"Unto You A Child Is Born"
"Unto You Is Born!"
Luke 2: 1-14
We have heard the Christmas story.
The angel of the Lord is God's messenger carrying the news of the Christmas story.
"To you is born this day a Savior," says the angel of the Lord.
First, the news of the birth of the child in Bethlehem is quite different from the news
of the arrival of any emperor or king.
The angel of the Lord points to Bethlehem, saying, "For to you is born this day a Saviour."
For our sake God became man.
For us He emptied Himself that we may be exalted.
For us He gave Himself that we may be lifted up and drawn unto Him.
The Christmas story is a story that is enacted with us and for us.
The news of the birth of the child in Bethlehem is not to be likened to a statement
made in a textbook.
A professor would perhaps have said: "To mankind is born a Savior."
So what?
We are apt to deduce that mankind in general does not include me.
We would conclude that it is only meant for others.
The angel of the Lord points to the shepherds and also points to us.
His news is directly addressed to us: "To you is born this day a Savior!"
You, regardless of who you are, whether or not you understand the message,
whether or not you are good and pious people.
The news is meant for you!
For your benefit the Christmas story happened.
The news of the birth of a child in Bethlehem affects us differently than the morning mail.
When the mailman arrives, we eagerly ask: "Anything for me?"
Then, we take the letter and withdraw to read it.
We resent intruders peeping over our shoulder.
We want to read our letter alone, since this is a private matter.
In contrast, the event of Bethlehem is not a private matter.
"To you is born this day a Savior."
It is true that the angel of the Lord points to you and to me, individually, yet he addresses
us corporately.
His news binds us together like brothers and sisters who share a wonderful present from their father.
No one is first, no one is last, no one gets preference, no one gets short-changed,
and most important, not a single one goes wanting.
Where there is no communion with the Saviour, there is no communion among brothers,
and where there is no communion among brothers, there is no communion with the Saviour.
The one is not possible without the other.
This is the message of the angel "to you," and we should keep it in mind.
"To you -- this day!" Says the angel of the Lord.
A new day dawned in the middle of the night.
Christ Himself was and is the sun of this day and of every day.
The new day is not only Christmas Day, it is the day of our life.
This day refers not only to the past, to ";once upon a time."
Far from it!
Today, the angel of the Lord announces the same news that he announced to the shepherds.
We hear of a possible new beginning in our human relations and conditions, in the history
of our lives, and even in the history of the world.
We may take courage, pull ourselves together, and venture a new start.
Human experience does not warrant such confidence, yet this is the assurance of the angel of the Lord.
Because the Saviour is born -- a new day has dawned!
This day implies not only tomorrow.
It does imply tomorrow!
He who was born on that first Christmas Day will not die ever again, but lives and reigns eternally.
Yet, we are not to dwell on the morrow.
"Let's wait and see" is a dangerous attitude!
Who knows, if we shall be around tomorrow?
The Saviour will be there, but what about us?
A Swiss writer Jeremias Gotthelf once said: "Life is not a light; a light can
be kindled again: life is a fire given by God to burn on earth just once and never more."
Let us heed the warning lest we miss the hour of this fire right here and now.
And now we here: "To you this day is born a Savior"!
This is the very heart of the Christmas story.
To you this day is born a Savior.
What does the word Savior, convey?
The Saviour is He, who brings us salvation, granting us all things needed for our lives.
He is the helper, the liberator, the redeemer.
He is God and He stands by us.
He rescues us.
He delivers us from death itself.
We live because He, the Saviour, is with us.
The Saviour is the One who has provided salvation to us, free of charge.
We do not deserve it.
We cannot buy it.
If we could, we could not afford it.
All we are asked to do is to stretch out our hands, and receive the gift, and to be thankful.
The Saviour brings salvation to all, without reservation or exception because we all need Him,
and because He is the Son of God.
To you this day is born a Savior!
Sermon by Dr. Harold L. White
