[I wrote this for a Christmas Eve service and I had different congregants take the parts; they got up from where they were sitting in the congregation and came to the front to say their part, then they each lit a candle and placed it at around the manger scene that was at the front of the church. Congregation members could each be invited to light a candle after their part to honour Jesus.]
Narrator: Waiting, watching, hoping against hope,
the faithful have looked and longed for a Saviour.
Wrapped up in our own lives, in our own struggles,
consumed with our own desires and our own sins,
still our hope was in God.
At long last, all generations cry out,
“For unto us a child is born”.
Abraham: My name is Abraham. I followed God’s call.
I went from my own country and my kindred to the land that God showed me.
God promised to make a nation from my descendants.
God said that all families of the earth would be blessed through me.
Now we see the fulfillment of that promise with the gift of this child…
today we are blessed indeed!
For unto us a child is born.
Hagar: I am Hagar. I was Sarah’s slavegirl.
I bore Abraham a son, whom I called Ishmael.
When I was at the end of all hope because of my suffering,
I fled into the wilderness.
It was there that I met “the God who hears”;
the God who hears even the crying of the cast out.
God has heard the cries of all people; the insiders and the outsiders.
This baby is a gift to us: a gift for all peoples.
For unto us a child is born!
Jacob: I am Jacob, grandson of Abraham.
Even though I was a liar and a cheater, there was still room for me in God’s plan.
I had a dream one night where God stood right next to me.
In the morning I called that place Bethel, the House of God.
Today a child is born with the same message…God is right here with us!
We give thanks for Immanuel--God with us.
For unto us a child is born!
Moses: I am Moses.
When God spoke to me from a burning bush in the wilderness,
I had lots of excuses.
I didn’t want to help God liberate our people from slavery.
But God didn’t give up on me or Israel.
With God’s power,
our people were delivered from the hands of the mighty Pharaoh.
We worship a God who delivers!
And then through God’s mercy, we were given the law at Sinai to guide us.
We worship a God who guides us!
And today we have been given a Saviour who will deliver us from evil,
a Saviour who will be our guide.
For unto us a child is born!
Ruth: I am Ruth.
I am a foreigner from Moab, who married one of the sons of Israel.
When my husband died, I followed my mother-in-law back to her country Israel.
I was her faithful friend, and her God, the God of Israel,
was faithful in restoring our happiness.
I gleaned wheat in the fields near this town of Bethlehem.
A man named Boaz married me, even though I was a widow and a foreigner.
I gave birth to a child that brought great joy to my family.
This baby Jesus is one of my descendants,
he has come to bring great joy to the world!
For unto us a child is born!
Samuel: My name is Samuel.
When I was just a small boy I heard God calling me.
I said, “Yes Lord, your servant hears you.”
And so I served God all my days, calling the people of Israel to faithfulness.
It was a hard job, because the people did not always want to hear what I had to say.
But God never deserted me.
Now I see that God has sent his own son to call us to faithfulness.
For unto us a child is born!
David: My name is David.
I was the Lord’s anointed, a man after God’s own heart.
I ruled Israel as a king for many years.
I was a sinner, like everyone else, and I disappointed God in many ways.
But God was faithful to me.
This night in Bethlehem, in my own city,
a new King has been born, one of my own descendants.
This Ruler will bring peace to the world.
He will be called the Prince of Peace.
For unto us a child is born!
Isaiah: My name is Isaiah, and I was a prophet of the Most High.
The people of Israel had turned from God.
God allowed them to be conquered by the Babylonians.
he holy city Jerusalem was in ruins, our temple was destroyed.
Our people were taken in chains into captivity.
How can we sing the Lord’s song in a foreign land?
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given:
and the government shall be upon his shoulder:
and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God,
The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end.
He will establish the throne of David
and uphold it with justice and with righteousness
from this time onward and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this! (Isaiah 9:6-7)
Joseph: Joseph is my name, and my betrothed Mary has given birth to a son.
This child has come to save our people from their sin.
We have great hopes for this small baby, our firstborn.
And we have named him Jesus, as the angel instructed me.
For unto us a child is born!
Mary: My name is Mary and I am a servant of the Lord.
God’s mercy is on those who fear God, from generation to generation.
God has helped his servant Israel,
according to the promise made to our ancestors,
to Abraham and Sarah and to their descendants forever.
Jesus is a blessing for the world, that has come through my life.
For unto us a child is born!
People: Today we add our voices to the chorus of thanksgiving.
We join our voices to the song that rises through time,
around the world on every parallel,
“Glory to God in the highest”.
The harmony of our song of praise reaches heaven,
as we give thanks for God’s son, Jesus Christ our Lord!
For unto us a child is born!
