Christmas like you’ve never seen it before
When we think about Christmas, we see snowy rolling landscapes, sometimes with Santa in a sled through the sky or red Coca Cola trucks on the road. We see a romantic little stable with a merry white baby with blue eyes and blond curls, accompanied by a man and a woman with a headscarf, shepherds, kings, gifts, ox, donkey, sheep and ‘Angels we have heard on high, sweetly singing o’er the plains’
This picture doesn’t match reality. I won’t say a thing about Santa and I will keep my mouth shut about those horrible Coca Cola Trucks, but they don’t have anything to do with Christmas. Because Christmas is originally the feast of the winter solstice. The victory of the light, the return of the sun. That fitted very well on the birth of Jesus, although He was probably born in September. By the way, there is nothing romantic about His birth. It seems to me like a nightmare having to deliver in a stable. It is a miracle Mary didn’t develop a life threatening infection. Also between the coming of the shepherds and the coming of the wise men is approximately one and a half year and the choir of angels wasn’t a choir of chubby little cherubs, but an army of impressive heavenly beings, whose greetings always begin with; ‘fear not’.
For the reason of an army instead of a choir we must go back to the beginning.
After God had made the humans, He looked at everything He created ans saw it was very good. Humans on the other hand didn’t trust God completely and rather believed the half truth of the ´serpent´ and ate of the ´apple´. From that moment on the unity and harmony between God and people was destroyed, a deep gap had formed. Evil had come into the world and with that, ´the serpent´had a lasting influence on people.
But God had a plan B; the woman should bring forth a child that would crush the head of the snake.
The people of Israel, of whom God says; “I am your husband and your maker”, now has brought forth a Son, a redeemer. This was the child that as a Prince, would bring peace between God and people. This was the mighty God who would come to crush the head of evil and to take the government on his shoulders.
The ancient serpent hadn’t succeeded in separating the people from her God. It came close some times, but every time God had forgiven His people and taken her back.
And now, the Messiah was about to be born. The serpent is ready to destroy the child, before it destroys him.
In a situation like this, where it is make or break, an angelic choir isn’t of much use. For the protection of this child a heavenly host is put in.
This enormous army said: “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” Thousands of angels proclaim this, that is impressive, formidable. The angels say what God does and what He is going to do. They speak out Gods truth. This is the heavenly way of warfare. Truth opposite to lies.
The birth of Jesus is the prelude to the final battle in the war against evil, to the victory of light over darkness, to the coming of the kingdom of God, to the conciliation between God and humans.
Lets contribute to this conflict by singing the truth with magnificent Christmas carols and by speaking the truth by reading the Christmas gospel. Lets support the ‘angels on high’ and fill the sky with the truth.
Blessed holidays and may all your Christmases be white.
(name and maker of painting unknown. If it is your painting, please let me know, so I can add you name)
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