It can be hard to snap into the warmth of the Christmas spirit in July. The reason is because it’s too hot! All joking aside – the Christmas spirit has nothing to do with hot chocolate and pine trees decked out in tinsel. The Christmas spirit is the joy of knowing that God kept his promise to send a Savior.
This Sunday we spend some time soaking in the facts of Luke 2. There is plenty to see. True – there weren’t any parades of lights in parks like Tanglewood, but there was a host of angels forming a choir to sing the first Christmas Carol penned by God himself.
The fact that the first Christmas invitation was given to a group of lowly terrified shepherds should give us comfort. This wasn’t a Christmas card in the mail – it was as personal of an invitation as God gives to his own birthday party. How would the shepherds know which stall was belonged to Jesus? It was the one where a new mom rested her child in a manger of all places! That was the sign… You would think blue balloons on the hitching post would be a better sign. Or how about a “Baby on Board” placard on the saddle of Mary’s mule. The shepherds came, worshiped, and told everyone they could find about what they had seen and heard.
With all the Christmas trappings do you ever forget just who it exactly that was sleeping in that feed trough? Those same little fingers that held onto Mary’s hand formed mountains! He was only in the world for a few moments but as the eternal God he always was, yes, before time itself. The omniscient God was surrounded by a world he didn’t know. Everything was new. Jesus took off his crown and left it in heaven so that he could live in our place. Jesus was and is our substitute, our sacrifice, our Savior.
Want to see more? Check out the slides HERE from this week’s lesson in our series Very Important Chapters of the Bible – Luke 2.