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It began in a very unusual way. A class of four-year-olds presented a Christmas pageant that began with the three virgin Marys marching out onto the stage. As they stood there, they, of course, were waving to their parents. It's not every Christmas pageant that has three virgin Marys, but over the years the school had acquired three Mary costumes, and so, quite naturally the script was revised. This gave a chance for more children to be involved and kept down the squabbling over who got the starring roles. The two Josephs walked up behind the Marys. Then twenty little angels came out. They were dressed in white robes and huge gauze wings. They were followed by twenty little shepherd boys, dressed in burlap sacks. They carried an array of objects that were supposed to be crooks.
"It was at this point that the problem occurred. During the dress rehearsal the teacher had used chalk to draw circles on the floor to mark where the angels were supposed to stand and crosses to mark the spots of the shepherds. But the children had practiced with their regular clothes on. So, on the night of the pageant, the angels came walking out with their beautiful gauze wings and stood on their circles. However, their huge wings covered the crosses of the shepherds as well. So, when the time came for the shepherds to find their places, they didn't know where to go because the angels took up all their space.
"There was one little boy who became extremely frustrated and angry over the whole experience. He finally spied his teacher behind the curtains and shocked everyone when he said in a loud stage whisper heard by everyone, 'Because of these blankety-blank angels, I can't find the cross!'"
He didn't say, "blankety-blank," but something else we can't say here.
I wonder if that can't happen sometimes. The romantic elements of Christmas, the shepherds, the wise men, the angels, the star in the East not to mention the commercialism of Christmas tend to obscure the important meaning of it all, and particularly the message of the cross.
In John's Gospel, there are no angels, no shepherds, no star, not even Mary and Joseph. Instead, there is some of the most beautiful and important theological language ever written: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made."
"In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it . . . The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world."
"He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God."
"The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth" (John 1:1-14.)
No shepherds, no angels, no star is mentioned here, though we find them spoken about in two other Gospels, yet here ultimately is the story of Christmas.
Christmas is not an act of humanity, but of God. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made." When we could do nothing for ourselves, God stepped in to save us.
God acted in the only way he could act. "In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it . . . The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world. He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him."
Why could the darkness not understand him? Why did the world not receive him? The problem is quite clear.
If you can imagine the difference between a keeper of an aquarium and the fish in that aquarium, then you might begin to understand the difference between humanity and God. God is Spirit. He is the creator of a universe that is billions of light years wide. Can you even begin to imagine a Being of that extraordinary Power and Knowledge? How could God even speak to us without scaring us to death?
God acted in the only way God could act without overwhelming us and taking away our freedom. God became a tiny baby.
In Christmas, God gave to us the greatest gift-he told us who we are.
Have you ever received a Christmas gift that you knew wasn't well thought out? Someone sent it to you just to get the gift-giving over and done with.
Not so with God. God knew right from the beginning what He was doing. God gave us what we most needed. God told us who we are. "He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God." That's who we are, children of God. When we know that, the meaning and purpose of life changes.
That's what Marjorie Tallcott and her family discovered during the Great Depression. They managed to scrape their way through, but as Christmas approached one year Marjorie and her husband were disappointed, they wouldn't be able to buy any presents. A week before Christmas they explained to their six-year-old son, Pete, there would be no store-bought presents this Christmas. "But I'll tell you what we can do," said Pete's father, "we can make pictures of the presents we'd like to give to each other."
That was a busy week. Marjorie and her husband set to work. Christmas Day arrived, and the family rose to find their skimpy little tree made magnificent by the picture presents they had adorned it with. There was luxury beyond imagination in those pictures, a black limousine and red speedboat for Dad, a diamond bracelet and fur coat for Mom, a camping tent, and a swimming pool for Pete. Then Pete pulled out his present, a crayon drawing of a man, a woman, and a child with their arms around each other laughing. Under the picture was just one word: "Us." Years later Marjorie writes that it was the richest, most satisfying Christmas they ever had.
Pete's card summed it up. "Us." The love and security of a family. It's the kind of picture God presents to us on Christmas Day. "Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God." That's who we are, children of God. When we know that, the meaning and purpose of life changes.
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Rev. Charles Eldredge is a member of Maitland Church of the Brethren. He has a Facebook page and can be contacted by email: ce1133 @verizon.net.