Christmas
Preaching
Lectionary Preaching Workbook
Series III
Note: A detailed study, with sermon suggestions, is available for the first Christmas service in Cycle A of the Lectionary Preaching Workbook. The Roman Ordo prescribes three Christmas masses - one at midnight, one at dawn, and one during the day. The Episcopal Book ofCommon Prayer calls its lections Christmas Day I, Christmas Day II, and Christmas Day III. The Lutheran LBW uses the same pattern for Christmas, designating the three sets of readings with Arabic numerals "1," "2," and "3." However, the LBW alters the sequence by placing the readings for the dawn service as number "3." It contains this rubric:
Since many congregations have multiple services to celebrate Christmas and since scheduling varies widely, these propers (1, 2, 3) should be employed for the Christmas services (eve and day) as seems appropriate. Traditionally, the first set was associated with the midnight service, the third set with a service at dawn, and the second set with a service later in the morning.
The readings for the second service (or the Roman Catholic "Mass at Dawn," Christmas Day II [E], A, B, C [LBW] were selected for this study, despite the use of the same Gospel appointed for the first service of Christmas (Luke 1:1-20). Sermon suggestions will be for verses 15-20 of Luke 1.
Christmas, in the minds of numerous Christians, is the most important festival of the year. That it is the loveliest, no one can deny, but Easter is the pivotal event that the church celebrates in the life of Jesus Christ. Easter and the Great Fifty Days had been observed almost three centuries, before Christmas, one of three biblical and liturgical foci, was separated from Epiphany. Set on December 25, Christmas began a twelve-day celebration signalling the end of Advent, as well as the approach of Epiphany. In time, Christmas became the center of the Advent-Christmas-Epiphany cycle of the church year.
Christmas is a beginning, the culmination of God's promise to send a Savior into the world. It is not a baby who comes to believers in the Christmas worship; rather, it is the risen Lord, the Promised One of God, who was born to die - and to rise from the grave on the third day. Recognition of this guarantees that sentimental themes (which often pass for Christmas sermons) will be avoided, and that the pure and true Gospel of the crucified and resurrected Lord will be proclaimed in the context of his second coming, the Parousia. As a climax to Advent, the church may very well pray: "Come, Lord Jesus! Come quickly!"
The Prayer of the Day (LBW)
The classic collect for Christmas Day has been recast in these words:
Almighty God, you have made yourself known in your Son, Jesus, redeemer of the world. We pray that his birth as a human child will set us free from the old slavery of our sin; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Freedom from sin and its condemnation comes with the cross and resurrection, not with the birth of the Savior. His birth brings the beginning of our salvation, the incarnation of our God as he takes on human flesh in the person of his Son, Jesus Christ.
The Psalm of the Day
Psalms 96, 97, and 98 (or parts of these psalms) were selected for Christmas services in Cycles A, B, and C, respectively. Psalm 97 will be considered here; Psalm 96 was treated in the Cycle A Workbook; Psalm 98 will be included in the Cycle C Workbook.
Psalm 97: 1, 6, 11-12 (R); 97, or 97:1-4, 11-12 (E); 97 (L) - This psalm is employed for at least two reasons: 1.) It is an "enthronement" psalm, which describes what is happening while God reigns in heaven; and 2.) it seems to fit the spirit of the Christmas experience in the birth of Christ - "Light has sprung up for the righteous, and joyful gladness for those who are true-hearted." The concluding verse picks up the refrain of the first verse ("The Lord is king; let the earth rejoice.") and strikes the same note: "Rejoice in the Lord, you righteous, and give thanks to his holy name."
The Psalm Prayer (LBW)
God our King, you clothe the sky with light and the depths ofthe ocean with darkness. Among the peoples you work wonders, and rain terror upon your enemies. Do not try your servants by fire, but bring us rejoicing to the shelter of your home, where with your Son and the Holy Spirit you live and reign, now and forever.
The readings:
Isaiah 62:10-12 (L); 62:11-12 (R); 62:6-7, 10-12 (E, C)
The liturgical use of this reading takes the celebration of one of the Hebrew festivals and orients it toward the Christmas feast. And, indeed, the heart of the passage fits Christmas very well.
Behold, the Lord has proclaimed to the end of the earth: Say to the daughter of Zion, "Behold, your salvation comes; behold, his reward is with him, and his recompense before him."
Titus 3:4-7
This passage highlights the wondrous grace of God in the perspective of the Christmas event. It is all about the goodness and loving-kindness of the God who saved us in Jesus Christ. What we have here is a powerful restatement of the doctrine of justification by God's grace alone, which gets at the very heart of the activity of God to save the world from sin and death. "The washing of regeneration" and the renewal in the Holy Spirit bring together the Christmas and the Easter experiences of the church in word, as well as in the Sacrament of the Table.
