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A few years ago two Americans
were invited as a part of a team to go to Russia to teach
morals and ethics to the Russian people. They were invited by
the Russian Department of Education. They were to visit
businesses. They visited police and fire departments, and they
also visited a large orphanage. These two men were told that
they could speak from the perspective of their faith. This
pleased them because they were both Christians.
When they arrived at the
orphanage, there were over 100 boys and girls living there.
All of them had been abandoned or abused and were now under
the care of a government program.
Since it was the holiday season,
the men decided to tell the story of Christmas to the
children. None of them had ever heard the story before. They
used a translator because the children did not know the
English language.
They told about how Mary and
Joseph had been on a long journey to Bethlehem, Mary riding
most of the way on the back of a donkey. They told how when
they got to Bethlehem, they could not find a place to stay for
the night, and so they ended up in a place reserved for the
care of animals and the feeding of cattle. They told how that
night when Jesus was born, Mary wrapped him in a blanket and
laid him in a cattle-feeding trough. Shepherds arrived shortly
thereafter, telling about a vision they had had of angels in
the field. Later, three men who looked very much like kings
came and brought gifts to Jesus.
The two men told the children
that the other name for Jesus was “Emmanuel,” which means “God
with us.” The children sat in amazement as they listened. Some
of them were literally on the edge of their seats, trying to
grasp every word.
The men then taught the children
a few choruses of Christmas carols in English. They did not
teach the whole carol, but only choruses. Some of them we have
sung tonight.
O come let us adore Him,
O come let us adore Him,
O come let us adore Him,
Christ the Lord.
Hark, the herald angels sing
glory to the newborn King.
Gloria in excelsis Deo.
The two men then invited the
children to make their own manger. They took an old shoebox
and used it for the actual manger. They then had some old
yellow napkins that they tore up and put strips of paper in
the bottom of the box to pretend it was straw in the manger on
which the baby could sleep. They took small pieces of cloth
and cut them into squares to make a blanket for the baby. And
then they cut the image of a baby out of cardboard, wrapped it
in the blanket, and laid it in the box.
The men had collected enough
supplies so that each child could make his or her own manger
scene. The children went to work and really got into it. The
two men walked around, watching. After a while they arrived at
a table where a little six-year-old boy named Misha sat. They
looked into his little manger/shoebox and they were startled
by what they saw. There, in that manger, were not one but two
babies.
The men quickly called for a
translator. “Tell us about your manger, Misha.”
Misha crossed his arms and told
the story as he had heard it. He told it with surprising
accuracy—about the journey to Bethlehem on the back of a
donkey, about having no room to stay, about ending up in a
barn, and about how the baby was born. Misha said, “And his
mother wrapped a blanket around him and placed him in a
manger.”
It was then that Misha began to
improvise. “Jesus looked at me and asked if I had a place to
stay. I told him that I have no mama and no papa, so I don’t
have a place. Jesus said I could stay with him. I told Jesus I
couldn’t, because I had no gift.
“Then I thought, ‘what could I
use as a gift?’ I said to Jesus, ‘If I come in beside you to
keep you warm, would that be a good gift?’
“Jesus said, ‘If you keep me
warm, Misha, that would be the best gift ever given me.’ So I
got into the manger. Jesus looked at me and said I could stay
with him always.”
Misha’s eyes were full of tears.
He had found someone who would stay with him always.
Is this not the message of
Christmas tonight? God sent Jesus so we would always have
someone to stay with us.
Misha discovered what we are all
invited to discover. We remember the words, “Emmanuel. God
with us.” The God who came in Jesus will never abandon us or
abuse us. He will always stay with us. He will stay with us
when the cancer biopsy comes back positive instead of
negative. He will stay with us when a final exam is marked
with an “F” instead of an “A.” He will stay with us when a
spouse of fifteen years stomps out the door and does not
return. He will stay with us when the dream of a successful
business is downsized or diminished. He will be with us when
the longing for family harmony is shattered by a shouting
match. He will stay with us when the desire for companionship
is drained by a long holiday season.
Emmanuel. God with us. God is
with us. We are never without companionship and support.
There is a Christian chorus I
want you to sing with me tonight. The words are on the screen.
We will play it one time and then sing it three times. Please
note that the key words in the song are the ones in the story
for tonight: “Emmanuel. God is with us.”
Jesus, name above all names,
Beautiful Savior, glorious
Lord.
Emmanuel, God is with us.
Blessed redeemer, living
Word.
Now look on the screen again. Do
you see that envelope? Pretend you are opening the envelope.
Read the message inside. The message says, “You are invited
into the manger with Jesus.”
You are invited, not just for a
night, but for a lifetime. Not just for sleeping, but for
serving. Not just for cuddling, but for courageous living. Not
just for now, but for forever. Enjoy him always an in all
ways.
Hear Jesus say to you tonight,
“The gift of yourself is the best gift you could ever give me.
Get as close as you wish. You will know a peace and a
stability unmatched by anything else life affords.”
[1] This message is adapted from a story in
“Homiletics” magazine for December 2002. The primary elements
of the story are the same as they were printed in that
magazine. A few of the details have been changed to make it
more “user friendly” to the Christ Church community on
Christmas Eve. |
