Christmas Eve 2021
Welcome
We are so glad to be with you. Everything you need to participate is right here except for communion elements (bread and wine) and candles for our send off.
This evening is structured in a way that you can discuss and engage with the other people you’re celebrating with or just reflect individually.
If you’re joining us live, we’ll take care of streaming all of the videos and songs over Google Meet. Join us using the meeting link below.
Pause to be still
As I enter prayer now, I pause to be still; to breathe slowly; to re-center my scattered senses upon the presence of God.
PRAYER OF APPROACH
Holy Spirit, my hope and my comforter, would you awaken my heart, expand my mind and shape my perception and understanding according to the Truth and Hope that you brought to this dark world, to all humanity.
Rejoice and reflect
We’ll start this evening by listening to and reflecting on Forward by Poor Bishop Hooper.
Listen
Was it a frantic beauty
Or a calculated mess
When the Formless darkness your spirit sorted
Out of hiding
Architect and builder same
Light then life came
All is right and beautiful
‘Let’s make man the pinnacle, let’s make man the pinnacle’
Men couldn’t find his stride
Try and try but wipe the slate
Then Abraham with perfect promise, perfect promise
Armed your people with your faithfulness
Split red oceans at your wishes
Walked your chosen into life
Zion land and prophets countless
None could answer the question quite right
Reflect
From formless darkness, God breathes, and his breath is full of light and life. The Bible tells the beautiful story of God, a being who is Love itself. Simply put, that means that in God we see and experience the ultimate example of what love is: patient, kind, trusting, humble, selfless, forgiving, merciful, just, truthful, protective, persevering, hopeful, and sacrificial. It is far better than anything we could ever hope for or imagine on our own.
What Christmas is all about
Let’s watch this next video from the BibleProject about the story of the Bible so that we can better understand Christmas.
Advent
Over the last month, we’ve been in a season called Advent. Advent is not just a title for the four weeks leading up to Christmas. It has been an opportunity for us to meditate on the strange and unexpected way that God sent the Messiah to His people after thousands of years of waiting.
Today, we are on the other side of that history. We have been talking about how Jesus, the Messiah, came to lay the cornerstone of the upside-down kingdom that God is building on earth. It’s a kingdom unlike anything the world has ever seen. One that welcomes all people, regardless of their social standing. One that throws out human power structures—creating peace among all people by leveling the playing field. One that does so through adoption—inviting us all into the same family. It’s not anything close to the political kingdom the Israelites expected, which would rise up and take vengeance on Assyrians, Babylonians, Egyptians, and Romans who had ruled over them throughout history. Instead, it’s one of restored relationships. All of the sons and daughters of God together living in perfect unity.
Right before Jesus is put to death, He prays for God to make that reality come true.
20 “I am praying not only for these disciples but also for all who will ever believe in me through their message. 21 I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one—as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me.
22 “I have given them the glory you gave me, so they may be one as we are one. 23 I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me. 24 Father, I want these whom you have given me to be with me where I am. Then they can see all the glory you gave me because you loved me even before the world began!
25 “O righteous Father, the world doesn’t know you, but I do; and these disciples know you sent me. 26 I have revealed you to them, and I will continue to do so. Then your love for me will be in them, and I will be in them.”
—John 17:20-26
The lives of people who have been transformed by this unifying truth are marked by four characteristics: hope, peace, joy, and love.
Hope
Even when we see evil and oppression all around us, Jesus brings hope that transcends us just wishing for circumstances to change. Biblical hope is looking forward to a new heaven and new earth where there is no more evil, oppression, crying, hurt, or pain. Where all people and all of creation are living in perfect unity.
Peace
Even when experience broken relationships and injustices, Jesus promises to bring Shalom—wholeness, restoration, completion. Biblical peace is being confident that Jesus has already done the hard work of liberating us from the sin that divides us, so now we can work toward unity with one another.
Joy
Even in a world full of darkness, loss, and selfishness, Jesus gives us the ability to be joyful without ignoring or burying our sorrow. “[Biblical] joy is an attitude God’s people adopt, not because of happy circumstances, but because of their hope in God’s love and promise.” —The Bible Project
Love
Even when other people are evil toward us, cheat us, or revile us, Jesus enables us to love them unconditionally. Biblical love flows from a security that we have received everything we could ever need and more through Jesus Christ, so we have nothing to lose and nothing to prove.
