Christmas at Good Shepherd

Here are some photos from Christmas.  Merry Christmas from my family to you.

Family photo, minus Caleb who was very ill.

Here is Caleb from the Christmas concert at Michigan Lutheran Seminary on Friday,
barely hanging on with his sickness.

Sermon -- Christmas Day (December 25, 2017)

JOHN 1:1-14

THE WORD BECAME FLESH.

In the name + of Jesus.

     Many Lutheran churches like to claim what St. Paul wrote in his first letter to the Corinthians: “I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.” (1 Corinthians 2:2)  The crucifixion is a dominant theme in our sermons, in our liturgy, and even in our church furnishings—both with the large cross overhead, and with the crucifix which is prominently displayed and used today.  It is no secret why we display and proclaim Jesus Christ and him crucified.  That is the payment for the sins of the world.  It is at Jesus' crucifixion that the wrath of God was satisfied and that the body and blood of the Lord was given to pay for our sins for all time and for all people.  So, the emphasis on Christ crucified is both understandable and necessary.
     It may come as a surprise to you, then, to learn that the early Church was not in the habit of displaying crosses or crucifixes in their churches.  One practical reason is that, in the early part of Christianity, crosses were still being employed for execution, and some Christians were the sad victims of this bitterly painful death.  If crucifixion was not the central focus of the early Church, then what was?  It was the incarnation of our Lord.
     “Incarnation” is an impressive sounding, theological word.  If you don't remember it, that's okay.  It is probably easier to remember it when it is put to music: “Veiled in flesh the Godhead see.”  Or you may consider the words of St. John: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ... And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us...” (John 1:1,14)  This is the incarnation.  The Word became flesh.  God has become man.  The Savior, Jesus, is the Christ, the Lord.  But now the Lord has become one of us.
     The Word became flesh in the womb of the Virgin Mary at Jesus' conception.  This virgin, then, gave birth nine months later to a boy in Bethlehem.  The birth itself was rather unspectacular.  A boy was born to peasant parents.  No doubt Joseph and Mary were filled with joy and relief that mother and child were both healthy.  But as far as the citizens of Bethlehem were concerned, nothing particularly noteworthy or amazing took place that night.
     Perhaps Joseph and Mary were the only ones in the house who knew the significance of this birth.  Joseph knew that this baby was not his.  Mary was still virgin pure.  The holy one which was born is the Son of God.  They had each been given an angelic message which told them so.  The Lord was pleased to reinforce those angelic messages with one more.  To shepherds out in the fields, the angel came with the message: “Unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:11)  The shepherds not only ran into Bethlehem to see this, but they also “made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child.” (Luke 2:17)  In other words, they preached God's word to everyone they met.  Joseph, Mary, and anyone else there heard the shepherds preach the truth about this child:  He is the Lord.  He is the Word made flesh.  God dwells with mankind.  Our Immanuel has come to save us.
     The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. (John 1:14)  The Lord became flesh to take up the cause of mankind.  Mankind was God's special creation.  Everything God had created was simply summoned into being by the command of God.  God said it, and it was so—light, dry land, vegetation, sun, moon, and stars, bird, fish, and animals.  However, mankind was notably different.  God personally formed the man from the dust of the earth.  God personally crafted the woman from the rib of the man.  God even took counsel with himself at the creation of mankind before he made them.  “God said, 'Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.'  … So God created man in his own image.” (Genesis 1:26,27)  God assessed what he had created, and behold, it was very good. (Genesis 1:31)  
     God loves what he has created.  Therefore, when man sinned against God, became corrupt in his thinking and doing, and was marked for death, the Lord was not content to write off man as a lost cause.  He has not dismissed you, either, even though you sin, are corrupt in heart and mind, and are marked for death.  Christmas is supposed to be a time of peace, joy, and love, but it ends up highlighting that we are corrupt and sinful.  For as much as we attempt to make Christmas magazine-cover perfect, we put more stress on ourselves than the season is worth.  Rather than be joyous, we become snippy.  Rather than joy over loved ones, we snap at them.  You may pat yourself on the back for being more generous at Christmas time than usual, but it is easy to toss money at a cause you really have no contact with than to be patient, loving, and understanding to people who stay at your house for a few days or whom you live with all the time.  Perhaps you have even had some family members write you off because of some spat you've had. 
     Our sins do not go away because of sentimental or peppy Christmas carols.  If anything, our sins are accentuated.  You may try to hide it or excuse it.  “I'm only snippy because you are annoying.”  But it is still sin, and it incurs not only the wrath of family members, but especially the wrath of God.  God gave you family members to love, not to despise.  If you despise what God has given you, you also dishonor the God who gave them.
     Others may write you off because you have sinned against them.  God is not willing that you should perish.  Therefore, the Word, the second person of the Trinity, became flesh and made himself one with mankind.  He became man to redeem man.  He became man to live the holy life which is demanded under the Law.  Adam did not keep the Law.   You and I have not kept the Law.  One man has—Jesus.  And he has kept it for you.
     God's Law also demands that he who is guilty must die.  Therefore, the Word became flesh to suffer what sinful flesh must suffer.  Jesus Christ has taken your guilt from you.  He was pierced to the cross for every piercing word we have shot at our loved ones.  He suffered in silence for every time we should have kept our mouths shut but could not help ourselves.  Just as he was born in weakness and wrapped in cloths at his birth, so also he died in weakness and was wrapped in cloths when he was place in a grave for our sins.  Jesus did all of this because he loves what he has created.  And even though we still sin against him in our weakness, his love remains constant.  You know how much patience you have for people who sin against you.  Would you blame our Lord if he became so annoyed by our sinful weakness that he wrote us off as lost causes?  But rather than be announed, the Lord remains merciful.  He is not willing to see you perish.  And so the Word who became flesh to suffer and die for fleshly man, assures you that his blood continues to purify you from all sin. 
     God became part of his creation to rescue his creation.  God became one of us to redeem all of us.  This is what the early Church marvelled at, and we do well to marvel at it as well.  God has not created us to stand off at a distance where he will check in on us once in a while to make sure we have not nuked ourselves out of existence.  Rather, God invested himself in his creation so that remain his cherished creation forevermore. 
     The Word became flesh and made himself one with us.  Immanuel has come so that God will be with us and we with him forever.  This is the glory of God.  That glory was veiled in flesh, but it is glorious nonetheless.  And this day, the Lord comes to us again.  He is veiled in bread and wine, but he comes all the same to deliver his gifts of forgiveness of sins, new life, and salvation.  He comes to dwell within us, and summons us to consume his body and blood for our eternal good.  Behold!  The Lamb which was wrapped in cloths and placed in a manger is now wrapped in bread and wine and placed in your mouths so that you will receive the salvation which God is pleased to give to sinners.
     Rejoice!  Immanuel has come.  The Word of God became incarnate so that he could be crucified for mankind.  The flesh and blood Savior overcame the grave so that man will live forever with the Lord.  God, who is now one of us, remains forever God with us.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen. 

