“Let the healing begin!”, said the Prime Minister on his first day in office. “Amen!” rejoiced the Leavers. “Some hope!” said the Remainers through gritted teeth. Getting Brexit done has certainly changed the social map of Britain. Remainers and Leavers have replaced traditional political party loyalties, causing millions to re-evaluate the things that really matter to them. Many journalists have described it as a searching for the soul of the nation. If this marks the beginnings of a national debate on the values that ought to form the soul of the nation, such as truth, integrity, faithfulness, loyalty and love, then all the upheavals over Brexit will have been worthwhile.
The season of goodwill has come just at the right time to save us from ongoing disputes and recriminations. Party politics is taking a break! Thank God for Christmas!
Christmas gives us an opportunity to bring out the best in everyone. Thinking what gift we can give to someone we love that will really please them. Thinking of others rather than of ourselves. That is the spirit of Christmas – the season of singing carols about joy to the world, peace on earth and goodwill towards men. It’s the time when families come together and eat together, wearing silly paper hats and pulling crackers and listening to the delight of children unwrapping presents. It’s the time when giving gives greater pleasure than receiving. Christmas changes people.
Christmas gives us an opportunity to bring out the best in everyone.
Word Made Flesh
Of course, Bible-believing Christians know that Jesus was not born on 25 December, but let’s not be churlish and refuse to celebrate on this traditional season. We all know that Jesus was in fact born into the world; and there is plenty of evidence that he was born of the young maiden Mary and he lived and ministered in Judea and the Galilee. So, let’s just think about what the message really means.
The prologue of John’s Gospel says, “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us” (John 1:14). This is a statement of incredible significance which summarises the message of the whole Gospel of John. It states very simply the central mystery of the coming of Jesus, which the Apostle unfolds: the light of the world, come to dwell among humanity, where men prefer darkness to light.
The glory of the Lord indwelling the Tabernacle in the wildernessThe Greek word that John uses for ‘dwelling’ is ἐσκήνωσεν (‘eskanosen’). It is no coincidence that the consonants of the Greek word ἐσκήνωσεν give us the Hebrew word ‘Shekinah’, which denotes the glory of the presence of the Lord. The Tabernacle, or ‘tent of meeting’, was the place where God dwelt with his people and his glory was to be seen among them throughout the years when the children of Israel were wandering in the wilderness. It was the Shekinah that went ahead of them, preparing the way and offering protection and direction as well as provision.
ἐσκήνωσεν comes from the word σκηνη which means a tent or tabernacle. Hence, the phrase “made his dwelling among us” literally means he “pitched his tent among us” or “tabernacled among us”; as God had dwelt among his people in the Tabernacle of the Lord when the people of Israel lived in tents. This adds strength and relevance to the belief that Jesus was actually born at the time of the Feast of Tabernacles.
The Prophet Zechariah foresaw the coming of Messiah. He said “‘Shout and be glad, O daughter of Zion. For I am coming, and I will live among you,’ declares the Lord” (Zech 2:10). It is probably these words that John had in mind when he made his declaration. Zechariah went on to make another statement that came true in the early days of the Church, which Peter acknowledged. Zechariah prophesied, “Many nations will be joined with the Lord in that day and will become my people” (Zech 2:11). Peter saw this fulfilled when Jew and Gentile from different nations came together as believers in Jesus: “Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God” (1 Peter 2:10).
Christmas only changes ordinary people for a day or two; when Jesus comes into the lives of his disciples he changes them for ever.
Ordinary Made Extraordinary
Just as Christmas changes ordinary people into extraordinary people - the mean become generous, the self-centred become unselfish, the morose become joyful – so the coming of Jesus into the lives of a little group of fishermen in Galilee changed them into extraordinary men of God. But Christmas only changes ordinary people for a day or two; when Jesus came into the lives of his disciples it changed them for ever.
The same is true today. When Jesus comes into our lives and dwells within us – tabernacling with us by his Holy Spirit, we are never the same again. May the Spirit of Jesus not only be seen in our lives within our families, but overflow into the community around us and thence into the nation. Come Lord Jesus!
