Luke 1: 46 And Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.
Luke 2:11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.
Merry Christmas! Thanks to everyone of you, including the Bethany Community congregation, BCC Staff, Compassion New England Staff, the amazing people in the “Greater Milford Area,” and all of my wonderful connections in social media for making 2018 a truly awesome year. And oh yes, my incredible wife, kids and grandkids are the human foundation for all the goodness in my life.
As I think of what this day means to Christians, the word savior come to mind, followed closely by the words hopeless and hope. Mary rejoiced in “God” her “Savior.” Saviors are for there for people, things and situations that are hopeless. Think about that for a minute. If you don’t have the skill to repair something that is hopelessly broken you will only make it worse if you start messing around with it. Typically when things are broken, Cheri, my wife insist; not sure insist is a strong enough term that I stop touching it. When something in my house is broken beyond repair, she knows and I know we need a savior and it’s not me.
Mary was saying, “I’m hopelessly broken and I need a savior.” I know that challenges some people’s theology about Mary, but I don’t think she was just being poetic when she called the Lord, her savior. I am positive Mary was being very precise with her words.
As I was thinking about all this just now my thoughts jumped to a hopelessly broken world. Sometimes I get depressed about the endless list of problems with the world that you and I live in. Sorry, but if you are watching the world as I do and you think we’re a decision, an election, a court action, an executive order or a battle away from utopia, you’re not an optimist, you’re delusional.
But wait a minute, I too like Mary have problems. Do I think Christ is my savior? Yes, I am as confident as Mary that Christ is my hope; in fact I am not the least bit worried about all of my faults, foibles and pathetic ways of being. For example, I will leave an incredible Sunday morning service, practically levitating out of the building, then two or three hours later I’ll be in the throes of depression because I have been reminded of a couple of families that didn’t show up or learn that something I said offended someone to the point they’re not coming back to church. That’s one safe example of my brokenness. I could easily write a fairly large book about my sins and shortcomings. But do I think Christ has me covered with Grace? Oh yes, without a doubt. In fact I feel so forgiven and loved by my savior, I don’t understand why everyone else can’t just forgive and love me too.
So if I can have such hope for a hopeless creature like me, why can’t I have hope for a hopeless world like the one I live in and learn about daily. For Christmas this year may I give you the gift of hope for a world that will not be saved by the strategies of humanity but it, like me and like Mary will saved by the savior, who is Christ the lord. Even as we participate to make the world a better place we don’t do so because we think were saviors but like Mary we believe we are mere channels through which hope flows from heaven through our obedience. Yes, we are participants in saving the world but we are not saving the world, Christ our savior is.
