[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.]
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 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 to the land that God showed me.
God promised to make a nation from my descendants
and bless all families of the earth 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 Egyptian slavegirl
who 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 sees”;
the God who sees even those in slavery, crying in despair.
This baby is a gift to people like me:
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 that a ladder filled with angels
went straight from earth to God.
In the morning I called that place Beth-el, the House of God.
Today a child is born with the same message…
God has come to dwell with us!
We give thanks for Immanuel–God with us.
For unto us a child is born!
Moses: I am Moses. I had excuses
when God spoke to me from a burning bush.
I didn’t want to help God free our people from slavery.
But God didn’t give up on me or on Israel.
God’s power delivered us from the hands of the mighty Pharaoh.
We worship a God who delivers!
God gave us the law at Sinai to guide us.
We worship a God who guides us!
And today God gives a Saviour who will deliver us from evil,
a Saviour who is our guide.
For unto us a child is born!
Ruth: I am Ruth, a foreigner from Moab,
who married one of the sons of Israel.
When my husband died,
I followed my mother-in-law back to 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 an outsider,
and I gave birth to a baby that brought great joy to my family.
This baby Jesus is one of my descendants,
he comes 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 sends 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 is 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.
the 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 it is my betrothed Mary who has given birth to a son.
We have named him Jesus, as the angel instructed.
The angel told me that this child will save our people from their sin.
The hopes of many rest on our child, our son.
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 fulfilled the promise made to our ancestors,
to Abraham and Sarah and to their descendants forever.
Jesus is a blessing for the world, that comes through my life.
For unto us a child is born!
People: Today we add our voices to the chorus of thanksgiving.
We sing our part in the song that rises through time,
around the world, in every language,
“Glory to God in the highest”.
We give thanks for God’s son,
a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord!
For unto us a child is born!
I am a Mennonite pastor currently teaching theology at Conrad Grebel University College in Waterloo, Ontario. I’ve served congregations in Ontario and most recently, Alberta.