The Christmas story is the beginning of a new covenant. It was Jeremiah who spoke of "the New Covenant" in Jeremiah 31. I'll not rehearse here, because what is on my mind is the way in which God's pronouncement of his son's coming heralds (there's a word we don't use real often) a new identity. AND, what we perceive our identity to be, makes all the difference in the world in how we live.
The words in Luke 2:1-21 (NIV) are worth meditating on:
2:1 In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world.
2 (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.)
3 And everyone went to his own town to register.
4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David.
5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child.
6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born,
7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night.
9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.
10 But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.
11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.
12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."
13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
14 "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."
15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let's go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about."
16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger.
17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child,
18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.
19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.
20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.
21 On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise him, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he had been conceived.
Who were these two traveling souls? Nobody knew them. Nobody paid attention to who whey were; nor to the condition of their imminent birth.
God did!
God chose these two and in the arduous journey, and "scary" conditions of birth, while no one else knew them, God did.
It was Henri Nouwen who said: "Jesus' whole message is to say that you are God's beloved child...when you can hear in your heart, not in your head, that you are truly God's beloved daughter, that you are truly God's beloved son, everything turns around. The mystery of this spiritual truth is that you were (say I was)loved before you (I) was born, and we will be loved after we die...Our dwelling in God's heart is a dwelling from eternity to eternity."
In my darkest moments when all I can sense is shame, condemnation, guilt, and pity, there is God's truth. You and I were known by God before our birth. We were chosen in love from the foundation of the world, and he is the person who names us for who we are...We are Jesus' children, and that makes all the difference in the world.
The words in Luke 2:1-21 (NIV) are worth meditating on:
2:1 In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world.
2 (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.)
3 And everyone went to his own town to register.
4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David.
5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child.
6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born,
7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night.
9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.
10 But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.
11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.
12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."
13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
14 "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."
15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let's go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about."
16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger.
17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child,
18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.
19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.
20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.
21 On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise him, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he had been conceived.
Who were these two traveling souls? Nobody knew them. Nobody paid attention to who whey were; nor to the condition of their imminent birth.
God did!
God chose these two and in the arduous journey, and "scary" conditions of birth, while no one else knew them, God did.
It was Henri Nouwen who said: "Jesus' whole message is to say that you are God's beloved child...when you can hear in your heart, not in your head, that you are truly God's beloved daughter, that you are truly God's beloved son, everything turns around. The mystery of this spiritual truth is that you were (say I was)loved before you (I) was born, and we will be loved after we die...Our dwelling in God's heart is a dwelling from eternity to eternity."
In my darkest moments when all I can sense is shame, condemnation, guilt, and pity, there is God's truth. You and I were known by God before our birth. We were chosen in love from the foundation of the world, and he is the person who names us for who we are...We are Jesus' children, and that makes all the difference in the world.
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