Christmas Day Year B [John 1:1-14] (25-Dec-2014)

This sermon was preached at St Mark's Lutheran Church, Mt Barker, 9am.

Grace, mercy and peace be to you from God our Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Our sermon text today was inspired by the Holy Spirit by the apostle St John. And we read from his gospel where it says:

The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Prayer: Come Lord Jesus, the Word become flesh, and dwell among us with your Holy Spirit. Fill us this morning with your grace and truth. Amen.

In the bible, we have the life of Jesus told by four different people: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. If we want to know about Christmas, then Mark isn’t the person to go to. He doesn’t say anything about Christmas at all, but starts his gospel with Jesus’ baptism.

The person who writes the most about Christmas is St Luke. So much of what we read on Christmas Eve we find in the gospel of Luke. Luke tells us about the angel Gabriel who goes to visit the father of John the Baptist, Zechariah, while he is serving as a priest in the temple, to tell him that his wife Elizabeth will bear a son in her old age. Then St Luke tells us about the same angel Gabriel going to visit Mary to tell her that she will also become pregnant through the Holy Spirit. We read about Mary goes and visits the old lady Elizabeth, and how Elizabeth’s unborn baby, John, leaps for joy in his mother’s womb. We also in Luke about how everyone at the time of Jesus’ birth was moving around because the emperor had called a census, and Joseph and Mary had to go to Bethlehem, which was Joseph’s home-town, where Mary gave birth to Jesus in a stable, since there was no room in the inn. We also read from the Gospel of Luke, how the angels went and visited the shepherds and told them about the birth of Jesus. So if we want to learn the most about the history of Christmas, we need to go to the gospel of Luke.

But also Matthew has a few things to say about Christmas too. First of all, Matthew tells the history of Jesus’ family tree all the way back to Abraham. Then he tells us about the birth of Jesus, but from Joseph’s perspective. We read from Matthew how the angel went to Joseph in a dream, encouraging him to take Mary has his wife, even though it was obvious that she was carrying someone else’s child—in this case, it was actually God’s own son! Then we also read in the gospel of Matthew how these strange wise men came from the east, following a star which shone over the place where Jesus was born, bringing wonderful treasures of gold, frankincense and myrrh. Matthew also tells us how the family had to flee to the country of Egypt to hide from King Herod who was trying to kill Jesus, and we also read how King Herod killed all the baby boys in Bethlehem who were 2 years old or younger, because he was so intimidated by the news of Jesus’ birth.

So here we learn what we know about the history of Christmas from the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. But today, as we come here together on Christmas Day, it is our custom—and it has been a custom in the church for well over a thousand years—not to read from either of these two gospels, but to read from the Gospel of John. John doesn’t tell us the history of Christmas—what happened here, what happened there—but he tells us who this baby is. Who is this Jesus, whose birth have we come to celebrate? Was he just a nice guy, that walked around and taught people? Was he just a good teacher? Sure—he was a good teacher—but this wasn’t simply because he had an eloquent way of speaking, and entertained people, and gave the people what they wanted. He was the living son of God. In fact, St John in his gospel calls Jesus the word of God.

You see, there are two things we need to believe at Christmas time. The first thing is: we want to know who Jesus’ mother is. Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary—Mary was a young woman, and she had had no sexual relations. And yet, Jesus is born from her. Jesus takes on a human body from her body.

But the second thing we need to know at Christmas is this: who is Jesus’ father? Is it Joseph? No—Joseph was engaged to Mary, and they were soon to be married. But this was a special miracle of God that Joseph was able to look after Mary—Mary couldn’t have just lived as a single mother. She needed a husband to look after her and protect her.

So who is Jesus’ father? Jesus is the son of God the Father. God the Father is the father of Jesus. And Jesus is conceived by the Holy Spirit.

So this is what we read about in the Gospel of John this morning.

Martin Luther summarises this very well in the Small Catechism, where he says: I believe that Jesus Christ, true God, begotten of the Father from eternity, and also true man, born of the Virgin Mary, is my Lord. And this gives us such tremendous help as we navigate our way through our Gospel reading today.