Luke 2:1-20 (L); 2:(1-14) 15-20 (E); 2:15-20 (R); 2:8-20 (C)
The last section (verses 15-20) of the birth narrative in Luke 2 could have been used as a pilgrimage song for the early Christians who celebrated Christmas in Jerusalem and Bethlehem. Etheria, the Spanish nun who visited Jerusalem late in the fourth century, reported that a three-stage commemoration of Christ's birth occurred in Jerusalem and Bethlehem. The pilgrims walked from Jerusalem to Bethlehem and celebrated the first Christ Mass (around midnight) at the Grotto of the Nativity, the traditional birthplace of Christ. At its conclusion, they returned to Jerusalem and, at the traditional site of the resurrection, participated in the Dawn Mass. Later in the day they gathered once more for the Christmas Day Mass. It would have been appropriate to begin their evening worship with the reading of Luke 2:15-20, or simply verse 15b, "Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us." The text also speaks of our own Christmas "pilgrimage" and of our response to this mysterious and miraculous birth. Like the shepherds, we should be "glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, as it had been told them [and us]." (See also the comments on this passage in the Lectionary Preach-ing Workbook, Cycle A.)
A Sermon on the Gospel, Luke 2:15-20 (R, E) - "Bethlehem by Mercedes Benz."
It struck me as rather paradoxical, when I first visited Jerusalem, that most modern-day pilgrims travelled by tour bus or taxi - Mercedes Benz taxi cabs - from Jerusalem to Bethlehem. True pilgrims should walk that short distance from the city to the small town where Jesus was born, especially at Christmas. But we go to church - by "Mercedes Benz" - to worship the Lord at his birth. We go in automobiles that whisk us in comfort, even luxury, from our homes to our churches. There's an appropriate symbol here (and I recognize that many of us would have to walk all afternoon, or evening, to get to the church by midnight) showing the difference between our situation and that of the shepherds who "went to see this thing that has happened." But there's yet another significant difference: Christmas is "old hat" to us, because we know about the birth of Christ. We know who he is, and this ought to inform our worship despite the paradox created at Christmas. Perhaps we are more like the three Wise Men who went to Bethlehem bearing gifts than like the shepherds. But we can catch the spirit of wonder and joy they all shared. That's reason enough to go to Bethlehem.
1. Good news of the birth of the Savior sends us all to Bethlehem to "see this thing that has happened." God has done something that is spectacular, and our knowing about it is not enough; we must go and "see" for ourselves. (We see with our "ears" and our imaginations as the Word is read and preached and the Christ Mass is celebrated.)
2. It is not only our mode of transportation that is different; our "Mercedes Benz" mentality may impede and interfere with our worship of the Lord at his birth. With the Wise Men, we come to Christ bearing gifts for the Christmas offering.
3. We may not walk to Bethlehem's manger as the shepherds did, but we can give the new-born Savior the best gift we have to offer - ourselves.
4. That just might be the gift that pleases Christ the most!
A Sermon on the First Lesson, Isaiah 62:6, 7, 10-12 (E, C); 62:10-12 (L); 62:11-12 (R) -"An Astounding Announcement."
1. "Behold, your salvation comes" - this is God's Christmas proclamation to the world.
2. Christ, through his loving sacrifice, changes us from sinners into holy people who belong to God - forever. Christians are the redeemed of the Lord.
3. Christians always have hope and God will never forsake them. He is with us in every situation we encounter in life - even death.
4. Raise the ensign of the Lord - the cross - and put it over the cradle!
A Sermon on the Second Lesson, Titus 3:4-7 - "Saved by the Grace of God."
Today's newspaper carried the story of the Russian tour ship, the Maxim Ghorky, that struck an iceberg between Greenland and Norway. The ship was circling the Singehar Islands at night, while 950 tourists from West Germany were enjoying the festivities, when the crash occurred. Miraculously, as the ship began to sink, there was no panic. The people got into the lifeboats in an orderly manner and they were lowered into the icy sea without incident. A rescue ship arrived inside of three hours and all of the people - every one of them - were saved from a watery grave. Helicopters played an important part in the rescue operation. It was a miracle of grace, because there was nothing - outside of getting into the life-boats - that these people could do to save themselves. The efforts of others (the crew of the ship and the people who participated in the rescue) actually saved them.
1. The appearance of the Savior tells the world that God is doing something to save people from sin and death. The birth of Jesus, his incarnation, was the most radical action that God could have taken.
