The time of year has come again, and gone, for wrapping presents, singing carols and eating Christmas treats. I think this is a good time to reflect on what we have just celebrated. Everyone says we should think about the meaning of Christmas when we are all together, celebrating it. That is the time for reflection. But these days, when everything is so commercial and most of us are struggling just to keep up with getting all the gifts we need for everyone on our list and attending office and school parties, we just don't have the time. It's like whirlwind and when it is all over we sit down exhausted and are glad it's over. So what is Christmas, really? It happened in the land of Israel in the first century. As shepherds were tending their sheep in the fields that night in the area around Bethlehem, they were suddenly visited by an angel. The Word of God says they were filled with fear. The Word says the glory of the Lord shone around them. There was another time in the history of Israel when the glory of the Lord was said to be present. It was when the Jews were leaving Egypt after being there for 400 years, much of it as slaves. At one point, before they entered the promised Land, the people encountered God at the foot of Mount Sinai. It was an experience they would never forget.
"On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp trembled. Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they took their stand at the foot of the mountain. Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the LORD had descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain trembled greatly. And as the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him in thunder. The LORD came down on Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain. And the LORD called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up. And the LORD said to Moses, “Go down and warn the people, lest they break through to the LORD to look and many of them perish. Also let the priests who come near to the LORD consecrate themselves, lest the LORD break out against them." And Moses said to the LORD, “The people cannot come up to Mount Sinai, for you yourself warned us, saying, ‘Set limits around the mountain and consecrate it." And the LORD said to him, “Go down, and come up bringing Aaron with you. But do not let the priests and the people break through to come up to the LORD, lest he break out against them." (Exodus 19: 17-25)
When the Lord shows up it is a pretty awesome and terrible sight. But this time, instead of the shepherds being told to stay away, unless the Lord break out against them and they perish, the Angel tells them not to fear and gives them a great message. "Behold (look here, consider and see, pay attention to this message, regard what you see)," says the angel, "I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger." And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peach among those with whom he is pleased." (Luke 2:8-14) If you know a little bit about Jewish history you will know that at the time Jesus of Nazareth was born the people were looking with great anticipation to the arrival of a Messiah. They had been promised a Messiah to deliver them from suffering for many centuries and in the first century the anticipation of his arrival seemed to reach fever pitch.
I wonder what that anticipation would have been like. When I was young our mother always tried to make Christmas special, putting out Christmas plates of candy and cakes. One of the coolest things was that her father, who lived in Berlin, Germany, sent us a package every year. We always looked forward to the arrival of that package from our Opa, all trussed up in twine, with its German writing, the sticker that said, "Mit Luftpost" and all of the stamps he had to put on the package to cover postage. It was so cool to receive something from so far away on Christmas. That package always contained some special treats for us, such as Stollen, Pfeffernüsse, boxes of chocolates. The chocolates was unlike anything we had in Minnesota. Some of them contained alcohol, some coffee flavoring and some Marzipan. He also sent Steiff stuffed toys, like Mecki's (hedgehogs) and some German clothing. He always put mothballs in the packages as well. Christmas was a special time in our home. This special expectation we had as children for the packages from my grandfather is what I imagine the Jews had for the promised Messiah.
"On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp trembled. Then Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God, and they took their stand at the foot of the mountain. Now Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the LORD had descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain trembled greatly. And as the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him in thunder. The LORD came down on Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain. And the LORD called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up. And the LORD said to Moses, “Go down and warn the people, lest they break through to the LORD to look and many of them perish. Also let the priests who come near to the LORD consecrate themselves, lest the LORD break out against them." And Moses said to the LORD, “The people cannot come up to Mount Sinai, for you yourself warned us, saying, ‘Set limits around the mountain and consecrate it." And the LORD said to him, “Go down, and come up bringing Aaron with you. But do not let the priests and the people break through to come up to the LORD, lest he break out against them." (Exodus 19: 17-25)
When the Lord shows up it is a pretty awesome and terrible sight. But this time, instead of the shepherds being told to stay away, unless the Lord break out against them and they perish, the Angel tells them not to fear and gives them a great message. "Behold (look here, consider and see, pay attention to this message, regard what you see)," says the angel, "I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger." And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peach among those with whom he is pleased." (Luke 2:8-14) If you know a little bit about Jewish history you will know that at the time Jesus of Nazareth was born the people were looking with great anticipation to the arrival of a Messiah. They had been promised a Messiah to deliver them from suffering for many centuries and in the first century the anticipation of his arrival seemed to reach fever pitch.
I wonder what that anticipation would have been like. When I was young our mother always tried to make Christmas special, putting out Christmas plates of candy and cakes. One of the coolest things was that her father, who lived in Berlin, Germany, sent us a package every year. We always looked forward to the arrival of that package from our Opa, all trussed up in twine, with its German writing, the sticker that said, "Mit Luftpost" and all of the stamps he had to put on the package to cover postage. It was so cool to receive something from so far away on Christmas. That package always contained some special treats for us, such as Stollen, Pfeffernüsse, boxes of chocolates. The chocolates was unlike anything we had in Minnesota. Some of them contained alcohol, some coffee flavoring and some Marzipan. He also sent Steiff stuffed toys, like Mecki's (hedgehogs) and some German clothing. He always put mothballs in the packages as well. Christmas was a special time in our home. This special expectation we had as children for the packages from my grandfather is what I imagine the Jews had for the promised Messiah.
"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." (Isaiah 9:6) Just as we were excited with anticipation of the package from our grandfather the Israelite's of the first century lived in excited anticipation of the Messiah. That prophecy by Isaiah the prophet was given several hundred years earlier, before the exile to Babylon, the decree of Cyrus the great to rebuild the temple, before Queen Esther risked her life to approach Kings Ahasuerus to request the salvation of her people, before the time of Antiochus IV Epiphanes and the Maccabees. It was given before the Roman conquest and occupation of ancient Palestine.
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| Manner of Abraham Bloemaert - Announcement to the shepherds c1600 |
See:
- First Century Jewish Expectations of Messiah, Glenn Miller, http://www.doxa.ws/Messiah/Messiah2.html
- Messianic Expectations in First Century Judaism, Glenn Miller, 3/24/96., The Christian Think Tank. http://christianthinktank.com/messiah.html
I love art and here are some links to manger scenes on Amazon:
