A sermon preached at Kowloon Union
Church on Christmas
Day 25 December 2016 by the Rev. Phyllis Wong. The scripture readings that
day were Isaiah
52:7-10; John 1:1-14.
Opening prayer
Dear God,
In today’s
celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ, we come before you to receive Your
Word. May Your Spirit guide our heart within to receive Jesus, the Word become
flesh. May your Word transform us to live
a life in fullness. Amen.
Introduction
I would like
to ask anyone here – who has received a Christmas present this year?
Congratulations!
How much do
you like your Christmas present?
For those
who do not receive any Christmas present yet, don’t be upset. This morning I
will give you one – a spiritual one!
Exchange of Christmas presents
When I was
young, my friends and I liked to buy presents with a prior agreed price range and
exchange them during our Christmas gathering. It was quite a fun and exciting
as we always had something to look forward to.
This year
two people asked me for Christmas presents. They are a man who is 30 years old
and a girl who is 8. Pastor Maggie was very happy to receive a Christmas
present from a cousin in Scotland. It is a very nice and well-designed bag.
I think that
in general, people love to receive presents. Isn’t it true?
What if we
do a Christmas present exchange with God today?
If we do a Christmas
present exchange with God today, what is the present you want to receive from
God?
In return, what
is the present you will give to God?
I will give
you a minute to think about it. I will begin and end this time with the sound
of the bell.
The word ‘present’ means a gift. Something you may see
and use.
The word ‘present’ also has some other meanings.
Another meaning is ‘I am here right now’ 在
(When I was in
school, students would say “present” when their names were called by the form
teacher to check their attendance.)
Present also means here and now. 此時此刻
Here right
now – the present moment, is a present, a gift. It conveys a deeper meaning of
being together.
Jesus
Christ- Immanuel- God with us- means God is present within us in all times and
in all places.
“The
past no longer exists, and the future is not here yet.” The only moment in
which you can be truly alive is the present moment. The present moment is the
destination, the point to arrive at. Every time you breathe in and take a step,
you arrive: “Breathing in, I arrive. Breathing out, I arrive.”
Now I would
like to offer a space for you to experience this gift of the present moment and
to experience God’s grace through the Spirit that moves.
I am going
to do a guided meditation of some words taken from John, the gospel reading
this morning.
The first
thing I invite you to do is to breathe. Breathe in and breathe out. If you feel
comfortable, you may close your eyes and keep your body, mind and heart focused.
I will read
three verses from John. After each verse, I will give you some silent time to
meditate. I will end each time with the sounding of the bell and then move on
to the next verse.
(Practice -
Breathing in – I am here. Breathing out – I am here.)
Let God be
present within us and speak to us.
Let our
heart within be present and listen to God.
(Meditation starts and I read words below)
In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with
God, and the Word was God.
He was in the beginning with God.
(Keep breathing in and out)
-
Pay attention to the word ‘with’
-
The Word was with God. He was in the beginning
with God
-
Jesus is eternally with God.
-
In this very present moment, God is with us.
Keep breathing in and
breathing out
He was in the world, and the world came into being through
him; yet the world did not know him. 11 He came to
what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. 12 But to all who received him, who believed
in his name, he gave power to become children of God
-
Have you opened your heart to receive Jesus, who
came in the form of a baby?
-
This baby is little and vulnerable, and yet he
has power – the power of love.
-
Fully embrace this Christ child and place him in
your inner heart.
God has promised - To all who
received Jesus, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of
God. We are all God’s children, fully loved and blessed.
Keep breathing in and
breathing out…. God is with us.
14 And the Word became flesh and lived
among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only
son, full of grace and truth.
-
Jesus is the only Son of God sent from heaven to
the earth because God loves the world so much. God breaks into humanity because
he loves us so much.
-
Jesus lives amongst us, full of grace and truth.
-
Jesus lives within us and all humanity, all
creatures.
Keep breathing in and
breathing out….
Conclusion
The Christmas present that God gives to us is
our full identity as God’s beloved children. The presence of Christ, here and
now, in all times and in all places’ is another great gift God has given.
The Christmas present that we give to God is – being present in God and
with God; and to receive God by putting the Christ child in our heart. In
this way, we are in union with God through Christ.
In Christ, we are ONE with God. That is the
mystery of Christmas. That is the greatest Christmas present for all.
Let us pray:
Dear God, thank
you for giving us the present of Christ who lives in our heart. The Oneness
with You through Christ is a mystery. Give us, God, the spiritual wisdom to
understand, and patience to practice the spiritual discipline.
Bless us,
God, to have a meaningful Christmas and help us to continue the Christmas
spirit by living in the present, here and now, and not to worry about tomorrow,
but instead be like Christ, to be sent to bring to friends known and unknown,
this marvelous present of Christmas – all hearts to receive baby Jesus, the
love, life and light of the world. Amen.
# posted by Kowloon Union Church : Sunday, December 25, 2016
