The Night God Came

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God...And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, (and we beheld His glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth."   John 1:1, 14

Over two thousand years ago, dawn was breaking in the town of Bethlehem. Homemakers were starting to prepare breakfast for their families, men were caring for their animals, and shopkeepers were putting out their wares in the market place. The sounds, smells, and bustling activity were all signs that the sleepy, little town was awakening to a new day.

I wonder if the innkeeper gave any thought concerning the weary couple that had knocked on his door in the night? They were looking for shelter and a place for the woman to give birth - they found it among the animals.

The citizens of Bethlehem had no idea that while they slept, the impossible occurred. Sometime during the night, God came! Through the womb of a virgin lying on the floor of a filthy stable, MAJESTY, DEITY, GLORY entered the world and was placed in a manger!

Consider some of the circumstances surrounding His birth.

1. He came as a baby.

Jesus could have come as a great archangel, a conquering warrior, or even on a cloud, but the eternal God-head, from before the dawn of time, determined He would come as a baby.

Is there anything weaker or more helpless than a baby? The omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent Creator who spoke everything into existence, laid aside His power and authority and came to earth as a helpless baby with only a cry to express His needs.

Jesus Christ came as a baby so He that He could experience everything that we experience from birth to death in His humanity. He came as a baby so that as our High Priest, He can minister to us in our weakness.

2. He was wrapped in "swaddling clothes."

This birth marked His low station in life. Every baby was wrapped when it was born. Babies from prominent homes were covered with expensive scarves, robes, and shawls. An ordinary cloth was used for "swaddling." It was torn into strips and wrapped around the baby like bandages. Only the poorest of families used "swaddling" to cover their babies. God did not send His Son into the home of the high priest or a palace where He would be wrapped in the finest and want for nothing. He sent Him to a poor family who had nothing to wrap Him in but a common cloth, so that the next time you do not know how you are going to provide for your family or pay the bills, you can know with certainty that your Great High Priest understands how you feel.

3. He was born in a stable.

Mary had no access to a sanitized, sterile, germ-free hospital. Stables are dirty and reek of urine, dung, and smelly animals. Into this atmosphere, a baby, God incarnate, was born, wrapped in common cloth, and placed in a feeding trough. The place He was born proves He did not come seeking worldly glory.

He came as an outcast; he would die as an outcast. The world had no room for Him, and His own people would not receive Him. As His followers, we should not think it strange when the world does not receive us.

4. He came first to lowly shepherds.

Caesar Augustus and King Herod were asleep in their palaces. The scribes, the high priest, and the Sanhedrin family were in bed sleeping the deep sleep of the self-righteous. None of them realized that Light had come. The world would be forever changed because of a lowly birth taking place in a stable in Bethlehem!

God chose to announce the birth of His Son to shepherds. Shepherds were at the bottom of the social ladder. As Jewish men, the dirty work of caring for animals made them ceremonially unclean. Possibly, those shepherds were tending sheep that would be sacrificed on the temple altar for the sins of the people. How befitting they would be the first to hear the birth announcement of the Lamb of God that came to die for the sins of the world.

In those days, when a Jewish woman was giving birth, it was common practice for friends, family, and neighbors to gather outside her home. When the birth was announced, if the baby were a boy, singers and musicians would sing songs of joy and praise to God.  

The night God came, no one gathered outside the stable. There were no singers or musicians, and unless Joseph sang, there was no song of joy  inside  the stable. But, God the Father did not let the birth of His Son go unheralded. He lifted the veil that separates heaven and earth, and for a few glorious moments, a song pf praise and joy from angels rang out across the Judean hillside, " Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace, good will toward men."  Luke   2:14

He came as a baby so that we could know that the hand that touched the leper was a human hand that spilled forth blood when it was nailed to the cross. The voice that raised Lazarus from the dead and commanded the wind and waves to be still was a human voice. The tears He shed came from a broken heart that suffered the same grief and sorrow that we do.

He came to lowly, outcast shepherds to show that He didn't come for just the rich and powerful; He came to the poorest. Jesus said,  "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me because He hath anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor."   Luke 4:18

In C.S. Lewis's book,  The Lion, the Witch, And the Wardrobe,  he describes a beautiful place called Narnia under the spell of an evil character (the White Witch), who symbolizes the devil. Lewis writes that it was she who has made it " always winter, and never Christmas."

We are nearing the end of 2020, and it will probably go down in the books as one of the worst years in America's history. For months there have been people that have been trying to make it  "always winter."  In many states, governors and local officials have declared war on Christmas. They have shut down churches and even family

gatherings.

But try as they may, they cannot stop Christmas! Christmas is not a season, nor a holiday; Christmas is a person - Jesus Christ. Christmas has already come!!

For those who do not know Him as their Savior, it is always  "winter ,"   but for us who belong to Him, we have Christmas in our hearts all year long!

I know I am writing to people who are suffering. We have all lost family, friends, church members, and even pastors to this terrible virus during this pandemic. Many of you have loved ones in nursing homes and hospitals that you cannot visit. My aunt, Dora Hacker, died yesterday, and my heart is heavy because I cannot attend her funeral due to restrictions. I dearly love my cousins and wish I could be with them as they have been with me so many times.

We face unprecedented, uncertain times, and we long for a day when all will be made right. But for now, we can rejoice and celebrate because God came!

Jesus is still the " Christ"  of Christmas!

To the weary, He's the Burden Bearer. To the anxious, He's the Prince of Peace.

To hearts that are lost, Jesus speaks,  "I am the Way."

To lives of confusion, He says,  "I am the Truth."

To a dying world, He says, "I am the Life."

We want answers; we want explanations. Jesus may not give them to us - but He has given us HIMSELF!

The essence of Christmas can be summed up in this verse,  "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life."  John 3:16

"Joy to the World, the Lord has come!"    

From my heart to yours - MERRY CHRISTMAS!!