The Farmville herald. (Farmville, Va.) 1957-current, 1960-12-23
Gods's Gift
LESSON FOR December Is, 1860

On the last Sunday of the Old
Year, it is fitti ng that our
thoughts should 60 back along
memory's lane through the shad-
ows and sunshine of these past
II months. But since the last
Sunday is also Christmas, our
minds go far, far back on the
road of time, to a story we all
heard as children. It is a story
that ordinary prose can scarce
ly tell. The story of the first
Christmas is told in poetry. The
light Of beauty shone on the
child at Bethlehem. Not only
in the gospel of Luke. but all
through the NEW TESTAMENT,
whenever a writer speaks of
Christ's coming to earth, joy
and wonder break all bounds. A
baby was born on that first
Christmas. a baby who was a
statistic IN the EmperorS census.
Some people live and die, no
more than numbers in a census
book. But with Jesus it was al
together different.
A Great Joy Which Will Come
Looking only at Luke, we Sc
lect three expressions out Of the
first words about Jesus after he
was born. The reader can do no
better, if a little open time
comes on this Christmas after
noon or evening-no better than
to sit down with this second
chapter of Luke and null over
the other things that we're said
about the baby and the child
Jesus. The three thoughts where
we center attention all come
from the angel who spoke to
the shepherds.
The first thing he said was
BE Not Afraid" 1t would have
been a good thing if all the
creedS, and all the thinking
about Jesus that learned and un-
learned men have done for the
20 centuries now nearly gone,
had started at this point. A
scholarly theologian had just fin
ished preaching a sermon about
Jesus, one morning. and after
the service an older Christian
IN the congregation. a former
missionary. remarked: IF that
is what Jesus was like, the mys-
terry is how he managed to have
any friends" The theologian had
preached a book Christ, there
was no joy about him, a Christ
who was correct but not con-
tagious. Anot her professor
writes about Jesus and calls him
Gods attack on man." If that
had been the case, the angel
should have said with a scowl,
raWl in the dust, you
worms! God has invaded you, he
is about to attack, you have no
room to hide" Not at all. This
was good news of a great joy,
which will come to all people.
Christianity which is not a great
which does not begin with joy,
is no more than a sad imitation.
A Savior Who is Christ the Lord
Christ is given many names in
the New Testament. Three Of
the most important are here in
the angels words to the shep-
herds: Savior. Christ, Lord.
What Christ had. and has, to do
with the forgiveness of sins, was
left in Gods providence for other
men to learn. God did not send
his angel to instruct the Shep-
herds in a Theory Of the Atone
ment. they were not told a word
about a Virgin Birth. They were
shepherds. not theologians. They
would not have understood such
matters. But they could under
stand Savior" It was an Old
Testament word, sometimes it
meant man. "Deliverer" ex-
presses the meaning the Old Tes-
lament puts into the word. A
Savior was always one who
did for others what they most
desperately needed and did for
them what they could never do
for themselves.
The shepherds understood the
other words too, Christ and
Lord. Christ the Messiah, Gods
chosen King. we have seen how
this prom Sc was chung to
through long centuries. If this
baby was the Christ. it meant
that the long waiting and hoping
was over. Gods Kingdom was
now at hand. And Lord-the
word was not new. It was on I'M
perial documents, it was on the
imperial statutes. men had died
cruelty. and would die again. be-
cause they would not call the
Caesar Lord" but here was a
Lord, THE Lord Of mankind.
even Of Caesar
BASED on outlines copyright
ed by the Division Of Christian
Education. National Council Of
the Churches OF Christ in the
U. S. A. Released by Ccn1nluni-
ty Press Service).
SHORT SERMONS