It warms my heart to know that God always intended the good news of Jesus’ birth to be for all people, not just the well to do, the rich and the powerful.
We see this in so many ways throughout the gospel presentations. Joseph and Mary are relatively poor. As we see later in the chapter they offer pigeons for the appropriate sacrifice. These were the accepted sacrifices for those who couldn’t afford more expensive sacrifices. They ended up having the baby in a manger. There are no plush hotels, no red carpet and no servants to wait upon them.
Out in the field the shepherds, while watching their flocks, see a host of angels. Shepherds were the paupers of society. They were the lowest of low. They were despised so much that their testimony was not often allowed in a court of law. To be a shepherd was to be a low and often rejected member of society. Yet to these nobodies came a host of angels proclaiming that a Saviour has been born in Bethlehem - the town of David. It was to these shepherds that the angels declared the glory of God, the promise of peace to all upon those whom God’s favour rests. To these shepherds God disclosed the identity and location of the new born King. These lowly shepherds were able to see Jesus with His mother and step-father in the manger. They were able to worship Him and spread the good news that the Saviour, the Messiah was born, on this very first Christmas Day!
A widow who lived in the temple, though poor, was able to see the Lord Jesus Christ and praise Him. She had no worldly assets, no fortune, no retirement fund. But she was privileged to be able to prophesy about that New Born King.
And yet at the other extreme we see that wise men, magi, came from the East. These were educated men. They were wealthy enough to bring hugely expensive gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh to the new born king. They were educated enough to know that a star, a very unusual star marked the location of a new born King.
The new born King came for people from all walks of life, from all levels of society, from all nations and backgrounds. No one can claim exclusivity to the new born King. He came to take away the sins of the world. He came to bring people from every nation, tribe and tongue into the heavenly Kingdom of God.
Tomorrow as you celebrate Christmas why not take a small blessing to church and pass it on to someone who you wouldn’t normally mix with. Give them a blessing as Christ has given you a blessing.
Prayer:-
- Pray that the Kingdom of God would grow tomorrow as the gospel is faithfully preached. Ask God to grant faith and repentance to those who are visiting church.
- Pray that those serving as missionaries overseas would be comforted and kept close to God as they miss out on Christmas with family and friends. Ask God to grant them a special blessing this Christmas to compensate and make up for the losses they face in being so far away from family and friends.
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