Advent Sermon 2012: Parties, Plastic Nativities, and the Message of Christmas

It’s Christmas Eve and the madness that accompanies the season is upon us. There are parties and gifts, travel and elves, cookies and milk, and every other thing imaginable.

In the midst of all of this hustle and bustle, it is easy to lose sight of the meaning of Christmas. I had an opportunity to preach a few weeks ago at Surfside. My Advent message was a meditation on what Christmas has become compared with Paul’s hymn about the incarnation from Philippians 2.

The way Paul sees the incarnation is a far cry from our plastic nativities and saccharine songs (Silent Night anyone?). For Paul this is a story of the God of the universe taking on flesh and exercising submission. You can listen by clicking here or using the Sound Cloud widget below.