A sermon delivered by Rev. Graham Dale on the 29th December 2024, the first Sunday of Christmas.
Advent is over and we have arrived at the first Sunday of Christmas - with seven days remaining of the Christmas season before Epiphany – when we celebrate the gentiles recognising the Christ-child in the manager. On Wednesday, we enter 2025 – highlighting the cycle of life with a new year bringing change and challenge. You have my best wishes and are in my prayers! Our Bible readings today focus on a special part of this cycle of life – growing from a child to an adult.
The OT reading describes Samuel as ‘growing in stature and in favour with the LORD and people’ and in the Gospel, it is Jesus who ‘increased in wisdom and in years, and in divine and human favour’. Growing up is something we all do, but especially children & young people. It is a hugely important stage of life and a very important part of our Church life too. We have seen quite a bit of St Mary’s children and young people during advent (the nativity, Christmas day, the choir) – it has been wonderful – and they will continue to be a very special part of our mission in 2025.
I want to say a few things about our young people:
Please pray for our children and young people
Listen to our children
Pass the baton to them in 2025
Pray for our children and young people
Samuel was a young boy assisting Eli the priest in the temple – he wore a linen ephod – a priestly symbol. 1 Sam 3 says “The Lord was with Samuel as he grew up and his words came to all Israel”. He grew in stature and in favour with the LORD and with the people’. Samuel’s background is of a praying mother (Hannah). Praying parents & grandparents (Lois & Eunice, 2 Tim 1:5) appear in the Bible and throughout Christian history. We see spiritual growth in Jesus too: our Gospel says ‘Jesus increased in wisdom and years, and in divine and human favour’.
We are called to pray for our children - but it’s also good to know that our children get wisdom directly from God. That’s right, relax, bringing up the next generation of believers is not entirely down to us -although we do have a part to play.
Recently at St Mary’s we’ve tried to involve more young people (choir & Sunday school) in our services –
leading, reading, praying). I hope you have noticed that, welcomed that, and are praying for our children, our children’s workers and parents. Let us pray that God continues to give wisdom and favour to them - and also how we might support our children and young people more in 2025. So my 1st point is please pray for our children.
Learn to listen to our children
Samuel Ch. 3 says ‘the word of the Lord was rare in those days’, but God spoke to the child Samuel. God spoke 4 times before Samuel said, ‘speak Lord, your servant is listening’. God is patient and persistent in speaking to children – and we grown-ups need to learn to listen - Eli ‘perceived’ after the 3rd time, before guiding Samuel. In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus listened in the Temple. After 3 days when his parents found him, he was listening and asking questions of the teachers. Luke says ‘all who
heard him were amazed at his understanding’.
Putting aside the stress Jesus caused his parents – the point from these two stories is that God talks to children and children hear from God. It may be that God gives them wisdom for us. As an adult, Jesus said ‘from the lips of children you, Lord, have called forth your praise’. It’s just possible that our children can teach us a thing or two about God. So my second point is listen to our children.
Pass on the baton
After praying for and listening to our children – my 3rd point is to think about passing on something to this next generation in 2025. As we think about the new year and the circle of life – it is only natural to think about the next generation – those coming after us. One of the goals of the London diocese
is to ‘grow our church younger’, meaning a lot of resources being spent on youth work. That seems to me to be the right thing to do. The history of St Mary’s (& I’ve made this point before) means that many generations have passed on the faith. If there are approximately 4 generations in every 100yrs – we have had 80 generations since Christ, 2000yrs ago – that’s 80 Mum & Dad’s – or grandparents & teachers –
passing on the message (baton) to young people.
Every year Samuel’s parents brought him a robe and each year Jesus’ parents took him to the festival in Jerusalem. What will we do for our young people in 2025? It may be no more than pray – that is good enough. But that may lead you to learn more about the children’s work or choir and perhaps find ways to support and help out – even if only washing up after a pizza night. So my 3rd point is pass on the baton in 2025.
In conclusion... these young lives we have heard about this morning – Samuel and Jesus – growing in maturity and wisdom reminds us that God uses young people. God speaks to them – and we should learn to listen to them. We should pray for them, but hopefully also think about ways to support and encourage them in 2025. As this year ends - and we start another – let’s think and pray about ways we can bless the next generation. By doing so we will help God’s church continue its mission in this place – and for many generations to come.