In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you. Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob, forever; his kingdom will never end. Luke 1:26-33
When most people think of the greatest sacrifice ever made for mankind, they think of the cross and everything it entails. They think of Good Friday and Easter, they think of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Throughout the month of December, Christians and non- Christians all around the world are celebrating a Holiday Season that has been labeled "Christmas". They are attending churches, saying prayers, singing carols and exchanging gifts. This will be done in remembrance of the birth of Jesus.
Most people don’t think of Christmas as a time of sacrifice, they think of it as a time of celebration, gift giving, and family. I don’t want to burst your "Christmas Bubble", but the birth of Jesus Christ was an extraordinary sacrifice.
Most clergy will be reading from the familiar passages in the gospel of Luke that describe the circumstances of the virgin birth - an event like no other in the history of the world.
Many books have been written and movies made to depict this wonderful event in the history of mankind. Most of those books and movies have focused, understandably, on the obedience and sacrifices of Mary and Joseph in bringing baby Jesus into the world.
But have you ever thought about what that experience was like for Jesus?
We all know how Jesus sacrificed Himself for us at the end of His earthly life, when He died on the cross. It was then that He endured and suffered excruciating tortures, humiliation and rejection.
But for a moment let’s focus on the sacrifice of Heaven.
Jesus was the Co-creator of the universe. He was omnipotent (all-powerful). He was omnipresent (everywhere present). He was omniscient (all-knowing).
The Bible says He was seated at the right hand of God and had almighty power. He lived in the Glory, Majesty and Splendor of Heaven.
Mighty angels were His servants. Heaven was a perfect place and not tainted by sin. There he was surrounded by angels worshipping day and night saying "Holy, Holy Holy".
John 1:6 says In the beginning was the Word, (Jesus) and the Word (Jesus) was with God and the Word (Jesus) was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through Him all things were made, without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness but the darkness has not understood it. (parenthesis mine)
But on that first Christmas, He laid it all aside and humbled Himself to live in the womb of a young Jewish girl named Mary and submitted Himself to the protection of an obscure Jewish carpenter named Joseph. He literally stepped down from heaven into a fallen world of danger and deception.
This is difficult to understand but He had to disengage Himself from His own divine consciousness to become a helpless embryo. He had to be born under trying circumstances following a rough 70-mile walk by his parents from Nazareth to Bethlehem.
He gave up all the unimaginable riches and untold wisdom of the universe to be born in a barn and laid in an animal trough. But most of all, try to imagine what it was like sitting at the right hand of the Father in heaven, contemplating this idea of becoming utterly helpless and, for at least a period of time, without even the intelligence of an adult.
Like any other child, Jesus was born not knowing how to walk or talk. How many of us would be willing to trade our own lives and consciousness, even as adult mortal beings, to re-enter the world that way again?
That’s what Christmas represents to me.
This is what the Bible calls the Condescension.
The Word Become Flesh and Dwelt Among Us.
Now the question is: How do we as humans respond to this reality? Obliviously we have to make a decision. We either accept this sacrifice or we reject it. There is no middle ground.
The word of God says, God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever would believe on him would not perish but have everlasting life For God did not send His son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned, but he who does not believe is
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