A sermon preached by Pastor Lewis Polzin on December 24, 2021 at St. Peter–Immanuel Lutheran Church in Milwaukee, WI, on our Christmas Eve readings. You may play the audio of the sermon here.
A mostly unedited transcript of the sermon follows the jump:
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.
The text this evening is from our readings this day:
“I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone.
And all went to be registered, each to his own town. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.
And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Thus far the text.
My dear friends in Christ,
Our Lord is born this night. This night, a night thousands of years in the making is just like any other night. There is nothing special about this night. Sure, it’s beautiful. Yes, we’ll be with family and friends. Of course, we’ll receive and give gifts. It seems magical, but this is a night just like every other that has come before it. But still, this night we celebrate the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. We know that He is not truly born this night but that we celebrate it. Instead, we act like the Israelites of old, who, every Passover, would recount the story of the Exodus from Egypt to traverse across the dry land in the middle of sea as if it were truly happening to them.
The children would ask their parents the reason for eating with their shoes on, the reason for the unleavened bread, the reason for the blood on the door, the reason for the lamb. And parents and grandparents would recount the story as if the Exodus were coming that night. And, of course, for them, it really was is if it were happening, as if their deliverance were truly coming from the Lord. And so it is for us, that our children gather around and ask us, why the presents, why the lights, why the long church service, why the singing, why Jesus.
For us, Christmas is a time that happens again and again. Our Lord came once, but we relive that miraculous event with hope and joy, knowing that the Son of God came down from heaven and took on human flesh. We relive the events: Mary and Joseph finding shelter in a stable, Mary giving birth, laying her newborn son in a cattle trough, casting their eyes on His beautiful face, the angels visiting the shepherds, the shepherds worshipping Jesus and telling others all about the Son of God and the son of Mary. We relive them, we try to transport us as if we were the innkeeper, the shepherds, the angels, the star, even Mary and Joseph. Yet, it is not enough.
Christmas is not enough. Christmas is the start of our salvation. In fact, it is that our salvation began in a garden, where the Messiah was promised to come of the seed of woman. From Adam and Eve’s disastrous sin, God provided a way and He orchestrated history through His people, Israel, to bring that Messiah to His people. And that Messiah would be long-awaited. They had looked for thousands of years, and finally, the Son of God took on the very flesh that he had formed from the dust. He didn’t just do this so that it would make a nice story. He took on flesh so that the tender, supple flesh of an infant could be pierced through with nails, beaten and whipped with leather cords, cut open with thorns, spit upon, hair ripped out, and finally die. Salvation truly began on Christmas so that it could be finished that Good Friday.
We celebrate Christmas like a birthday, but, really, it’s like the beginning of the end. It’s like a funeral that lasts decades. Yet, just like funerals in this life, we don’t look at this child and grieve, but we look at His birth, knowing that He came to die, with joy. We don’t grieve at funerals as those without hope, but we fix our eyes on the hope of Jesus, that our loved ones are in His arms and they will rise again from the dead. We don’t look upon the blessed, infant face of Jesus and grieve for the pain our sin will cause Him upon the cross, but we fix our eyes on Him just as He fixed His eyes upon the cross. He knew why He would come. He knew what He would suffer. He knew that he would die. And He came in joy. He came in love. He came in peace.
The love of God brought your Jesus to this world that He might, even in His baby body, take on your infirmities and carry them to the cross to redeem them. He looked upon you from heaven and had compassion over you, so that He came to bring you out of your sin and into His marvelous light. He saw your grief in this life, your sin, your sorrow, your pain, your loneliness, your depression, your anger, your persecution, and He came to buy you back from all of these and to deliver you into righteousness, joy, life, companionship, happiness, peace, and victory over the grave. By His coming in the flesh, by His death, by his resurrection, you are delivered into life eternal and life filled with joy.
This night is no different than any other, and yet it still bears forth the Son of God to you. He comes, no longer a baby, but through His Word, through the water of Baptism, through the Supper. He comes and we sing, we pray, we love, we rejoice, we give gifts in His name. This night is no different and still we celebrate for our Lord has redeemed you out of the pit and has given you the gift of Himself. And if you have Jesus, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, you have everything. This night, you have received all that was ever promised to you. That is why we celebrate; that is why we remember. Our Lord has come and He will come again in glory and judgment to bring you to Himself forever, to bring you all that He won on the cross and from the grave, to bring you peace and love, and it all begins this night, this Christmas. Turn your eyes, turn your hearts, turn your minds to the face of the infant Son and see your redemption drawing nigh, for you are delivered this night. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Now may the peace of God which passes all human understanding guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, our Lord! Amen.
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