Pastor column: Recapturing the emotions of the first Christmas
If you were to choose a word to describe the atmosphere at Christmas time, what would it be? To me the word is “emotional.” With all that makes-up Christmas, our hearts should be filled with emotion.
Luke describes the emotions of the first Christmas — telling of the Christ-child being born, of angels and the shepherds visiting the manger. What are the emotions of Christmas? Luke identifies some of them.
The angel said, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people” (vs. 10). Not just joy … but great joy … and rightly so, for the message of Christmas is “Good News of great joy.”
Every believer in Jesus is to be a joy-filled child of God. Sins are forgiven, soul is justified, accepted, and adopted into God’s family. With such a God, such a Savior and such a hope, every believer ought to be joy-filled!
The angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom His favor rests” (vs. 14). The angels sang of God’s love which made it possible for men to have peace. The story of Christmas is about God reaching out in love to make peace with men. God expressed His love by giving the gift of His Son.
The gift that is given often tells you much about the giver. “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him” (John 3:16-17).
From the gift you receive, you can tell if the giver wasn’t very thoughtful, or if they were cheap, or if they were simply “going through the motions” without much concern for you personally. God gave us the Gift of eternal life — “This is how God showed His love for us: God sent His only Son into the world so we might live through Him” (1 John 4:9). This is the kind of love we’re talking about. This baby, wrapped in swaddling clothes, would one day be nailed to a cross all because God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son for whoever believes in him.
The shepherds found the baby, lying in the manger. Seeing Him, they spread the word concerning this child and all who heard it were amazed (vs. 16-18). The Word of God had come to the world of men. “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).
There is one more emotion often associated with Christmas — sadness. That’s why people need to discover the true meaning of Christmas. Rediscover the joy, love and amazement of the first Christmas so that the true meaning of Christmas might be revealed in us!
Rev. J. Patrick Street is the lead pastor of Redeemer Church in Marion. He can be reached at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Marion Star: The emotions of the first Christmas
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