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Luke 2:1-20 (Christmas Eve)
Earlier this week I came across a list of weird and funny phobias and I’d like to share a few of them with you. Keep in mind that these are all legitimate phobias or fears that people suffer from. First, a couple of the more common ones: glossophobia – fear of public speaking; achluophobia – fear of the dark; and monophobia – fear of being alone. Here’s a few that I found rather humorous: Maybe some of you are suffering from leukophobia right now – fear of the color white; or perhaps your family is in town and you are paralyzed with pentheraphobia – fear of your mother-in-law; or maybe you’ve never tasted a PB&J sandwich because you suffer from arachibutyrophobia- which is the fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof of the mouth. And here’s one that many Lutherans happen to be afflicted with: kainophobia – the fear of anything new. While these are all kind of humorous, fear is one of the strongest and most powerful emotions that we can experience, and we are all afraid of something. Think for a moment about what that might be for you. What are you afraid of? What are you worried about or burdened with? Maybe it is around finances, or relationship problems, or being alone. Maybe you are worried about your children or what’s going to happen when your parents see your report card. [I know many of you here at Christ the King are extremely worried about what the future holds for this congregation.] Often fear is called by other names, such as shame, shyness, nervous humor, false bravado, or even grief. Terrorists know how powerful fear can be and our nation is at war right now because of this one powerful emotion. Sometimes our fears are justified, but fear is equally as powerful even if it is irrational or simply imagined. You might even say that at times we are slaves to fear because it controls so much of our lives. I wanted to talk about fear this evening because not only does it permeate and effect almost every part of our life, it is also at the origin of the Christmas story that we are so familiar with. Imagine the fear that Joseph must’ve felt when he found out that his fiancé was pregnant and it wasn’t by him. The Bible is clear that he feared their relationship could not continue. Undoubtedly, he felt some shame and fear about what it would do to his own reputation. Yet he was also worried about Mary’s reputation and planned to dismiss her quietly. Perhaps, like Joseph, you fear that your spouse or loved one has been unfaithful to you. Perhaps you are worried about what the future holds for a relationship on the rocks. Perhaps, you are simply afraid of losing someone you love and finding yourself alone. These are all legitimate fears that Joseph also felt – you are not alone in your fears. But also know this – that God broke into Joseph’s world and sent a messenger who’s very first words to Joseph were these, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid.” Tonight Jesus, the light, has entered into OUR darkness and we no longer have to be afraid. Imagine the fear that Mary must’ve felt when she heard the first words from the angel Gabriel, “Greetings favored one! The Lord is with you.” The Bible says that she was greatly perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. Perhaps she was afraid of what might be expected of her. Maybe she had heard the stories of prophets and the hardships of others who had been called into the service of the Lord. Maybe she was worried about how her life might change. While being favored by the Lord sounds like a really good thing, it also carries with it an enormous responsibility. Like Mary, maybe you feel burdened by expectations and are worried about either getting everything done or not letting people down. Perhaps you have a fear of failure and that you aren’t good enough for what you are being called or asked to do. Perhaps you are simply overwhelmed with life right now and feel entirely helpless. If this is you, you are not alone in your fears. Mary soon learned that there were indeed going to be very high expectations of her and she had lots of concerns. Yet God broke into her world and the angel continued his announcement with, “Do not be afraid, Mary.” Tonight, Jesus the light, has entered into OUR darkness and we no longer have to be afraid. Imagine the fears that the shepherds must’ve felt as they were laying around in the middle of the night staring at the stars, probably telling dirty jokes or something, when all of the sudden the sky fills with lights and fireworks and there’s a really weird scary guy in front of them. The Bible says that they were terrified, as I’m sure any of us would be. Angels in the Bible weren’t these flowery looking things with flowing white robes and little wings and halos all playing harps. The Old Testament describes angels as scary beings, with six wings all flapping at the same time, some with four faces, filled with fire, lights and sirens and wheels spinning all around them, with big booming voices that shook the doorposts, filling the Temple with smoke, burning people’s tongues with hot coals. Those angels could be scary dudes – not nearly as sweet or precious as our little dancing angels. No wonder the shepherds were terrified, yet there was that phrase again, “Do not be afraid.” Right. The world is filled with crazy things, much of which we don’t understand and much of which is very scary. Yet perhaps, one of the scariest things for all of us is simply the fear of the unknown. When we can’t control something ourselves, when strange or difficult things happen to us either good or bad, we can become overwhelmed with fear, not knowing how it is all going to turn out. Yet God breaks into this scary world of the unknown. He brings hope into the darkness of our fears by giving us something, rather someone that can be known – Jesus Christ – and we no longer have to be afraid. Do not be afraid, for see, I am bringing you good news of great joy for all people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord. As with most young children, I hated the dark at bedtime. I never knew what monsters lay under the bed or what demons lurked in the closet. After my parents tucked me in, I always asked them to leave the door open just a crack so that I wouldn’t be in complete darkness. Somehow, just this little bit of light, this crack in the doorway was enough to calm my fears and allow me to sleep. Tonight, on Christmas Eve, God cracks the door open for us. He doesn’t abandon us in our fears, he doesn’t try to convince us that they aren’t real, he doesn’t even really rescue us from them. On this evening, he simply cracks the door, and lets a little bit of the light shine into the darkness, and brings us hope in the form of a little baby. This Calvin & Hobbes cartoon also sums it up fairly well:
Do not be afraid, for tonight the Lord enters our darkness, shares our pain, and meets us in those places where we are afraid. This little baby, who wants to be your best friend, will be by your side when your relationships fall apart and when you are alone. He will give you rest when you feel overwhelmed. He promises to walk with you into the unknown. This little baby, who wants to be your best friend, will bring light into your darkness, and the darkness will not overcome him. For darkness and fear will come down with a serious case of photophobia – the fear of the light. This little baby Jesus, this little Savior has cracked open the doorway to heaven, releasing it’s light, and that door will never be closed again. You no longer have to be afraid. Amen.
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