Christmas Eve Homily, December 24, 2014
Isaiah 9, 1-6, The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. (A beautiful passage from Isaiah 1, one of my favorites)
Psalm 96, Today is born our Savior, Christ the Lord.
Titus 3, 4-7, When the kindness and generous love of God appeared.
Luke 2, 1-14, In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that the whole world should be enrolled.
Isaiah 9 observations:
Who: Can you guess, Isaiah 1, 2, or 3? Yes, Isaiah 1. Rosemary & I heard this sung in the Messiah Monday night at the Meyerson.
Date: Because it is Isaiah 1 writing, you can expect that he is living before the Babylonian Captivity, around 555 before Christ.
Our Passage: Also you might guess that being Isaiah 1 and living before the Babylonian Captivity, he would be quite critical of the people, their ways of living, their disrespect, selfishness, and materialism. On the contrary, this passage talks about comfort and peace. Watch and listen.
A Christmas Story
This evening I would like to tell a Christmas story that exemplifies how we move from darkness to light, like good old Isaiah 1 says. The story is about a Christmas event. Want to know what a Christmas event is? I would propose that it is a special event that brings peace, joy, and light to people like us.
Ever hear of a guy named Nathaniel Kendrick, nicknamed Mr. Kent? He is a crossing guard here in Dallas at Lakewood Elementary School. He has done this job for over 10 years, twice a day, a couple of hours each time, heat, rain, snow. Mr. Kent used to work for the city of Dallas and retired from that work.
The kids and parents at Lakewood Elementary all love Mr. Kent, an elderly black man with gray hair. And he obviously loved them.
As the years passed Mr. Kent’s wife gradually had more health problems. As she went down more and more, so did their finances. Finally, a couple of weeks ago their car was repossessed. The car Mr. Kent used to come to Lakewood Elementary.
Some of the dads connected with Lakewood learned about what had happened to Mr. Kent’s car. They banned together, collected money, and eventually bought Mr. Kent a car.
So, one day while Mr. Kent was working his job as a crossing guard, two of the dads drove Mr. Kent’s new car into the crosswalk and stopped. He came over and asked them to move on. And they responded, “Mr. Kent, you might have to move it yourself. From all of us at Lakewood Elementary, welcome to your new car. "
Mr. Kent was so moved he was in tears, as were others gathered around.
This is a Christmas event. These parents gave more than a car to Mr. Kent. They gave him peace, joy, and light. They were recipients also, as was I.
What is the Christmas event in your life? How have you provided peace, joy, and light for someone in your life?
Source: WFAA.com 12/15/14