“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.” Isaiah 9:6
Merry Christmas! I hope the songs of Christmas and the story of the true meaning of Christmas have reminded you of the reason we celebrate today! The books of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John all tell us the story of Jesus from different perspectives. You might have noticed that none of our Christmas story passages came from the books of Mark or John.
You can read through all of Mark and all of John and you will notice there is no manger, no star, no wise men, and no angels. There are none of the familiar Christmas themes at all. John manages to introduce Jesus without making any reference to the amazing events of the first Christmas. Mark starts his book at the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry. Why would they do that?
We don’t know why Mark and John left the Christmas story out. Maybe they figured Matthew and Luke had it pretty well covered. Either way, John begins his book with a Christmas truth that doesn’t make it into our nativity. John 1:14 says,
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
This is the greatest truth of Christmas. God is with us. We don’t have to work our to God, God comes to us. If you’ve ever felt like God is indifferent or uncaring toward you, remember the story of Christmas. Remember that God sent his son Jesus to you, and He continues to do so. We do not worship a distant God but rather a God who makes His home among us. Matthew 1:23 reminds us of the same truth,
Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means ‘God is with us’
On this Christmas Day, be reminded that God is with you! He loves you so much that he sent the Jesus we celebrate today!