A Reflection on Luke 2:1-20
Advent is the beginning of the calendar, and every year, although different, is a cycle that does not end, and the wreath before us is a circle with no beginning and no end. Just as the calendar comes around every year, there are changes throughout the year, and there are differences around the wreath, but God is the same, and God is present with us at all times. As we turn to the wreath this Christmas Eve, we turn our gaze upon the light brought into the world through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Hope
Several weeks ago, we began with a reflection upon focusing our hearts, our minds, and our bodies for the coming of the King. With our hearts and minds, we recall the prophets speaking about the coming Messiah, which would liberate and free His people, the incarnate Holy God that would usher in His Kingdom, and a new age for God’s people. The prophet Isaiah instructs us through his prophecy, “The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness, a light has dawned. For to us, a child is born, to us, a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isa 9:2,6) With this perspective, we see that God has embodied hope through the sending of His Son.
Preparation
In response to the hope, we prepare for the coming of Jesus. In our hearts, we work for the cause of justice and peace in our world, preparing for Christ’s return, when he will establish justice and PEACE for all the world. God sent His messengers to invite us to prepare for Christ’s coming by working for God’s Peace for everyone. The prophet Micah was one of those that foretold of the coming PEACE that Jesus Christ would bring, “He will stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God. And they will live securely, for then his greatness will reach to the ends of the earth.” (Micah 5:4) We are invited to join with the prophets of the past and participate in preparation for the future coming of the Lord.
Joy
With our eager anticipation of God’s advent, we embrace the JOY we have been given and respond with worship. Even in our hard times, we rest in the knowledge that Christ came to the Earth, bringing Joy to all humankind. “And Mary said, ‘My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on, all generations will call me blessed; for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name’” (Luke 1:46-49). Today we follow Mary’s lead and allow our hearts to be filled with JOY and wonder as we contemplate what our loving God has done for us.
Love
We love God, but it is because God first loved us. We have been called to follow the example of God’s LOVE, demonstrated through the self-sacrificial example of Jesus Christ embodying God’s merciful grace. May we remember that God calls us to show one another LOVE through kind acts, compassionate giving, and abundant grace this season. This LOVE puts others above self and reflects the LOVE of God shown upon this world. John reminds us, “Let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.” (1 John 4:7-11). Today, we seek to demonstrate God’s love for the world, and we look to the story of how Jesus was born.
The Birth of Jesus as told in Luke
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 their 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 guest room available for them.
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 that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, 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 heaven,
and on earth peace to those 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.
Jesus Has Come to Earth
Advent has led up to this moment, this time and place. A place dictated by the government, fulfilling the prophecy, and carried out by two obedient servants. Bethlehem, a town meaning the house of bread, would become the place where God would bring his nourishing grace into the world. However, this place was not a place where the world would recognize as a seat of honor, but rather the accommodations were lowly and underwhelming.
However, Jesus was given the care of a mother, wrapped in cloths, swaddled, given security, even in the conditions where they had only a modest place to stay. They used what they had, a manger, to help give Jesus a safe place to sleep. Mary and Joseph’s love for Jesus was apparent even if they did not have the room they required on that night more than 2000 years ago.
This was not a night just for this small family; it was a night for the world. The angels announced to the world that the Savior of all humanity was born in Bethlehem. This night is a night for singing, for rejoicing, for proclaiming the embodied love of God for all humanity. The shepherds came to witness what the angels had declared, and their hearts were changed because God’s love for humanity was expressed clearly with the birth of His Son.
Tonight, we come, gathering around an Advent Wreath, lighting candles, and singing God’s praise. May our hearts and lives be changed because Jesus Christ, Savior of humanity, and Son of God, has fulfilled the promise of God, as a realization of the Hope we have waited for and an expression of the loving grace of God.
Elpis and Shalom 