2. God did this out of the goodness of his heart - by pure grace - because there was no way that we could save ourselves. Without the coming of the Christ, we would have been doomed forever, but God sent Jesus to save us.
3. Therefore, we are heirs of the kingdom that he has brought into the world. Eternal life is ours!
Since many congregations have multiple services to celebrate Christmas and since scheduling varies widely, these propers (1, 2, 3) should be employed for the Christmas services (eve and day) as seems appropriate. Traditionally, the first set was associated with the midnight service, the third set with a service at dawn, and the second set with a service later in the morning.
The readings for the second service (or the Roman Catholic "Mass at Dawn," Christmas Day II [E], A, B, C [LBW] were selected for this study, despite the use of the same Gospel appointed for the first service of Christmas (Luke 1:1-20). Sermon suggestions will be for verses 15-20 of Luke 1.
Christmas, in the minds of numerous Christians, is the most important festival of the year. That it is the loveliest, no one can deny, but Easter is the pivotal event that the church celebrates in the life of Jesus Christ. Easter and the Great Fifty Days had been observed almost three centuries, before Christmas, one of three biblical and liturgical foci, was separated from Epiphany. Set on December 25, Christmas began a twelve-day celebration signalling the end of Advent, as well as the approach of Epiphany. In time, Christmas became the center of the Advent-Christmas-Epiphany cycle of the church year.
Christmas is a beginning, the culmination of God's promise to send a Savior into the world. It is not a baby who comes to believers in the Christmas worship; rather, it is the risen Lord, the Promised One of God, who was born to die - and to rise from the grave on the third day. Recognition of this guarantees that sentimental themes (which often pass for Christmas sermons) will be avoided, and that the pure and true Gospel of the crucified and resurrected Lord will be proclaimed in the context of his second coming, the Parousia. As a climax to Advent, the church may very well pray: "Come, Lord Jesus! Come quickly!"
The Prayer of the Day (LBW)
The classic collect for Christmas Day has been recast in these words:
Almighty God, you have made yourself known in your Son, Jesus, redeemer of the world. We pray that his birth as a human child will set us free from the old slavery of our sin; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Freedom from sin and its condemnation comes with the cross and resurrection, not with the birth of the Savior. His birth brings the beginning of our salvation, the incarnation of our God as he takes on human flesh in the person of his Son, Jesus Christ.
The Psalm of the Day
Psalms 96, 97, and 98 (or parts of these psalms) were selected for Christmas services in Cycles A, B, and C, respectively. Psalm 97 will be considered here; Psalm 96 was treated in the Cycle A Workbook; Psalm 98 will be included in the Cycle C Workbook.
Psalm 97: 1, 6, 11-12 (R); 97, or 97:1-4, 11-12 (E); 97 (L) - This psalm is employed for at least two reasons: 1.) It is an "enthronement" psalm, which describes what is happening while God reigns in heaven; and 2.) it seems to fit the spirit of the Christmas experience in the birth of Christ - "Light has sprung up for the righteous, and joyful gladness for those who are true-hearted." The concluding verse picks up the refrain of the first verse ("The Lord is king; let the earth rejoice.") and strikes the same note: "Rejoice in the Lord, you righteous, and give thanks to his holy name."
The Psalm Prayer (LBW)
God our King, you clothe the sky with light and the depths ofthe ocean with darkness. Among the peoples you work wonders, and rain terror upon your enemies. Do not try your servants by fire, but bring us rejoicing to the shelter of your home, where with your Son and the Holy Spirit you live and reign, now and forever.
The readings:
Isaiah 62:10-12 (L); 62:11-12 (R); 62:6-7, 10-12 (E, C)
The liturgical use of this reading takes the celebration of one of the Hebrew festivals and orients it toward the Christmas feast. And, indeed, the heart of the passage fits Christmas very well.
Behold, the Lord has proclaimed to the end of the earth: Say to the daughter of Zion, "Behold, your salvation comes; behold, his reward is with him, and his recompense before him."
Titus 3:4-7
This passage highlights the wondrous grace of God in the perspective of the Christmas event. It is all about the goodness and loving-kindness of the God who saved us in Jesus Christ. What we have here is a powerful restatement of the doctrine of justification by God's grace alone, which gets at the very heart of the activity of God to save the world from sin and death. "The washing of regeneration" and the renewal in the Holy Spirit bring together the Christmas and the Easter experiences of the church in word, as well as in the Sacrament of the Table.
