Christ Is Born

Tonight I’m going to take a few minutes to consider several different perspectives from the characters we see in our Christmas story. Because chances are you know the story, but I want us to put ourselves in the story and to consider some of the things we don’t always think about. So we’re going to start far off, so of course we start with…

Jesus

Ha, you were thinking something else. Jesus was not even on earth. John tells us in John chapter 1, that Jesus was there at the beginning with God; Paul tell us all things were created by Him and for Him. And then tells us this of Jesus: Phil 2:6-7

Philippians 2:6–7 ESV

who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.

This morning in our service we learned this all came from God’s love for us as we read in John 3:16

John 3:16 ESV

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

Now, if we’re talking heavenly views we have to consider the

Angels

Imagine if you were the one entrusted with sharing the message that Jesus was to be born to a girl engaged to be married; to a man that his fiancee was going to be pregnant and it wasn’t going to be his biological child; to a group of Shepherds who were watching their flock by night, and knowing all the time this is going to bring glory to God! In fact, that is what this whole thing is about. In fact you get to sing with a full army of angels, Lk 2:14

Luke 2:14 ESV

“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”

Working our way in. Perhaps as much as two years travel away are three Magi or

Wisemen

These men travelled from a great distance to come and worship the one who was born to be king of the Jews, they’re following a star and have come to worship the newborn king.

Matthew 2:11 ESV

And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.

They bring three gifts: Gold - the riches of kings Frankincense - used for incense and worship. Myrrh - used as a sacrifice and to prepare the dead for burial.

It’s amazing to think that these three wisemen were thinking about the King of the Jews, but the local king, Herod, was not - until the wiseman told him. Then he is clearly threatened as he kills all the Hebrew children under 2 years old.

Moving closer we come to the

Shepherds

One would think that a new born king would be born in a palace. All the greatest kings would have received announcements of his pending birth. The King of all kings one would think would be born in a palace of amazing grandeur. .If you’ve ever stood under a night sky away from the city lights you’ve seen grandeur. We don’t get it so much here, but in places like Montana and Wyoming where you’re away from any city light the starts can light your way. And still that’s with today’s light pollution. For the shepherds it would have been even more glorious.

Luke 2:9 ESV

And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear.

I imagine them being blinded by the great light and not knowing what it was. No wonder the angel’s first words are “Fear not!”

God chose not to announce the saviours birth to kings, or wealthy merchants, or financial tycoons, or people of power, or men of religious stature, but to those among the lowest. The lowly shepherds, not even a shelter over them. They’re out in the fields - and I like that our shepherd here is a young boy. They were likely young as the older shepherds would have more stature and likely have found shelter in town.

Joseph

Imagine your a man and get engaged to be married. Your family is excited; her family is excited! You’ve worked hard to establish yourself in the community to be able to come up with an appropriate dowry. You’ve worked hard to be well respected so that her family would accept your proposal. Then your betrothed tells you that she is preggers. Yep, she’s going to have a child and you know it’s not yours.

Your fiancee has been stepping out on you? No, she assures you, she has not been with any man. Even today, imagine what you would do. If you were engaged and your bride to be turns up pregnant would you go forward?

Yet even when Joseph finds all this out his thought is not to just abandon Mary.

Matthew 1:19 ESV

And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly.

Then an angel appears to him and affirms everything Mary has told him. Matthew 1:20

Matthew 1:20 ESV

But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.

As we continue to move inward we come to

Mary

Put yourself in Mary’s place. You’re a young woman at marrying age for your culture. Minding your own business, keeping yourself pure for the man you are pledged to marry. Your parents like him and his family. You like his family too. You’re excited looking forward to your wedding day.

Then an Angel shows up: Lk 1:28

Luke 1:28 (ESV)

“Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!”

I love how Luke records her reaction! Lk 1:29

Luke 1:29 ESV

But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be.

Then the angel explains how she is going to bear a son and call his name Jesus.

{Nothing ever goes wrong at weddings}

I do not know what kind of faith Mary’s family had, but it is clear that she had a very deep faith by her reaction. She simply says, “Ok.” Well, biblically she says it much more poetically: Lk 1:38

Luke 1:38 ESV

And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.

Imagine what it is that she is agreeing to. The penalty for adultery is death - remember the woman caught in adultery that is brought to Jesus? She hasn’t told Joseph yet, she doesn’t know how he’s going to react. Yet her reaction is simply, “I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.”

Facing rejection from her family, banishment from her faith community, ridicule and mocking from her town, and that horrible label in a patriarchy. There could possibly only be one way for her to support herself in the future by an age old profession. I can only imagine that all of this floods through Mary’s young mind like a torrent and yet she simply replies, “Let it be, I’m the Lord’s.”

And we’re afraid of being considered too “religious”. It’s easy to hide our faith, Mary couldn’t hid for long.

We’re back to Jesus.

Jesus

One of the things the angel told Mary of Jesus was: Lk 1:32-33

Luke 1:32–33 ESV

He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

This is the one who lies in the feeding trough. This is the LORD. And as Mary watches all of the things that God said about Jesus begin to come true from the shepherds bowing and worshipping to the wisemen. Still it wasn’t easy.

Into this crazy chaotic world Jesus comes. Into a place with corrupt government, crime, power struggles, Jesus comes. It sounds a lot like today minus the modern conveniences. Today the Wiseman might have just arranged a Zoom meeting. ;-)

Christ is Born

We all know the story so well. Perhaps too well. My prayer for each one of you is that you might take the time to slow down and reflect on what it might have been like for each character that we see in our Christmas story. It’s an amazing story of our Creator God loving us so much that he would send His Son to live a life looking forward to the cross.

God’s love indeed came down.