we always enjoyed Christmas and the chance to gather with family and friends, it’s true - without a child to share the day with, something was missing. And now - even at the age of almost 12 - I’ve smiled as I’ve seen Hannah under the Christmas tree a few times over the last little while, shaking gifts and trying to guess what’s in them. She’ll tell you that she knows - but she may not! Children do make Christmas more fun for everyone. But there is another way of looking at the idea of being a child at Christmas, and for me it links with that verse from Matthew 18:3.
“Become like little children,” Jesus said. It seems that becoming like little children is the key to our entire faith. And what did Jesus mean? He was speaking of course of being child-like and not childish. He was speaking of approaching all of life with a sense of open-ness and wonder. He was speaking of being so dazzled by the creation that one’s attention and curiosity is naturally drawn to the Creator. “Where did it come from? How did it get here?” Questions that come from the lips of a child. Too many of us lose that sense of awe and wonder as the years go by. We’re no longer dazzled. Instead, we take things for granted. We’re no longer awed by mystery. Instead, we simply want answers, and if we can’t understand something we simply dismiss it. It happens a lot to faith as people grow. They lose the essential sense of awe and wonder and the willingness to embrace mystery that’s necessary for a passionate faith in God and in Jesus. It happens with the Christmas story.
Shepherds and angels and a manger. God as a baby. A virgin birth. How can rational, intelligent, modern people believe any of that? That’s what I hear from lots of people at this time of year. Christmas has been reduced to sentiment, to gift-giving and gift-receiving and to the extent that any spirit at all is involved with Christmas it’s not the Holy Spirit - it’s either in the form of certain beverages or it’s the so-called “spirit of Christmas,” which just means that for a few weeks people seem to become more kind and generous. But I think there has to be more. I think that shepherds and angels and a manger and God as a baby and a virgin birth have to be a part of Christmas - if Christmas is to really be Christmas. And to grasp what really happened at Christmas - to understand it and to believe it and to be transformed by it (so that the spirit of Christmas doesn’t just take possession of us in December but actually takes possession of our lives) - we have to take Jesus’ words to heart: “become like little children.” We have to reclaim the sense of wonder and awe and mystery that should be central to who we are as human beings. Not everything can just be reduced to pure logic and rationality. We’re people of feeling and emotions and intuition. We “know” things we can’t prove; we’re convinced of some things even if we can’t see them; we understand that there’s a difference between truth and fact. Tonight we celebrate truth and mystery - shown to us as a divine baby born of a virgin in a manger as angels and shepherds bear witness; shown to us also in bread and wine as we reflect upon what would happen to the baby some thirty years later. It’s all mystery, to be embraced by people of faith who find themselves able and confident enough to approach God with child-like wonder.
Charles Dickens wrote in A Christmas Carol that “... it is good to be children sometimes, and never better than at Christmas, when its mighty Founder was a child Himself.” And so it is. And - also in the words of Dickens - as we gather together tonight and with family tomorrow - God bless us, everyone.
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