Sermon -- Christmas Eve (December 24, 2017 -- 7:00 PM)

These are a few of the brief homilies that followed the lessons from our Service of Lessons and Carols on Christmas Eve.

6th Lesson Luke 2:1-7

Caesar cared little for what was going on in Israel.  He only wanted his taxes collected.  He needed his subjects counted.  So Joseph and Mary went to Bethlehem to be counted.
This was God’s timing.  Time for the Savior to come.  Time for every promise to be fulfilled.  Time for the world to receive its Savior.
And so the Son of God was born.  He was wrapped and swaddled in cloths—a commoner who came for common sinners.  The Lamb of God was placed in a manger.  The Lamb of God had come to be the sacrifice that is made for common sinners.
  The Son of God did not come into this world to rival Caesar.  Caesar had his kingdom.  Jesus came to establish a greater kingdom.  He does not come to collect taxes from you, but to be the ransom price to save you from sin, from death, and from the devil.
Caesar's decree resulted in Joseph and Mary having to go to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem.  His decree resulted in the Scriptures being fulfilled.  Caesar did not know, and he did not care.  But God knew it was time to redeem his people.  God cared to save you.  And so, through Caesar's unwitting decree, the Lord fulfilled his promise.  The Savior would be born in Bethlehem. 
And so came into this world the Seed of the woman, the Seed of Abraham, the Son of David, the Prince of Peace, the one who crushes the serpent, the one who is called Jesus, the one who is “the Lord who saves,” who saves you.


