A professor of mine at Princeton Seminary used to say, and he became well known for the statement, “Life is what happens when you’ve made other plans.” (Dr. H. T. Kerr, Jr.) Last night, having made all of my plans for Christmas, not only for the worship services but for our family celebration, the telephone rang and it was our daughter Aly calling from New York City to tell us with tears in her eyes that her flight had been cancelled. It’s not the first time it’s happened to another human being and it won’t be the last, but this was our daughter! At first I was angry at the airlines (whose name I will not mention), and then I called an airline pilot that I know who belongs to this church and is a good friend. He got to working on things for us last night and hopefully our daughter will arrive sometime this evening, later than expected, but safe and sound in Atlanta.

As I was talking to the airline pilot, I remembered something that I had kept in an old sermon file. It’s about the operation of an aircraft and it’s dated January of 1920. I pulled this out to read to myself and to read to you tonight, because things used to be a whole lot worse flying in airplanes. Here are some of the guidelines:

  Don’t take the machine into the air unless you are satisfied it will fly.
  Never leave the ground with the motor leaking.
  Don’t turn sharply while taxiing. Instead of turning sharp, have someone lift the tail around.
  Pilots should carry hankies in a handy position to wipe off their goggles.
  If you see another machine near you, get out of the way.
  Do not trust altitude instruments.
  Hedge-hopping will not be tolerated.
  If flying against the wind and you wish to fly with the wind, don’t make a sharp turn near the ground. You may crash.

And my favorite one…
  Pilots must not wear spurs while flying.

I felt better after I read that! And then I realized that if I was going to preach a sermon entitled “No Fear!” tonight, I had better examine my own heart and soul. So I went back to the scriptures, the same ones we have just read here in this service, and I re-discovered what the angel Gabriel proclaimed to Mary, saying Don’t be afraid. Do not be afraid for you have found favor with God. You will conceive in your womb and bear a son. You shall call his name Jesus. I re-discovered that another angel spoke to Joseph and said Do not fear to take Mary your wife for that which is conceived in her is born of the Holy Spirit. (Matthew 1:20) And I re-discovered in the gospel of Matthew about the Wise Men coming to Jerusalem, seeking the child who would be born King of the Jews. Matthew tells us that Herod was deeply troubled by that news. He thought he was the only king in town and a sense of fear came all around him and the entire city of Jerusalem.

And I read once more and re-discovered again that glorious scene in the hills outside Bethlehem as an angel spoke to the shepherds, declaring to them Be not afraid! For behold I bring you good news of a great joy which will come to all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord! (Luke 2:10-11)

As I re-read those passages all over again last night, I realized that the recurring theme through all of the gospel stories is the same - BE NOT AFRAID! Having faced my own fears in the mirror last night and all of today, I want to tell you why those words, “Be Not Afraid,” may be among the most important words we human beings have ever heard.

In the ancient days of the Old Testament, God was described and perceived as the Almighty Creator of the Universe. His power was demonstrated through the forces of nature - sun and moon, stars and the sea, and in the wind that blew through the cedar trees of Lebanon and swept over the desert of the Sinai wilderness. Great storms, with lightning and thunder, devastating famines and droughts, and earthquakes that shook the earth asunder were all seen as signs of God’s power and oftentimes, His anger and displeasure, casting fear in the hearts and minds of those primitive people.

Then, as God began to reveal Himself to them, Abraham heard Him speak of a covenant and Abraham hid his face in the ground, for he was afraid. (Genesis 17:3). Years later, on their way to the Promised Land, when the Israelites were surrounded by smoke and fire on Mt. Sinai, they cried out to Moses, You speak to us and we will hear - but let not God speak to us, lest we die! (Exodus 20:19) And even though Moses told them not to be afraid, they were scared stiff anyway.

So was Isaiah, who, centuries after the Exodus, had a vision of God in the temple which knocked him off his feet as he pleaded for mercy, saying Woe is me, for I am a man of unclean lips…and I have seen…the Lord of Hosts! (Isaiah 6:5)

And that’s the way it was for more than 1500 years, stretching from Genesis to the Book of Malachi. The people of Israel, as they came close to God and as God drew near to them, were almost always overwhelmed by sheer fright, wondering anxiously if they would live or die in the midst of such awesome and almighty power.

So we can understand why, as those Advent angels started to appear and announced that God was coming near again, this time in the form of a child who would dwell among them - we can understand why Joseph, Mary and the shepherds were full of fear. Their tradition had taught them to keep God at a safe distance.

But the angels were persistent, saying over and over again “Be not afraid! Be not afraid!” and those words were then and still are today among the most important words any human being has ever heard. Because, the time had come for God to reveal who He really was and is:

  Almighty, but all loving as well.
  Powerful, but also seeking to be present and to dwell with His people.
  Creator of the universe, but finally coming to live on this earth.
  Holy and beyond our comprehension, but now human so that we can see and touch and know Him.

That is what the angels were trying to tell Mary and Joseph and the shepherds and everyone else during that first Advent season, and that is what they are still trying to tell us today. “Be not afraid! For God loves you and has come to dwell among you.” And that message, my friends, is the good news of the gospel. Because it assures us, it promises us that we don’t have to be afraid of God anymore. His perfect love has the power to cast out our fear! (I John 4)

Does that mean we can live life without any fear at all? No, for there are some forms of fear which warn us of danger, other kinds of fear that lead us away from temptation, and a healthy dimension of fear, which is better defined as awe, respect and reverence toward God which the book of Proverbs tells us is the beginning of wisdom. (Proverbs 1:7)

But we need not be afraid, frightened, scared to death of God anymore! Because we know now, through the birth of Jesus, and through His life, death and resurrection, that God loves us with a love that will never let us go.

A little girl was being put to bed by her mother one night as a loud thunderstorm was howling outside. As they said their prayers and the mother kissed her and started to leave the room, the girl reached out for her hand and asked her to stay a while.

The mother said, “Don’t be afraid. Your father and I will be downstairs and God will take care of you here.” The daughter replied, “I know Mommy, but when it thunders in the sky, a little girl like me needs somebody with skin on.”

Tonight, as we celebrate the birth of Jesus and prepare to receive this communion, that is the promise and the hope of Christmas. For God has come to live among us, the Word was made flesh for each and everyone of us, and we have been given a Savior with skin on who says, together with the angels, to all of us on this silent, holy night, Do not be afraid! Do not be afraid!

In the name of the Father, and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.