I can’t seem to wait to celebrate Christmas this year. I am embarrassed to admit that I have held my excitement in check since the beginning of October, and now that December is here, there is no restraining my joy.
I have my trees trimmed and decorated; my candles are waiting, candlesticks well polished, Christmas tablecloths are ready for the table, and I am waiting like a child for the family celebration I have been planning since October.
This is a marked difference from some years ago, when I would not admit my excitement because I thought it was childish to be so excited about the season. Now, unashamed, I revel in all that the season brings, for I place in context the red, green, blue, silver and gold ornaments and all that tinsel: the celebration of the coming into the world of the Saviour who is Jesus Christ, our Lord.
In John 3:16 Jesus revealed the heart of God for lost humanity to a ruler of the Jews (who although bashful, was seeking the truth) in these famous words:
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.”
This plan to redeem humanity that had fallen short of the glory of God, was hatched by God even before the world came into being. God’s provision for sin, should it overtake man, was the death of a chosen Lamb of God who would satisfy the judgment against sin which, is death.
And so the plan unfolded. When our first parents: Adam and Eve did in fact sin, God promised that the seed of the woman would crush the head of the devil – even at the point of pronouncing judgment on their sin.
Through the history of the Abrahamic race, from whom God promised the redemption of mankind (Israel), God kept the promise of full redemption. This was accomplished through laws that would ensure that the sacrifice of the lamb would be typified, from the night Israel’s first-born sons were spared death in Egypt, through millennia, until the Son of God came down and took on flesh, lived as a man, and paid the price of sin by death on the cross. Having laid down His life, He picked it up again by His resurrection from the dead, by which He has given us new life, and the power to overcome sin and death through the work of His Holy Spirit.
All for free. A gift without a catch. The gift of a loving Father and God.
This good news: that God has forgiven us all our sins, and has embraced us as His own beloved children, giving the hope of the attainment of our lost glory, was all wrapped up in a baby born in a manger, at Bethlehem in Judea of Palestine in the days of Augustus Caesar, Emperor of Rome.
No wonder the angels of God could not keep the wonder of these amazing things to themselves in heaven, and appeared to shepherds on the night of the birth of Jesus Christ, singing and announcing the peace of God on this earth and glory to God in the highest heaven!
No wonder shepherds who were watching their flocks by night left their charge to go to Bethlehem to witness the amazing events that had been announced to them!
No wonder wisemen from the East, who studied the stars, and beheld a particular star they understood to be the birth of a great King, set out on a two-year journey to see Him for themselves, and to perform acts of worship!
Should you, for whom this Son was born, whose name is Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father and Prince of Peace, not worship too?
Should you be restrained in your joy over Christmas, when God’s promised plan came into effect?
Wait with me for the night before Christmas, and express your joy with whatever you choose to celebrate Christmas; and… don’t forget to spread the cheer, for because of Christmas, God now lives among us in Jesus Christ our Lord, whose name is:
Immanuel!