Luke 2:1-20 (L); 2:(1-14) 15-20 (E); 2:15-20 (R); 2:8-20 (C)
The last section (verses 15-20) of the birth narrative in Luke 2 could have been used as a pilgrimage song for the early Christians who celebrated Christmas in Jerusalem and Bethlehem. Etheria, the Spanish nun who visited Jerusalem late in the fourth century, reported that a three-stage commemoration of Christ's birth occurred in Jerusalem and Bethlehem. The pilgrims walked from Jerusalem to Bethlehem and celebrated the first Christ Mass (around midnight) at the Grotto of the Nativity, the traditional birthplace of Christ. At its conclusion, they returned to Jerusalem and, at the traditional site of the resurrection, participated in the Dawn Mass. Later in the day they gathered once more for the Christmas Day Mass. It would have been appropriate to begin their evening worship with the reading of Luke 2:15-20, or simply verse 15b, "Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us." The text also speaks of our own Christmas "pilgrimage" and of our response to this mysterious and miraculous birth. Like the shepherds, we should be "glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, as it had been told them [and us]." (See also the comments on this passage in the Lectionary Preach-ing Workbook, Cycle A.)
A Sermon on the Gospel, Luke 2:15-20 (R, E) - "Bethlehem by Mercedes Benz."
It struck me as rather paradoxical, when I first visited Jerusalem, that most modern-day pilgrims travelled by tour bus or taxi - Mercedes Benz taxi cabs - from Jerusalem to Bethlehem. True pilgrims should walk that short distance from the city to the small town where Jesus was born, especially at Christmas. But we go to church - by "Mercedes Benz" - to worship the Lord at his birth. We go in automobiles that whisk us in comfort, even luxury, from our homes to our churches. There's an appropriate symbol here (and I recognize that many of us would have to walk all afternoon, or evening, to get to the church by midnight) showing the difference between our situation and that of the shepherds who "went to see this thing that has happened." But there's yet another significant difference: Christmas is "old hat" to us, because we know about the birth of Christ. We know who he is, and this ought to inform our worship despite the paradox created at Christmas. Perhaps we are more like the three Wise Men who went to Bethlehem bearing gifts than like the shepherds. But we can catch the spirit of wonder and joy they all shared. That's reason enough to go to Bethlehem.
1. Good news of the birth of the Savior sends us all to Bethlehem to "see this thing that has happened." God has done something that is spectacular, and our knowing about it is not enough; we must go and "see" for ourselves. (We see with our "ears" and our imaginations as the Word is read and preached and the Christ Mass is celebrated.)
2. It is not only our mode of transportation that is different; our "Mercedes Benz" mentality may impede and interfere with our worship of the Lord at his birth. With the Wise Men, we come to Christ bearing gifts for the Christmas offering.
3. We may not walk to Bethlehem's manger as the shepherds did, but we can give the new-born Savior the best gift we have to offer - ourselves.
4. That just might be the gift that pleases Christ the most!
A Sermon on the First Lesson, Isaiah 62:6, 7, 10-12 (E, C); 62:10-12 (L); 62:11-12 (R) -"An Astounding Announcement."
1. "Behold, your salvation comes" - this is God's Christmas proclamation to the world.
2. Christ, through his loving sacrifice, changes us from sinners into holy people who belong to God - forever. Christians are the redeemed of the Lord.
3. Christians always have hope and God will never forsake them. He is with us in every situation we encounter in life - even death.
4. Raise the ensign of the Lord - the cross - and put it over the cradle!
A Sermon on the Second Lesson, Titus 3:4-7 - "Saved by the Grace of God."
Today's newspaper carried the story of the Russian tour ship, the Maxim Ghorky, that struck an iceberg between Greenland and Norway. The ship was circling the Singehar Islands at night, while 950 tourists from West Germany were enjoying the festivities, when the crash occurred. Miraculously, as the ship began to sink, there was no panic. The people got into the lifeboats in an orderly manner and they were lowered into the icy sea without incident. A rescue ship arrived inside of three hours and all of the people - every one of them - were saved from a watery grave. Helicopters played an important part in the rescue operation. It was a miracle of grace, because there was nothing - outside of getting into the life-boats - that these people could do to save themselves. The efforts of others (the crew of the ship and the people who participated in the rescue) actually saved them.
1. The appearance of the Savior tells the world that God is doing something to save people from sin and death. The birth of Jesus, his incarnation, was the most radical action that God could have taken.
2. God did this out of the goodness of his heart - by pure grace - because there was no way that we could save ourselves. Without the coming of the Christ, we would have been doomed forever, but God sent Jesus to save us.
3. Therefore, we are heirs of the kingdom that he has brought into the world. Eternal life is ours!
