Every warrior’s boot used in battle and every garment rolled in blood will be destined for burning, will be fuel for the fire. 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. Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and for ever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this. Isaiah 9:5-7 NIVUK https://bible.com/bible/113/isa.9.5-7.NIVUK
In 1997 I was preparing to leave for a three year ministry with a mission team in Romania. I knew I would need to get my inoculations updated, so I checked with my doctor, got a list of what I needed, and picked them up from the pharmacy. The pharmacist handed me a rather large paper bag. I looked at her, completely confused. She explained that neither the pharmacy nor my doctor's surgery could store the inoculations. The bag contained the full course for everything I needed. I should keep them in the refrigerator at home until they were needed. So I followed her instructions. That evening, my rather sensitive little sister opened the refrigerator to get a drink. You can imagine what happened. She screamed! "What are these syringes doing in my fridge?" she yelled. "Don't worry." I told her. "It's just tetanus, diphtheria, typhoid, rabies and tick-borne encephalitis." To be fair, I don't think helped much. She just didn't expect to find vials of live viruses between the cheese and the ham. Maybe you're approach to these readings has been the same. You were expecting something cute and comforting, but I've spent the last six blog posts talking about war and exile, about bereavement and mourning, about loss and pain. That doesn't seem very Christmassy, right? But that's exactly where our misunderstanding comes from. We have been drip-fed a constant diet of the Disneyfied, fairy-tale Christmas that we've forgotten the reality. We are so concentrated on creating the perfect Christmas for us and our relatives, because that's what the magazines and the advertising campaigns and store windows tell us to do, that we completely miss the far-from-perfect scenario of the first Christmas. We see the joy of a child being born in Bethlehem, but forget that His parents were in Bethlehem to register for a census so that the Romans could tax them and use their money to fund the war machine that was subjugating them. We see the angelic choir, but forget the pagan soldiers and the brutal oppression. We see the wise men and the star, but forget that Herod slayed all boys of Jesus' age in Bethlehem as soon as the wise men were gone. The whole point of Christmas is that the world into which Jesus was not Hollywood, or Bollywood, or even Nollywood. No, it was quite frankly a mess. But regardless of that, as The Message puts it: The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood. John 1:14 MSG https://bible.com/bible/97/jhn.1.14.MSG
That neighbourhood wasn't a whitewashed gated community of neat condos with a pool and children's playground. No, it was a dirty, smelly stable in a small backwater where men and women gathered out of fear of their pagan overlords. The promise we've been reading? That wasn't given in a theological high tower of calm either. It was given to a people who were anticipating a violent invasion and exile because they had sinned against God. Why is that important? Because God doesn't wait will we're all cleaned up and in our best clothes before He sends Jesus to be Wonderful, our Counsellor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. No, He sends Him when we are most in need. You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:6-8 NIVUK https://bible.com/bible/113/rom.5.6-8.NIVUK
Our verses state that "the people living in darkness have seen a great light", not those narrowly avoiding skin damage under a 5,000 lumen light bulb. So today, if you feel no anticipation about Christmas Day; if the very thought of all the preparations fill you with dread because you know it can't be perfect; if you feel a searing, stabbing pain every time you think of that chair which will be empty for the first time this year, then be encouraged. Christmas is not for those who live in an unreal, airbrushed, movie-style reality where everything is perfect. No. Christmas is for those who need it the most. Christmas is for you. Because Christmas is when God broke into this unholy mess of ours with His plan to fix it. And He will fix your mess too, if you trust Him. He will use His coming into your life to beat Coronavirus. Forever.
Comments