St. Matthew 2:13–23
In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
On Christmas Day, I made the case that all people who celebrate Christmas are paying homage to the birth of Christ in some way, whether they know it or believe it or not. And it’s true that no one would be celebrating Christmas at all, it would not exist, if Christ had not been born. It is a thoroughly Christian holiday.
But recently, I did see something on Facebook where at least a couple people did a pretty good job of using their celebration of Christmas to spit in Christ’s face. They said, “It is literally impossible to top our [tree] topper.” And the picture they shared showed the top of their Christmas tree with a “star” made out of surgical instruments, specifically the forceps, scissors, and knives that are used to cut, kill, and tear up the little body of a unborn baby still in his mother’s womb: #ProAbortion #Christmas.
Can you imagine, celebrating Christmas, which is the birth of a Child, while also celebrating the murder of children? That is Satanic. If you think our society and culture is basically still Christian, decent, respectful of life… Wake up. All the talk of health and safety these days is outrageous, not because it’s wrong to care about health or safety, but because most of the people doing it are also fine with letting the elderly die alone and letting, or even cheering on, the willful destruction of human life in the womb.
There are more and more people in our day who openly despise Christ and His Church, who openly flout God’s Law and are proud about it, and who want to actively punish God’s people. And yet, our culture is not that different from Jerusalem at the time of the first Christmas or throughout Jesus’ life. They also despised God’s Law, persecuted God’s true people, and finally killed Christ and the first members of His Church. And that disgusting tree topper is not really that different from how King Herod celebrated the first Christmas, by murdering all the little boys in the town of Bethlehem.
I’m sorry if all this is making you feel a little uncomfortable. But sometimes it’s good to be made uncomfortable, to really see and recognize evil. But today is supposed to be the Tenth Day of Christmas, and none of this sounds very Christmassy. But Christmas has its dark side: a pregnant teen, not technically married; no family willing to help or give the couple a place to stay better than the barn; the only ones interested in this birth are a group of outcasts: poor shepherds and weird foreigners; then fleeing out of the country in the middle of the night; little babies killed and mothers weeping. That is the Christmas story. So much of it is stained and scarred by evil.
Yet, the story of Christmas and the story of Christ’s entire life and work, is that God uses evil for good. We know that for those who love God all things work together for good (Rom. 8:28). The Baby born on Christmas is the Lord who was born in order to die. The only reason He escaped Herod’s rage, while others were killed, was so that He could die at the proper time and in the proper way. His death, not in Bethlehem but on the cross, means He can give life to all, including the babies who are killed by Herod’s soldiers. There was certainly tragedy in that first Christmas story, just as there was tragedy in that first Easter story, but the end of this story is God working wonders, bringing saints out of sinners, bringing life out of death.
Our problem is that when we are in the midst of the tragic parts to our story we cannot see the good that God is working. We know He is working for our good but we only know that by faith in the resurrection of Christ and faith in our resurrection to come. In the midst of the death and darkness we don’t understand where the good will come from. In God’s wisdom, evil is permitted to continue. And when we experience it, we don’t have the answers to our questions. Why are millions of babies slaughtered in their mothers’ wombs? Or why does a child die in the womb from sickness or defect? Why are young men killed in war or in accidents? Why are families are torn apart by adultery, divorce, abuse, drugs? Why are people are forced from their homes? Why do so many lose the safety or convenience they once knew? Why are Christians imprisoned or killed? Why does a congregation fall on hard times? We don’t have all the answers to these questions. Or at least we don’t have the answers to solve these problems and rid the world of these evils.
Instead of answering the questions, we trust God’s mercy. We know that He is faithful, that He forgives all sins, that He desires life for us and with us. We know this because He gave His own Son for us and for the world. There is no sin that is not covered by the blood of God’s holy child, not even the sin of Herod, the sin of murdering an innocent baby. If that is true, then we may not despair in the face of evil. We take comfort in knowing that whatever else happens, God is merciful. And so we go on doing what He has given us to do. As St. Peter said in our Epistle: Let those who suffer according to God's will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good (1 Peter 4:19).
When tragedy and suffering and death invade our lives, or when openly wicked people seem to surround us and shove their wickedness in our faces, we probably wish that none of this would happen to us. And so do all who live to see such times, but that is not for us to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us. *
Sometimes all we can do is have a good cry in the arms of a family member or friend, read a couple Bible verses, and go for a walk. Sometimes all we can do is take the next tiny step, do the next right thing, like focus on teaching just our own children or grandchildren about what is good and right, and forget about the rest of society. And maybe that’s just in a passing conversation. Maybe for one day it’s just saying your prayers together. What we do to keep the darkness at bay is usually very small, and might even feel like it doesn’t help much in the grand scheme of things. We may not even be able to see the light at the end of the tunnel, but we know that Light is coming. That Light (with a capital “L”) was born for us in the evil darkness that covers this world. Our Light was born in the night of sin where the devil seems to have his way. But that Light was born and His Day is coming, when all evil will be exposed, and all things wrong will be put to right, and children will be given back to their mothers and fathers, and even the most wicked sinners who have turned back to God’s Son will be welcomed into His home.
In the three days following Christmas, we remember a group of saints who departed this life while confessing, witnessing to the Holy Child of Bethlehem. They are all martyrs, but in different ways.
One Dec. 26, we remember St. Stephen, the first martyr of the New Testament Church. He was a martyr in will and in deed. That means he was willing to die for the testimony he gave about Christ and he did. He was stoned to death by the Jewish rulers.
On Dec. 27, we gave thanks to God for His Apostle and Evangelist, St. John. St. John was a martyr in will but not in deed. He was willing to die for his Lord and Master, but as far as we know he died of old age, the last of the apostles, yet giving testimony of the Gospel until the very end.
On Dec. 28, we remember the Holy Innocents, the little boys of Bethlehem, who died at the hand of Herod’s soldiers. They were martyrs in deed but not in will. They were killed because of Christ, but they were not able to choose to do so willingly. And yet the Church has always regarded them as holy martyrs, champions of the cross who now rest in joy and peace around the throne of God. For as I said before, God worked good through this evil event. His Son was spared from Herod’s cruel order, but ultimately He was put to death as the one true martyr of all martyrs: the One who died in our place and did so totally willingly, freely, even joyfully suffering, for the glory that is rightfully His and is also shared with us.
So, if we must suffer, if we must die, then let us do so willingly, while trusting the One who willingly suffered and died for us at the proper time; trusting in the One who also rose from the dead so that He can raise us all at the proper time and crown us with His own glory and honor. This means that whenever tragedy strikes, when we don’t have the answers to our questions in the face of evil, what we need to do every time is repent.
Let us kill the evil in ourselves. Let us die before our deaths, and so be given a different kind of life. This is life found only in God’s forgiveness, so that whenever death comes we can lie down in our graves like little children lie down in their beds; with trust, like a child as his mother and father tuck him in bed and kiss him goodnight, and with blamelessness, like the baby boys of Bethlehem who did no wrong, for in Christ we are truly holy innocents. Let us lie down in death with the full confidence of a child who knows morning will come, we will open our eyes, and we will see our loving Father.
We still grieve, we still suffer, and we still die, but with hope. For although we are separated now from loved ones, although we bear the burdens and scars of sin and death, the birth of God’s Son means that all of God’s children will be brought home and reunited at last.
In the Holy + Name of Jesus. Amen.
* Loosely quoted from J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring
