Church of theChristmas Vigil/Day – 24th/25th December 2024
Truly this is a Holy Night. In the lean and simple language of the evangelist Luke, we have heard retold the ageless Christmas story. The Angel’s Christmas greeting has once again been heard by all of God’s people, “Do not be afraid. I bring you news of great joy, to be shared by everyone. The Saviour has been born.” In the humblest of settings, to the humblest of parents, into a despised and beaten nation, God took on human flesh.
And we tonight who hear that story retold and rest in the peace of that greeting, we respond in the only way we can – with faith, faith in the fact that it is true, that the God in whom we believe is indeed “Immanuel.” He is “God with us.”
The birth of Christ has re-created the whole world. It has made of the world a temple. The world is now the place where God has chosen to dwell. Because of the birth of Christ, the world is not only good and beautiful, it is holy. It is a sacred place, and every human being who moves in it moves in a sacred atmosphere. We are a holy people, we live in a sacred world, and truly the only evil in all of creation is that we should ever be unwilling to recognise and honour that holiness.
So once again tonight, in the retelling of that story, we have been told what we are and why we should celebrate as we do. In the birth of Jesus Christ, we have been given the clearest possible promise that human life and God’s creative power have once and for all been bound together. That means that our future, the direction that our growth must take, is in God’s own hands.
We do not need to wonder where our life is taking us. The peace, the joy, the satisfaction of the prophet Isaiah’s vision truly lie ahead for each one of us.
Whatever burdens we may bear now, whatever we may have suffered in the past, whatever we may yet have to endure, it is really not important. Whatever our burdens may be, they are uncomfortable, they are inconvenient, but that is all they are. They cannot last, they cannot detract from the power of the promise nor the certainty of its fulfilment.
Certainly, the Angel’s greeting to the Shepherds is our own profession of faith. We have nothing to fear. There is indeed news of great joy to be shared by everyone.
Fr Andrew
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