The Babe In The Manger

As a child I remember how my mom would go all out with Christmas decorations every year. The tree was always decorated so beautifully and there were placed through out our house special Christmas figurines and bowls of candy.

One thing that’s always stood out in my mind more than any other memory was the nativity that my mom would place under our tree. The figures were large and fragile and had to be handled with much care. As a little girl I remember at night I would sit in my rocking chair in front of the tree and stare at the nativity for hours. As a child I knew that the baby Jesus was a pretty important part of Christmas and in my little mind I wanted to be right there in the stable.

The nativity has been a very important part of my Christmas decorating too. I’ve wanted my children and grandchildren to be reminded of the significance of the season.

In the recent years I’ve not only wanted to celebrate Christ’s birth and what He came to do, but to rejoice in why Jesus lived as a man. The answer seems obvious to most bible believing Christians. We would all agree that He came to take the sin of humanity ( my sin, our sin) upon Himself and reconcile us back to our Creator. We also know that it was only by His death on the Cross that would bring about this radical, and wonderful relationship with God when we place our faith in Him.

But what about His humanity? Why thirty three years as a man and what does that means to me? As I find myself wanting to be the woman of faith that pleases God I’m faced with a dilemma. I fall short so often. But with that great disappointment there is also a great discovery. The bible tells us that “We do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses (plural), but One who has been tempted in all things (as we are), yet without sin. Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace…” Hebrews 4:15-16

When He was born in that manger Jesus Christ came not just as a means to an end, as glorious as the outcome was. But in the everyday life that you and I wake up to with its very human setbacks, there is One who knows us and our deep desire to live this life pleasing Him. And so we draw near, near to the One who is our constant and unfailing help. Near to the One who is our hope and example. We draw near to Jesus the babe in the manger who became a man who will walk beside us, never leave us, understand our journey and miracle of miracles, make us more like Him.

Why did Jesus become a man?

“To regain our lost destiny, to restore our lost unity, to release us from our captivity, to relate to us in our frailty.”  David Jeremiah

Merry Christmas