Every year at this time, our thoughts turn to Christmas and the birth of Jesus. And we traditionally look to Luke Chapter 2. While Jesus was born and died nearly 2,000 years ago, his presence has been felt throughout the ages. He was born into a political climate that saw his people living in poverty, being oppressed and overtaxed. He was born at a time when his people were awaiting the prophesied king who would lead them out of their circumstances. However, God had other ideas for his son’s birth:
1. God chose a young and poor female named Mary to be the mother of his Son. It’s an exciting and happy time in her life; she’s in love with a man named Joseph and pledged to be married to him. However, life changes when an angel of God shows up to tell her she’s going to have a baby. From this point on Mary is destined to have an interesting life - her peers and family would ridicule her, her fiancé would come close to leaving her, and the baby she was carrying would one day be rejected by his own people and hung on a cross to die – right in front of her. Point – God’s purpose in our life may require great acts of submission.
2. Who is this Joseph fellow? A carpenter and feeling good about his future. That is, until his fiancé tells him she is with child. Imagine his thoughts and heartbreak over this news. To his credit, Joseph is able to swallow his pride, marry the girl he loved, and become father to the Saviour of the World. Point: God’s purpose in our life cannot be scripted, just lived out in faith.
3. God provided a stable and manger as the place of rest for his newborn son and family. An ironic story to say the least. The Jewish people wanted a warrior to save them, but got a baby instead. A baby that should have been born in royal surroundings, but was born in a lowly manger. Point: God’s plans do not always meet up with what we envision they should be.
4. Shepherds in the field are invited by angels to see this baby named Jesus and spread the story of his birth. Shepherding was the occupation of the poor, so imagine how the shepherds must have been humbled by having an angel visit. Yet God uses the shepherds in the story to get the news out of the greatest birth announcement in the world. Point - God accepts who we are and uses us as he needs. Don’t ever think God won’t use you, and use you mightily!
So why was his birth so important? Because it happened at the right time, in the right place, for the right people – God’s people – all of us. Jesus was there at the creation of the world, waiting, know what his duty was to his people, and willing to serve his father. Only this man Jesus could have walked out of heaven, stepped into humanity, and changed the world as he did. That’s why his birth is so important.
So we celebrate this season as a remembrance of Jesus’ birth. Maybe not the way we would have scripted it, and maybe not using the people we would have used. But it was God’s precious gift to us as only he could give it.
In Christ,
Jerry McGuire
