December 25, 2019 | Rev. Wayne Whitney
I grew up watching all of the animated Christmas classic TV shows. Maybe you did too. The one that rings in my brain, though, is “A Charlie Brown Christmas” which originally aired on December 9, 1965. I certainly hope you’ve seen it.
The story begins with a very forlorn Charlie Brown telling hisfriend Linus, “I think there must be something wrong with me Linus, Christmas is coming but I’m not happy, I don’t feel the way I’m supposed to feel, I just don’t understand Christmas I guess.” He then goes to Lucy’s psychiatric advice-stand telling her “I’m in sad shape, my trouble is Christmas. I just don’t understand it. Instead of feeling happy; I feel sort of let down.”
The cartoon treats a very legitimate quagmire in a world wearily in the midst of what is decried as blatant commercialization and secular co-opting of a religious holiday into a bonanza of ringingcash registers. We’re told that we’re supposed to feel a certainway—even a joyous way, but where is it? We get wished a Merry Christmas, dozens and dozens of times, in greetings exchanged and in Christmas songs, right? We even get told to HAVE a Merry Christmas. But how do you do that? HAVE it! Have aMerry Christmas, . . . okay, I’ll try.
But, today, all of that is over. Christmas is here! And “Merry Christmas” seems to be ringing out of everybody’s mouths! Itseems silly to wish a merry one on people, but we still do. I mean, today is Christmas Day and we in the church will be celebrating Christmastide until January 6.
But wait! Do YOU feel the way you think you’re supposed to feel?Just how ARE you supposed to feel? Are you in an existential crisis like that of Charlie Brown? How DO you feel?
I remember as a kid growing up—I remember all the anticipation, all the curiosity, all the yearning, all the busy-ness, all the hoopla leading up to Christmas morning; but once the presents got opened and that mound of merchandise under the tree turned into fireplace kindling—I remember being left with that Charlie Brown moment—of really, THAT was it? All of that build-up for . . . . . THAT?
Fortunately, for us, in the end Charlie Brown goes to his friendLinus one last time and lays it out as a very straight question “Isn’tthere anyone who knows what Christmas is all about?”
Really, what IS it all about? The answer YOU get depends on who you ask—and I wouldn’t advise you to ask just anyone—because the answer you get IS the answer you seek. The answer Linus gives Charlie Brown IS our Gospel reading for today, in the King James Version no less. Even though Christmas—the celebration of the Nativity of Our Lord—wasn’t a thing in Luke’sday—the Evangelist’s answer is the best one anyone can give.And it is the only answer Linus can give Charlie Brown that makes any difference.
Luke’s Christmas story narrates Jesus’ birth in a very terse andstraightforward fashion—there is minimal detail in the narration: avery pregnant woman and the guy she’s about to marry are awayfrom home. The baby is ready to be born. The house they were intending to stay at was already full up with people from out of town. The guest room—poorly translated as “inn” in way too manybibles—couldn’t squeeze them in, so they found comfort in thedugout portion of the house where the animals were kept. She gave birth, wrapped up the baby in strips of cloth, what the KingJames Version calls “swaddling clothes,” and placed the newborn in an animal’s feeding trough—a manger.
Now, that’s just the “what happened.” None of all that was all that, well, remarkable. At the actual birth, there WERE no angels, no heavenly host, no celestial trumpets, no blinding white light, nothing—absolutely nothing all that remarkable at the birth. But the scene changes, dramatically; and what comes next is the interpretation of what happened. (And this, by the way is what Linus knew when he was quoting it to Charlie Brown). The scene in Luke changes from the baby in a feeding trough to some unnamed shepherds outside Bethlehem just doing their job,otherwise known as “watching their flocks by night.” And an angelof the Lord all of a sudden was standing before them—note that Luke says nothing about a flying angel here—in fact you’d behard-pressed to find flying angels anywhere in the Bible—But there he was, an angel/messenger of the Lord. And then who gets the spotlight on them—yeh, it’s the shepherds. Luke tells us“the glory of the Lord shone around THEM.” They respond like, well, you’re supposed to respond when you’re in the middle of a theophany—they were “sore afraid” as Linus quoted from the KingJames translation.
