And the angel said to them, "Fear not: for, I bring you great tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the City of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you: you shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger."
And suddenly there was with the Angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace and good will toward men". Luke 2:10-14
Let's think about the events that happened that wonderful night. God decided that he was going to go to earth. But, not with an army of Angels. Not with an earthly army to defend him. God was born, in the same way that babies have been born for thousands, even millions of years. He wasn't born into luxury. He was born in a stable, with the animals of the stable around him. This meant, horses, some goats, perhaps some sheep, chickens, (probably no pigs), and other animals and certainly insects. It was undoubtedly smelly, dirty and by modern standards outright disgusting. Hardly the way one would want to bring a newborn into the world. The danger to both mother and baby is frightening when one thinks of it. Yet, God did it.
Once born, the baby was wrapped in crude cloth strips, and laid in a manger, a trough normally used to hold animal food (straw). Yes, its true that God announced the birth to shepherds who were out tending their flock. But, this was not the same thing as announcing to the High Priests and other important church leaders. Shepherds were considered the lowest of the low. They were not even laborers, they had no fixed address, and followed their flocks from place to place. It wasn't exactly the occupation that every mother desired for her daughter's husband. Yet, these shepherds came, and worshiped the new born king. God accepted them, by making them among the first to know about the birth.
The magi, long a source of controversy, then arrived, although not at the same time as the shepherds. They brought gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. These were traditional gifts relating to royalty. Gold's value goes without question. Frankincense and myrrh, both powerful, fragrant incenses, were held in especially high esteem due to the general lack of bathing at the time, resulting in personal stench (combined with the squalor of a stable) that must have been nearly unbearable. These gifts were accepted as well.
The moral of the story presented in Luke is not just that Christ was born. It is that Christ was born into horrible conditions, without armies of angels or earthly armies to protect him. He thrived and lived, only to give His life for mankind's sins. If God can love us so much that He was willing to accept all of this, shouldn't we accept not only each other, but God's gift of Grace and Love to us? God accepts everyone. The rich. The poor. Those without hope. Those who society rejects. God came not into the world to treat with kings and the movers and shakers of the time. If that was His wish, he wouldn't have been born in a manger, to a abjectly poor family. He came for all of mankind, and the only way to know, truly KNOW all of mankind, is to start at the bottom, the least of the His peaple.
The gift of God is Grace in accepting ourselves and others as being God's children, even if imperfect ones, whom He loves dearly. When we accept God's gift of His Son at Christmas, we remember the gift to the world, and accept God into our hearts. This Christmas, let's remember that wonderful gift, and how fortunate we are that God came to Earth, was born, lived, and died for us and for our sins. Then, let us join the angelic voices in proclaiming, "Gloria in Excelsis Deo!"
May the the Love, Joy and Peace of the Christmas Season be to all!
Amen
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I believe that by accepting our own flaws, we are asked to accept the flaws of those around us without hatred.
As it is said, "Love as you would be loved" and "thatsoever which is forgiven on earth so shall it be in heavan."
These are the most direct expressions that God calls us to not hate our neighbor, but to accept that when they sin against us, just as we ask to be forgiven, so must we try to instead forgive. Moreover, that if we aren't better in God's eyes than any other, not the shepherd nor the king, neither are we to assume that we are better than our neighbor, therefore our prejudices and our judgements are out of place. We are not justified by hating or making war, we are sanctified by forgiveness, kindness and peace.
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