Embedded Files
The First Noel
The first Noel the angel did say
Was to certain poor shepherds in fields as they lay
In fields where they lay keeping their sheep
On a cold winter's night that was so deep
Chorus
Noel Noel Noel Noel
Born is the King of Israel
Verse 2
They looked up and saw a star
Shining in the east beyond them far
And to the earth it gave great light
And so it continued both day and night
Chorus
Noel Noel Noel Noel
Born is the King of Israel
The First Noel
Chorus
Noel Noel Noel Noel
Born is the King of Israel
Verse 3
And by the light of that same star
Three wise men came from country far
To seek for a king was their intent
And to follow the star wherever it went
Chorus
Noel Noel Noel Noel
Born is the King of Israel
What A Glorious Night
Verse 1
The shepherds came to see the baby
Stood by His mother's side
Here laid the Savior inside a manger
Oh what a glorious night
Oh what a glorious night
Chorus
I hear the angels singin' hallelujah
Let the earth receive her King
I know that love has come sing it out
Jesus Christ is born
Jesus Christ is born
Verse 2
The shepherds wondered they couldn't hide it
Told ev'ryone in sight
All were amazed when they heard how God came
Down on the glorious night
God came down on this glorious night
Chorus
I hear the angels singin' hallelujah
Let the earth receive her King
I know that love has come sing it out
Jesus Christ is born
Jesus Christ is born
Verse 3
All is calm now all is quiet
A star is shining in the sky
There in a manger the King is sleeping
Oh what a glorious night
Oh what a glorious night
Chorus
I hear the angels singin' hallelujah
Let the earth receive her King
I know that love has come sing it out
Jesus Christ is born
Jesus Christ is born
“Jesus Joy Of The Highest Heaven”
Verse 1
Jesus joy of the highest heaven
Born as a little baby
Under a wondrous star
Like us crying he takes His first breath
Held by His mother helpless
Close to her beating heart
Jesus laid in a lowly manger
Facing a world of dangers
Come to turn me a stranger
Into a child of God
Verse 2
Jesus King of the highest heaven
Learning to take His first steps
That He might bring us life
Like us knowing our smiles and sorrows
He showed the way to follow
A way that is true and right
Jesus take away every darkness
Steady my simple footsteps
That I might in Your goodness
Live as a child of God
Jesus take away every darkness
Steady my simple footsteps
That I might in Your goodness
Live as a child of God
O Holy Night
Verse 1
O holy night the stars are brightly shining
It is the night of the dear Savior's birth
Long lay the world in sin and error pining
Till He appeared and the soul felt its worth
A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn
Chorus 1
Fall on your knees
O hear the angel voices
O night divine
O night when Christ was born
O night O holy night
O night divine
Verse 3
Truly He taught us to love one another
His law is love and His gospel is peace
Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother
And in His name all oppression shall cease
Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we
Let all within us praise His holy name
Chorus 3
Fall on your knees
O hear the angel voices
O night divine
O night when Christ was born
O night O holy night
O night divine
“Hark the Glad Sound”
1 Hark, the glad sound! The Savior comes,
the Savior promised long!
Let every heart prepare a throne,
and every voice a song.
2 He comes the prisoners to release,
in Satan's bondage held;
the gates of brass before him burst,
the iron fetters yield.
3 He comes the broken heart to bind,
the wounded soul to cure,
and with the treasures of his grace
to enrich the humbled poor.
4 Our glad hosannas, Prince of Peace,
your welcome shall proclaim;
and heaven's eternal arches ring
with your beloved name.
Ebenezer CRC - December 7, 2025
Adam Veenstra
SCRIPTURE READING
SERMON INTRO SLIDE Our Scripture reading for this morning can be found on page 1589 of the Bibles in front of you. This passage comes after the angel Gabriel has visited Mary and told her that she will give birth to the Saviour. She goes to visit her cousin Elizabeth who was also expecting a baby, which leapt for joy when Mary approached.
And so starting at verse 46 we read Mary’s response:
46 And Mary said:
“My soul glorifies the Lord
47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
48 for he has been mindful
of the humble state of his servant.
From now on all generations will call me blessed,
49 for the Mighty One has done great things for me—
holy is his name.
50 His mercy extends to those who fear him,
from generation to generation.
51 He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;
he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
52 He has brought down rulers from their thrones
but has lifted up the humble.
53 He has filled the hungry with good things
but has sent the rich away empty.
54 He has helped his servant Israel,
remembering to be merciful
55 to Abraham and his descendants forever,
even as he said to our ancestors.”
