“The Twelve Blessings of
Christmas: Salvation”
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord
Jesus Christ. Amen. During December this year we are having a sermon series on “The 12
Blessings of Christmas.” This morning we consider the blessing of
salvation, as today’s Gospel Reading says, “And all mankind will see God’s
salvation.” Each year St. Albans, West Virginia has a Festival of Lights in a city
park, featuring hundreds of elaborate exhibits, in a huge, drive-thru holiday
display. But, their nativity scene has shepherds, sheep, cattle, donkeys,
camels, wise men, a guiding star, palm trees—and in the middle of it all an
EMPTY manger, with no Mary, Joseph, or Baby Jesus. The city parks director
says they don’t want to offend anyone, so they leave out the “religious” aspects
of the nativity scene. It seems ludicrous to have a nativity scene without Mary, Joseph, and
Baby Jesus. But, isn’t that what Christmas too often becomes like, even
for us? We get so caught up in all the preparations and celebrations, that
our Christmas festivities include everything except the one thing that Christmas
is really all about. The very word “Christmas” is a shortened form of “Christ’s Mass.”
“Christmas” literally means a worship service, or mass, in honor of Christ,
celebrating his birth. A few years ago, the December issue of U.S. News
and World Report had an article that shows what you’re left with if you take
Christ out of Christmas, if you evict Mary, Joseph, and Baby Jesus from the
nativity scene. They called it, “The Search for the Real Jesus.” They interviewed
what are considered to be the greatest religious scholars today. These
so-called scholars have Ph.D.’s, published books, and tenured positions at
prestigious universities. But, they came to pretty much the same
conclusion as the parks director in St. Albans, West Virginia. Christmas isn’t really about celebrating the birth of God’s Son and the
Savior of the world. Because, according to these supposed scholars, Jesus
was just a great man, not divine. As U.S. News put it, “more teacher than
Savior.” So, Christmas isn’t really about eternal salvation at all,
because Jesus is actually more of a lifestyle coach, who came not to save us for
eternal life, but only to teach us how to live a more fulfilling life here on
earth. However, that diminished of view of Christ and the meaning of Christmas
ignores the stern warning John the Baptizer proclaims in today’s Gospel Reading:
“The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not
produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. . . His
winnowing fork is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the
wheat into his barn, but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.” The bad news is, we all are fatally infected with the spiritual disease
of sin. If left untreated, our sin sickness leads to eternal death and
damnation. But, in today’s Old Testament Reading, the Lord uses imagery
common in the ancient near east, of the healing and restorative power of the sun
as it spreads warmth and light, to proclaim the Good News of Messiah’s coming:
“The Sun of Righteousness will arise with healing in his wings.” In medicine there is both palliative care and curative care.
Palliative care does not aim to cure your illness, but just to make you
comfortable until the inevitable end. Curative care actively seeks to cure
your disease. The question is, what kind of spiritual healing did the Sun
of Righteousness come to bring? Tragically, the diminished view of Christ and the meaning Christmas
found in U.S. News is also taught by many misguided preachers, churches, and
denominations. Jesus came only to administer palliative care, to help make
you comfortable during this life, until the inevitable end, of which John the
Baptizers warns. But, St. Paul says in 1st Corinthians, “If only for this
life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men.” If
faith in Jesus is only palliative care, just to make you feel better, if Jesus
is just a lifestyle coach to help you have a more fulfilling earthly life, if
Jesus is just a man and Christmas is a myth, then we are just fooling ourselves,
and we are to be pitied more than all men. In today’s Epistle Reading, St. Paul explains the true significance of
Christmas: “The Gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy
Scriptures regarding his Son, who as to his human nature was a descendant of
David, and who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the
Son of God by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord.” We celebrate “Christ’s Mass” in honor of his birth because he is more
than a man, more than just a great teacher or a lifestyle coach. He is the
very Son of God, come down to earth and made man, for us and our salvation.
He is the Sun of Righteousness, with healing in his wings. Bringing you
not just palliative care, to help make this life more palatable, but curative
care, to cure for you the disease of sin and death, so that you will have
eternal life. If you were to sum the meaning of Christmas up in one word, what would
it be? Presents, decorations, celebration? The one word which best
sums up the true meaning of Christmas is the one thing we too often leave out of
our festivities: salvation. That is, as the saying goes, “The Reason for
the Season.” “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is
Christ the Lord.” “You are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people
from their sins.” “For God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, that
whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God
did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world
through him.” “And all mankind will see God’s salvation.” Amen. Return to Top | Return to Sermons | Home | Email Church Office
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