Jesus is true God. St John calls Jesus the Word of God, he also calls him God, and he calls him the true light which enlightens everyone. When we say the Nicene Creed in a few minutes, we will say that Jesus is God of God, Light of Light, true God of true God. Our Gospel reading from John today is where these words come from.

So let’s think about how John calls Jesus the Word of God. He writes: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.

What John is saying here is that before anything in the whole universe actually existed, God was there. But also, God was a not a silent person—he spoke, he had a voice. We hear this voice for the first time in the bible when we read: And God said: Let there be light. And there was light. Here we see just what power God’s word actually has. All God needs to do is to say something and immediately it happens. Just to think, that even here in the church, we are reading and preaching that same word of God, that has the power to even create light.

But here’s the wonderful mystery that John talks about. God always spoke, even before he created the world. He was not a silent God, and then later created for himself a voice. God’s voice, his word, is a part of who he is. If I want to get to know someone, I have to talk to them. This is the only way I can know what’s really on someone’s mind. And so, God himself, right from the very beginning, has a mind, he speaks, and he is the one who has created our minds and has created our voice and our words, since his word and his voice and his mind came first.

But also, God has existed from eternity. God is without beginning and without end. This is completely different from us. We are like a piece of music—we have beginning and a middle and an end. However, God is eternal. He has no beginning, and no end. We only experience the “middle” of God. Some people try to cram God into their human understanding, thinking that he must have begun at some time, and he must die at some time as well. Some people think that God is already dead, and that they are now in charge. How pathetic! How pitiful! We even haven’t begun to think about who God really is.

But let’s go back to John. John tells us that God and his mind, his voice, his words have always existed together with him. So he says: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. Can you hear this? God’s word was always there. And God’s word was always with God. And in fact, this word of God in actual fact is God. Here we see the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. The Father is God, the Son is the Word, and the Holy Spirit is also here in this text as the one tells us about this wonderful mystery.

So long before the Virgin Mary came along, Jesus always existed. He didn’t exist for the first time at Christmas—he is true God, as Luther writes, begotten of the Father from eternity. So what does it mean, “begotten of the Father from eternity?” Begotten isn’t a word that we tend to use anymore. But in older times, “to bear a child” and “to give birth to a child” is what we normally say about a woman. But to beget a child is what a father does. So to say that Jesus was begotten by the Father, is simply to say that he was fathered by the Father.

But here’s the amazing thing—John writes: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. Just as God the Father has always had his mind and his voice and his word—this word that God speaks is such a powerful word, that we speak of him as a separate person. The word of God is not a separate god, as if we believe in more than one God, but is equal to God. And what this means, is that Jesus, God’s Son, has always existed, and he is equal to God the Father. God the Father didn’t bring Jesus into existence later—but just as God has always spoken and always thought, he has always had a son, so that his Son is also true God. And this Son is the person we believe has entered into the word through Jesus.

Let’s read what John says about him. He says: He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

So here we learn about the son of God, as he has existed from eternity. I believe that Jesus Christ, true God, begotten of the Father from eternity, and also true man, born of the Virgin Mary, is my Lord.

But now, what is going on at Christmas? We read in John’s Gospel: And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Here we read that the eternal word of God actually did something that had never happened before. He was always a spiritual, eternal being. But now, he adds something to himself. He actually becomes a true human being. He takes on human flesh. We read: the Word became flesh.

This is what happens at Christmas. Jesus’ life didn’t simply begin, just like our lives begin when we are conceived. But Jesus life had already existed. Now—he unites himself to human flesh. He now takes on a human body, so that when this man speaks this is God who is speaking. Sometimes we speak God’s word too, but this is only because we are repeating what God has already said. Jesus speaks God’s word, and speaks it as that which hasn’t been said before, before he is actually true God. And this human body is now God’s body. This human flesh is God’s flesh.

In the early church, they often used a good picture to help people understand this. They spoke of a piece of iron which is placed in a fire. Imagine yourself a long time ago, maybe in one of those old shops in Hahndorf, with a blacksmith who is going to put shoes on a horse. And the blacksmith has to put a piece of iron in the fire and it starts to glow red hot. He wants to use the fire in a particular way, and to channel the fire into one particular place.