And then the angel speaks: “I’m here to tell you that something awesome has just happened and it’s a big happy deal foreveryone, and when I say everyone, I mean EVERYone; andyou’re the first to hear tell of it. A Savior has just been born, in King David’s hometown, yes, a savior who is also Messiah andMaster—that’s everything we’ve ever been hoping and praying forsince times went bad for us a few centuries back. So, here’s whatyou need to do. Go to Bethlehem and look for a newborn baby all wrapped up and lying in a manger, how many of those can therebe tonight in Bethlehem, that’s it!” And when the angel finishedtalking he was joined by a huge host of heavenly beings (now they may have been flying—I don’t think you do that on foot). Andthey sing a song—as Linus quotes it: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.”
The more recent translations read: “Glory to God in the highestheaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors.” Thelater translation is a bit unfortunate because it makes God soundlike a celestial Santa Claus who keeps track of who’s been naughty and who’s been nice–that God’s peace is only availableto those people who God likes—but the Linus version communicates the sentiment more plainly.
The point is that God already favors ALL humanity; there are no favorites; and this gift of a savior done through the agency of the Jewish religion does NOT play favorites. This gift of a savior istruly FOR everyone, period. If it weren’t for everyone then it wouldn’t truly be good news, it would only be good news for a fewWho needs a savior? We all need a savior, not just a select few.
The heavenly host then depart—and, by the way, you don’t need wings to do this, when you’re a part of the heavenly host you justknow how to go, period. When artists tried to paint pictures of thisthey created these beasts with wings because that’s just all wecould handle. I think it’s more accurate to think of an Iron-Man kind of thing, no cape, no wings, just take off! So the shepherds run to Bethlehem and sure enough they find what they were told would be a sign for them—they probably had to knock on a few doors—but word gets around in a small town—there, in an animaldugout was Mary and Joseph and a baby lying in an animal’s feeding trough, a manger. Notice there’s no angelic guidance, nomiraculous light, no star to guide them—they just come upon it—and wow—sure enough—there it was. And the shepherds, these lowly humble shepherds immediately give the meaning of all of this. Why? Because the angel told them earlier, remember? Remember—these shepherds are the first commissioned evangelists of Christianity. They immediately speak of their experience to everyone who would listen about their conversation with the angel—and everybody was amazed at what they heard.
“Really? This baby right here is Savior, Messiah and Lord? Really? This baby? In the feeding trough? Who’d a thunk it?
Now, the point Linus was making to “buck up” a forlorn Charlie Brown IS the same as Luke’s theological point: This is GOD thathas come TO US! This is how God does that. This is how God brings us our King. This is how God brings us our Savior. This is how God brings us our Lord in flesh and bone. This was something new! The old religions said that men could become Gods—but this new thing—it is God becoming man. This is good news.
So, we are given a clue here that our ticket out of OUR funk—is letting in THIS kind of love. This kind of love cannot be manufactured by trying hard or wishing for it. It is only had by is giving up our ability to generate it and let God come into US.
God doesn’t pre-judge people or circumstances or situations. However you are is just the way you are. Stop judging yourselffor how you are. Maybe you’re like Charlie Brown and you’re still frustrated. Maybe you’re like how I felt after all the presents were opened thinking, “Is this all there is?” The answer can never be contained by just what our eyes see and our ears hear.
God is in the business of surprising us at just the time we thinkwe’ve got it all figured out—whether we’ve decided to be gloomyor resigned. In the Nativity story, God is creating a new world where all people have hope that there is salvation and balm for the soul.
And it is precisely when you HAVE given up that God will deign to come to you in the ordinariness of your life and surprise you.
It’s here.
It’s knocking at the door.
Don’t block the joy that wants to come to you by cutting off possibility.
Don’t fall back to cynicism and lowering expectations because you’d rather be surprised than disappointed.
Look for the EXTRAordinary inside the ordinary.
Look for God when it feels like God can’t be very near at all.Open your eyes and your heart and the refreshing breeze ofGod’s love is right there ready to transform you, right where youare; right now.
And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God and ofGod’s Son born of Mary laying in a manger in Bethlehem.
Take heart. That’s what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown.
To the only wise God our Savior, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen.