A Sermon for the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ
Tuesday, December 24, 2024
Text: Luke 2:1-20
Now, O Lord, take my lips, and speak through them. Take our minds, and think through them. Take our hearts, and set them on fire. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
This time of the year reminds me of my childhood. It reminds me of all the wonderful memories that I have from seasons long past and from growing up in a warm and loving family during the holidays.
It always brings me back to a time in my life when I looked forward to so many exciting things during the days and weeks leading up to Christmas, and now, as a father, I’m thankful that I get to share those same joys with my own children each year.
Things like decorating the Christmas tree with beautiful lights and ornaments, putting up Christmas decorations around the house, and getting to watch all of my favorite, must-see Christmas specials and movies on television.
In our family, we like to play a little game each year around Christmas time where we go around the dinner table and tell each other what our favorite Christmas movie is.
And, every year, when it’s my turn to answer, everyone already knows what I’m going to say. “My favorite Christmas movie has to be A Charlie Brown Christmas.”
Now, I know it’s technically not a movie. It has a total run-time of about twenty-five minutes. But, it’s my answer, and I’m sticking to it.
To me, it just isn’t Christmas until I hear those beautiful, jazz arrangements of some of my favorite Christmas songs and watch the story unfold as Charlie Brown seeks to discover the true meaning of Christmas while he and his friends work to prepare for the local Christmas play.
A Charlie Brown Christmas premiered on December 9, 1965, and it was the first animated special featuring characters from the Peanuts comic strip.
It’ll celebrate its sixtieth anniversary next December, and it continues to be a meaningful tradition during the holidays for so many people.
At the beginning of the story, Charlie Brown tells his friends that he’s sad and depressed and that he just doesn’t understand the meaning of Christmas.
He knows that the expectation for Christmastime is joy and happiness, but he also knows that there has to be something more to Christmas than fancy decorations and extravagant gifts, the things in which all of his friends—including his pal, Snoopy—are most excited about.
Charlie Brown’s friends just don’t understand why he’s so upset.
At one point, his best friend Linus says to him, “Charlie Brown, of all the Charlie Browns in the world, you are the ‘Charlie Browniest’.”
Later in the story, Charlie Brown and Linus are assigned the important task of finding the perfect Christmas tree for the Christmas play.
When they arrive at the Christmas tree lot, they’re overwhelmed with a multitude of bright and colorful choices, but ultimately, Charlie Brown chooses a sad, little evergreen with only a few needles hanging from the branches.
Linus says to him, “I don’t know, Charlie Brown. It doesn’t seem to fit the modern spirit.”
Charlie Brown replies, “We’ll decorate it, and it will be just right for our Christmas play. Besides, I think it needs me.”
When Charlie Brown and Linus return to the auditorium to show their friends the new Christmas tree, Charlie Brown is teased and called names for choosing the sad, little tree.
Instead of choosing the biggest and brightest tree, he chose the smallest and most vulnerable, the tree that nobody else wanted, the one that needed the most care.
In that moment, after being teased by his friends, Charlie Brown is ready to give up on Christmas altogether. He says, “Everything I do turns into a disaster. I guess I really don’t know what Christmas is all about.”
Then, he asks, “Isn’t there anyone who knows what Christmas is all about?”
And, this is when it gets really good.
Standing beside him, his friend, Linus, replies, “Sure, Charlie Brown. I can tell you what Christmas is all about.”
Linus walks to the center of the stage, holding his trusty blanket.
The lights in the auditorium dim, and under a single spotlight, he recites a portion of the Nativity story from the Gospel according to Luke, the same Gospel lesson we heard just a few moments ago.
Quoting from the King James version of the Bible, Linus says…
“And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, ‘Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.’ And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.”
It’s my favorite part of the whole thing.
If you watch this scene closely, you’ll notice that Linus does something unexpected.
When he says the words, “Fear not,” he drops his blanket to the ground.
Then, after the monologue is over, Linus picks up his blanket, walks back over to his friend, and says, “That’s what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown.”
I love the symbolism of Linus dropping his blanket in the middle of the monologue.
Because, If you know anything about Linus, you know that he never goes anywhere without his trusty blanket.
It’s his most prized possession, his source of comfort and safety.
For Linus to drop his blanket as he’s reciting the story of Jesus’ birth is to send a message that Christmas is about more than presents under the tree and fancy decorations.
It’s about love overcoming fear and light overcoming the darkness.
You may not know this, but the decision to include this scene in A Charlie Brown Christmas was pretty controversial when it was written back in 1965.
The producers of the special suggested that it was too religious for national television, but Charles Schulz, the creator of the Peanuts comic strip, insisted that it be included.
In an early conversation about the scene, the producers told Schulz, “It’s very dangerous for us to start talking about religion now.”
Schulz simply responded, “If we don’t, who will?”
I think this is why A Charlie Brown Christmas is my all-time favorite.
Because it’s a little dangerous.
It takes risks and refuses to “play it safe” at a time when it would be much easier to simply tell a sweet, innocent Christmas story with no mention of Jesus whatsoever.
A Charlie Brown Christmas is bold and unexpected in its proclamation of the Gospel
While Charlie Brown and most of his friends are worried about things like presents and putting on the perfect Christmas play and finding the perfect Christmas tree, the character of Linus once again reminds us of why we celebrate this day in the first place.
You might say that, through Linus, God breaks into the story unexpectedly, similar to how he breaks into our own story of salvation—unexpectedly, being born of a human mother and living as one of us, fragile and vulnerable.
The story of Jesus’ birth is about God breaking into our story at a particular time and place in history in order to redeem us and lead us to the truth so that we may live the full and joyful lives that God intends for us.
It’s about God’s unending love for us and our call, as Christians, to share that love with the world.
It’s a timeless story that’s been handed down from generation to generation and one that continues with you and me, as members of the Body of Christ.
This was part of my children’s homily at the 3:00 service earlier today.
I reminded the children that Christmas isn’t just about something that happened a long time ago in a land far away from here.
It’s also a celebration of Jesus being born in each of us.
No matter where we go, we carry the light of Christ with us.
In every act of love and compassion, every time we share the story of God’s love with the world, Jesus is born anew.
So, as we celebrate the birth of the Christ-child on this Christmas Eve night, let us remember that, like Mary, we are called by God to carry Jesus with us and to be bearers of the Good News.
Let us remember that we are the hands and feet of Christ and that, through us, Jesus continues to be born and made known to the world.
Love itself has broken into our story so that we may learn a new way to live and serve as instruments of God’s love and compassion.
Let us be unafraid and unapologetic in our proclamation of the Gospel. In the words of Charles Schulz, “If we don’t, who will?” Amen.
The Rev. Eric Mancil 