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I was driving home
from a Christmas celebration around midnight on December 25th listening to one
of those "Christmas music all the time" stations. At 11:58pm they played a Christmas song. At 12:01 am, they played an oldies song. They immediately moved past Christmas at the
stroke of midnight. For most of the
world, Christmas ends at midnight on December 25th.
But
this is not true for the church! The church
season of Christmas lasts for 12 whole days.
Today is the 8th day of Christmas, which is 8 maids a milking for
anybody who needs to run out an exchange a gift quick. So while today marks the beginning of a new
year, we are still in the season of Christmas.
In keeping with the Christmas season, the gospel reading today comes
from the second chapter of Luke: A reading from the book of Luke.
8 There were shepherds living
out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to
them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.
10 But the angel said to them,
“Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great
joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a
Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby
wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
13 Suddenly a great company of
the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
15 When the angels had left
them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to
Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us
about.”
16 So they hurried off and
found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 20 The shepherds returned,
glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen,
which were just as they had been told.
The
gospel of the Lord.
Christmas is a
wonderful time to have a wedding. The
Christmas season is a time of a long wait fulfilled, a time of seeing God's
presence, and a time of being surrounded by family and friends.
The
Christmas season and a wedding are both preceded by a time of preparation. The entire 4 week long season of Advent is
dedicated to preparing for Christmas.
It's a time of preparations like putting up decorations, digging out
candles for an Advent wreath, and making plans to see family. But more important are the internal
preparations we do. We prepare our hearts
to make room for the Christ child. We
practice forgiveness and radical hospitality for a baby who is not welcomed elsewhere
in society. We find quiet time to listen
and see God's presence around us.
Bob
& Ally have spent much more than 4 weeks in preparations for this
wedding. Their preparation included
things like finding this venue, making lists, tasting cakes, making lists, assigning
tasks, making new lists, and preparing for family and friends. Oh, also making lists. (Did I mention that Ally likes to make
lists?)
But in addition to
all of this visible preparation, Bob & Ally have done the important
internal work of preparing their hearts and their relationship for the start of
marriage. They have spent intentional
time building their relationship and strengthening the foundation upon which
this party rests. They are making space
in their lives for a new marriage, just as Christmas preparations help us make space
for the baby Jesus in our busy lives. Bob
& Ally have been doing this inner work knowing that a wedding is just the
start of something that lasts forever- just as we begin Christmas knowing that
welcoming Jesus into the world lasts for more than just a day- or even 12 days.
Christmas
is a good time for a wedding because the story of a young couple journeying
towards marriage is the story of the season.
And much like Ally & Bob, Mary & Joseph are not alone through
their journey. An angel goes out to the
shepherds saying "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great
joy for all the people.” The angel
invites the shepherds to come and see the beginning of a new life. The angels' message brought the shepherds to
the manger, to meet the baby and accompany the family in their new life as a
family. Sort of like how you might
receive a wedding invitation: "Do not be afraid! I bring you good news of great joy for all
people! Bob and Ally are getting
married!" The wedding invitation
brought all of you here to witness the birth of a new life together as husband
and wife. Although I'll leave it up to
Bob and Ally to decide which of you are stinky shepherds and which are heavenly
angels...
Either
way, Christmas reminds us that we are not alone in our journeys. God was present with Mary and Joseph at what
was surely a confusing and complicated stage of life. God's presence was seen through the angels,
the shepherds, through the promised messiah born as the new baby.
And God is present with us, today, too. Present through the faces of loved ones
gathered here to celebrate with you, present through the promises you make to
one another.
The biggest reason
I think Christmas is a good time for a wedding is also the biggest difference
between Christmas and a wedding. When
Jesus was born, the world received the long awaited Messiah- the savior of the
world, whom God had been promising to Israel for hundreds of years. God became human and walked on earth with us,
experiencing our suffering and joy, and offering us forgiveness of sins and
eternal salvation.
The arrival of a
messiah is quite different than the new beginning of a marriage. Jesus is God incarnate- Jesus is
perfect. But anyone who has been married
for more than an hour can tell you that no spouse is perfect. Ally, Bob, neither of you receives a perfect
companion today. But fortunately you
don't need each other to be perfect.
Jesus came as a human to offer perfection, so you don't need to look for it in each
other.
While you don't
get perfection in your spouse today, you do receive a companion to be with you
through life's ups and downs. Someone to
marvel with you at life's mysteries, to mourn life's unexpected tragedies, and to
rejoice with you at life's celebrations.
And the angels would tell you that this, indeed, is good news of great
joy.
So, Christmas is
like a wedding- a time of preparation, a time surrounded by family and friends,
and a time to remember that salvation comes through the Christ child, not each
other. Christmas, like a wedding, is a time of
celebration, of moving through life together- marking the big steps and making
space for the little details.
Next we will sing
together a song Bob & Ally have chosen, called Borning Cry. It is a beautiful reminder that we go through
life's transitions together- with friends and family beside us and God within
us at every moment. Our song together as
a community marks the next steps of a journey that began with a borning cry and
continues today with your marriage vows.
Amen.
