Return to Sermon Index	"The Lion and the Lamb"

Isaiah 9:2-7; Titus 2:11-14; Luke 2:1-14 (15-20)

Today is a very special day for us. Not only is it Christmas Day but it is also a Sunday. Today is called by many, a high holy day, yet others groan about Christmas being on a Sunday as though being that it is Christmas Day we should be home celebrating with our families around the Christmas tree, fixing a big meal of turkey with all the trimmings and allowing our children to play with their toys which came from Santa, than to have to somehow work going to church into the schedule. But I say to you: what better place to celebrate Christmas morning than in God's house with our Christian family of brothers and sisters in Christ?

Christmas and Sunday are not opposites. Yet, in our lives we hear unique combinations which go together but make sense and yet nonsense. Life is full of strange combinations. For example, the combination of the words "fresh frozen" somehow doesn't make sense, but we still know what it means. Or, take the phrases "pretty ugly," or "jumbo shrimp," or "holy war," or "inactive Christian." All such strange combinations are called oxymorons.

A recent oxymoron was heard last night. We sang the hymn "Silent Night" but is Christmas Eve ever silent for most people? Many people are in a mad rush to finish their shopping or for some, to start it. Instead of waiting for Christmas, thinking and praying about Christ's coming to us, many hear, instead, the rush of trampling feet, the chatter of voices in a shopping mall, the sound of cash registers ringing, and, of course, parking lots filled with screeches and honking. These are the sounds of silent night on Christmas Eve. And, then, of course, there is Christmas Day, with the fighting of the kids over the TV or the CD player, or the sound of the holiday chef busy in the kitchen trying to get the meal ready for the table. Or there is the sound of the official toy assembler groaning, banging, or cursing with the hammer and screwdriver in hand.

Yet, with it all, on Christmas Eve and Day, it is appropriate that our times be filled with sound and turmoil. Everything about Christmas is an oxymoron!

You see, Christmas celebrates the birth of a little baby boy named Jesus. It was a turbulent time in which he was born. A world wide tax was forcing people to travel to register in their hometowns. King Herod was uneasy about the signs in the sky. Mary and Joseph had to travel to Bethlehem. Mary was p.g., but not by Joseph. And when they got to Bethlehem, tired as they were, she was in labor. Joseph had no room at an Inn, so he found a stable behind an Inn. Jesus was born in a stable among the animals. He was born in human flesh, yet he was the Son of God. He was born to Mary and Joseph who were poor and insignificant, who couldn't even find a room in an Inn. Yet in that stable, 2,000 years ago the shepherds came and knelt before the manger, and a very bright star was in the eastern sky.

Christmas celebrates, as well, the coming of the divine messianic king into our world. Just as the people of Mary and Joseph's day were looking for a messiah, we look for the Christ to return to free this world from sin. This combination of opposites, this oxymoron, makes Christmas true.

Our Old Testament reading from Isaiah shares the oxymoronic qualities of the divine/human child/king when he relates the names and qualities of this ruler. The ruler would be known as a wonderful counselor which meant he would be the intimate, personal Savior, who would offer wisdom, insight and advice. At the time Isaiah wrote this he saw the disastrous rule of Ahaz. Ahaz was not wise, his judgment was poor, Judah was in trouble. The borders were being breached and an outside enemy was soon to overtake them. It was a dark time. Oppression would soon be upon the people. What was needed was a personal Savior who had wisdom, insight and advice. This Savior would be the one who would hear the pains of the people, our anxieties, our fears. He would be one to hold our hands when we are lonely or hurting, or offer a shoulder to cry on when we are sad. Jesus is the one who "walks with me and talks with me."

But not only would this child/man be a supernatural, wonderful counselor. This human/divine person would have the quality of being Almighty God because the "Christ" would come pouring through. This Christ, this divine, according to Isaiah, would be a "godlike warrior." He would combat evil, create good, control the universe. Certainly, even today we need the reassurance of an Almighty God on our side when we confront the forces of hatred and violence in this world. Wrong must be made right! We depend upon Almighty God to see us through the confusion of our brief lifetime on earth.

The second set of names Isaiah lists about this human/divine person emphasizes the conditions that will prevail when the new king rules. "Everlasting Father" is not a common reference for God in Hebrew, but the image itself implies a concern for the helpless and a genuine caring that sometimes must take the form of discipline for the people. The "Father" image suggests that people owe allegiance and loyalty to this ruler, even as they would to their own kinsman. With the "Everlasting Father" we are offered the comfort of an Eternal Lord. With the "Eternal Father" there is transcendent stability, an eternity of God's morals, values and ethics.

Yet, Isaiah says this divine/human will be the Prince of Peace, an earthly name for our Savior. This new king not only brings about the deliverance of people but assures there will be no more war. Isaiah related the quality of "peace" to the Davidic throne, the human reign of the Messiah. Heaven has no need of a Prince of Peace, but the earth surely does. Jesus challenges us to do justice and walk in righteousness, for these are the ways of peace. This eternal peace is to fill the whole world.

And then, of course, Jesus is the lion and the lamb, together. Jesus is the lion, for he is the great lion of the tribe of Judah. He is the kingly ruler, Lord of all us beasts . . . . Yet, Jesus is also the lamb -- the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.

We can envision Jesus not only as the Lion and the Lamb, but also enabling the lion and the lamb to lie down together. Only the One who is as strong and fierce as the lion can command the respect of other creatures and win them over. And only the One who is as gentle and innocent as the lamb can entice trembling legs to stay put and stand beside him.

Jesus is the weak and the strong; the One who is as innocent as doves, the One who is the wisdom of serpents; the One who is both intimate and authoritative. In his earthly ministry Jesus attested to this dual nature. Two of Jesus' favorite expressions were "Abba" and "Amen." When he used the word "Abba" he was referring to the intimate relationship he had with God. He used this in his prayers. And when Jesus used the word "Amen," he used it with authority and introducing his teachings with the words, "I say to you."

Christmas is a time of strange combinations -- Jesus is the light and the joy Isaiah foretold, yet he was born into this world of ours only to die for it. The light of the world was snuffed out on the cross . . . . The lamb of God was sacrificed for our sake and for our salvation. But the light returned even brighter than before. The sacrificial lamb roared back to life as the lion of God, stronger than ever.

As I conclude, I'd like to offer some food for thought for you to take home, today: Isn't it interesting how I can say two contradicting sentences about Christmas one after the other that, yet, make sense?

The birth of Jesus took place some 2,000 years ago.

The birth of Christ took place last night.

Have a blessed Christmas!

Amen.