In the history of man, through all the rush and bustle, there was one day when all of Heaven held their collective spiritual breath. That was the day Jesus came to dwell among His creation in human form. The birth of Jesus was not His first visit to the earth that He spoke into existence, but it was the first time He came as one of us.
While remaining fully God, He at the same time became fully man, so He could become the sacrifice we so desperately need. The birth of Christ was a brief respite from the normal goings-on of the world. From that moment, nothing would ever be the same again.
The birth of Christ marked a pause in time. For a brief second, everything and everyone stopped and stood still to the extent all of history pauses at this moment. When we refer to time, we always qualify it as the time before Christ (BC) or the time after His birth (AD). The birth of Jesus is a moment in time unlike any other. Today, remember this historical pause. Take a few minutes to contemplate the gravity of the birth of Jesus.
It’s easy to get lost in the middle of all the shopping, special events, music, and overall craziness of the season. The beautiful mystery of Christmas is not what’s in the wrapped package. It has nothing to do with Santa Claus. No, the wonder of the season is wrapped up in the human birth of the Son of God. When we make Christmas about anything other than the birth of Christ, we miss the entire point. Yet, how much have you thought of His miraculous birth today?
The birth of Jesus was a fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy (Isaiah 7:14, Micah 5:2, and Isaiah 9:6 to name a few). It proved God is who He always said He was to the doubters and skeptics. It proved God is not only “out there”, but that He is “right here.” Jesus in human form also shows we are all spiritual beings merely inhabiting these earthly shells, After all, each of us is created in the image of our Lord (Genesis 1:27). In fulfilling the words of the prophets, the birth of Christ proved we can trust God and that His Word is true.
The last thing proven by the birth of Christ is that no matter how insignificant we might think we are, God does not forget about us. We are never alone or abandoned (Hebrews 13:5). Jesus coming to earth as a man shows how much He longs to identify with His children. His love for us is so deep that He laid down His life on our behalf. The One with all power subdued that power, allowing powerless men to nail Him to the cross. The blood He shed is the reason we have hope.
This Christmas, pause and reflect on the birth of Christ. Nothing else in your day will compare to this. Feel the mystery of the all-powerful God becoming, at the same time, a most helpless human baby. Feel the weight of Him living only to die for your sins and mine. Most of all, feel the love and mercy His birth set in motion. Jesus has come. He is Emmanuel, God with us. Our King, our Savior, and our Lord became one of us so we could become one of His.