Hello, Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and welcome to this very special Christmas Eve edition of the Will Preach for Food podcast. I’m Doug, a pastor here at Faith Lutheran Church, based out of Shelton, Washington, a congregation of the ELCA. You can learn more about Faith at our website, www.faithshelton.org. I hope this Christmas is one filled with joy, health, and peace.
I’m going to read the Christmas gospel, as recorded in Luke 2:1-20. Helpful hint—some Bibles are easier to read than others. Some old Bibles are really hard to read and understand. So if you read the Christmas story around the dinner table tomorrow, use something like the NIV (New International Version) or NRSV (New Revised Standard Version. If you don’t have the physical Bible, they are easy to Google. Bible Gateway is a great, free source of just about every English translation out there. Read it directly from your phone or tablet, or do it the old fashioned way and print a copy with a large enough font! Oh, and it’s pronounced “QuiRINeeUs.”
Luke 2:1-20
In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. 2 (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 And everyone went to their own town to register.
4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.
8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.
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With Angelic Hosts Proclaim (Luke 2)
Introduction
Hello, Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and welcome to this very special Christmas Eve edition of the Will Preach for Food podcast. I’m Doug, a pastor here at Faith Lutheran Church, based out of Shelton, Washington, a congregation of the ELCA. You can learn more about Faith at our website, www.faithshelton.org. I hope this Christmas is one filled with joy, health, and peace.
I’m going to read the Christmas gospel, as recorded in Luke 2:1-20. Helpful hint—some Bibles are easier to read than others. Some old Bibles are really hard to read and understand. So if you read the Christmas story around the dinner table tomorrow, use something like the NIV (New International Version) or NRSV (New Revised Standard Version. If you don’t have the physical Bible, they are easy to Google. Bible Gateway is a great, free source of just about every English translation out there. Read it directly from your phone or tablet, or do it the old fashioned way and print a copy with a large enough font! Oh, and it’s pronounced “QuiRINeeUs.”
Luke 2:1-20
In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. 2 (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 And everyone went to their own town to register.
4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.
8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.
Here We Go, a-Caroling
What are YOUR favorite religious Christmas carols—the ones we learn and sing in church, carols which celebrate and tell the story of the birth of Jesus? My top ten probably includes these:
1. I Am So Glad Each Christmas Eve
2. Hark! The Herald Angels Sing
3. Joy to the World
4. Love Has Come
5. Mary, Did You Know?
6. It Came Upon a Midnight Clear
7. In the Bleak Midwinter
8. What Child is This
9. O Little Town of Bethlehem
10. Away in the Manger
Your list will probably be different. There are some big ones that don’t make my list, like: The First Noel; Angels We Have Heard on High; O Holy Night; Go, Tell It on the Mountain; and O Come, All Ye Faithful. I also didn’t include Rudolph or Frosty. Apparently those are Christmas “songs,” not “carols.”
I Am So Glad Each Christmas Eve is an old Scandinavian tune. My family is Swedish, and for me the holidays are filled with the sights and sounds and smells of this heritage—potato sausage, lefse, cardamom buns. Our family also always opened presents on Christmas Eve—partly to give us something to do to keep us awake until the late Christmas Eve service at church.
And so I love each Christmas Eve, and I love Jesus too; and that he loves me every day I know so well is true.
In the Bleak Midwinter has been a favorite since I was a child, too. So many carols are just happy and light. This one has a beautiful melody, it invites introspection, and it ends with the invitation to give my heart to the one who gave himself for me.
What can I give him, poor as I am. If I were a shepherd, I would give a lamb. If I were a wise man I would do my part; yet what I can I give him—give my heart.
The carols capture the fragility and uncertainty of life, especially at around birth and around death. I learned Mary Did You Know? about the time we were having our children. I resonated with the questions that all parents have—what does the future hold for this child? It Came upon a Midnight Clear names our struggles: “And you, beneath life’s crushing load, whose forms are bending low, who toil along the climbing way with painful steps and slow…” Life is hard sometimes. Our bodies break down, our burdens can be too much, sometimes. This carol points to lean into the hope of Christmas, inviting us to “rest along the weary road and hear the angels sing!”
And you, beneath life’s crushing load, whose forms are bending low, who toil along the climbing way with painful steps and slow: Look now, for glad and golden hours come swiftly on the wing: oh rest beside the weary road and hear the angels sing!
And then there are the tender prayers of O Little Town of Bethlehem and Away in the Manger.
Be near me, Lord Jesus; I ask you to stay close by me forever and love me, I pray. Bless all the dear children in your tender care and fit us for heaven to live with you there.
O holy Child of Bethlehem, descend to us we pray; cast out our sin and enter in, be born in us today. We hear the Christmas angels the great glad tidings tell; oh come to us, abide with us, our Lord Immanuel!
Veiled in Flesh the Godhead See
I like some happy carols, too. I love the second verse of Joy to the World. Joy to the earth, it says, the Savior reigns! Let everyone, all of us, all our carols and songs, employ. Christ has come to save, restore, and renew all of creation. The image is that of all of humanity across time, people of every nation tribe and tongue are singing praises with the angel choirs, each in their own languages, each singing and dancing with their favorite tunes. And then “fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains” join in: “repeat the sounding joy!” All God’s critters got a place in the choir…
Christmas is good news, because Love Has Come.
Love has come—a light in the darkness! Love is God now asleep in the hay. See the glow in the eyes of his mother; what is the name her heart is saying? Love! Love! Love is the name she whispers; Love! Love! Jesus, Immanuel.
Christmas is good news because “veiled in flesh, the Godhead see.” That is to say, everything we need to know about the nature of God has been revealed in Jesus, the Word that became flesh and made his dwelling among us. Love has come. And so I love each Christmas Eve, and I love Jesus too; and that he loves me every day I know so well is true.
So, Merry Christmas, y’all. Whether you have been singing with the Christmas angels for decades, or if like the shepherds this is the first time you have seen or heard the good news, Merry Christmas. So bring him incense, gold, and myrrh like the travelers. Or treasure it all in your heart like Mary. Or listen to your dreams like Joseph. And may the hope and good news of this day bless and keep you, even in the bleak midwinter, even beneath life’s crushing load. May we, along with all the people, fields, floods, rocks, hills, and plains, along with angelic hosts proclaim: Christ is born in Bethlehem.
O holy Child of Bethlehem, descend to us we pray; cast out our sin and enter in, be born in us today. We hear the Christmas angels the great glad tidings tell; oh come to us, abide with us, our Lord Immanuel!
Thanks for listening, folks. I want to wish all my listeners—both of you—a very Merry Christmas and a Happy and Blessed New Year. To learn more about Faith, go to our website, www.faithshelton.org. While you are there, like us, subscribe, donate, or sign-up for our newsletter. You can subscribe to this podcast on most podcast platforms, including Spotify, Apple, and Google. Thank you, Chas and Nadia, for your production and tech support for this podcast.