It Was Not a Silent Night
Dear Friends and Family of Hilton Baptist Church,
Last year during our Christmas Eve Service I shared a message entitled “It was not a Silent Night”. In that message I said these words:
“I’m sorry to have to tell you this but, it was not a silent night. All was not calm and all was not bright. When Mary gave birth, there were no doctors, no comfortable hospital, no epidurals and no clean towels. It was just Joseph and Mary and poor Joe probably didn’t even know what to do.
From everything I’ve heard giving birth is messy, noisy and certainly not quiet. When Jesus was born it was not a silent night.
Furthermore, the world that Jesus was born into was noisy. Politicians were fighting for power, violence was not uncommon and there were conflicts between different social groups. Does any of this sound familiar? Jesus was born into a world of upheaval and social discontent. I’m sorry to disappoint you but it was not a silent night.”
I wish I could say 2020 was a better year and that many of the observations I made in 2019 regarding the state of our world were no longer true. But as we all know, 2020 only seemed to intensify with political power struggles, societal upheaval, violence and conflicts.
So where is our hope? The answer to that question is found in these words I also shared last Christmas Eve:
“It was not a silent night – but it was a holy night. That not-so-silent night became a holy night because God became part of the broken world of commotion, power and noise. And He changed it and He challenged it from the inside.”
Read through the stories of our faith and you quickly learn that our God doesn’t sit still; He is always working, always moving. Even when we question His whereabouts in a world going crazy, God is still humbly entering the world from the inside rather than imposing His absolute will from the outside.
Certainly, God could send lightening bolts in an attempt to change our behaviors but this would only cause us to respond in fear. My observation is that fear rarely fosters genuine intimacy, compassion, or an interest in pursuing meaningful relationships.
Instead, God comes humbly and gently. He works in our heart, to change our life and by doing so genuine intimacy can occur. Compassion and an authentic desire to connect with God, ourselves and others starts to grow.
This is the message and the hope of Christmas; That the God, who entered the world at Christmas, still enters the world one life, one person, at a time.
“So God imparts to human hearts the blessings of His heav’n. No ear may hear His coming, but in this world of sin, where meek souls will receive Him still the dear Christ enters in.”
This is the hope for our world and the hope for our lives. That Christ still seeks to enter our hearts. For those who will receive Him the commotion, power and noise in our lives will learn to be still and present before the One who was, and is and is yet to come.
All of this, because it was not a silent night.
Christmas Peace and Blessings to all of you, Dan
Categories: Pastors Message