We sing the Christmas carol “Silent Night,” but actually the first Christmas was a rather noisy night, I think. First we have Mary and Joseph knocking on doors, “Do you have a room for the night?” “No, sorry, we don’t.” In the stable there were the sounds of the animals, perhaps a cow going “moo” or a sheep or goat going “baa” or a horse going “neigh” or chickens clucking. Then the sounds of childbirth. Then the cry of the Baby Jesus taking his first breath in this world.

Then out in the pasture on the hills of Bethlehem, there is a new sound. The Angel of the Lord suddenly appears and the shepherds gasp is terror at the sight. “Do not be afraid! I have good news for you. Today your Savior, Christ the Lord, was born in David’s city.” And then the whole sky was filled with the choir of angels, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those who have his good will!” Then there is the sound of the feet of the shepherds running into town, knocking on all the barn doors and stable doors, looking for the Christ Child, “Is there a baby here?” And after they found the Baby, on the way back to their sheep they told everyone they met what they had seen, singing and praising God.

Our Christmases can get noisy, too. Department store music, party noises, even our worship can get loud with songs like “Joy to the World.” It makes the season merry. But sometimes the noise is bad. If people are completely distracted from the true meaning of Christmas, then we have a problem. If the song of the angels is heard by the ears but not by the heart, then there is a problem. Then in the midst of the noise there is silence. It is the silence when the Word of God is not spoken or not listened to or is ignored. I would say that people choose to ignore the true Christian message, because they would rather that the Christ Child just stay in the manger and not go on to Jerusalem to preach the Gospel and to accuse us of our sin and to die for our sin. People think it is better and easier to live in sin than to have sin forgiven. The purpose of Jesus coming was to forgive sin, which is what the angel proclaimed.

And this time of year some people feel the silence of loneliness. We think of loved ones who are not with us. Or perhaps there is the noise in our hearts from regrets and guilt and worries and pains and disease. Because of poverty, many people have hardly enough to eat to survive, let alone even thinking about a party at Christmas.

That is why now all people, rich or poor, healthy or sick, believers and unbelievers, must hear the good sound, the good news. It was proclaimed by the angels. Christ is born! And because this Child was laid in a manger, he experiences and understands everyone’s loneliness and pain. He understands the silence and the noise. He is with us. And that is why the Good News is a Good Sound to our ears and to our hearts. It gives hope. It gives comfort. It gives assurance. And the Good News gives us the reason to merry at Christmas. It is because our Savior is born. Hark the Glad Sound! Joy to the World!

Amen.

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