Sermon Luke 2:1-20 December 24th, 2005

Augustus announces and an angel awakens: “alleluia” – acclaiming an ageless affirmation articulating awesome amazement – and absolution above all accused and abandoned – arduously afflicted and affected – acknowledging advocacy amongst all – aching apostles align. Adonai’s answer arrives!

Because before becoming – beyond baroness – behind begotteness – behold, benevolent babies birth. Beside Bethlehem bestowed – bright – brilliant – bittersweet. Blame becomes blessing. Blindness begets boldness. Breathless beauty breaks broken bonds buried beyond broad burdened brokenness.

Chorused Cosmic chromatic cries, “Come cradle!” Christ’s coming candidly calls – callously challenges – catechetically completes creation. Cheerfully changes – casts –  creates circular civilization craving clamoring climate.

Dark, dingy, dateless, debacle – delivers divine declaration declaring death defeated despite decree. Donkeys dazzled – David’s descendents destined – debtors delivered – divorce dismantled – depicting desirable determined devout design – demonstrating Deus’ dependable depth.

Everybody envisioned – extraneous enlightenment – early engagement – Elizabeth’s ecstasy – Easter echoed. Ecstatic eclectic energy efficaciously elating every endeavored environment. Eternal Elohim embryonically enters earth enfleshed – embedded – embracing – endearing – enlightened epiphany. Enslavement ends – eternity/Emmanuel ever enmeshed.

From faithful Father flows fairest firstborn fellow – favored for finding finitude. Fixation? Forgiveness! Frolicking – fishing – fixing – freeing – feeding – followed – fled from – forgotten – flogged – forsaken – fractured – flesh flowing forth – funeral forbidden. Frail friend’s function? Fulcrum for freedom!

God’s goodness generating grace! Generous goodwill gathering galactic galvanized generations, gazing (ga ga) glorifying – gladly governing – giving glad-tidings. Galilean – good Samaritan – good Shepherd – Good Friday. Grievously – gravitationally gripped – ghostly grave goes garishly.

Highest heaven heralds hum: “Hallelujah!” Heathens harangue, hastening hope however hard. Herod heavy – hateful – hearkens hellish hedonism. Help hovers: Hosanna! Heavy hearts heal.

Indigent, imperfect, important, impressionable individuals introduced into impassioned infiniteness. Indifference indicted – indecency indefensible. Indubitable infant introduced – Immanuel incarnated: idea? illumination!

Joseph’s joy – Judea’s jurisdiction – Jordan’s journey – Judas’ jeopardy – John’s jubilation – Jerusalem’s justice: Jesus!

Kindness keeps kindling knowledge – keenly killing kindred kibitzers knowing Kaddish’s knavery.

Love lies laden – languishing laments. Lawgiving left leaning – lacking – leering – lost. Lethargic “Levitical language” luster’s lapsed. Liberal light ‘lumens’ life! “LOOK! LISTEN! LORD!”

Majestic multitude metred music – Mary’s mildness magnified – much maligned – mightily manifested – mangered motherhood. Managed marriage, measures mis-understanding – maybe misfortune. Magi’s message means murder. Mixes: misery/mystery – misconduct/meaning. Miraculous Messiah modestly meeting misguided mankind – marginal miniscule manger.

Nazareth’s nominal nobody – name-less – now narrated ‘night-time’ nativity. Nursing newborn needing nourishment – noble nobility – non-conformist – non-descript – not normal. Norwegian? No! North American? Never! Nationality? Nazarene.

Omnipotent obedient obligated one – obscure ontological offering – observes obvious occasion of omni-presence. Omega’s official omniscient – omnifarious – ontological oligarch. Outspoken outsider overcoming old outdated order.

Peacemaker proclaims pardon – pilgrims pray – Palestine perplexed – Pilate prepared – paradise previewed.  Priests paralyzed – paresis partners paradoxically. Proclamation penetrates people’s pensitivity – Paul, Peter, predestined preachers. Prophecy points – perfection previewed – philosophical platitude pledged – powerfully promised peace.

Quirinius queries quantitative question.

Registration requires regional return. Radiant response reiterates: “Repent!” Righteousness rules retrieving – restoring – redirecting restrictive rages – racial ridicule – ridiculous revolutionary responses. Redemption ripples repentant River.

Shepherds stay standing – see single salient star – sacred sign – sacrosanct situation. Salvation states Savior saving Syrians – shopkeepers – scholastics – seamen – schoolgirls – soldiers – Shiites – South Dakotans – Serbs – Samaritans – slaves – schizophrenics – southerners – socialists – secret service servants – shoe shiners – sergeants – secretaries – Sudanese – snobs – slobs – sinners!

Triumphant trinity temeritously – tenderly – touches thankful transcended teenager. Theosophical thermo-transfixed threshold translates tidal time tested togetherness. Two – three – twenty – together tonight transfuse ‘truth’ transversing time.

Ultimate umbilical unconditionally understands. Undoing ungodliness – undeniably underestimated. Under-taking unexpected unilateral unimpeachable unity. Unleashes – unabashed unlimited unleavened urchin upon us.

Verbal veneration voiced – velvet vine vigorously vexes – vital visitation vests Virgin’s view.

Wild wonderful ‘wafer’ wakens weary whole world, whose welfare was weighed. War – weapons – wealth? Wither! Wholesome WORD welcomes wholeness – whispers ‘warmth’ – washes wounds with winnowing water.

Xmas xebec xerphyte – X (Christ)!

Yule-tide youthful yucca yearns Yahweh’s yoken year.

Zacharias’ zestful zeal. Zodiac’s zenith? Zion! Amen.