7th Lesson Luke 2:8-20
Glory to God in the highest!
God is merciful to sinners.  He comes in weakness and humility; that is where his glory is revealed.  He comes not dominate, but to die.

Glory to God in the highest!
The shepherds went to the manger.  In a trough where the lambs fed, the Lamb of God was found.
He is the Christ.  He was the Lord’s Anointed, sent and set apart as prophet for proclaiming good news to sinners; sent and set apart as High Priest for making the atoning sacrifice for sinners; sent and set apart as King for conquering our enemies—sin, death, and Satan—for us.
He is the Lord.  The one who created the world had come personally to redeem the world.

Glory to God in the highest!
The shepherds told what they had seen and heard.  God has been good on his word.  God has been merciful.  God has come for sinners.  God in the manger.  God with us.  God for us.
Glory to God in the highest!


8th Lesson Matthew 2:1-12
The Magi sought their king.  Though they already had a king in their homeland, though they met a king in Jerusalem, they sought something greater.  They sought a king with an everlasting kingdom.
The Magi found their king.  They did not care that he was an infant—at the time utterly dependent upon Mary and Joseph for everything, at the time hated by Herod and later hunted by him, at the time years from fulfilling all that he had come to do.  They knew he was king.  They confessed it to be so.  They would bow before him.
The Magi found their king.  Even though Jesus had come for their good, they presented him with their goods.  They thanked him for work he had not yet done.  They bowed before him even though he was not yet in his glory.  They rejoiced that their Savior had come.
The Magi had found their king.  They travelled extensively to worship him.  They put forth time and effort and priorities to see him; for they knew that he had come for them.
The king still comes, and he still delivers his gifts.  He is no longer veiled in flesh.  Now he comes in word and sacrament to give his gifts of forgiveness, new life, and salvation.  If you would be wise for salvation, then it is wise to put forth time and effort and priority to come and bow before him.

Sermon -- 4th Sunday in Advent (December 24, 2017; 10:00 AM)

LUKE 1:26-38

BEHOLD, THE SERVANT OF THE LORD.

In the name + of Jesus.

