Be not afraid,
it is a greeting
that we hear several times
throughout the Christmas Holiday
It is how the Angel Gabriel
first addressed St. Mary
when he came to tell her
that she would bear the savior of the nations
Be not afraid Mary
for you have
found favor with God
It is how the Angel of the Lord
addressed the Shepherds
when they were in the fields
tending their flock
on the first Christmas Night
Be not afraid, for behold
I bring you good news
of a great joy which will come
to all the people;
In fact,
three times
in the first two chapters
of St. Luke’s Gospel
We find the Angel of the Lord
telling somebody to be not afraid
And about 10 times
in the four Gospels
we find Jesus himself
telling people be not afraid
And I would say of all the messages
we hear at Christmas time
besides the birth of Christ
this is the important message
Be not afraid
No, you probably will never see it
posted on the front of a Christmas Card
because it does not go along with
the presents and joy we associate
with Christmas
But it is truly one of the most important
and most comforting messages
we hear during the Christmas Season
be not afraid
There are many things in our society
that could set us on edge,
that could make us worry
or be concerned
Especially in a year
when we have seen so many natural disasters
effect so many of our brothers and sisters
in Christ’s lives
In a year
where we have seen many young men and women
in the Armed Services injured or killed
while fighting overseas
In a year
where we have seen plain crashes
train wrecks
and car accidents claim
the lives of many
In a year
where church attendance declined a little more
and consequently so did brotherly love
and morals in our society
In a year where we have seen
great highs in gas and heating prices
and great lows in economic development
In the simple fact,
that 2006 makes all of us
one more year older
But even when we see these things occurring
when we see things that may cause anxiety
or concern about our future
Gabriel’s Christmas greeting should be ringing
in our ears
louder than anything that this
world has to say
be no afraid
Be not afraid because your God is in control
be not afraid,
because your God has bought and paid
for your eternal life through
Christ Jesus our Lord
So that no matter what happens to our today’s
through the gift of the Messiah
our tomorrows are assured
in God’s eternal kingdom
And nothing can take that from us
Be no afraid,
because your God is still at work
in the midst of all that is occurring
Yes, there was a devastating hurricane in the Gulf Coast,
but the next day
before the Government
or anybody else could react
there stood the Salvation Army’s trucks
offering food,
offering clothing
offering God’s hope
Yes, there is a mass genocide occurring in the Sudan
but five denominations
are now working closer than they
have ever worked before
to offer hope and help
in that region
Yes, we can see the negative,
the catastrophic events
the bad things that occur in our world
but in every one of those events
if we look at little bit further
we will see God at work in them
Saying you cannot win,
this is my world
and I still love it
Be not afraid
Because through the birth of the Messiah
God has given us the gift of Emmanuel
which means God is with us
So that no matter where we go,
or what we do
or what we encounter
God will be right with us
Through the birth of the Messiah
God has shown us that he will always love us
and he will never leave us alone
God will never forsake us
he will never leave us hanging out
there to figure things out on our own
But he has given us Jesus Christ
and through Jesus Christ
God has pitched a tent in our world
saying I am not going anywhere
So that we have the God
who created the heavens and the earth
the God who is the author and creator
of all life
Just a prayer a way
willing and able to give us
strength, grace and guidance
As Martin Luther wrote
in his famous hymn A Mighty Fortress
“For God himself fights by our side”
So we do not have to worry about
what I am going to do
how am I going to get by
will everything be okay
The answer is yes
Because no matter what
our God is and will always be with us
promising to give us what we need
and assuring us that we will have the
strength to get through
so we need not be afraid
Be not afraid,
because the darkness
did not overcome the light
as our Gospel lesson for today tells us
Many times throughout history,
the darkness has tried to conquer
the light of the world
Many times
it has looked like the darkness
has won or is winning
and the light will be extinguished
It looked that way to the disciples
on Good Friday when Christ
hung bleeding on a cross
and then was laid in a tomb
It looked like all hope was lost
and that the darkness
the devil
sin,
death
and evil had won
But lo and behold
on that glorious morning
the light shone once again
brighter than it had ever shine before
Which showed this world
which showed the disciples
which should show us
that nothing
nothing can conquer or stop
the light of God Almighty
The Light that God sent into this world
on that first Christmas
through his Son, Jesus Christ
The light of God
shone through Christ Jesus our Lord
shines still just as bright today
piercing the darkness of our world
Because the darkness did not
can not
and will not ever
overcome the light
As Christians we should always remember
The light will always shine
which means
God’s promises
God’s grace
and God’s gift of eternal life
will never be extinguished
So we cannot give up hope
we cannot look out and say
well that is it
we can’t do anything
But we need to realize
the light cannot be stopped
so neither should we
The gift of Christmas
the gift of the Messiah
the gift of God’s only son
Shows us that the darkness did not
and cannot overcome the light
so the light still shines brightly into our society
so we need not ever be afraid.
Through the birth of the Messiah into our world
it shows us that our God does not
sit up in heaven watching us from afar
But our God is right in the midst of our society
so that his light
can shine into every crack
every corner
every place
offering us hope,
when it appears to be hopeless
offering us joy
when all others around us
are in despair
Offering peace,
in the midst of confusion and uncertainty
The light the shone forth from that manger
over two thousand years ago
calling the Shepherds
guiding the wise men
announcing the birth of the King
still shines just as brightly today
It still shines just as brightly in our churches
even though attendance
may not be what it once way
It still shines just as brightly
into our hospital rooms
when the doctor says
I am sorry it is terminal
It still shines just as brightly into our lives
even though there is
uncertainty or confusion from time to time
The Light still shines
and always will shine
just as brightly into this world
but we have to be willing to look
for it.
The darkness did not
cannot not
and will not overcome the light
So we need not be afraid
because our God
the God of love
is and will always be in control
Be not afraid,
for I bring you good news
the light of the world still is burning brightly
