Merry Christmas World!!

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it… And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:1-3, 14)

Hallmark and Lifetime holiday movies will tell you that sometimes the greatest gift at Christmas is knowing someone cares.  In so many movies there’s this person that shows up JUST in time for Christmas. They make it home right when you need them. Their point is that Christmas is nothing without the ones you love. And they are not wrong. It is for this reason that all of Christmas (what it means to you, what it means to me) can be summed up in one word: Emmanuel.

Emmanuel. God With Us.

We go through life some days wondering how God feels about us: is He mad? Is He angry? Does He want me? Am I good enough? But…

Emmanuel is the answer to that question. God With Us.

“God With Us” is John 1:14, and John 1:14 is the mystery of God revealed. Jesus is the revelation of God’s plan: to be WITH us.

There’s a scripture that I was reading this weekend, and it is a scripture that is oft read at Christmastime. It’s Luke 2:8-14.

I often get caught up in the shepherds. How the shepherds are just nobodies going about their business, and how God chose them for the announcement of the biggest deal in history. But not this Christmas. This Christmas verses 13 and 14 struck me.  

Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” 

It’s the angels. The angels are worshipping and praising like crazy.  Because these angels know something that the shepherds didn’t know. The angels know something that sometimes WE don’t know: that Jesus’ arrival just defined the relationship. It just changed the relationship...forever.

Have you ever been at a restaurant and notice that some dude is down on one knee proposing to some chick?…it’s EXCITING! And we are all clapping and hooting, because this is a big deal. This guy just proposed.

Jesus Christ is God’s marriage proposal to human beings, and the angels are the audience. Two parties are acknowledged in their praise: Glory to God in heaven (groom), and peace to those on earth (bride) all via Jesus Christ (the biggest diamond ring in the history of the world)!  

At the birth of Jesus…God proposed. And all we have to do is say “yes.” Christmas Day is our wedding anniversary! That’s Merry Christmas: God with us. That’s the Christmas message.  But everyone doesn’t know what the angels knew. You can tell, because there was an incident in the synagogue…

He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:

 “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him. He began by saying to them, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” (Luke 4:16-21)

This is like my favorite scripture of all time. I mean, can you imagine their faces. Walks up, reads from the old book, sits down and says: Yeah…that’s me. Is Jesus not hardcore?!? You would think that this declaration would be met with the same praise and worship that the angels exhibited 30 years before, but no…this was their reaction: 

All the people in the synagogue were furious when they heard this. They got up, drove him out of the town… (Luke 4:28-29)

It seems extreme, but they didn’t know it was Christmas. They didn’t know that God was with them. Lot’s of people don’t know God is with them, they don’t know that God is down on one knee…to them! So we tell them. Via Matthew 28:19, and all the rest of the scriptures. We proclaim Merry Christmas, not a big dinner/gifts/Santa. We proclaim Merry Christmas: God with Us.

Merry Christmas!