     Evangelical Lutherans have had a strange aversion to the Virgin Mary.  It is true that we reject any kind of worship of her—for, worship is reserved for God alone.  And it is true that we label it blasphemy when others name Mary co-Redemptrix—for, Christ alone is our Redeemer—or Queen of heaven—for, God alone reigns on high and does not share that glory with anyone.  But as it often happens, we let the pendulum swing too far the other way.  When Mary sang praise of God after she had conceived a son in her womb, the lyrics of her song included these words: “For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed.” (Luke 1:48)  God chose to bring the Savior of the world into the world through the womb of Mary.  The blessed Virgin Mary is the only person ever who can claim that she gave birth to God.  The Church has made that confession for centuries.  But calling Mary the mother of God is not about exalting Mary; it is about confessing who Jesus is.  He is God in the flesh.  Or, as the Athanasian Creed so brilliantly says: “He is God, eternally begotten from the nature of the Father, and he is man, born in time from the nature of his mother...” (Athanasian Creed)
     Although Mary is not worthy of worship, she is worthy of imitation.  You are likely familiar with the angel's greeting and message to Mary.  But it is good to consider again exactly what the Lord was asking of Mary.  Gabriel informed Mary, “Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus.” (Luke 1:31)  I suppose that “asking” is not the right term.  Gabriel was not asking Mary for her permission to have the Savior conceived in her womb.  The Lord had chosen her for this special and unique vocation, just as in ages past the Lord had chosen Noah to build the ark, Moses to deliver Israel from Egypt, and David as king of Israel.  The Lord had promised to send a Savior into the world.  Nothing was going to keep the Lord from fulfilling his promise.  So, when he sent Gabriel to Mary, the Lord informed her that this Savior would come through her.  Mary's response revealed a humble, remarkable faith: “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” (Luke 1:38)  
     We tend to romanticize the Christmas story.  We want it to look like a Hallmark card.  Real life is much more gritty than that.  Mary was not yet married when she got word that she had conceived.  No matter how much her parents loved her, this was a problem for them.  No matter how understanding Joseph was, he would feel betrayed.  And no matter how much Mary explained to the townsfolk about Gabriel's appearance and message, who would believe her?  Mary would have to bear scorn for this, perhaps for her whole life.  So, the Lord's favor was upon Mary, and this was the result?!  Nevertheless, Mary took the Lord at his word.  Mary accepted the vocation that was given to her.  “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord.” (Luke 1:38)  Even when serving the Lord meant hardship, Mary preferred to be the Lord's servant over serving her own interests with an easier life.  The cross was more valuable than comfort.
     Now, the Lord will never lay on you the responsibility he put upon the Virgin Mary.  Your Savior has already come, born through her.  Still, the Lord calls you to serve him in your various vocations.  In those vocations, you love the Lord by loving your neighbor.  You seek God's honor by seeking your neighbor's good at the expense of your time, energy, and money.  You demonstrate God's patience by patiently enduring the sins of your fellow man.  That is what God has given you to do in your home, in your community, or at your job.  And yes, it will often be hard.  Your sinful flesh will hate it.  Your sinful flesh will urge you to sit on your rear end and pawn off your responsibilities to others.  Your sinful flesh will want you to hoard your time, energy, and money for your own interests and to despise others in need of mercy.  Your sinful flesh will want you to seek revenge on those who sin against you and to defend your pride and your importance at all costs.  Repent.  There is nothing commendable about following the desires of the sinful flesh.  Sin may appease the flesh, but it stirs up the wrath of God.  If you reject the vocations and the works God gives you to do, you have earned his judgment.  Repent.
     When Gabriel told Mary that she would conceive and give birth to a son, she wondered how a virgin could conceive.  She did not reject God's word; she was confused by God's ways.  Gabriel informed her that this was a miraculous act of God, and that the Holy Spirit would implant in her the Word now made flesh.  He then declared, “Every word with God is not impossible.” (Luke 1:37, my translation)  Mary's response was simply to say, literally, “Behold, the servant of the Lord.” (Luke 1:38)  Whatever God had given her to do, Mary submitted to it.  He is the Lord, and she—his servant—would do what he had given her to do.
     Behold, the servant of the Lord.  If you would be known as a servant of the Lord, then you also submit to do what the Lord gives you to do.  If he is the Lord, then you do not have the liberty to tell him, “No.”  A servant does his master's bidding, or he is a bad servant.
     What can we say about this?  We aren't good servants.  We have told our Lord, “No,” because his ways are hard and inconvenient and costly.  We have despised our vocations and neglected the works God has given us to do.  Even if we could imitate the Virgin Mary who demonstrated an amazing faith in submitting to her role as being the mother of the Savior, we also note that she acknowledged her need for this Savior too.  We all do, because all have sinned.
      Behold, the servant of the Lord.  The true servant of the Lord is not you or me or the Virgin Mary.  It is the Son who was implanted in the womb of Mary.  Jesus came to be the perfectly obedient servant of the Lord.  This did not just mean being nice to his friends and to his enemies.  It also meant leaving the glory that is rightly his and living in the weakness of a human being.  It meant forsaking the heavenly riches for earthly poverty.  It meant forsaking the use of his divine power and submitting to the limits of this world.  It meant submitting to abuse, scorn, and false accusations.  It meant submitting himself to beatings, flogging, and to death on a cross.  It meant taking on the guilt of sins he did not commit so that he could deliver us from our guilt and sin.  It meant enduring the pains and torments of hell on behalf of the people who defied his commandments, shirked the responsibilities for the vocations he had given them, and did not serve him as Lord.  Behold, the servant of the Lord!  Jesus did everything that was given him to do.  He lives up to his name, Jesus, which means Savior, because he has done all that is necessary to save you from your sins, to pardon you of your guilt, and to bring you into the kingdom of God.
     Behold!  Now you are servants of the Lord!  This is true because Jesus, the perfect servant of the Lord, has served you.  He has supplied you with what the Lord intends for you to have—the forgiveness of your sins, the confidence of your salvation, and the favor of God.  And Jesus summons you to keep on receiving your Lord's gifts—the body and blood of Christ which conquers death and pardons sinners, the word of absolution which consoles troubled hearts, and his constant blessing.  Then, as redeemed children of God—not merely servants, but beloved children of the Father—you get to go out and honor the Lord with lives that are motivated by God's service, God's love, God's mercy, and God's honor.
     You will never be asked to do what the Virgin Mary did.  She is blessed because of her unique role as the mother of God.  You will never be asked to do what Jesus did.  Only he could carry the sins of the world to the cross to be the atoning sacrifice for sinners.  The Lord, however, is pleased to use you in his kingdom for his glory and for the good of your neighbor.  Behold, you are the servants of the Lord; you get to do what God has given you to do.  Behold, you are the redeemed of the Lord, you are the beneficiaries of God's goodness.  Behold, you are the beloved of the Lord; you are the evidence of God's grace.  Behold, you are the Lord's because the Lord has been pleased to serve and to save you.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen. 

