Since the first Sunday of Advent my wife and I have attended thirteen worship services focusing upon the hanging of the greens, children's programs, and musical presentations. No two were alike. None tried to duplicate what some other church was doing. Scenery was different in each church. All age groups were involved. Senior adults participated in most. A four month old baby did quite well, thank you, in the manger in the last one we were able to attend. Each service told the biblical story of Christmas in a beautiful and creative way.
Just how many ways can you tell the story of the birth of the Messiah, the Savior of mankind, the Son of God? The gospels of Matthew and Luke each had its own unique record. Traditions seemed to have blossomed once Christianity became an acceptable religion a couple of centuries later. Since then many cultures have added different expressions of celebration to the occasion of remembering the birth of the Savior of the world.
Trees and wreaths, lights and ornaments, ancient and modern scenes set in miniature have added color and wonder to the season. Music has played an important role from early years. The biblical record has maintained a central part of every presentation of the beginnings of the Story. Yet each year the story of the birth of the Messiah remains rich and magnetic in its power to draw people to the image of a baby lying helpless in a stable manger while people of the lowest social order pay homage.
During the season of Advent leading up to Christmas Day itself, we see part of the Story told and retold in readings, drama, music, and nativity scenes. It is told in churches, in homes, in front yard scenes, and even in some businesses and schools. During these four plus weeks, the beginning of the Story is told over and over again and we never grow tired of it.
When the decorations are taken down, the living tree is not so living any more and has to be left on the roadside, when the presents are no longer new, and the nativity scene that sat on the sideboard is packed away, how do we tell the rest of the Story? What happens to the Story the rest of the year? One of the earliest ideas of Advent was not a celebration of a birth in Bethlehem but a diligent alertness for a second coming. Has that part of the Story taken the place of the first appearance of the Son of God?
It is now approximately 360 days until Christmas. It may only be one day until the Second Coming. The whole Story still needs to be told. I doubt if there are any Christmas cantatas or children's plays currently in rehearsal. I doubt if any church's calendar has a caroling party scheduled in the coming weeks. I doubt if anyone is planning to keep their not-so-living tree in their house for another six months. People have few if any plans to tell the portion of the Story about the Messiah's birth in the near future.
Yet the whole Story must be told! How will we tell the Story between Christmas Day, 2011 and the first Sunday of Advent, 2012? The shepherds without a doubt continued to talk about the experience for months to come. The magi from the east had it in their plans for years. You know Herod lost sleep over it until he died, wondering who this new threat was to his throne and if he had eliminated it.
Ebenezer Scrooge promised to keep Christmas in his heart throughout the year. So he gave Bob Cratchit a raise, helped Tim get healthy, and made a big donation to the benevolence society. When did he tell the Story? Helping others is all well and fine, but if the Story stays in your heart, then you have denied others the greatest Gift of all.
In 2012 we must tell the Story. The Story is all about Emmanuel, God with us. It is not about trees and wreaths and decorations. It is not about presents and gifts or even coins in a red kettle outside a store. It is about Emmanuel, God with us. We have not told the Story until we have told about a manger, hungry crowds being fed, hurting people being healed, a cross, and an empty tomb. Then we will have told the Story. We must give the thirsty a drink of water, but we must be willing to do it in the name of Emmanuel. We must be willing to feed the hungry but in the name of Emmanuel. We must be willing to provide a roof for the homeless but in the name of Emmanuel. We must give hope to the hopeless but in the name of Emmanuel. Then we will have told the Story, and there are lots of ways to do it.
