by the Reverend Steve Clunn

Galatians 4:4-7 (NRSV):

But when the fullness of time had come, God sent the Son, born of a woman, born under the law, in order to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as children. And because you are children, God has sent the Spirit of the Son into our hearts, crying, „Abba! Father!‟ So you are no longer a servant but a child, and if a child then also an heir, through God.

The Gospel passage for today is very interesting in that the writer makes some serious errors in the wording and shows us that their understanding of their own Jewish traditions is incomplete. According to tradition and Torah, the circumcision of Jesus would have occurred eight days after his birth; and the purification of Mary, clearing the way for Joseph and she to become married, would have taken place 40 days after Jesus‟ birth.

What this passage does show us, is that the author wants us to know that "the family into which Jesus was born and raised is unquestionably devout and pious;" observing all of the traditions of the Torah and their Jewish faith. Also, it shows us that the author wants us to clearly see that Jesus birth and life are the fulfillment of the Jewish prophetic tradition.

Luke 2:22-40 (NRSV):

When the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (as it is written in the law of the Lord, „Every firstborn male shall be designated as holy to the Lord‟), and they offered a sacrifice according to what is stated in the law of the Lord, „a pair of turtle-doves or two young pigeons.‟

Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; this man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit rested on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord‟s Messiah. Guided by the Spirit, Simeon came into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him what was customary under the law, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying,

„Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace, according to your word;

for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of

all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people

Israel.‟

And the child‟s father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, „This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed—and a sword will pierce your own soul too.‟

There was also a prophet, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, having lived with her husband for seven years after her marriage, then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshipped there with fasting and prayer night and day. At that moment she came, and began to praise God and to speak about the child to all who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem.

Sermon:

So how are you doing now that another Christmas day has come and gone? Are you still

in the fog of what to do next?

Were you one of the few who decided to single handedly jump start the economy by over

spending, again; or were you part of the majority who cut back this year on the

extravagance of gift giving in order to pay down debt and live a more balanced,

well at least financially balanced, life?

And how many of you are finding yourselves tempted to whip out the plastic and extend

your holiday buying season because of all of the end of the year discounts being

offered?

Maybe you‟ve already moved on to the next big thing; like prepping for New Year‟s

celebrations or wondering if the stars will align properly this afternoon, so that the

Jets might get in to the playoffs.

Maybe the more pertinent questions to ask ourselves are simply: "What does any of this

have to do with Jesus‟ birth? Where is the baby now that Christmas is over? Was

he ever really there for any of us anyway?"

Let‟s take just a moment to do little exercise together… Think about who Jesus is for

you and what qualities of life he represents. Now answer this one… where did

you find Jesus this Christmas holiday?

(After no one spoke) …This was meant to be a dialogue between us. I‟ll share one first,

then I hope you‟ll share an answer too.

I saw the Christ child in the spirit of generosity and care that you, as a congregation,

showed towards the families that we were helping out for the Holidays.

When Church was canceled because of the loss of heat, I wasn‟t able to put out gift tags

in time for some of the family members. Liz suggested that I send out an email

letting everyone know of the situation.

I was completely prepared to dip into the "pastor‟s emergency fund" to help these

families; but you all came through with such generosity that I didn‟t need to do

that. You more than came through with love and care for others.

Carolyn confided that because this was her first Christmas without Dan, who died a

couple of months back, she decided to fill her home on Christmas Eve with

people. She said, "It was in the faces of family and friends that I saw Jesus this

Christmas and found comfort."

Darlene mentioned that she found Jesus in the act of a stranger who by their generosity,

made she and Richard feel valued and cared for.

I mentioned the act of a nephew who gave his uncle, just home from Iraq, his favorite

Giants pendent along with the words, "because you‟re the most important person

in my life right now."

Rev. Long mentioned the courageous acts of those who are working for peace in this war

torn world of ours… "that‟s where I‟ve seen Jesus."

Others mentioned stories of the surprising generosity of others through some of the toy

give-away programs that are out there this year… especially in light of how tough the economy is right now.

Still others mentioned family being together and others extending their traditional

families to include others. Someone mentioned how much we saw that during the

ice storm and power outages… people opening their homes to each other.

Finally, I mentioned how Martin, Linda gave up a holiday when a pipe in the church

broke on Friday and we had a flood. James, who happened to be here, also help

out. Together they worked for 9 hours to clean-up and tried to get the church

ready for worship this morning.

It‟s in our experiences of generosity, giving, peacemaking, compassion, care and love for

others that we truly experience Christ being born anew into our world.

At the Christmas Dawn Service I mentioned a conversation that my daughter Julia and I

had about four years ago. It was just before Christmas and she said t me, "Daddy,

I wish we could rent a little kid for Christmas. They always have the best attitude

and show so much excitement and enthusiasm over Christmas."

Pardon the pun, but I suddenly had an epiphany. She was telling me that as she was

growing up, Christmas was changing for her and that she felt as if she was

loosing something precious and special.

Second, we too were losing something precious and special, for as our youngest, she

was the one we didn‟t need to rent, who used to remind the rest of us of how

wide-eyed and full of possibilities this celebration of Jesus‟ birth could be.

Somehow the cynicism of life, commercialism and all the trappings of rituals, traditions

and holidays just seems to eat away at; dare I say it? …the inner child in all of us.

But still, there is something about all of those lights we put up in the darkest days of our

winter. Still, there is something about the spirit of giving that seems to abound

during the time of year when the earth in our region is at its most unproductive.

Still, there is something about a people who sing of the warmth of comfort, joy

and peace, when we know that our coldest days are yet to come.

Still, there is something about faith, when we put it solely in the hands of an infant, full

of possibilities and unknowns; a faith that can‟t help but look at the world and

humanity with hope, compassion and love… even in the midst of so much

apparent greed, avarice and violence.

Where has the Christ child gone? Did he and all he represents simply disappear when the

last piece of wrapping paper hit the trash or the last piece of Ham was put-up after

the meal ended on Christmas day?

Was he ever there for us, or did we ever really unpack him with all of the other

decorations this year? In other words, were we ever hear for him?

My hunch is yes we were, he was, and he still is.

So how can we find the child, now that Christmas is over?

Remember Paul‟s words: "God has sent the Spirit of Jesus into our hearts… So you are

no longer a servant but a child, and if a child then also an heir, through God."

Like a child, let us reclaim the Christmas Spirit… the Spirit of hope that allows us; no

draws us in to being involved in acts of extravagant generosity, compassion,

kindness, forgiveness, forbearance, joyfulness, peacefulness and love.

Stop looking around to see what everybody has done with the Christ child. Look within

and see what you are doing with the babe now! Amen.

Sermon: Seeing the Light

Géza Vermes, "In Christian tradition the Magi (Greek: μάγοι, magoi), Three