P In the name of the Father and of the T Son and of the Holy Spirit.
C Amen.
373 SEE AMID THE WINTER’S SNOW
1 See amid the winter’s snow,
Born for us on earth below,
See, the gentle Lamb appears,
Promised from eternal years. Refrain
ref Hail, O ever-blessèd morn!
Hail, redemption’s happy dawn!
Sing through all Jerusalem:
“Christ is born in Bethlehem!”
2 Lo, within a stable lies
He who built the starry skies,
He who, throned in height sublime,
Sits amid the cherubim. Refrain
3 Sacred Infant, all divine,
What a tender love was Thine,
Thus to come from highest bliss
Down to such a world as this! Refrain
4 Teach, O teach us, holy Child,
By Thy face so meek and mild,
Teach us to resemble Thee
In Thy sweet humility. Refrain
Text: Public domain
COLLECT OF THE DAY
P O God, our Maker and Redeemer, You wonderfully created us and in the incarnation of Your Son yet more wondrously restored our human nature. Grant that we may ever be alive in Him who made Himself to be like us; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
OLD TESTAMENT READING Isaiah 11:1–5
1There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse,
and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit.
2And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him,
the Spirit of wisdom and understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and might,
the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
3And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord.
He shall not judge by what his eyes see,
or decide disputes by what his ears hear,
4but with righteousness he shall judge the poor,
and decide with equity for the meek of the earth;
and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth,
and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked.
5Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist,
and faithfulness the belt of his loins.
A This is the Word of the Lord.
EPISTLE 1 John 1:1—2:2
1That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— 2the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us— 3that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. 4And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.
5This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. 6If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. 8If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
1My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. 2He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.
A This is the Word of the Lord.
HOLY GOSPEL
P The Holy Gospel according to St. Luke, the second chapter.
33And his father and his mother marveled at what was said about him. 34And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed 35(and a sword will pierce through your own soul also), so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.”
36And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with her husband seven years from when she was a virgin, 37and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. She did not depart from the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day. 38And coming up at that very hour she began to give thanks to God and to speak of him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem.
39And when they had performed everything according to the Law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. 40And the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom. And the favor of God was upon him.
P This is the Gospel of the Lord.
APOSTLES’ CREED
C I believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth.
And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. He descended into hell. The third day He rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From thence He will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Christian Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life T everlasting. Amen.
SERMON
1 John 1:1-2 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, This is our text.
Today, December 27, is the 3rd day of Christmas. It is also the day set aside in the church to commemorate John, the disciple of Jesus and the 4th Evangelist. After Matthew, Mark and Luke, John wrote a gospel of the life, death and resurrection of the Lord, Jesus Christ. Later in his life, John was given a great vision of heaven and he was instructed to write it all down, so that’s what we have in the book of Revelation, the last book of the Bible. Also, John wrote 3 letters, epistles included in our Bible. Today’s Epistle is the first part of the first epistle of St. John.
In this Epistle, John describes for us the significance of the birth and the life, the death and the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. That life that he and the other disciples had come to know face-to-face, John now proclaims to the world.
In the first verse of this Epistle, John describes Jesus as being two very different things at the same time. First, he says, “that which was from the beginning.” Something eternal. Something Divine. Then John says, “that which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched.” Something physical, something earthly, something tangible, touchable.
In this way, John explains the complex person of Christ. He is at one and the same time Divine and human. Christ is the eternal, almighty God. And he is a human who was born in the humble circumstances of Bethlehem with physical flesh and blood, lived and died.
John wants to tell his readers about “That which was from the beginning. . .” The eternal truths about God Himself. The very stuff of Who God is. John has learned about such stuff, because He knew the human life of Jesus :that which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at, and our hands have touched. The eternal Word of God became a human being that could be seen with eyes, talked to with lips, listened to with ears, learned from with minds, and even touched with hands. The fullest revelation of who God is, came to earth in the flesh and blood of Jesus Christ. With the Holy Spirit’s inspiration, John now writes this down to tell others “to testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life.”
This story about the birth of Jesus, his incarnation by the Holy Spirit and birth by the Virigin Mary is not just a story. It is eternal life. Jesus’ life on earth from Bethlehem to Calvary is for us our life. John felt strongly that the World needs to hear about this.
Apart from this, the world doesn’t know much when it comes to life. The world, if left to its own to come up with an answer, has a rather twisted idea of what is life. Life on this earth, so it is said, has evolved from single celled organisms. That=s what we came from and when this little bit of life is over, that is, supposedly, what we will return to. We will be food for other single-celled organisms. Worm food. That=s what the world can come up with as an answer to the question what is life. Not very helpful is it. Kind of depressing if you think about it.
