Christmas Vigil Homily – St Edward’s “God Has Not Forgotten His Promise”

Tonight we gather on the edge of something holy.
Christmas has begun — but it has not yet fully unfolded.

The Church does something wise this evening.
She does not rush us straight to the crib.
She reminds us first of how long God has been faithful.

Because Christmas only makes sense
if we understand the promise behind it.

Isaiah speaks to a people who feel abandoned.

They have known exile.
Loss.
Silence.

And into that darkness, God speaks words of astonishing tenderness:

“You shall no longer be called Forsaken…
but My Delight is in her.”

God is saying: I have not forgotten you.
You are not an afterthought.
You are not abandoned.

And Isaiah dares to say even more:

“As a bridegroom rejoices in his bride,
so shall your God rejoice in you.”

Christmas begins here —
with a God who delights in His people
and refuses to let them go.

St Paul, speaking in Acts, reminds us how God keeps His promises.

He does not act suddenly or randomly.
He works patiently through history.

From Abraham.
Through David.
Down the long road of kings and prophets.

And then Paul says the decisive line:

“From David’s descendants God has brought to Israel a Saviour, Jesus, as He promised.”

This tells us that Christian faith is not myth.
It is not a story detached from time.

God acts in real history,
through real people,
with real consequences.

Christmas is not God escaping the world.
It is God entering it.

Then Matthew gives us what many people skip:
a genealogy.

Names.
Generations.
Stories we barely remember.

But Matthew is doing something bold.

He is saying:
this story has been heading here all along.

This family line is not perfect.

There is faith — and failure.
There is obedience — and betrayal.
There is sin — and mercy.

And yet God does not abandon the line.

That is good news for us.

Because it tells us that salvation does not depend on a spotless past,
but on God’s faithfulness.

The genealogy leads us to Joseph.

And suddenly the story becomes intimate.

Joseph’s plans collapse.
His future is unclear.
His heart is troubled.

And God speaks — not loudly, but clearly:

“Do not be afraid.”

That sentence always marks the nearness of salvation.

Joseph is told to name the child Jesus —
“because He will save His people from their sins.”

This is the mission.

Jesus does not come merely to inspire or comfort.
He comes to save.

And Joseph obeys.

Quietly.
Faithfully.
Without understanding everything.

That is how Christmas enters the world.

This church has seen generations.
Baptisms.
Marriages.
Funerals.
Faith lived faithfully — and sometimes quietly.

Tonight’s readings tell us something important:

God works patiently.
He keeps His promises.
He does not abandon His people — or His parishes.

Christmas is God saying again:
You are not forgotten.
My delight is still in you.

Tonight, before the angels sing and the shepherds run,
the Church invites us to trust.

Trust a God who keeps His word.
Trust a Saviour who enters real history.
Trust a mercy strong enough to work through imperfect lives.

The promise has been kept.
The story has reached its centre.
The Saviour has come.

So tonight, as Christmas begins,
let us welcome Him not merely as a memory,
but as the living Lord.

For the God who rejoices in His people
has come to dwell among them.