All in the family room

Isaiah 9:2-7; Luke 2:1-20

Tonight is all about the birth of a child, God incarnated, God-with-skin-on, named Jesus. But his is not the first important birth in the history of the Israelite people. There was Isaac the son of Abraham and Sarah, first son in the line that led to King David. There was Samuel, Hannah’s son, who grew up to be the prophet who anointed David the shepherd boy. And there was John, the long-awaited son of Zechariah and Elizabeth, who grew up to be John the Witness who baptized lots of people in the Jordan River.

The song in Isaiah 9 is a reference to two important figures in Israel’s history: King Hezekiah and King Josiah. The song is not a birth narrative but celebrates the reigns of these two men. Originally written for the crowning of Hezekiah after a long war, it was later used in reference to Josiah for his faithful leadership. For Christians, it affirms the authority of Jesus, although he was, and is, a very different kind of king.

… Some churches have plays that tell the story of Jesus’ birth, with children acting out all the parts. Sometimes the adults participate in the storytelling. Here’s one pastor’s recollection of performing a Christmas play.

Timothy Adkins-Jones recalled the time he and his church produced Langston Hughes’ Black Nativity. He and his wife played Joseph and Mary, frantically looking for a place for the baby to be born. His wife was 8 months pregnant at the time and it was the source of hilarity for years.

The idea of Mary and Joseph searching for a room is based on a misunderstanding of a Hebrew word. It was the guestroom that was full, not the inn. And a careful reading tells us that Mary and Joseph had been in town for a while. Verse 6 says, “while they were there, the time came …” They had family in town, a lot of family, since King David had lots of children. They had been in town long enough to have housing arranged, to meet with the midwife, and to have the swaddling and other supplies on hand.

So imagine that Mary gave birth with the midwife and maybe an assistant on hand. There were probably one or two older female aunties and maybe even Mary’s mother in town as well. After the baby is born, he is placed in a manger full of fresh hay. The manger might have been be a hole in the floor, or a movable wooden trough. In today’s world, he might have been settled in a dresser drawer or a laundry basket. Perhaps the animals are inside the house for the night, so they are also present. This precious child, as welcome as all children are, is put to bed surrounded by his family.

And yet, he is not just any child. He is so special that the angels tell the shepherds about him, and send them to see the baby. The shepherds report on the angel encounter, and everyone praises God. They will all give witness to the birth of this child.

… Whether Mary and Joseph spent hours knocking on inn doors looking for a place for Mary to give birth, or they were in a crowded and loving family home isn’t important in the long run. What is important is that our God cares enough about us to make sure we know the true story … that God is always present with us. Sometimes we can even see God in the presence of love or grace offered through another person, a gift from God directly to us.

It happens that this year, there will be no big Christmas celebrations in Bethlehem, Israel. The city is in Palestine, within the walled-off region of the West Bank. It is dangerous to go there with the Israel-Gaza war and its echoing conflicts popping up in Palestine. But the church has not abandoned the opportunity to give witness to the birth of the baby.

You may have seen the image on social media. At the center is a baby Jesus from a traditional nativity scene. He has a keffiyeh, a Palestinian scarf, across his body, just as he might look every year in Palestine. But this year, he is surrounded by rubble, as if a bomb fell near him. The pastors of the Lutheran Church in Bethlehem want to remind us that Jesus is present all the time, everywhere. He is still and always Yeshua and Emmanuel.

… As the shepherds left town after seeing the baby, they glorified and praised God. It has long been my practice to have the sending hymn on Christmas Eve be Go tell it on the mountain because this is what we should do, too. We should be so happy that Christ has been born that we don’t hesitate to share this good news with everyone.

So I ask you … How will you be an angel or a shepherd, telling this good news to someone who needs to hear it? Amen

 

 

 

With thanks to Timothy Adkins-Jones:

https://www.workingpreacher.org/commentaries/revised-common-lectionary/christmas-eve-nativity-of-our-lord/commentary-on-luke-21-14-15-20-24