Dec. 25, 2002
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Mindekirken Pr. Jens Arne Dale The Word Became Flesh John 1:1-14 Where do we begin when we want to describe the mystery of Christmas? Luke starts with the Roman Emperor Augustus. The little child in the manger was born into our history. With Augustus, the Roman peace begins. It lasted for almost 200 years. With the child Jesus, the peace that the angels sang about began, and it is endless. Luke has a nice contrast when he starts with the Emperor in Rome. Matthew doesn’t pay attention to history. He uses the star as a reference to the birth of Jesus. But the three wise men from the East did not find the stable thanks to the star. They had to stop and ask for the way in Jerusalem. The answer was given to them from the Bible. The Messiah would be born in Bethlehem. The child in the manger is first and foremost the fulfillment of God’s promises in the Scripture. Then what about John? He begins in a quite different way. But before we read the gospel, we will stand up and sing #47, A Savior Is Born to Us This Day. The acoustics are good in Mindekirken. In Ringsaker’s church from the Middle Ages, where Ole Amund Gillebo is pastor, the acoustics are so good that the resonance lasts for several seconds. But if I told you there are places with such good acoustics that a sermon preached one Sunday might be heard as an echo until the next Sunday, you would have said I’m exaggerating. But what about an echo that might be heard 14 billion years after the crack? In September of this year, researchers from the Universities of Chicago and Berkley announced that the radio telescope in Antarctica had picked up gigaherz waves from the time of the Big Bang. Accordingly, it’s true that the universe came into existence with a big crack. I would have liked to show the article about this in the Discover magazine to my father. He was always fascinated by the development of the universe, and at the same time rooted in the Christian faith. Dad would have liked to hear what they have found out about the Big Bang, but then I think he would have looked at me and quoted his favorite Bible verse: Ephesians 1:4. He chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world… This is where the gospel of John gets started, before the Big Bang, before anything material existed. In the beginning was the Word. Christmas began in God’s loving thoughts when you and I were chosen to be his children. We are chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world. John was acquainted with Greek philosophy. The Word, or Logos, means the principle reason of the world in Greek philosophy. It’s an impersonal principle which gives everything its order. This basic term in Greek philosophy, John takes and he fills it with a Christian content. Logos is a living person. Logos is with God and Logos is God. All things came into being through him. We are used to thinking of God the Father as creator, but here the Son is described as taking part in creation to the same extent. The Nicene Creed that we use on Christmas Day has accurate expressions about this: True God from true God, Light from Light, begotten, not made, of one being with the Father. The radio telescope at the South Pole works like a police radar turned toward space. There they have caught an echo from the time of the Big Bang, 14 billion years ago. But that is nothing compared to you and me. It has struck me when I have painted a heart, that it has the shape of two ears put together. With our heart we may listen to the Word from eternity. It’s the same word that cried when he was born. The Word became flesh and lived among us. Christmas Day was the Day of the Word. The shepherds hardly believed what they saw when the angel came, but the angel’s words gave them a clear message about what had happened. Faith comes from what is heard, Romans. 10:17. The shepherds believed what the angels said, they rushed and found the child in the manger and Mary and Joseph. Then they told what they themselves had heard. Mary kept all these words in her heart, it says. The gospel of John pays special attention to hearing the Word. The one who hears my words and believes he who has sent me, he has eternal life, Jesus says in John 5:24. The good shepherd is recognized by his voice. We are witnesses of what we have heard, John says, 1 John 1:1. What kind of words we listen to is never indifferent. Words may hurt and break a person down. Words may communicate love and spell free. Ask Senator Trent Lott what it means to give account for some small words. I think of his remarks at Strom Thurmond’s 100th birthday, that were comprehended as racist. These days, 1200 pages with declarations of Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction are being read carefully. Those words are fateful. Are we supposed to believe in the war rhetoric of our leaders? Words may create peace, but with words they may also order war. According to John, Christmas is the celebration of the Word. It’s not empty words, but the Word who became flesh like you and me. God’s words of love were incarnated in Jesus. They were filled with grace and truth. The truth reveals us, and grace forgives and gives birth to new life. Listen to the Word of God. Let it sink into you that you are valuable and loved by God with an eternal love. Believe what God’s word says: All who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God. Glory be to God, the Father, the Son and The Holy Spirit, one true God, now and forever. Amen
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