Fluffy Christmas

Do you ever get the feeling, that the way we celebrate Christmas, is just a little bit. . . fluffy? Fluffy white snow, fluffy white sheep, fluffy white Cool Whip on your cocoa. . . Not that there is anything wrong with fluffy. Except when it comes to your theology. You can’t let all of this wonderful fluffiness infect how you think about Jesus.

Let me give you an example. I was listening to Christian radio this week, and the DJ was talking about that awkward feeling you get, when your buddy gives you a gift, but you haven’t gotten one for them. And I’m nodding – I’m terrible at gift-giving, so this scenario is very familiar to me. And then the DJ says, the way to conquer that bad feeling is by saying “I deserve it! I deserve that gift!”

To which I say, fuffy theology! You didn’t deserve that gift from your buddy, it was simple grace. A tiny picture of God’s grace to you. And the response to grace is not “I deserve it,” but “Wow! Thank you!”

Against my better judgment, I did not change the station. A couple songs later, the DJ did it again! This time, she was talking about how we get down on ourselves for over-eating, or over-spending, over the holidays. And again, I am nodding. So what is the remedy for those feelings? According to the DJ, all you have to do is donate to AngelTree, a charity that gives gifts to children of prisoners.

Again, fluffy theology! AngelTree is a great charity. But I don’t think they are in the business of selling indulgences. If you have feelings of guilt, the remedy is not to go donate something or do some good works. The remedy is to confess and receive Christ’s forgiveness.

You may be familiar with a poem called “Christmas Bells” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. I believe Casting Crowns sings a version of this poem. The first verse goes something like this:

I heard the bells on Christmas Day, their old, familiar carols play
And mild and sweet, the words repeat, of peace on earth, good-will to men!

Sounds a little fluffy, doesn’t it? But as it turns out, Longfellow wrote this poem in the middle of the Civil War. Longfellow’s wife was already dead, and he had just received news that his son Charley had been shot and severely injured while fighting for the Union. The poem goes on to say:

And in despair I bowed my head, “There is no peace on earth,” I said;
For hate is strong, and mocks the song, of peace on earth, good-will to men.

Fluffy theology had nothing to offer Longfellow. In fact, it has nothing to offer any of us, especially those who are suffering during the holiday season. We need to know there is a Savior for our sins, even though we don’t deserve it. We need to know that God Himself is with us, the God of blazing stars and angel armies and dirty stables and bloody justice.

Which brings us to our Scripture for the day, Matthew 1:21-23:

“She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” – which means, “God with us.”

Angels in the Countryside

Imagine the very first Christmas concert.

You are a shepherd. You live a rough and simple life. You spend a lot of time in the fields, with your sheep.

You don’t have iTunes. It’s just “baa baa baa” all night long. But sometimes your buddy Levi plays his wooden flute.

You have never gone to an iMax theater, never watched a movie with Computer-Generated Imagery. You have never seen the fireworks at Disneyland. Nothing remotely magical or supernatural has ever happened to you. But, you do have the stars.

So one night, you and Levi are abiding in the fields, keeping watch over your flocks, looking up at the stars. And then, out of nowhere, a huge angel appears. And the glory of the lord shines all around you. It is blinding. You can’t even process it. You are terrified. You fall to the ground, peek out through your hands. And the angel says:

“Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

So it’s not the end of the world. It’s good news! A savior, the messiah! But as a baby?

Suddenly, the sky is full of angels. And they are singing. It’s loud. It’s surround-sound with sub-woofers. Your whole body is vibrating:

“Glory to God in the highest. And on earth, peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

How beautiful! How wonderful! God’s favor rests on me! An angel army, announcing peace!

That story of the shepherds is from Luke 2. It is the inspiration for the Christmas song we sang this morning, “Angels We Have Heard on High.” A traditional French carol, it was translated in 1860, by the English Bishop James Chadwick.

You may have noticed that Chadwick did not translate the chorus. “Gloria in Excelsis Deo” is not French, but Latin. It means, “Glory to God in the Highest,” the first line of the angel’s song to the shepherds.

Now, if you have studied Latin, you know that it is not the language of angels – not even close. Too many noun endings! But Latin just works better when you have melisma. Melisma is my new favorite word. The adjective is even better – “melismatic”! Melisma is when you sing a single syllable of text over several notes. Glo-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh – you get it. Or, as Ed would call it, “Southern Baptist style.”

So this Christmas season, let’s enjoy caroling about the angels. And let’s also remember the first Christmas concert: a preview, a trailer, for the awesome, eternal concert of the angels and the redeemed – in heaven.

Hijack that Sleigh!

It’s that time of year when radio stations play Christmas music, around the clock. And I’m listening… and I’m thinking…

Where is baby Jesus?? It’s like he’s been kidnapped, by Frosty the Snowman. Someone send out an Amber Alert! Child abduction in a one-horse open sleigh!

I think it’s time to even the playing field. So today, we are going to talk about Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, in church. (This is what happens when Ed goes on vacation.)

Just to be clear, Rudolph does not appear anywhere in the Bible. The Rudolph song is not inspired by God, not even close. And yet, by the common grace of God given to all mankind, we do see some parallels between the story of Rudolph. . . and Paul’s admonitions to community in Romans 12.

One. Romans 12 says, do not think of yourself more highly than you ought. Do not be proud, be willing to associate with those of low position, do not be conceited. But what did the “other reindeer” do? They looked down on Rudolph, didn’t let him join their reindeer games. We are called to be different from the “other reindeer.”

Two. Romans 12 says, in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts – one person is a leg, one person is an arm, and one person is a nose. Maybe even a red shiny one! Just like Rudolph used his nose to serve Santa, we are called to use our gifts to serve the church.

Three. Romans 12 says, Bless those who persecute you. Don’t repay anyone evil for evil. Do not take revenge. Once Rudolph became a hero, he could have said, It’s payback time! I’m leaving you losers in the fog! But he didn’t do that, and we shouldn’t do that either.

So the next 57 times you hear Rudolph the Red-nose Reindeer this year… Hijack that sleigh for the gospel! Think about Romans 12:

Don’t be proud,

use your gift,

don’t take revenge.

Let’s follow the example of the Lord Jesus, who humbled himself and came as a baby to save us, while we were still sinners and enemies of God.