1 Christmas A | 28.12.2025 | Matthew 2:13-23 | Luther H. Thoresen |

¹³ Now after they had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” ¹⁴ Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt ¹⁵ and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, “Out of Egypt I have called my son.”

¹⁶ When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the magi,^[i] he was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around Bethlehem who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had learned from the magi. ¹⁷ Then what had been spoken through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled:

¹⁸ “A voice was heard in Ramah,
wailing and loud lamentation,
Rachel weeping for her children;
she refused to be consoled, because they are no more.”

¹⁹ When Herod died, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, ²⁰ “Get up, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who were seeking the child’s life are dead.” ²¹ Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel. ²² But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And after being warned in a dream, he went away to the district of Galilee. ²³ There he made his home in a town called Nazareth, so that what had been spoken through the prophets might be fulfilled, “He will be called a Nazarene.”

Scripture quotations from: New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America.

Note: The initial paragraphs in italics of this sermon might be used as the basis for a Children’s message. The preacher could substitute anecdotes from their youth that would be similar to the current author’s; or share what is below in the third person. If not used that way, one might adapt it as the beginning of the “usual” sermon or insert part of it later in the sermon…or elsewhere in the service.

Sermon
Good morning. Have any Christmas cards arrived in the mail at your house? They are usually quite pretty, right? Can you describe some that have come to your house? [Allow time to engage in conversation…and after a time, perhaps fill in the blanks with comments like the following ones] Some have winter scenes, or Santa Claus. Some portray some part of the story of Jesus’ birth – a manger with Mary and Joseph, or a star in the night sky and wise men on camels, or an angel with shepherds on the hillside. There is usually a Merry Christmas greeting, maybe a bible quote or poetry to go with the picture.  

I will be talking about an unusual part of the Christmas story in the regular sermon. But for now, would you pray with me? God, thank you for this time of year, and for the opportunity to send and receive greeting cards from family members and friends. Thank you for the beauty of artwork on Christmas cards. Thank you for the beauty of decorations in our church. Thank you for the beauty of decorations in our town, on houses, businesses and more. Thank you most of all for sending your Son, Jesus that we might have life now and ever. In Jesus’ name, Amen

Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

“Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, “Out of Egypt I have called my son.” (v 14, 15)

Something is not right! Just a few days ago we celebrated a story with the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, angels appearing to shepherds, and the shepherds finding Mary, Joseph…and the Child lying a in a manger. We might expect the magi, the wise men, to arrive soon with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh…and ask Herod about the child born King of the Jews, based on many children’s Christmas pageants. But instead, the text for today began with the departure of the wise men, and we might hear that story from earlier in Matthew 2 on January 6, the Festival of the Epiphany. Today, this day, we heard of Herod’s plot, the massacre of the children in and around Bethlehem, and about the Holy Family fleeing to Egypt. Something is not right, indeed.

On a deeper level than just sequence, Something is NOT right! Last Sunday, we heard the angel say to Joseph, “Do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife.” We heard Matthew reflect, “All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, ‘Look, A virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they will name him, Emmanuel, which means, God is with us.’” Wonderful news indeed.

However, Today, an angel WARNS Joseph, ““Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt…” Terrible news, indeed. It is as if the message is, “Now that you have obeyed, be afraid. Run!” Somehow, “Rise up shepherd and follow” has become, “Rise up Joseph and flee.” It is as if “God is with us” has become, “God is with us on the run.” The angel’s message this week is very different from last week!

Something is not right! A big question is NOT answered. “Why are the other children massacred, but Jesus is kept safe?”  On one level, the story IS about God’s protection of the Son, Jesus. On one level, the story is about God’s work on our behalf through Jesus in the history of the world. On one level, the story is about safety.