The coming of Christ
Jesus didn’t just talk the talk about hope, peace, joy, and love. He entered into complete brokenness and set an example for what it looks like. He was born to a woman who the law would condemned to death because of her extramarital conception. He descended from a long line of people who famously broke every one of the 10 commandments: idolatry, taking the Lord’s name in vain, abusing the Sabbath, dishonoring their parents, murder, adultery, theft and scams, habitual lying, and coveting. He came into a society of Roman oppression and dogmatic religious leadership who couldn’t have been further from God. He came to a people who were the lowest of the low in the Roman Empire. And he, in the most antithetical way possible—through His own humiliation—made true reconciliation possible for all people.
4 But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, 5 that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead.
14 For Christ himself has brought peace to us. He united Jews and Gentiles into one people when, in his own body on the cross, he broke down the wall of hostility that separated us. 15 He did this by ending the system of law with its commandments and regulations. He made peace between Jews and Gentiles by creating in himself one new people from the two groups. 16 Together as one body, Christ reconciled both groups to God by means of his death on the cross, and our hostility toward each other was put to death.
—Ephesians 2:14-5, 4-16
Let’s listen to the genealogy of the Messiah, Jesus Christ, and celebrate that he truly came as a human.
Communion
First, we’re going to read the final piece of the story of Jesus’ coming into the world. When we’re done with that, we’ll have some time to break bread and drink wine together in remembrance that Jesus not only came to the world, but he suffered and died so that all people for all time could be unified in Him!
At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. 2 (This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census. 4 And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David’s ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee. 5 He took with him Mary, to whom he was engaged, who was now expecting a child.
6 And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. 7 She gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them.
8 That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. 9 Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, 10 but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people.11 The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! 12 And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.”
13 Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying,
14 “Glory to God in highest heaven,
and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.”15 When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
16 They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger. 17 After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. 18 All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, 19 but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often. 20 The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them.
—Luke 2:1-19
Let’s take a moment to light the Christ candle and then take communion while we listen to this next song.
Listen
Psalm 78 by Poor Bishop Hooper
o people listen incline your ear
to the mysteries to the teaching here
things that we have heard, things that we have known
parables our fathers told oh no we won’t hide them
we’ll let the children hear
he divided the sea and let them pass through it
made the waters stand there as a heap
in the day he lead by cloud, but with fire in the night
he split the rock for water so they could drink
he opened up the skies the very doors of heaven
poured the bread of angels there to eat
by his very might on the wind he fulfilled every hungering
in spite of all of this they sinned they sinned
in spite of all of this they rebelled again
in spite of all of this they sinned they sinned
he had made the river blood sent the swarms to devour
he gave the crops to beasts the harvest of their labor
the hail destroyed the vine the flocks by lighted sky
amidst the thundercloud
he let loose his anger by a company of angels
and when the path was made from death he wouldn’t save
struck down the firstborn first fruits of egypt’s strength
then he lead his people out
in spite of all of this they sinned they sinned
in spite of all of this they rebelled again
in spite of all of this they sinned they sinned
so full of wrath God rose against his own laid low
the young men and the strong they fell
he delivered up his glory into fire all consuming
the women had no marriage song the priests fell by the sword
the widows they made no lament
but then the lord
full of compassion
his anger was restrained
yet full of compassion
he remembered them again
yet full of compassion
with a pure heart and skillful hand
yet full of compassion
he remembered them again
Jesus came and will return
To conclude our evening, let’s spend time listening to or singing Silent Night together.
After the first verse, we’re going to light candles to symbolize Jesus, the Light of the World, coming to dwell with us. One person can begin by lighting a candle and then sharing the flame from person to person. Jesus came to restore relationships, to bring unity, and to pass his Light from person to person.
Listen
Silent Night by Lauren Daigle
Silent night, Holy night
All is calm, all is bright
Round yon virgin, mother and child
Holy infant so tender and mild
Sleep in heavenly peace
Sleep in heavenly peace
[Light your candles]
Silent night, Holy night
Shepherds quake, at the sight
Glories stream from heaven afar
Heavenly hosts sing Alleluia
Christ the Savior is born
Christ our Savior is born
Silent night, Holy night
Son of God, love's pure light
Radiant beams from Thy holy face
With the dawn of redeeming grace
Jesus, Lord at Thy birth
Jesus, Lord at Thy birth
Closing Prayer
Father, help me to live each day to the full, being true to You, in every way.
Jesus, help me to give myself away to others, being kind to everyone I meet.
Spirit, help me to love the lost, proclaiming Christ in all I do and say.
Amen.
Merry Christmas!
Go in peace.