December 2, 2007 Message

Isaiah 9:2, 6; Matthew 6:9-11
“Welcome Christmas, Bring Your Light”

("How the Grinch Stole Christmas" is read for Children's Parable)

Every Who down in Who-ville liked Christmas a lot
But the Grinch, who lived just north of Who-ville, did not!
The Grinch hated Christmas! The whole Christmas season!
Now, please don't ask why. No one knows quite the reason.

When this time of year comes - the countdown to Christmas and all - do you think of yourself as living in Whoville… or as living somewhere just north of there?

In our children’s story today, that’s where the grouchy ol’ fella lives who hates Christmas and everything about Christmas – the toys, the noise, the joy, the songs, the parties – everything! He could care less about Christmas and all the things that go on during the Christmas season.
So what does he do? Remember? He decides to stop Christmas from coming. He figures if he takes all the stuff the Whos down in Whoville are expecting for Christmas, he will ruin Christmas for all of them… and make the Whos just as unhappy as him.

"Pooh-Pooh to the Whos!" he was grinchishly humming.
"They're finding out now that no Christmas is coming!
They're just waking up! I know just what they'll do!
Their mouths will hang open a minute or two.
Then the Whos down in Who-ville will all cry BOO-HOO!"
So he takes all their stuff. But instead of crying, what does he hear? Right, he hears all of them singing.
Every Who down in Who-ville, the tall and the small,
Was singing! Without any presents at all!
He hadn't stopped Christmas from coming! It came!
Somehow or other, it came just the same!

And the Grinch, with his grinch-feet ice-cold in the snow,
Stood puzzling and puzzling: "How could it be so?
"It came without ribbons! It came without tags!
"It came without packages, boxes or bags!"
And he puzzled three hours, till his puzzler was sore.
Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before!
"Maybe Christmas," he thought, "doesn't come from a store.
"Maybe Christmas ... means a little bit more!"

So, there it is – the Grinch’s lesson of Christmas – maybe, just maybe, Christmas means a bit more. Is that a lesson we might need to learn as well? Do we think Christmas has to have presents and Santa and trees and snow? All those things are nice! Do we think Christmas has to come from a store? There are some awfully good things that come from stores - that’s for sure! But Christmas is not one of them. Christmas means a little bit more, doesn’t it?

Dr. Seuss and his story of the Grinch remind us of something very, very important. They remind us the Christmas we are waiting for doesn't come from a store. The Christmas we expectantly wait for this, and every Advent season, comes from God.

Christmas is Christ. It is Isaiah’s prophesy fulfilled and the prayer Jesus taught his disciples answered.

“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. For those who lived in a land of deep shadows— light! sunbursts of light! For a child has been born—for us! the gift of a son—for us!”,

“God revealed to set the world right; doing what’s best for us, providing for the nourishment, the forgiveness, and the safety we desperately need.

Christmas is the day we celebrate both of those things – God’s gift of a son FOR US, God’s self revealed TO US - in the birth of Jesus the Christ. And because of that – because of what Christmas really means - we can continue to sing!

Welcome Christmas,
fah who rah-moose
Welcome Christmas,
dah who dah-moose
Christmas day will always be
Just so long as we have we

Fah who for-aze
Dah who dor-aze
Welcome Christmas
Bring your light