When you clear away all of the trimmings, the story of Christmas is simple: God decided to add humanity to deity in the person of His Son. Jesus came into the world to give us a living, breathing demonstration of what God is like and, through His death, bridge the gap between our brokenness and our Father’s embrace.
That’s the marvelous truth we celebrate at Christmas. But it’s possible for us to trivialize it by failing to grasp its significance.
Let’s face it—this whole business of Christmas is either the most remarkable truth, or complete nonsense! There’s no in-between, and the stories of eyewitnesses to the coming of Christ can help us regrasp the wonder of Christmas.
Consider the story of Mary, Jesus’ mother. In the opening chapter of his gospel, Luke reports that God sent an angel to tell the young virgin that she was going to give birth to God’s Son. Mary was likely no more than 14 years old, living in a little town called Nazareth. Imagine the gravity of that scene: an angel visits a poor, unheard-of girl in Podunk Nazareth and tells her she’s going to bear God’s Son!
She responds with a beautiful attitude. She says: “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true” (Luke 1:38). Looking back, we know everything did come true; and Mary’s example of trust and worship is a powerful example of how to prepare for Christmas.
It’s easy to become so absorbed with our own concerns that we forget to worship and wonder and rejoice at God’s blessings. I pray that you would use this Advent season to remember the wonders He has accomplished in your life—that Jesus lived, died, and rose again to reconcile you to God and offer you eternal life. What a wonderful truth worthy of praise!
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