Weekend schedule for Christmas

This is a reminder of the weekend schedule at Good Shepherd (since some have asked).




Divine Service -- Sunday, December 24 at 10 AM. (Oh yes, regular church! It's still Advent.)










Christmas Eve Candlelight Service -- Sunday, December 24 at 7 PM. (NOW it's Christmas; Christmas Eve, that is.)








Christmas Day Festival Service -- Monday, December 25 at 10 AM. (High festival service. Actual Christmas Day.)

Sermon -- Mid-Week Advent – 3rd Wednesday (December 20, 2017)

MATTHEW 1:20-23

TO WHOM DOES JESUS COME?

With Enlightenment To Him 

Who Does Not Understand.

In the name + of Jesus.

     Joseph was a righteous man, which means he believed the Scriptures and tried to live his life according to them.  But Joseph was also a sensible man.  When he learned that Mary, his betrothed, was pregnant, he deduced that she had been unfaithful.  There is no way Joseph could have known the truth, and no reasonable person would have assumed anything different.
     The angel Gabriel had revealed to Mary that she would conceive and give birth to a son.  The angel had also told Mary that her relative, Elizabeth, in her old age was six months pregnant.  It was kind of a nudge.  Mary took the hint and went to see Elizabeth.  She stayed there in Judea until John the Baptist was born.  By the time Mary returned to Nazareth, she would have had a baby bump.  The gossip would have been flying around Nazareth.  And what was Joseph to think?  Had Mary been unfaithful in Judea?  Or did she leave for Judea because she had been unfaithful in Nazareth?  There weren't many other conclusions to draw, not for a sensible man.
     But Joseph was also a righteous man.  Mary was burdened by enough shame already.  Joseph chose not to make it worse by publicly denouncing her for adultery.  Obviously, the marriage was off, but Joseph would dissolve their betrothal quietly.  But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.  She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:20-21) 
     To whom does the Lord come?  To enlightenment to him who does not understand.  The Lord sent his angel to Joseph to enlighten him to the facts that no one could know unless God had revealed them.  The angel assured Joseph that not only was pregnant Mary faithful, but she was still virgin pure!  The child in her womb was not the son of another man, but the Son of God.  The only way Joseph would ever know or believe this is if God himself had revealed it to him.  Never in the history of the world was there a virgin birth.  If you recall all the miracles of the Old Testament, there are no virgin births.  But the Lord enlightened Joseph to this unique miracle.  God was coming into the world in the flesh, and he assumed his flesh from Joseph's betrothed.  To whom does Jesus come?  With enlightenment to him who does not understand. 
     An angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife....” (Matthew 1:20)  Joseph would have had a number of fears in taking Mary into his house.  He would have opened himself up to the gossip that was already circling around Mary.  And the gossip would not stop with the birth of Jesus, either.  People would always be talking about this child of Mary's alleged unfaithfulness.  Even if Joseph and Mary told about the angels' announcements, how many do you think believed them?  Joseph would take on the responsibility of a child which was not his.  He would be entrusted with being the protector and guardian of the Son of God. 
     But Joseph was enlightened to this one fact that would strengthen him and Mary in the difficult days to come: This child is the fulfillment of a promise.  All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us). (Matthew 1:23)  Although there were no virgin births in the Old Testament, God had foretold one.  The angel alerted Joseph that its fulfillment was in Mary's womb.  Immanuel was coming.  God had become a human being and would dwell with his people.
     To whom does Jesus come?  He comes with enlightenment to those who do not understand.  Joseph is not alone in being confused by God's plans or misreading what God has done.  We share in our limited understanding of God's actions.  We often wonder, “What is God doing?  Why isn't God acting faster, better, or different?  Why does God have me going through whatever it is I am going through?”  Like Joseph, we feel the pain, frustration, disappointment, or grief that comes in this life.  We would hope to be spared; God sends it anyway. 
