Christmas – it’s all about love actually

As Natalie once memorably said in that famous 2003 film “If you can’t say it at Christmas, when can you, eh?”  Well, she might have been referring to her love for the Prime Minister but surely there is a much greater truth that needs to be shared all year round, but is especially appropriate to dwell on at this particular time of year.

You see, love did not magically appear out of some primordial soup.  Love is not some evolutionary trick to aid our survival.  Love is summed-up in the Good News: our heavenly Father, who created each one of us and placed us on this planet, did not want to see us destroys ourselves in orgies of violence, debauchery and reckless over-consumption.  No, He saw the mess that we made of the freedom He gifted us and knew the only solution was to send His precious Son.

Jesus Christ left the glorious riches of heaven, where He was worshipped and adored by countless angels.  He willingly chose to enter the darkness of a virgin’s womb, the divine becoming human and being born into the grotty squalor of stable.  You could not make this up.  Our sin problem was so serious but God’s rescue plan was even more audacious – the only way our world could be saved.  Yet the price He paid was everything, a lifetime of sacrifice, humility and toil culminating in the cross.

That is the real love at the heart of Christmas, which we must never lose sight of and must always be ready to share.

 

No room at the inn

As thoughts start to turn towards Christmas with seasonal aisles appearing in stores, discussions about where (and with whom) to celebrate the big day and planning for purchasing a panoply of presents, I was struck once again by the relevance of the old story that has launched countless celebrations.

Over 2000 years ago, a young couple were forced to leave their hometown, travel many miles across difficult terrain and trust in the kindness of strangers for their accommodation.  Yet, in Bethlehem, there was no room in any inn or house, even for a heavily pregnant woman, possibly starting to experience contractions and doubtless anxious to ensure the safe delivery of her first child.  Mary and Joseph were not foreigners, but fellow-Jews who should (according to the Torah) have been treated with compassion: “love your neighbour, as yourself” (Lev. 19:18).  Despite their knowledge of God and religion, Bethlehem closed its doors and the Saviour was born in a stable.

What a sad indictment of our society’s reluctance to welcome refugees today.  We seem to have so little time, concern or care for anyone outside our immediate circle.  Whether we label this “compassion fatigue”, or human selfishness, we need to keep remembering the real message of Christmas.  God coming down to earth, breaking into our lives, irrespective of the barriers we build, but still pleading with us to respond – to open our hearts to the outcast and the stranger.  For when we welcome even the least of these, we invite in the Lord Jesus Christ Himself (Matt. 25:40).