And she brought
forth her firstborn son,
and wrapped him
in swaddling clothes,
and laid him in
a manger, because there
was no room for
them in the inn.
Luke 2:1-20
Yes, it was a visit.
An historic visit by
Someone who has no beginning, no end. Someone who came, who preached, who
healed, who gave himself to die for the sins of the world, who was resurrected,
and who lives at the right hand of the throne of God forevermore. Yet it was still a
visit from glory to earth and back. The prophet Micah, told about it in 5:2. But thou Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be
little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he (the Lord
Jesus) come forth unto me that is to be
ruler in Israel, whose going forth have been from of old, from everlasting.
C. I. Scofield expounds, “The child
was born in Bethlehem, but the Son
was from everlasting.”
In our tinsel-filled
Christmases, it is difficult to reduce our thoughts to that visit because in so
doing, we must digress to a lowly feeding trough for animals. That doesn’t
exactly suit our lifestyles. We are much too sophisticated for that. But God’s
own darling Son, the King of Kings left the majesty of the throne on high and
came to earth, not as the Lion that was expected by Israel—the Lion out of the
Tribe of Judah—but as a lowly Lamb. The Lamb that would and did, in God’s
perfect timing, give His life sacrificially to take away the sin of the world.
Our thoughts rush to
the feeding trough at Christmastime, just once a year. It is poignant. Going
there during the “Holiday Season” as we so blatantly and irreverently label the
Birthday of the King, somehow absolves us, frees us of the sinfulness we are
not willing to forsake to walk with Christ day in and day out. Why, we’re not
even willing to use His name on His birthday! But that Babe in the
manger was John’s Bread of Life in
6:25a. The shepherds found him that night so long ago, obviously, by faith,
worshipping and honoring Him as The Great
Shepherd, though they had no way of know that he would become The Great Shepherd whom God brought from the
dead (Hebrews 13:20).
There was purpose in
that phenomenal visit to earth. It was to:
·
Save
His people from their sin
·
To
bring hope
·
To
bring peace
·
To
assure heaven
—Matthew 1:21
There
was also power on display from both heaven and earth in that single visit. His
birth alone is powerful and glorious enough to astound all of God’s creation,
but he brought so much more.
·
The
power of Grace
·
The
Power of Glory
·
The
Power of Gift (a life changed is the greatest of gifts)
—Luke
2:8-20
When Heaven visited
earth that day so long ago—it was not Santa Claus bringing a bag of gifts. I
know, I know—every child of Adam’s race loves to receive. We all do. We’ve
become a selfish lot with great expectations, and Christmas has become
commercialized, the memories of days gone by jaded as we move headlong into the
quagmire of the latest and greatest electronics and meaningless gadgets that we
just absolutely must have. So jaded that we no longer see the real meaning. The
baby in a manger is now just a little insignificant part of a celebration that
is becoming more obscure with every electronic device advertisement. As a
matter of fact it is scorned and ill-advised in our own once God-blessed and
freedom ignited country.
Blessings have given
way to Black Friday. Praises have given way to parties; Savior, to Santa;
Glory, to gimmicks; Manger, to money. There are boxes and bows and ribbons and
trees. Tinsel and lights and eggnog and fireplaces. And never forget Frosty and
Rudolph.
Some 2000 years ago,
Majesty and Power and Glory came down to us and the world has never been the
same. He was God’s unspeakable Gift.
It was not Santa Claus; it was not some great politician promising hope and
change and prosperity. It was not some great musician who momentarily teased
our sense of hearing with the music of the season. It was not some great
athlete who purported to be a role model for our children. Nor was it even some
giant of a preacher who tickled our ears with his own version of the message of
salvation.
All of these have
come and gone, their purposes and plans having brought emotion to our lives
temporarily. But no other Man, no other Name has so impacted our lives and
times as the Man, Christ Jesus, for He is very God. He is the Word Incarnate, Made Flesh. He is Isaiah’s Wonderful
Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6).
What more—who more
could we ever desire than the One who visited Planet Earth and changed our
lives forever. Planet Earth that was spoken into existence by the Word Made Flesh, our Creator God. There
is a beautiful verse from the Psalms that inspired a poignant hymn called Pass Me Not O Gentle Savior. It goes
like this. Whom have I in heaven but
thee? And there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee (Psalm 73:25).
All praise and honor
and glory belong to Him alone now at this beautiful Christmas season and
forevermore. I boldly exercise my First Amendment Right and my privilege as a
blood-bought Christian to say to all my brothers and sisters who know Him in
free pardon of Sin—Merry Christmas and …thanks
be unto God for His unspeakable gift!
Victor
W. Baugh, Sr., Th.D., Ph.D.
Pastor,
St. Luke AME Church
Havana,
AL
Copyright © Victor Wayne Baugh, Sr., Th.D., Ph.D.
Birmingham, Alabama, December 2013
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