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The great Church reformer of the 16^th century, Martin Luther, wrote a very tender Christmas prayer, in what must have been a softer moment of reflection:

AH DEAREST Jesus, holy Child,

make thee a bed, soft, undefiled,

within my heart that it might be

a quiet chamber kept for thee.

In these days after Christmas we’re invited to reflect on how the birth of Christ changes things, how accommodating his residence in our hearts and lives changes, well everything. Martin Luther reflects on the profound implications of Christmas to individual faith.

And our readings this afternoon take us further and deeper into the profound and radical social justice implications of Emmanuel, Christ born among us.

in the very early years of the church, a man called Saul, a devout and high-born member of the Jewish faith, felt called to be a persecutor of Christians, but a conversion experience took place with an encounter with the risen Lord Jesus on the road to Damascus.  Saul became Paul, known to us as St Paul, and earlier in this service we heard from the letter he wrote to the church in Galatia, his radical and world-changing claims for Christianity.  His radical realisation was that, with Christs life death and resurrection, God’s promises are now not reserved for some people only, for only a few chosen people, but that now, in Christ, Gods promises are for everyone.  God’s wonderful kingdom of justice and peace, of plentiful harvests healthy families, as expressed by the prophet Isaiah, these promises are for everyone.  The manger in the stable is so low in order that anyone, however small and humble, can look level eyed into the face of God. The invitation into Gods kingdom no longer depend on one’s tribe, class, education or background, no one is in or out, because anyone and everyone can be baptised into Christ. In Christ, he famously writes,

‘There is no longer Jew or Greek, slave or free, male or female, for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to the promise.

I remember the impact of these words when I first read them as a young adult. I grew up at a time when women faced discriminated in the work place and lower opportunities in education, casual sexism was everywhere, and of course, there were no women clergy.  At that time, the joy of reading these words was profound. That through baptism, all barriers are broken down, all are one in Christ and all are heirs. As sons and heirs are entitled, now all of us are entitled, none of us are excluded from the joys and privileges of faith and also its responsibilities.

For anyone who is disadvantaged, marginalised or belittled by others these words are joyful, casting our lives in a different light.  In Christ, all are heirs to the blessings and promises of God.

Certainly, the early church and society did not fully adopt or realise this promise, Over 2000 years we continue on a journey of discovering what this unity and equality mean, but here it is, in the heart of scripture, the promise, the hope, that all are one in Christ.  We are all Gods heirs.

In practical terms, this means that when we face another human being we do so with reverence, as they too are Gods unique and precious child.  Every person is loved and valued and no one is superfluous or second-rate. This is the basis of Christian ethics and vision for society, everyone matters because they matter to God.

Reading St Paul’s letter to the Galatians at Christmas reminds us of the profound and radical implications of Emmanuel, Christ born among us, so humbly and lain in a manger.

I’d like to close with a beautiful Nativity image from the 15c that’s quietly in this radical vein. At first glance its traditional enough with the holy family, the ox and the ass.  However look closer and you’ll see that unusually its Joseph who cuddles the sleeping baby Jesus, here, the loving and tender attention for the baby comes from his earthly father. Meanwhile mother Mary is sat up in bed – and she’s reading a holy book!

Even now in the 21^st century, in some cultures, girls and women are denied the right to learn to read, just as in former times literacy was often denied to slaves.  Because those in power understood that the ability to read and write opens up learning, awareness and communication to those who were supposed to remain subordinate and without power.

In reality, Mary would probably have been illiterate, but here, the painter of the medieval manuscript gives both her and Joseph the full rights of heirs, which is access to God’s Word, both the Word written in a book and the Word born in human form.  Both Mary and Joseph meditate on the Word of God.

‘There is no longer jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female, for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.’ Amen.