Behold I bring you good tidings of Great joy. For unto you is born this day, in the city of Bethlehem, a saviour which is Christ the Lord. (Luke 2)

FOR US, IT IS FINALLY HERE – the day that WE HAVE PREPARED FOR, DECORATED FOR AND SHOPPED FOR! Since Labor Day, in many cases, we have been getting ready, planning the perfect Christmas. We have been looking for the perfect gift for everyone on our list. We looked for the perfect tree. Ladies, if company is coming for Christmas, you have no doubt have scrubbed the house, and done lots of baking. You have carefully planned the menu, gotten out the Christmas dishes or best china. Many of us have hung Christmas lights. WE HAVE DONE ALL OF THESE THINGS BECAUSE WE WANT IT TO BE A PERFECT CHRISTMAS! We instinctively want a perfect Christmas. But what actually makes a "perfect Christmas?"

Let's take a few minutes and think about another Christmas. The original Christmas; the first and genuine Christmas. Was it perfect? Was everything perfect, just right for Mary, Joseph and the Infant Jesus?

Well, let's examine the story again. Then as now the birth of a child was an important event in the life of a family. It is not unreasonable that Mary would have planned to have the support of her family and friends. But the situation was otherwise. Due to the decree of Caesar Augustus, Mary and Joseph had to travel from Nazareth to Bethlehem so as to Caesar's decree for a census and a head tax on every household. In this case, each head of household had to return to his hometown to be enrolled. This was very inconvenient timing to say the least – Joseph and Mary had to make an arduous journey despite Mary being almost due to deliver her child. Riding across the Judean country-side on a donkey while Mary was so near to term was surely not perfect.

Then there was the problem of accommodations when they arrived. It was far from perfect. Mary and Joseph were unable to find a room. Today we would say that the no-vacancy sign was out. As a result, an in-keeper allowed them to take shelter for the night in the live-stock shed. That's what the manger really was. It was a barn. Have you ever been in desert country at night? It gets very cold. That night was no doubt far from "just right", far from perfect. Yet that is where Mary gave birth to her child in a cold wooden shed.

Have you ever wondered what that night must have been like for Mary? Imagine poor Joseph trying to comfort her in her labor. Imagine Mary giving birth amid the oxen and the donkeys in that cattle shed. As a child I once had a horse. So of you have been around horses or livestock you know that barns don't smell very nice. Do you think that at some point that night Joseph might have felt helpless? Do you think he felt that as Mary's husband and protector he had somehow failed? Do you think that at some point Mary might have cried? No doubt Mary and Joseph would have WISHED THAT THINGS WOULD BE PERFECT FOR THE BIRTH OF HER FIRST-BORN; THE CHILD OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, THE SON OF GOD.

Yet, while that first Christmas was far from perfect by our objective standards, it was perfect in that the sense that it unfolded according to the will of God and in keeping with his plans. But most of all it was perfect because Jesus Christ, the Son of God was there. He was there to fulfill the hopes and dreams of all mankind for a new beginning, a new creation, a fresh start that would redeem man from the fallenness of sin and death.

That is the reason the angels appeared singing glory be to God on high and on earth, peace good will towards men. The angels were there because Christ was there.

What about our attempts to have a perfect Christmas. Christmas is a time when, with our families we celebrate time-honored traditions. We try to pick out the perfect card to sent. We bring out the old stuff – our prized decorations, the cherished recipes from grandmother. We look for the perfect tree. Christmas is not Christmas without the perfect meal. And of course, there are the gifts, and more gifts, and still more gifts. We try to pick out perfect wrapping paper and so on. All of this is intended to make Christmas perfect.

But Christmas is not always so perfect. We burn some cookies, or someone gets two of the same gift. A sweater doesn't fit. An incoming flight delay disrupts the perfect schedule. But these are minor things.

Think about the Christmas that some people are having this year. Imagine those who are overwhelmed with life's challenges here at Christmas. Imagine some mother or father who has lost their job and can't buy gifts for their children – who can't give them a perfect Christmas.

On this night, there are people struggling with the loss of a loved one in the past year – so that every thought of holiday tradition is painful and leaves a feeling of emptiness. Imagine single parent families where it is hard to make end's meet, much less buy Christmas gifts. Imagine the homeless. Not so perfect.

Think about those families in which Husbands and wives, sons and daughters, fathers and brothers, are patrolling the streets of Baghdad or fighting in Afghanistan. Not so perfect for Christmas.

But even when Christmas is far from perfect by our objective standards, the message is the same. "Behold I bring you good tidings of Great joy. For unto you is born this day, in the city of Bethlehem, a saviour which is Christ the Lord."

We have seen that the first Christmas was not so perfect by objective standards. Yet the joy of that first Christmas is that God has sent his only begotten Son into the world to redeem us. In the midst of people's real lives, and make no mistake, first century Palestine was a hard place, a difficult existence. But God sent his messengers to proclaim the good news, the glad tidings that God truly cares, truly loves us. The good news was that Christ was coming into the world. And wherever Christ is there is joy and peace.

So tonight God offers us the same thing. He offers us glad tidings of peace and good will in the Incarnation of his Son. Emmanuel. God is with us.

GOD HAS TAKEN ON OUR HUMANITY BECAUSE GOD WANTS TO MAKE THINGS RIGHT. HE WANTS TO MAKE THINGS PERFECT. GOD HAS TAKEN ON HUMAN FORM BECAUSE GOD WANTS TO RESTORE THE BROKEN RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN GOD AND MAN. IN THIS CHRIST-CHILD, GOD SEEKS TO RECONCILE HIS CREATION WITH HIMSELF – TO MAKE THINGS RIGHT AGAIN! TO MAKE THINGS PERFECT!

And while it's a good thing to honor family traditions, to be thoughtful in our gift-giving, to celebrate with family and friends, these are not the elements of a "perfect Christmas." A perfect Christmas is a Christmas centered on Christ. Any Christmas where Christ is found is a perfect Christmas. It is only Christ who can heal broken lives, mend broken hearts, and replace sadness with hope and joy.

So to make your Christmas truly "perfect" be sure to include Christ. His birth signals that there is a new birth, a new life waiting for each of us. His birth reconciles us to God. Make Him the center of your Christmas. That is what Christmas is all about. Otherwise, it's not really Christmas.

So it's okay to burn the dressing. It's okay if the tree has a bad side. It's forgivable if the sweater you gave aunt Suzy has to be exchanged. This Christmas and every Christmas can be perfect as long as Christ is there as it's focus. In Christ, we can be restored to fellowship with God and be heeled of the heartaches of life. My Christmas wish for you is that this is a perfect Christmas – a Christmas centered on Christ.

Behold I bring you good tidings of Great joy. For unto you is born this day, in the city of Bethlehem, a saviour which is Christ the Lord.