     Unlike Joseph, we do not have the luxury of having an angel appear to us in our dreams to explain what God is up to.  We may never know why God is doing what he does or why he permits what he does.  When the angel alerted Joseph what God was up to, he reminded Joseph of God's word through the prophet Isaiah: “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us). (Matthew 1:23)  There are many words and promises which sustains us when we do not understand what God is doing.  Those words don't reveal God's reasons; they reveal God's person.  The word of God enlightens us to this. 
     The LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever. (Psalm 136)  The Lord is good, no matter what.  God's word does not say the Lord is good when life is easy.  The Lord is good at all times.  That is just who God is.  Even when we suffer pain, frustration, disappointment, or grief, the Lord is good.  His steadfast love endures forever.  That does not mean that life will be easy, or that we will understand what God is up to.  It means that, no matter what bitterness or confusion we face, the Lord continues with his faithful love. 
     That faithful love is shown us through the child which was conceived in Mary's womb.  God became one of us to dwell among us.  God became one of us to suffer and die for all of us.  In the case of Jesus, God enlightens us so that we know exactly what he is up to.  Joseph was told: “you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:21)  Jesus is what his name means: “The Lord saves.”  He not only takes away your sin, he even delivers you from the grave.  He puts an end to God's wrath.  He forgives our sins of doubt, of frustration with God, or of a faith which tends to trust our own experiences over God's revelation.  Though we are weak in faith, God's steadfast love endures forever.  Even though we were born sinners, God has been pleased to give us new birth into his family, making us heirs of heaven and children of the resurrection.  Those promises are clear, even if your life is confusing.  And no amount of confusion in your life will negate God's clear promises.
     To whom does Jesus come?  With enlightenment to him who does not understand.  Although God enlightened Joseph about Mary's pregnancy, that did not mean God made it easy for Joseph.  While Mary spoke words of acceptance to God's plans for her, Joseph never said anything.  In fact, Joseph utters no words in the Bible.  But what Joseph is exceptionally good at is listening to the word of the Lord and acting on it.  After the Lord enlightened Joseph about the son of Mary, Joseph immediately fulfilled his role as husband of Mary and guardian of Jesus.  I don't know if Joseph ever really was able to wrap his head around what God was doing, but Joseph served faithfully in all of it.  He had a word from God, and that was enough.
     Like Joseph, you have a word from God, too.  The LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever. (Psalm 136)  Therefore, you get to live in the peace of knowing that God does, indeed, know what is doing.  And whatever God does, he is doing it all because he loves you and desires your eternal good.  You may never understand why God does what he is doing—and you don't have to; but you have been enlightened to know who is doing it for you.  The LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever. (Psalm 136)  And that is enough.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen. 

Something from ... Lutheran Satire re: Christmas origins

We are one week away from Christmas Day today.  Invariably, there will be people who claim that Christianity is a sham and that we are stealing our celebrations from pagan festivals.  Since these arguments seem to be made in an authoritative way with "evidence" from "experts," even some Christians can be deceived.  No one wants to be made a fool of, and some consider it the healthiest alternative to challenge or even disbelieve everything.

Pastor Hans Fiene has put together an amusing and informative rebuttal for those who insist Christmas has pagan origins.  Enjoy, and join us at Good Shepherd on Christmas Eve (7:00 PM) and Christmas Day (10:00 AM) to celebrate the festival with divine origins--God becomes man to redeem mankind.