Sermon - Christmas Eve 2022 - Matthew 1:18-25

The Nativity, Lorenzo Lotto, 1523

The true meaning of Christmas

1. Jesus came to be with us

2. Jesus saves His people from their sins

Merry Christmas! What a fun time of year! Lots of pretty lights to look at. Upbeat music on the radio. Good food, family time, fun parties. The snow makes for a winter wonderland, even if it makes a mess and disrupts travel plans. I’m so glad that you all took some time out of your busy schedule during this fun time of year, to come to church this evening. I sincerely hope you all come to church tomorrow morning since tomorrow is the actual feast of Christmas. Today is just the preparatory day, tomorrow is the feast day!

Though, I do wonder, why are we all here today? What did we come here to see? Are we just here to sing Christmas carols and sing silent night while holding a candle? Are we here out of cultural expectations; gotta go to church on Christmas Eve with grandma? Whatever it may be that brought you here tonight, I am honestly overjoyed that you’re here! Church attendance isn’t expected at all in our country today, let alone here in an LCMS church which the world considers bigoted and hateful. But you’re here! You’re here to celebrate the true meaning of Christmas! 

But, what is that? What is the true meaning of Christmas? It is a day to celebrate Christ during the Divine Service. On Christmas we remember that Jesus came to be with us and that He came to save His people from their sins. Our Lord Jesus did come to be with us. Isaiah prophesied: “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.” The name Immanuel means God with us. We have all been gathered here in this sanctuary this evening not just to be with each other, but most importantly to be with God.

The Lord Jesus took on human flesh and was born in such a way that He is with us. God wants to be with His people. In the Garden of Eden, God walked with Adam and Eve. God wrestled with Jacob. God dwelt among His people and was with them by means of a pillar of cloud and fire. God spoke to Moses face to face. God was present in the Old Testament temple. God’s presence with His people culminated in what we celebrate on Christmas: God was conceived in the womb of the blessed virgin Mary and was born to be with us.

Symbolically in a way, Mary represents the christian church. Think of the relationship between a mother and her child, that’s how close God was to Mary and how God is with us. God lived in her womb. God lay in her arms. He bounced on her knees. He climbed on her shoulders. God played in her hair. He licked the mixing spoon when she was cooking. God held her hand while they walked. He gave her a hug and cuddled after a difficult day. Events from Jesus’ childhood aren’t written in the Bible, but they don’t have to be, we all know what childhood is like and how close children are to their parents.

Considering how physically and emotionally close Jesus would’ve been to His mother, we have here a beautiful illustration of how close God desires to be with us. God is emotionally close to us. Not only does He know every thought of our hearts, but He wants to hear us speak to Him. He already knows all of our wants and needs, yet He still wants us to talk to Him through prayer. 

Physically God wants to be with us through the sacraments. Mary bathed Jesus, and now our Lord bathes us in the sacrament of holy baptism. Not only does He wash away some dirt, but washes away our sins. Mary nourished Jesus with her own body, so does Jesus nourish us, His church, with His own body. In the sacrament of the altar, Jesus feeds us His true body and blood. This isn’t just a symbolic or spiritual thing, but it’s His true body and blood; physically God is within us through holy communion! 

The ultimate purpose of God’s presence among us is found in what Jesus came to accomplish later in life, and is why He is named Jesus. Jesus means the Lord saves, so it is Jesus who “will save His people from their sins.” Christmas is not only about a sweet baby laying in a manger, but about a grown man crucified and hanging dead on a cross. From a humble manger to a lowly tree, Jesus was born to die for you and me. He didn’t come to give us all the good feels, to entertain us and make our lives comfy. He came to save us from our sins. “The Father has sent His Son to be the Savior of the World.” 

“In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” We are sinners, this is why Jesus came to be with us, to forgive us our sins. We try to cover over and ignore our sins during this holiday season, since we just want to all get along and enjoy the festivities. But under the thin veneer of wrapping paper and sugar, there are plenty of messes. Long-held grudges, addictions, marriage problems, family arguments, mental illness, grief, and loneliness. 

It is precisely because of our messy lives riddled with sin and problems that Jesus came to be with us and forgive us. Jesus knows you quite intimately, even your problems, and He came to forgive you. The Lord Jesus doesn’t leave you alone, even when others abandon and forsake you, rather He abides with you. Even now, your Savior is present with His grace. By grace you too can forgive one another, so that your Christmas isn’t just awkwardly walking on eggshells, but filled with the forgiveness Christ has come to bring you.

So again, I don’t need to know why you’re in church tonight, but I’m glad you are. I hope that hearing of Jesus’ forgiveness for you strengthens you in the faith toward God and in fervent love toward one another. May this reminder of God’s love through Jesus renew you in the faith this coming year, and grant you a truly Merry Christmas.