I hate clichés. If
you want to know how to push my buttons, go ahead and start spouting some. Trite and contrived statements just don’t cut
it for me: especially statements of
faith that sound like they just came off the clearance rack at a Hallmark store. Two such faith clichés that drive me to drink
are “Jesus is the reason for the season” and “Put Christ back in
Christmas”. I don’t even know what
those phrases mean. Do we even know who
Jesus is? Each gospel writer paints a
different portrait of him. Luke tells us
that Jesus blesses the poor while Matthew says that he blesses the poor in
spirit. Well, which one is it? The evangelists even have different names for
him. Is Jesus Son of God or Son of
Man? Is he a teacher or the
Messiah? Is he the Vine or the Good
Shepherd? Is he the Bread of Life or the
Living Waters? Is he the King of the
Jews or the Prince of Peace? While Mark
goes to great lengths in emphasizing Jesus’ humanity, John goes to the other
extreme of depicting his divinity. Which
Jesus is the reason for the season? What
Christ are we to put back in Christmas?
Is it the Jesus who in Matthew’s gospel literally referred to the
Pharisees as “snake bastards?”
Here’s a story of Jesus I never see depicted in Christmas
yard ornaments. “In the beginning was the word and the word was with God and
the word was God…and the word became flesh and dwelled among us”. How do you tell that story in someone’s
front yard? How do you tell the story of
Jesus taking on our flesh and blood and moving into the neighborhood?
A babe wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger only
tells part of the story and is not the reason for the season. Christmas is about God joining us on the
journey; making himself plain as day to us.
No more guessing. No more looking
under rocks for him. Christmas is a
reminder to us that when we look at Jesus, we’re looking at God; and when we
see God, we see love poured out in abundance for us in the life, death and
resurrection of Jesus.
So maybe Jesus is not the reason for the season. Do you want to know who was at the center of
God’s Christmas idea? Do you want to
know who God desired to lift up on the very first Christmas? Do you want to know who is in God’s heart at
Christmas?
You!
Peace and Love,
Pastor Doug
