Chaplain's Corner
Jesus – A Radical Birth
O come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant
O come ye, o come ye to Bethlehem
O come and behold Him, born the King of Angels
O come, let us adore Him!...
Christmas Carols. They can be polarising, yes? Some love them, some find them repetitive and annoying, particularly if you work in retail at this time of year. Yet the traditional carols, those that speak of Christ and the real reason for the season, are rich in beauty as they poetically remind us of the significance of Christ’s birth.
Christ’s birth is an historical story, one that is documented as fact and passed down from generation to generation for 2021 years. So significant that men and women have died for telling it, and our calendar counts the years since. It is so significant that 25 December is considered a holy day, where we take a day of holiday, refusing to work as normal, to gather and celebrate. I wonder if we continue to recognise that the word holiday comes from the old English word, hāligdæg, meaning holy day?
The Christ story is depicted by tranquil romantic nativity scenes, yet have you ever considered it is possibly closer to a horror story than a romantic one? Think about it…
The radical story of Christ’s early days is told from an eyewitness point of view by Matthew and also laid out by the physician and historian, Luke, in Matthew 1 and Luke 2.
We read that Christ is promised to Mary and she is found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. This leads to Joseph, who was engaged to Mary, to at first reject both Mary and Jesus. Not a great start. Then we find Mary and Joseph travelling to Bethlehem for the census, Mary heavily pregnant, riding atop a donkey. Not a comfortable lead up.
Upon arrival there is no guest room available for the couple, so they resign to sleeping among the farm animals. When Jesus is finally born, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords has no trumpets blasting, no royal welcome, or clean hospital bed. Instead, He is laid in an animal feeding trough, a manger. An incredibly humble beginning.
His first visitors are brought by a shining star, but this also alerts Kind Herod, who is a paranoid madman (he is documented as killing three of his own sons and … his favourite wife). King Herod orders the killing of innocents, all boys under the age of two years old, in order to erase Jesus before He has the chance to be a rival.
Welcome to the world Jesus! Born into the most trying of times, the most awkward of situations, His life under constant threat, yet all of it was foretold hundreds of years before by Isaiah!
Isaiah 9:6, spoken approximately 2,721 years ago says …
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Jesus was called Immanuel – meaning God with us.
Jesus is more than a story, more than a nativity scene, more than just a historical figure. Jesus is God with us, the Son of God, sent to Earth, born as a babe to live, to teach and to point people to God. He came to then die upon a cross, the most painful of deaths, to deal with our sin – forever! He paid the price of sin, so you and I don’t have to. He did it for our salvation.
My encouragement to you today, is to not underestimate the holy day of Christmas. Don’t wrap Christmas up in a pretty bow and a lovely nativity scene – it’s more than that. The birth of Christ is radical and radically life changing, it was a miracle in more ways than one and it should bring us to our knees in awe and worship of what God has done for us. It is my prayer that with this revelation, we never underestimate the holy day that is Christmas and never sing a Christmas Carol the same way again.
God bless you.
Ps Matt Daly
Chaplain