This is the same with Jesus. As true God, Jesus is like the fire. He has been burning hot through every century of history and long before history ever began. But now, when Jesus becomes a true man, when the Word becomes flesh, it’s like his human body is iron. But Jesus is both true God and true man. At the blacksmith’s shop, there are two things at work: the iron and the fire. Whatever the iron touches, it burns, so that these two things are always together.

The same goes with Jesus, he is true God and true man at the same time, just like iron and fire. The iron is still iron, and the fire is still fire. Jesus has not stopped being God, and yet he is still completely 100% man.

This Jesus is the person who will then suffer under Pontius Pilate. It’s not just a man who suffers, but this is true God who suffers, not because God can suffer, but because he has taken on flesh. It’s not just a man who dies, but this is God who dies, not because God can die, but because God has taken on flesh. It is God who is buried in the tomb, not because God can actually stay dead, but because he has taken on flesh.

And now, what a miracle it is that this human flesh rises from the dead on Easter Sunday, not because human flesh can raise itself up from the dead, but because this flesh is also true God. What a miracle it is that this human flesh sits at God’s right hand and prays for each of us every single day, not because God needs to pray to himself, but because he is also true man who is our mediator. What a miracle it is that this human flesh actually descends into our church to baptise people with his own hands, and to breathe out upon people his Holy Spirit through his own words through his own mouth, not because human flesh can normally be in more than one place, and more than one church at the same time, but because he is also true God. What a miracle it is that Jesus actually descends into our church to feed us with his own body and blood, not because we human beings can normally do such a thing, but because Jesus is true God, the flesh and the blood that he feeds us with is the true flesh and blood of God, which Jesus took when he became flesh in the womb of the Virgin Mary.

And so we read in John: The word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son of the Father, full of grace of truth.

But you know—Christmas is actually about something else! It’s not really about Jesus taking on human flesh. Jesus took on human flesh right when the angel Gabriel went to the Virgin Mary and told her that she would become pregnant. If we want to celebrate the fact that Jesus became flesh, we probably should have celebrated it 9 months ago, and celebrate the time when Jesus was conceived.

So what happens at Christmas time? What has been hidden now comes to light! Jesus is born! This is not the first time that he took on human flesh—this is the first time that the world is able to see Jesus’ wonderful and glorious face! And because Jesus is the Word who has become flesh, this little baby face is the true face of God! And so this is what St John says, when he says: The word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son of the Father, full of grace and truth.

We have seen it! Can you begin to imagine what is going on? Here for the first time, we get to see the living, wonderful face of God, the face of the baby Jesus! And so it’s no wonder that St John today calls Jesus the light—He says: In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.

Christmas time is the first time when this holy face shines out into the world! And now the world has seen it! And this is the face that the angels have come out of heaven to see for themselves! This is the face that even stars align themselves against, so that wise men would come and see this beautiful face for themselves. This is the face that brings life and joy and happiness to everyone! This human face, this tiny baby Jesus is a glorious face. As John says: The word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory. And this is such a wonderful glory, because it is the glory that Jesus is God’s true Son. We have seen his glory, glory as of the only son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

No wonder the angel said: I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Great joy! Think about this. We also read about the wise men, that when they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. Think about this. Great joy! How much joy there really is at Christmas—the joy that is created not from our hearts, but from God’s living word, that living word that has become flesh, and shines with brilliant light into the darkness, that word which is full of grace and truth.

May God bless you this Christmas with angelic and heavenly joy, as you welcome this baby Jesus into your own arms, the word who has become flesh, and now dwells among us, full of grace and truth!

Amen.

Dear Lord Jesus, we can’t begin to imagine the fullness of the mystery of what is happening at Christmas. But the deeper we delve, the greater our joy! Fill us with the light of your Holy Spirit this Christmas. Shine the light of your face, dear Lord Jesus, into the darkness of our hearts, so that the darkness will never overcome it. Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased! Amen.