MESSAGE
Part One - Context
SLIDE 1 Every story starts once upon a time.
You could argue that the Christmas story starts with that visit from Gabriel to Mary. Most retellings begin around that spot.
But this passage reminds us that this particular once upon a time actually stretches back much further into the past, to the beginning of God’s creation - from generation to generation.
That very beginning is of course outlined in Genesis, when we’re told that God created the heavens and the earth.
That creation is chapter one of a story that Mary recounts for us here - it is simply the establishment of the story of God’s care for us and our world.
In C.S. Lewis’ famous Narnia books, the godlike creator figure Aslan sings the world into being. SLIDE 2 He is called the “First Voice”, and does it as an act of love.
His song and command is to “awake. Love. Think. Speak. Be walking trees. Be talking beasts. Be divine waters.”
There is power and wonder and beauty, and there is love, in the act of setting forth creation.
The main question of the story of creation is not just how the world was created, but what happens next: what the creator’s relationship is to that world?
SLIDE 3 Generations later, Mary sings that answer.
In Luke 1 Mary alludes to so many Christmases past: so many times when God’s presence has been made known throughout their history.
It is far from an exhaustive list, but is a powerful expression of reflecting on God’s faithfulness.
It punctuates time with the different ways that God has demonstrated his care for what he’s created.
SLIDE 4 These are stories that would have been told to her by her family and community while she grew up, which they in turn were told when they grew up.
It is their family’s story: a chronology not just of what happened, but how God was at work in the past.
It’s more than just history.
SLIDE 5 Scripture is not a textbook, and was never meant to be.
It’s more.
It’s not a list or a manual: it’s a story.
And so it holds real power for how we live our lives.
It’s why Jesus spoke in parables, or why we’re collecting storybooks for the kids of our community: so that we can begin to understand our place in the story
Bible professors Peter Enns and Jared Byas have pointed out that it’s important to remember that the Holy Spirit used “storytellers - not historians, scientists, or academics” to produce the Bible.
It gave this account to God’s ordinary people - like Mary - in a certain time and place in a way that satisfied their cultural needs, and gives all of us an incredible story of the nature of our creator.
SLIDE 6 So that she can know that his mercy extends to all those who believe and are in awe of him - stretching back into the past, and then into the future.
SLIDE 7 No matter what culture or faith tradition they come from, ancient origin stories were never meant to answer all of our 21st century questions about the past.
Their purpose was to answer the questions about God and his relationship to creation.
In a period of history when people were continually struggling against prideful rulers and inequality, they needed reminding that he has brought the rulers down from their thrones and sent the rich away empty, but been mindful of his humble servants.
They needed reminding of his supremacy over it all; of his love and care for them, their importance to him, and their place in the story.
SLIDE 8 That in a world of struggle and competing mythologies, to God’s people a child would be born, a Son would be given, and the government would be on his shoulders.
And he would be called Wonderful Counsellor, and Mighty God.
And his mother would remind people that God the Father is truly worthy of their worship.
Mary joins an oral tradition that indeed stretches back to once upon a time, telling the story she grew up hearing.
We are a people of stories.
SLIDE 9 From the earliest days of civilization, people gathered around the fire, around the hearth, for warmth, for companionship, and for protection.
And they would share stories.
It was how they entertained one another, and how they passed down the history of all that had come before, and shaped who they are today.
SLIDE 10 We still gather around the glow of our devices to engage with stories, now it’s just screen instead of embers.
But the reasons we do it are the same: companionship and protection - maybe some self-protection and avoidance - but also entertainment, learning about the past and why we are the way we are today.
SLIDE 11 In Luke 1 Mary famously takes part in this oral tradition of celebrating the past, and sharing it with those around her.
And it’s traditionally described as a song - a hymn, an expression of praise.
If you were following along in your Bibles, you’ll see that’s the title this section has been given.
It’s a unique way of telling a story that doesn’t lend itself to 100% theological or historical accuracy, but instead focusses on emotional accuracy.
Mary doesn’t give a beat-for-beat account of everything that God has done - there wouldn’t be words enough to describe it all.
Scripture tells us that there aren’t enough books in the world to write down everything Christ does for us.
But her story paints the broad strokes; sometimes poetry is more powerful than prose.
Because in reality these may not even be the exact words that Mary spoke.
They were likely spoken in Hebrew or Aramaic, then written down in Greek by Luke at least sixty years after Jesus’ conception.
Maybe the Holy Spirit gave Luke very specific word, or maybe it’s paraphrasing her sentiments.