But Jesus is our eternal Life. There is so much more to us than just the many chemicals that make up our physical presence. Christ proved that when they laid His physical remains in the tomb and on the third He came out again as Risen Lord of Life.
St. John wants to tell others about this Life and the giver of this Life. He says in vs. 3, “We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.” St. John and the other apostles wanted others to share in the fellowship that they had with the others.
John is motivated with a hope that, as Jesus promised, more people and future generations would be brought into the fellowship and life with Jesus Christ. In the same way, Anna at the temple, at her advanced age, was excited about the redemption of her people. She praised God, thanking Him for keeping His promises. So likewise the shepherds at Christmas --We are told they returned praising God and telling everyone they met what they had heard and seen.
The Christian Church, throughout her long history, has always been an optimistic body. That’s why churches and cathedrals are erected. That’s why pastors and missionaries are trained and sent out. Because of the promise that this fellowship we have will continue. The formulators of the Augsburg Confession had this optimistic outlook when they wrote: “It is taught among us that one holy Christian church will be and remain forever.”
Let’s also be optimistic. It’s easy to fall into pessimism. When you see how the influence of the church is waning in our society. When you hear about churches who distort the word of God, twist it to say what they want to hear, or ignore the parts of it that make them uncomfortable. When the world around us seems more and more distant from what the Bible tells us things ought to be, it can make you wonder.
When numbers are down, when so many can’t come to church even if they want to, when many find the pandemic an easy excuse to not bother with the church, we long for a return to normal, yet these days can look worse and worse all the time.
“It is taught among us that one holy Christian church will be and remain forever.” The church will remain forever. We don=t know how, but it will. The Spirit will continue to work. Although we can’t see Him working, we know He’s there. We sing “Joy the earth, the Savior reigns”. We believe in this reign or our Lord and Savior, though it’s unseen. The Holy Spirit working through the lives and the words of men like St. John has kept that message going, kept this fellowship alive.
The message John proclaimed and wrote down is about Jesus. The message is Jesus. The last verse of our Epistle reading this morning says, (1 John 2:2 NIV) He is the propitiation, (that is, the sacrifice)for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world. Jesus is the eternal Life for us for all the world. May this be known among us and around the world. Amen.
PRAYER OF THE CHURCH
P O almighty and everlasting God, by your Word you created all things and even now uphold all things in heaven and on earth. We give thanks to you that you have not left your creation unattended, but have constantly cared for and nurtured it. We thank you that you have not remained silent, but by your word you have revealed yourself and your will to your creation. Most especially we praise you for revealing yourself to us by coming into the flesh, the incarnate Word, born of Mary.
On this day, December 27, we, your church, remembers the life and work of your Disciple and Apostle John. Merciful Lord, cast the bright beams of Your light upon Your Church that we, being instructed in the doctrine of Your blessed apostle and evangelist John, may come to the light of everlasting life; You granted John visions of your glory and the privilege of knowing and loving you personally during the time of your ministry on earth. By your teaching and by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit John received and gave the message that you are the Bread of Life, the Resurrection and the Life, the Good Shepherd, the Word made flesh. May generations continue to hear the Gospels and writings of St. John, and through them be led to faith in you.
O Father, most loving, grant that we who are under the yoke of sin, may in Christ be redeemed and reborn both in body and spirit, to be your ever obedient servants. Empower us by your spirit to do those works that are fitting for a life of repentance and faith. Prosper each in their rightful vocation at home, on the job and in the community. Grant wisdom, health and strength to those who make, administer and judge our laws. Bless our children, that they grow in body and in faith. Watch over all parents. Keep safe those who travel.
We pray for our sick, our hurt or troubled loved ones, those dear to us who can’t be with us because of the pandemic. Grant to them whatever you know is best for them. And assure them of your ongoing care and full salvation.
As we count our blessings at the end of this year, we look to you for all help and strength for the days to come. Guide us your people. Heal us. Have mercy on us all.
LORD’S PRAYER
C Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven; give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen.
BENEDICAMUS LSB 202
A Bless we the Lord.
C Thanks be to God.
BENEDICTION LSB 202
P The Lord bless you and keep you.
The Lord make His face shine upon you and be gracious unto you.
The Lord lift up His countenance upon you and T give you peace.
C Amen.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Created by Lutheran Service Builder © 2020 Concordia Publishing House.
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