https://app.dropwave.io/episode/1a0933d4-322d-45ff-b48d-4578baf801ca/holy-innocents-martyrs-ad-2025.mp3

Merry Christmas! Yes, the Christmas celebration continues for another nine days. It continues until the Epiphany on January the 6th. Today we continue the Christmas celebration with the remembrance of the first martyrs, the Holy Innocents. This is a hard text. It seems strange to “celebrate” by remembering their death. It seems strange to go from the birth of Jesus to tragedy. In the same way that we begin Advent looking at Good Friday and Easter, we begin Christmas by looking at the cost of discipleship. At the same time there is a message of comfort and hope.

God tells us that this tragedy is going to strike. Through the prophet Jeremiah, we hear about Rachel weeping. She is so distraught that she cannot be consoled. Her children are no more. But God tells her that her work will be rewarded. There is hope in her future.

Our text today is a reminder that Christmas time, while usually a joyous time of celebration enjoying family and friends, can also be a difficult time for others. We have an expectation of what Christmas ought to be. We watch TV commercials, movies, plays, and holiday specials all with the same message. Christmas should be a time when expensive gifts await us under the tree or in the driveway. Never ending sumptuous food flows from our kitchens without a mess left behind. Excited well-behaved children fill the house with joyous laughter without a tantrum in sight. The estranged prodigal family member finally comes home. Years of painful relationships finally resolve. You spend hours agonizing over finding just the right gift and it is exactly what your loved one secretly longed for. And naturally, every gift you received was exactly what you had hoped for.

This is what we “think” Christmas is supposed to be. This is our expectation. But it rarely works out that way. The relationships that were strained don’t magically heal themselves. The children get overstimulated. The turkey gets overcooked. Your budget doesn’t allow you to buy the perfect gift. While you appreciate the thought, the gifts you received are not quite what you hoped for. For some, grief is just too much. Christmas celebrations remind us of those no longer with us. It reminds us of those who who hurt us and those whom we have hurt.

It is hard to imagine the grief and overwhelming sadness of the families who lost sons at the hands of Herod. The birth of Christ would certainly not be welcomed by them. Every following Christmas would be a reminder of the child who is not there.

This is a hard text for us to consider during the joyous time of Christmas. It is a stark reminder that our salvation has come at a tremendous price. These little ones died because Herod was in fear of Christ. While Steven was the first one martyred for refusing to deny Christ, these little ones were the first killed in His name. There would indeed be many more to follow.

All of the apostles died for the faith. Saint Peter was Crucified upside down in Rome. Saint James the Greater was beheaded. Saint James the Lesser was stoned and beaten to death. Saint Jude Thaddeus was beaten to death with clubs and hacked with an axe. Saint Philip was crucified by soldiers. Saint Thomas was killed by blows of spears. Saint Simon was stabbed with a sword. Saint Bartholomew was crucified. Saint Andrew was nailed to an “X” shaped Cross. Saint Matthew was crucified. Saint John died of natural causes. Saint Mathias was crucified. St. Mathias is the replacement of Judas Iscariot who committed suicide after betraying Christ.

Even in our day it is not unheard of that someone would be martyred for the faith. For us, while it is unlikely that we will be asked to give up our lives for the sake of Christ, we are all called to deny ourselves and follow Christ.

When tragedy strikes, like Rachel, we refuse to be comforted. We imagine that we are the only one to ever experience such terrible things. We imagine that God has abandoned us. We imagine that this tragedy cannot possibly fit into God’s plan. We imagine that God does not really exist if He allows such terrible things to happen. How can a loving God allow me to suffer in such a way. One can scarcely imagine what it must have been like for the families of the innocents martyred that day.

What they did not realize at the time was the critical role they played in the salvation of mankind. Herod’s rage was satiated by their death allowing the Christ Child to fulfill all righteousness on our behalf. If that was not revealed to them during their lifetime, it was certainly revealed to them in heaven.

In a like manner, we may or may not come to realize the results of our sufferings here on earth. When a young one dies, I like to think of all of the possibilities. Perhaps God spared that child from a disease or tragedy later in life. Perhaps God used that tragedy to inspire someone else to go on and save many more lives. We see that in laws that have been passed following a tragedy like the “Amber Alert” and many others. Perhaps God used that tragedy to inspire others to go into professions to prevent similar tragedies in the future. How many tragedies have been prevented through highway safety, automobile improvements, building and structural engineering, food safety, medical practices, and so many others?

How many people have witnessed your walk of faith as you navigated life’s tragedies? They see how you navigate life’s difficulties and as a result, the Holy Spirit sews the seed of faith. Gen. George Patton once said, “It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived.” Today, we can give thanks that the Holy Innocents lived. For their sufferings allowed the Christ child to live and grow. Their sufferings allowed Christ to live a perfect life in your stead. Their suffering allowed Christ to bear your sins. Their suffering was not in vain. Ultimately, their suffering began a whole chain of events leading to your salvation and everlasting life.

All of this was known to God. We see in the Holy Innocents one more fulfillment of the prophetic Word of God. Remarkably, the life of Christ it isn’t just the fulfillment of one prophecy. It is a fulfillment of all of the prophecies. As we go through the life, death, and resurrection of Christ we see the fulfillment of prophecy over and over again. Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. All who put their faith in Him have everlasting life.

Our text today is a difficult one to read. Every year we watch “The Nativity Story” on Christmas Day. The move begins with Herod sending out his soldiers to carry out the nefarious deed. Every year it is disturbing. If we focus on the injustice, it is just one more tragic story among many. History is filled with them. If we focus on the injustice Jesus is just one of many people wrongly accused, convicted, and punished. But that is not the point.

There is a bright side to all of this. We can look to the commercialism of Christmas and wring our hands. Or we can see that people around the world are forced to answer the question, “Who is this Jesus guy?” They are forced to see the metaphor of Santa Clause. If he only gives gifts to good little boys and girls, why is he giving gifts to me? Everyone should rightly be on the naughty list, yet we still receive gifts.

We can look at our own sufferings and wring our hands, refusing to be comforted. Or we can see that our sufferings connect us to Christ. The Crucified Christ knows suffering better than any of us. Our momentary sufferings connect us to His suffering, death and resurrection. He may even be working through our sufferings to accomplish His will in ways we cannot yet even imagine.

So on this remembrance of the Holy Innocents let us not mourn their death but give thanks to God for their lives. Amen