Christmas Day Worship – The Light of the world made his home with us
Reading: John 1:1-14
Preacher: Rev Phil Swain
Celebrate the birth of Jesus in a way which is full of life and love. We will be singing Christmas carols with our Christmas band, “show and tell” (a chance for people to show off their Christmas presents), a creative talk for the kids, some special Christmas prayers, and our minister Phil will share the story of how the Light of the World made his home among us.
Sermon Text
If you were creating a Christmas card, and you could only put one word on the front of it —
and you can’t choose “Christmas”…
and just to make it harder, you can’t choose “Jesus” either —
what word would you choose?
A word that captures what Christmas feels like for you.
A word that reflects your experience of today.
A word that somehow sums up what Christmas is really about.
Take a moment to think of your word.
And if you’ve got your phone with you, you’ll see a QR code on the screen. Jump on that and add your word to our Christmas Word Cloud. We’ll come back to it in a few minutes.
While you’re doing that, let me reflect for a moment on our Bible reading from the Gospel of John.
John tells the Christmas story very differently from Matthew and Luke.
There are no angels.
No shepherds.
No wise ones.
No manger.
Instead, John begins his Christmas story with these words:
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”
If John were writing a Christmas card, his word would be… WORD. Which feels a bit strange. What does he mean?
John is pointing us right back to the beginning of the Bible, to the creation story. In Genesis, God creates not by fighting chaos or shaping clay, but by speaking.
God says, “Let there be light,” and there is light.
The Word brings life.
The Word brings order.
The Word brings light.
So when John says, “In the beginning was the Word,” he’s saying this:
the same power that created the universe has now stepped into it.
And John keeps going.
He says that in this Word was Life,
and that this Life was the Light of all people.
A light that shines in the darkness — and no matter how hard the darkness tries, it cannot overcome it.
John is clearly cheating at our one-word Christmas card rule here.
He’s up to at least three words now: Word. Life. Light.
But honestly, I’m glad he includes light, because that’s been our theme through Advent and Christmas. That’s why the church is glowing today. It’s why we light candles. It’s why we fill this season with brightness — because Christmas proclaims that light has come into the darkness.
And John says this light is for everyone.
The world doesn’t always recognise it.
Some turn away from it.
But those who receive it — those who welcome this light — discover something extraordinary.
They become part of God’s family.
Children of God.
So now John’s card has four words on it:
Word. Life. Light. Family.
Let’s pause there and look at the words you chose.
Can we bring up the word cloud on the screen?
Look at that.
So many beautiful words.
Love.
Joy.
Peace.
Hope.
Family.
Giving.
Celebration.
All of them true.
All of them deeply Christmas-shaped.
But as I sat with John’s Gospel this week, one word kept shining more brightly for me than the others. And before I share it, let’s play a very quick Christmas game.
I’m going to put a few titles on the screen, each with one word missing. Just call out the missing word.
_____ Alone.
_____ Alone 2
Coming __________ for Christmas
Christmas, Baby Please Come _____.
Hmmm … I am starting to see a pattern here.
But before I share my word, let me ask one more question …
When does Christmas really begin for you?
Is it the first of December? The last day of work?
Christmas Eve? When the kids wake you up far too early on Christmas morning?
When is the moment you think, “Now it’s Christmas”?
I heard a beautiful answer to that question on a podcast recently. It was a parent whose adult children all lived in different parts of the country. And they said this:
“It’s Christmas when everyone’s home.”
Can you guess my word for the front of the Christmas card yet? It’s home. That’s the word that shines brightest for me.
Christmas is that moment when we’re together. Whether that is together with my church family here or whether that is with my family … Christmas is when everyone is home.
And I think this is exactly what John has been leading us toward all along. After thirteen verses of big, cosmic language —
Word.
Life.
Light.
Creation.
Eternity —
John suddenly brings it right down to earth.
Listen again to verse 14: “The Word became flesh and made his home among us.”
God didn’t stay distant. God didn’t shout instructions from heaven. God didn’t watch from afar.
In Jesus, God came close.
God moved into the neighbourhood.
God made his home with us.
Matthew gives us a word for this too: Emmanuel — which means God with us.
That, for me, is the heart of Christmas.
Not just that God loves us.
But that God chooses to be with us.
To dwell with us.
To make a home among us — and, ultimately, within us.
And this invitation of Christmas is for us too.
Jesus still comes as light in the darkness.
Jesus still offers life.
Jesus still invites us into God’s family.
And Jesus still says, “I want to make my home with you”
My prayer today is that you might experience something of that —
a sense of being welcomed,
a sense of belonging,
a sense of coming home.
And if you’re curious, if something has stirred for you this morning, you’re always welcome to come back to worship services in the new year and explore more as we journey through John’s Gospel right up to Easter.
But for today, let’s hold all these words together.
Love.
Joy.
Peace.
Hope.
Light.
Life.
Family.
And maybe, just maybe, home.
Because at Christmas, God comes home to us —
and invites us to come home to God. Amen.