Christmas Eve meditation. 2014

Christmas Eve meditation.  2014

“Away in a manger, no crib for a bed.” Tradition tells us that after Jesus was born, he was laid in a manger because there was no room for him in the inn.

There are a lot of details left out of this story, because the details were not the important part of the story. For instance,

·        was the inn like a hotel, or someone’s house?

·        Were Mary ad Joseph  relegated to the stable, or were they just looking for some quiet and privacy?

·        Was the manger in a stable like we imagine, or in a basement cave where the animals were allowed to get out of the weather, or was it (as often was the case) outside up against the wall of the inn for use of the guests.   

·        Then there are details that we just get wrong. We picture a wooden feeding trough like the one in the nativity scene tonight, but more than likely it was a stone trough that they used for feeding animals.

Whatever the case, Jesus was born and then laid in a manger.

Of all things… the king of kings… the lord of Lords… not only humbled to be born in the flesh, but then to be laid not in a crib, or on a royal pillow, but in a trough intended for animals. But then, when you think about the humiliation of the cross, the humble birth does not seem out of character.

At Christmas, we tend to romanticize the manger. We turn it into something beautiful and heavenly – a first century birthing suite. But friends, a real manger just isn't like that.

If we went on a field trip to visit that manger, three things would impress you.

·        Firstly, a manger is cold. It's a damp sort of cold that chills your right to the bones. It is made of stone and it almost sucks the heat right out of you. The cows come up to feed and when they breathe, it makes clouds of steam, in the freezing air. It can be cold in the manger.

·        Secondly, a manger is dark . The spot where tradition tells us Jesus was born, is in a cave under the church of the nativity in Bethlehem. It is underground, maybe beneath the house or the barn. So even when the sun is shining, it's dark in the manger.

·        And third a manger is dirty. It's surrounded by mud, manure, dust and cobwebs and it smells of must and mold. As the cows eat, they slobber and drool. In the summer there are flies and spiders and insects, and swallows nesting in the rafters.

There's no such thing as a clean or hygienic manger: a manger is cold, dark and dirty.

The truth is that Jesus was born in a place that was

COLD … DARK….and DIRTY.

Every time Jesus comes into our lives, he is born in the cold, dark and dirty manger.

The human heart is like the manger, cold, dark and dirty .

The human heart is cold because without Jesus, we lack the warmth of God’s love.

The human heart is dark because without Jesus we do not have the light of Christ or the hope of salvation.

The human heart is dirty because we are sinners and our hearts are stained and soiled by sin.

 COLD … DARK….and DIRTY.

But the miracle of Christmas – the real miracle – is that Jesus is willing to be born into that manger and into our hearts!

The miracle of Christmas is that the Holy Son of God, who came to be born into the cold, dark, dirty manger, did it in order to be born into our cold, dark and dirty lives.

·        No matter how cold your heart is, Jesus is willing to be born there.

·        No matter how dark your heart is, Jesus is willing to be born there.

·        No matter dirty your heart is, or how sinful your life has been, Jesus is willing to come in, enter, and clean your heart.

So tonight as you receive communion, make your hands into a little manger as a sign of the manger that we make in our hearts. Receive the body and blood of Christ, and along with it the Christmas miracle that God wants to come into your heart, no matter how cold, dark, or dirty it might be.

Receive the bread and the juice, and let God work. Thorough the silence of the night, through the shimmering of the candles, through the joy of being surrounded by family, through the simple melodies of the carols, the well-known phrases of the story. Let God work. Let God work in the manger of your heart tonight, and who knows what kind Christmas miracle we may see.

AMEN