Christ Children: Luke 2:8-20 - Christmas Day

 

Photo by Isaac Quesada on Unsplash

Three days after Putin’s armies invaded Ukraine, a little baby named Mia was born, deep underground in a bomb shelter as missiles exploded throughout the city of Kyiv. She’s one of about eighty babies born every day throughout the city as the war wages on.

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The birth was celebrated as a triumph of hope amid the horrors of war.

 

That’s an extremely bold and courageous thing to say, given the fact that this child, and others like her, have known nothing but war in their short lifetimes.

 

And across this globe, and throughout history, babies have been born in circumstances and conditions that no human being should ever face at any point in their lives.  This is something our Bible Study group discussed in our Advent series of discussions about African American spirituals. They, too, would celebrate the birth of a new baby, even though that baby was born into slavery. And yet, each birth brought with it the hope, that maybe, just maybe, that child would be the one to lead their people to freedom.

 

And though we would feel sorrow and even outrage for babies born into poverty, slavery, and war, why should we not celebrate the gift of life? There’s more to the miracle of a newborn baby than just their birth.

 

If we’re honest, there wasn’t much for the shepherds to see in the way of the miraculous when they went to the manger. Yes, they witnessed the angels in heaven celebrating the birth; yes, they were sent by the angels to visit the baby Jesus. But there’s nothing miraculous about a baby wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.

 

It took faith for the shepherds to recognize that this was no ordinary baby, and that the fullness of God dwelled in his tiny, fragile body. It took faith to recognize that this baby will grow up to save God’s people from sin and death.

 

For us, it demands equal faith to recognize the image of God in every newborn baby, regardless of their race or the circumstances of their birth. It demands equal faith to recognize the potential of what God created that child to be—a light shining in the world’s darkness, gifted with passions, talents, and intelligence to make their world a better place.

 

Mary and Joseph, the shepherds, and the Magi also recognized that they had an important role in loving, supporting, and nurturing God’s gift of life. If we wish to see our world becoming a better place, we must do all we can to ensure that God’s children can become everything God created them to be.

 

Last week, I was told the story about a three-year-old child from our church family. His parents sponsored Christmas gifts for a child from Bethesda Lutheran Services. When he saw his mother gathering up toys that were not going to be for him, he asked her who they were for—and she explained that there are children who don’t have parents or grandparents, and that they wanted to make sure that a child knew he was loved at Christmas. A short time later, he came to his mother with a card he had made—and asked her to open his piggy bank, so he could give that child a dollar bill for Christmas.

 

There is no room for doubt that Jesus is alive in that child—and that Jesus wants to live through every child, including those just learning to walk and talk. New life is a gift to the world, regardless of who is giving birth to it or where. Inside every child is the potential to change the world we live in for the better—and that is why each new birth brings new hope.

 

But it’s up to us to nurture that hope. It’s up to us to nurture the love and goodness God creates into every child.

 

Children ought to be the number-one priority in our mission as a congregation. Christian Education, family movie nights, and the clothing closet are a great start—but these are not enough. Every child needs a church family. Every child needs the support of good and godly people in developing minds to think and hands to create and repair; in nurturing self-esteem with respect for the other; in shepherding them through the harsh realities of life. And they definitely need nourishing food, warm homes, and safe neighborhoods. The needs of today’s children are tremendous, but so is the grace of God.

 

The baby Jesus would not have become the human being he was without Mary’s courage and humility, Joseph’s faithfulness and protection, the shepherds’ affirmations, the Magi’s gifts, and countless others who blessed him throughout his life.

 

May we be faithful and bold as they are, to nurture Christ in every child, and give them all they need to bring healing, justice, peace, and opportunity into the world we know today.