Sermon - 12-24-22

<p>Tonight, we come together to celebrate and reflect upon the God who pours God’s very self into a human person, the God who stands outside of time, yet entered time and became human, the God who took on flesh and bone to dwell among us. Tonight, we celebrate the mystery of the God who is infinite but becomes finite; the God who is all powerful but becomes all-vulnerable.  We reflect upon the God whose very womb gave birth to all of creation, to the entire cosmos, but now is born of a woman’s womb to bear the good news of God’s grace and love for this world.  We reflect upon the living, creative Word that spoke the universe into being, but now cries from a baby’s lungs.  We reflect upon the breath of God that swept across the dark waters of the deep separating the day from the night, but now quietly exhales, breathing softly on a teenage mother’s cheek.  Tonight, we reflect upon and celebrate the gift of incarnation – the ultimate gift of <strong>love</strong>.  We celebrate God coming among us and to us with skin on. We celebrate God’s unconditional love for this world made manifest for all to see in the person of Jesus.  And, as we ponder this mystery, will we recognize him, <strong>will we know him when he comes among us? </strong></p> <p>Yes, as we come and stand in awe of this great mystery, we must ask ourselves, “Will we recognize him?” <strong>because</strong> this One who takes on our flesh is willing to dwell in what we might consider the most despicable of places, the most vulnerable of people, and the most wretched of circumstances. God gave God’s own true Son to us to show us how deeply God loves this world and how each one of us is immeasurably loved, but will we know him when he comes?</p> <p>I share with you a story that may be helpful as we ponder this question.  The story is about an old shoe cobbler who had spent his life making new shoes and repairing old shoes.  One Christmas Eve night, he dreamed that Jesus would come to visit him the next day. The dream was so very real that he was convinc