Over the past few weeks, we've looked at how Mary and Joseph, the wise men, and the shepherds were all a part of the Christmas story. In their own way, they all encouraged us and challenged us. Mary and Joseph set a beautiful example of what it looks like to worship and trust God even when in the midst of difficult change and emotions. The wise men challenged us to surrender all we are to the Lord in pursuit and worship of Him. And the shepherds reminded us that no matter what the world says about us, God has chosen us for His purpose and plan.
But, there's one character we haven't looked at yet. He's the most important character of all; in fact, He changed the course of eternity. I know He's changed my identity, my perspective, my story - He's changed my entire life.
Drumroll, please!
JESUS!
As I reflect on the Christmas story, I cannot fully wrap my head around Jesus' part. He is fully God and yet still fully man. Jesus is God in the flesh. He's God, who decided to make a visit on earth. Earth, with us, the broken and sinful and disobedient humans. Jesus left the comfort, the perfection of Heaven and came to dwell with us.
Not only did He come to dwell with us, He made a humble entrance, and that really set the stage for the rest of His life. Our Lord, our Savior and Messiah, the one that came to save us all, the one we had been waiting for for 400 years, was born in a stable. With animals. Not in a castle, born into a royal family. Not even born in a nice, warm room, born into a mature, established family. No, He chose to be born in a stable, on the biggest night of the year where there would be no rooms available for His family to stay. No, He chose to be born to Mary and Joseph, young newlyweds who were still navigating and processing this promise He had made to them.
We expected a grand entrance, and that's what He deserved. But He chose humble beginnings, a humble life. All with us in mind.
He came with the purpose to commune with us, dwell with us, teach us, and ultimately die on the cross, resurrect from the grave, and save us from our sins. He came for us, because without Him, we'd be hopeless, purposeless, and lost. He came to bring us hope, freedom, joy and love unending, because we couldn't find any of that, any of which our souls truly craved, anywhere else except in Him.
And while His birth was a humble, quiet event, it was arguably the most powerful event in all of history.
At church the other night, we sang a song declaring Jesus' name. We sang about how beautiful, wonderful, and powerful His name is. And that line, "What a powerful Name it is, the Name of Jesus" stuck with me throughout the rest of the week. I've been praying over that lyric, what those words really mean, why it matters, and every time I think about it I get giddy and excited and refreshed.
Because our Jesus is so powerful. He is God, and He can and will move mountains. He parts seas and heals the irreparably broken and forgives the too far gone. He changes identities and rewrites stories and restores the most hurt and hardened parts of our hearts. He does it all through one whisper of His name, one touch, one glance. That is how powerful He is.
His birth was so powerful that the minute He entered this world, Heaven was celebrating because they knew this meant redemption for all of humanity. His birth was so powerful that it used some imperfect, unqualified people for His glory. His birth was so powerful that it set into motion an immeasurable amount of miracles, healings, and transformed lives. His birth was so powerful that it was only the opening scene to His life, that would lead to a devastating death but the best comeback story of all time through His resurrection, three days after His crucifiction. His birth was so powerful that now we can have hope of His return.
His birth has changed everything.
Sometimes I feel like the phrase, "Jesus is the reason for the season" can be easily overused and become meaningless. But when we truly pause and reflect on all that His birth truly means, how it has affected us and our lives today, and how it's changed the course of humanity, it's true - Jesus is the reason for the season. And as we remember the importance of His birth, everything else about Christmas starts to seem so much more insignificant. The presents, food, preparations, and stress starts to fall away because as we fix our eyes on Jesus, we remember what truly matters - Jesus and our relationship with Him.
How has Jesus's birth changed your life? Are you doing anything special to remember and reflect on it this year? I'd love to hear in the comment section down below!
