Who is the Babe in the Manger?
Well its that most wonderful time of the year again. What makes this time of year so special? On the calander Christmas is a regular 24 hr day the same as any other day. Why do people cherish this time of year. Is it the lust of gifts and food that we may have yet another reason to indulge ouselves in selfish pleasures? Or is the opposite, that at it at this time of year the beauty of unselfish acts of giving to those who are less fortunate than we can be done so that we may take pridful humility in giving to the poor. Or perhaps is it a religious reason, that this is the one time of the year where we sancify ourselves by going to a church Christmas candelight service or a cantata and look at a plastic baby Jesus in a manger.
For those who are suffering from desease, or deaths of loved ones, loniness or heartach. Christmas may take a different aspect. This is the time of year those suffering dread, it is as a knife to the pain bringing jeering reminders of the pleasures they can't or can no longer enjoy. While others take exagerated joy in fading pleasures of the season, those sufering long for it to be over and for the reality of the hardship of life to sink back into the hearts of people. And on the other side many of the suffering try to ignor this reality. Many use Christmas as a drug to knumb their minds of the pain they feel. To allow themseves to be carried away in the whirlwind of the season. Allowing for a short time to forget their troubles believing this must be the essence of the joy of the Christmas season.
I believe we have focused so much on the helpless baby in the manger that we set aside the God that came in flesh. Just because God came as a baby does not mean that he could not at any moment choose to become God the judge on His throne and pour out terror from heaven on sinful man as He did to those in Sodom and Gamorah. Yes, He set aside His power and glory to come as a babe in flesh, but He was far from helpless. There was never a moment when He could not have enthroned Himself in all His glory in the heavens and had the nations bowing in the dust before His feet. Christ continuously permited Himself to be human to undergo sickness and pain and to be tempted in every way as we are (Heb 4:15). That He might glorify Himself by doing the will of the Father and being the Redeemer of sinful man.
For those who do not cling to the redeeming blood of Christ as their righteousness there is great reason for them to fear and tremble when looking at the manger. For there is no reason that God has not wiped their selfish and wicked souls into etenal troment (Romans 1:18). It is only by His will and grace that they are even at this moment able to look on a baby in the manger as a mere represtentation of the God come in flesh. Yet there is a way of escape, As Christ was born in the likeness of man He made the way through taking the punishment for our sin that we may be born spirituallly to be like Him. Repent from sin and claim the blood of Christ and you shall be saved from the terror of Gods wrath and be born as a child of His, no longer to be an enemy of God.
For those who have claimed the righteousness of God as their only hope and plea. We come to the manger trembling from the knowledge of where we where, as a person trembles after a near death experiance. Yet we also have great joy, greater than the joy of the Shephards after seeing the infant Jesus, knowing that we are no longer under fear of Gods anger but we are seen as perfect through what God has done, and we are loved forevermore a child of God (1 John 3:1). And we can have confidence, more than the wisemen in their stars, knowing that our God is never helpless but always in control for our God does whatever He pleases (Ps 115).
“Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for thou hast
created all things, and for Thy pleasure they are created.” Revelation 4:11
posted by sarahpond @ 6:02 PM
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