Regardless, it has now been translated into roughly 1800 languages. And not every language has a word-for-word equivalency to Greek…from Hebrew.
SLIDE 12 But what it potentially lacks in historic or linguistic specificity, it captures in telling the story of how God has cared for his creation in the past.
Part Two - Mission & Application
Writer Nicola Yoon once said that “Stories help shape the way we see ourselves in the world. They help tell us who we can be and what we can achieve.”
SLIDE 13 They help tell us that God is our Saviour. That he lifts us up. That he fills us with good things. That he is merciful.
That we are his children, loved and redeemed.
SLIDE 14 And so we are given the confidence to take our place in his story - “my soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God.”
If we look throughout our lives we could sing the song that Mary has, of how God has cared for his humbled servants.
The way this passage has been written, without too much specificity, allows us to remember the times that God was active not just in the ancient Jewish past, but in our past, as well.
We could stretch out the paper today and make a timeline, marking specifics in our past as a church family.
You could stretch out the paper today, marking specifics in your own past.
SLIDE 15 Or look at your Christmas tree - the ornaments that represent when kids were born, or when you moved into a new home.
When you took a trip or graduated or learned to drive.
And these are just the ones Hallmark is selling this year.
There is even one you can hang on your tree in honour of those who have passed on.
SLIDE 16 Whether good or bad, every one of those moments is part of your story, and made you the person you are today.
And God has been in every one of those moments.
Because your story is a part of his.
Like Mary we are made a vital part of God’s story.
God’s creation is a miracle, and his relationship to it is a miracle for us.
SLIDE 17 We’ve talked before how in ancient times kings would have their faces put on coins so that as the coins circulated through the kingdom, so would their image.
It would be a reminder to everyone of the king’s power and sovereignty, and the promise of care.
As God’s people we bear his image so that as we circulate throughout the kingdom, we can remind people of God’s promise and care.
SLIDE 18 So that together, we can also sing the song and tell the story of what he has done in our shared past.
So that we can put our trust in him for the future.
In the Heidelberg Catechism, the entire final section has been given the title “gratitude”.
It outlines how we engage the world and do our work because of what Christ has done for us.
That our past directs how we engage the present.
Because we can see how God has always been at work in our past and the past of all his people.
Mary is given a very specific - and unique - role in the story of bearing God’s image caring for creation.
Ours will be less obviously dramatic.
But you are uniquely called and equipped to do what you can, where you can; where your story is already been written. Where your heart is.
God has called people of every background and life situation to be a part of his story, and to engage in the work of caring for all he has created.
Mary was a cultural nobody.
She came from the house and line of King David, but she wasn’t royalty.
She didn’t live in the capital, and we don’t know her family’s economic situation.
She was likely still a teenager, betrothed to a man who may have also been a teenager.
She was ready to live a normal life, like any one of us would be.
Who is Mary that God would use her, a humble servant?
Who are any of us, that God would want us in his story?
SLIDE 19 What are people that God would be mindful of us?
But he is. He always has been.
The triune God of the universe who gave life to creation also breathed life into YOU.
And includes YOU in his story. Has since the moment you were born.
SLIDE 20 Depending on how you view the past, the earth is up to 4.5 billion years old.
And it has been home to up to 117 billion people in all that time.
Unfathomable.
SLIDE 21 And here you are. Occupying your own little space and time here in Quinte in 2025.
In all the vastness of time and space, he has still chosen YOU to be a part of his incredible story.
With the same breath that he called forth the sun and moons and the oceans and the stars he also gave the breath of life to you.
He has been mindful of his humble servant, remember to be merciful.
SLIDE 22 From the broad strokes of history - of our past - right down to the cellular level of our bodies, he has crafted all of this to work together.
Every moment and every piece of creation - every moment of your life - has poured out of his heart.
And it hasn’t all been perfect. Next week we’ll talk about the fall and its influence on our present.
But for now, we can know that God is with us.
And that’s pretty good.
Conclusion
There’s a song that says “stories don’t mean anything if you’ve got no one to tell them to”
This Christmas, like every Christmas, we meant to sing Mary’s song.
We are meant to tell the story of the Gospel, and how God has reached down to his people, time and time again, generation to generation.
And at Christmas there are so many opportunities to do that.
It’s as simple as sending a Christmas card to an old friend or family member you’ve lost touch with.
Or dropping off cookies to a neighbour.
Texting a friend to tell them you love them.
Invite any one of those people to our Christmas services!
Expressing the love of Christ - telling the Christmas story in word and deed.
So that in all of their Christmases past they will see that they were never alone, but that God has always been with them.
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