December 24, 2004
Sermon preached by Rev. Donald Ng at the First Chinese Baptist Church in San Francisco.
When we take out our Christmas decorations, perhaps the only box that we have opened every year for the past 25 years is this silver and red box in the size of a shoebox. In this original box with its original tissue paper contains our most treasured decoration—a Nativity Set. When we left FCBC in 1978 for me to join the staff in Valley Forge, my colleagues gave us a Nativity Set of dolls.
Mary is wearing the traditional coarse linen embroidered dress with wide sleeves over a shirt and long trousers. Joseph is wearing a small cap over which falls the head-dress, kafiyeh, held in place by a doubled rope of wool. His coat, abbayeh, is an all-purpose garment, cool in the summer, and a warm wrap in the winter and a shelter from the rain.
The shepherd is wearing coarse working clothes, which might be of sheep skin or wool. The staff is an essential in the hilly rocky terrain, while the bamboo pipe is used for calling in the flocks. The sheep is a local fat-tailed animal with long white wool and the donkey in Jordan is the beast of burdens.
Children were usually swaddled firmly until four or five months old. Where economically possible, a crib of straw or wood was provided. Tonight, the baby Jesus doll is not here—He’s missing in action.
Besides the fact that this Nativity Set is special, it’s unique because it was made by Palestinian refugees at the Agabat Jaber Refugee Camp started in 1954. Girls and women do this work to make a regular income. The income from these industries contributes to raising the standard of living for refugee families, in addition to giving the girls and women a sense of dignity and economic independence.
Jesus is Missing
When I was growing up in Boston, the Nativity Set was on the fireplace mantle. We would leave Baby Jesus out of the Nativity scene until Christmas Eve. Baby Jesus was usually hidden behind one of the many family portraits sitting on the mantle. But on Christmas Eve, without any fanfare or ritual, one of us would simply place Baby Jesus in the manger and go on with whatever we were doing.
Maybe it’s a good thing to wait until Christmas Eve to place Jesus in the Nativity Set. We expect him to be there. But when we leave him behind a framed picture of our family among all the clutter that’s on the mantle: old mail, car keys, loose change, vacation souvenirs, a caught baseball at Fenway, school awards, and bills, we might see that Jesus is not lost but missing in action. He is in the midst of our messy and cluttered lives.
If Jesus is lost then we must search him out. But if he is missing in the action of our lives, then he is at work even in the places that we are unaware of. Jesus will reveal himself in the most unexpected ways.
Was not this the case of the very first Christmas Eve? We paint a beautiful picture of the stable and the manger in our minds and on our Christmas cards and on the cover of our worship bulletins, but the reality of it was that it was a smelly, noisy place. This was not exactly where one would expect the Messiah. It was likely a barn kept warm by the heat from the animals on a dirt floor. But that is the very reason why I am thankful.
We are thankful that Jesus is willing to make a home in unexpected, less-than-perfect places. Otherwise he would never dare to go missing in the nooks and crannies of our houses or in the deep secrets of our hearts. We are thankful that Jesus feels at home in the dusty, crowded stable and we are thankful that he refuses to remain there.
Jesus will not be left in the manger. He wishes to be carried off into the recesses of our lives. Even if you refuse to take him there, he will go there anyway. He is there, invited or not, amidst the dust and cobwebs and other unmentionable places that we would rather keep hidden from view. Jesus is not lost, he is missing in action. He is missing in the dirtiest and most difficult action of your lives—your life and mine and that of the whole world.
If you are looking for Jesus, if you think you have lost Jesus, then revisit those complicated, cluttered and difficult places. You will find him there hard at work—reaching out, caring, healing, knowing all about your most undignified secrets and loving you anyway. Jesus is not lost, he is just missing in the action of life, and he invites us to join him there so that we can fully experience his grace.
Going into the World
Christmas Eve is a time filled with memories. It is a quiet, peaceful, warm time. It is a night for deep joy and good feelings. It is a time to admire the newborn baby and marvel at the miracle of his coming to be with us.