Yet, at the same time, we have a story of tragedy and of slaughter. Ouch. Might we want to leave it out? Maybe. Still, this part of the story, connects to other tragedies – before the birth of Jesus, and in the 2000 years since his birth. This part of the story connects to children in South Sudan, or in Gaza or in Ukraine who are hungry, and many have died because of war without an end in sight, and the lack of access to food and water. This part of the story connects to children in the US and elsewhere who are afraid and may be injured or killed because of a tyrant, a violent person in the household. This part of the story connects to children who are living on the streets, with or without a parent, and afraid to go to sleep at all in cities like Sau Paulo, Brazil; New York City; or Delhi, India. This part of the story connects to children who are living in fear of street gangs or racially motivated thugs in any country on the planet. Some would say that today’s story connects to the story about the order from Pharoah to slaughter children in Egypt centuries before Jesus, and the rescue of Moses from the rushes along the Nile River.

Still, would not the Christmas story have been nicer without the slaughter of children? Would not today’s worship have been nicer, more positive without this story? I suppose so. Yet, if we only had stories of Mary, Joseph, shepherds, angels and wise men…if we had all those without Herod, the story could become only saccharine sweet. The story could lose touch with the real world, the world as it IS, the only world in which we live.

I may not like this story. You may not like this story. Yet, I am glad it is in the scriptures. Even if I am saddened that the slaughter of children has happened and continues to happen, this story in the scriptures touches sad realities of this world.

So, what shall we say? Good question. We might say, “Have yourself a defiant Christmas.” John Shea was a lay theologian in the Roman Catholic Church. He is now retired, though he taught at several colleges and universities over the years, spoke at conferences, and wrote a dozen or more books. In one he wrote about a Christmas Card he would like to design¹. He says it would have a picture with one light (a candle?) in a dark night, one evergreen tree in a forest of brown and grey, one laughing child in a ramshackle stable, and the caption, “Have a Defiant Christmas.” Why defiant? Because there is one light defying the darkness; there is one green sign of life defying the barren landscape; there is one beloved child in an inhospitable place. Defiant Christmas indeed. John Shea’s card would be very different from the ones I have sent, and the ones I have received over the years.

Still, you know that the end of Jesus’ story is also dark, barren and inhospitable. You know that Jesus dies on a cross on a dark Friday afternoon, is laid in a dark tomb, rises in the dark of Easter morning and the women arrive shortly in the dark. You know that Jesus hangs on a cross on a barren hill called Golgotha, was laid on a barren slab of rock for three days. You know that Jesus dies alone, surrounded by inhospitable people, rejected by an inhospitable world. Yet, Easter is just as Defiant as any Christmas Card. Jesus defies the darkness to rise as Light for the world. Jesus defies all that is barren and rises to bring Life to the world and the world’s people. Jesus defies rejection and all that is inhospitable, in order to laugh death in the face, and embrace all of God’s children and the whole of God’s creation.

God in Christ is defiant from birth to death to life. This defiant God is Emmanuel, with us. Period. This defiant God comes to us this day in Word and Sacrament; in scripture heard and proclaimed, in water and in bread and wine. This defiant God comes to us in the fellowship of God’s people and in the people we serve. This defiant God comes to us in the midst of all that is dark and barren and inhospitable. This defiant God comes to us with light and life and a welcoming embrace. This defiant God comes to us and sends us to share light and life with those in dark and barren places. This defiant God comes to us and sends us to share a welcoming embrace with those locked inside inhospitable places. When Joseph got up, took the child and his mother and went to Egypt, we might say that he defied the power of King Herod.

You might recall that Christmas has twelve days. Today is the 4^th day of Christmas. Have yourself a Defiant Christmas.

Amen

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

©Pr. Luther H. Thoresen, ELCA, STS, retired; thoresenluther54@gmail.com; Grundy Center, IA, USA

¹ I have read about a dozen of Shea’s books. However, I don’t recall the particular book or page where he describes this card. However, he did include the same in an article for US Catholic in 2016 that was published online at https://uscatholic.org/articles/201612/a-reflection-for-advent-a-defiant-christmas/ . For other descriptions by Shea, a web search using the prompt, “John Shea, A Defiant Christmas,” produces several options.