But it is also a time to prepare for his call for us. It won’t be long before he is beckoning us to follow him. His arrival marks the beginning of a new world where peace prevails and oppressors are over thrown.
Are we willing to be a part of that world or will we leave Jesus in the manger and pack him up for yet another year?
During the many summers that I directed youth conferences at Green Lake, Wisconsin, I would go to the handcraft gift store, Worldwide Gifts. When ABC missionaries serve people in countries that are in need of economic development, they would help bring the people’s handcrafts to market—places like Green Lake. Many of these countries were from places like where our Palestinian Nativity Set came from: Guatemala, Mexico, the Philippines, other countries in Central America.
For my staff appreciation, I would buy a Nativity Set, write on the bottom of each of the figurines the name and year of the conference. I would then give to each person a piece of the set and when everyone has un-wrapped their figures; we set up our Nativity Set in the middle of the summer for that one time. At the end of our fellowship time, we picked up our particular figurine and know that every year when we set up our Christmas decorations, we would be reminded of our summer experience. But more importantly, the symbol of only having one figure of the Nativity Set tells us that, unified in the Spirit of Christ, we are sent into the different corners of the world for ministry.
There are many missing pieces to these different figurines. It’s not only missing Baby Jesus, but none of us have one complete set. To be a part of Jesus’ new world, we are to follow him wherever he leads. In many ways, we are not lost, but we too are missing in action.
It is interesting to note that all of our Nativity Sets were made by people in need of economic development. Probably the reason for this is that people who are in need of any income would be willing to work for pennies making it affordable for us to buy Nativity Sets for our mantles or to even give away pieces for staff appreciation. But I would like to think that our Nativity Sets were made by those who are poor is a reminder for me that at Christmas, Jesus comes to bring good news to the poor. We may not be economically poor but we may all be spiritually poor in spirit. Jesus came for people like us too.
Missing in Action
Jesus is not lost. He may not be where you put him, or where you might like to keep him, but he is not lost. He is missing in action.
He is missing in the action of our lives. He is at work in the darkest, dankest, and the most painful of places. He is also in the seemingly mundane and ordinary places of our daily lives. He is rejoicing with those who rejoice and weeping with those who weep.
Even now, Jesus is breaking the rod of the oppressors that keep people economically poor and lost. Jesus is working for peace in the world.
He will not rest in the manger for long. He is at work in the world, and he invites us to join him. Are you willing to leave the quiet and warmly lit setting of the stable and follow him? The work is hard and the journey will be filled with uncertainty, but the promise is certain and good—it is the promise of Emmanuel, “God is with us” in the action of our lives.
Pastoral Prayer
Let us pray. Lord God, on so many occasions we have earnestly prayed that you might show yourself to us, might make manifest your will for us, might come among us and show us your glory.
On this night of nights, this holy eve, your promises are fulfilled, your presence is undeniable, and your glory made visible. In your advent among us, as Emmanuel, our joy is full.
Now, help us to live in the light of your incarnation. Guide us in our way for peace around the world so that innocent Iraqis may have lives worth living for; so that US service men and women and other coalition forces may return home to be with their loved ones; so that the resources of the world that ultimately belongs to you may be shared widely and generously to feed the poor and the hungry; so that the homeless in the harshness of city life may find new beginnings filled with hope and a fresh start.
Guide us, Lord in our way for peace in our own lives. We pray for the peace to reconcile with colleagues and neighbors when we are all your children; the peace to heal our bodies from sickness and brokenness; the peace to welcome home prodigal children; the peace to renew loving relationships that have been estranged; the inner peace that we may have in our personal relationship with you, Lord as our Savior and Redeemer.
Be with us, Holy God of heaven and earth, live among us, let us feel your presence. As we celebrate the birth of your child, your gift, your love, who came to live, grow, and teach among us. May our hearts always be eager for your love.
In the name of Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, Savior of the world, we pray. Amen.