The angel said to the shepherds, “Do not
be
afraid; for see—I am bringing you good
news of great joy for all the people: to you
is born this day in the city of David a
Savior,
who is the Messiah, the Lord.
[Luke 2:10-11]
The story of Christmas is indeed full of surprises. And it tells the most amazing story: That God broke into human history in the form of a tiny, helpless baby.
God has come to the world in a most unlikely way. Furthermore, shepherds were the first to hear this message. Shepherds are the simple folk, the folk who are you and me. They are not prophets or teachers or scholars or rulers. And yet, it is to them that God, through his angels, chose to announce the birth of the Messiah.
God uses the most unworthy shepherds to prove his point. There are no good reasons why God should have invited shepherds to the birth of Jesus. They are the last group of people you would want around at the birth. But that is precisely why the shepherds come; not because they were worthy, but because God invited them.
God has come among us in Jesus, and the world cannot remain the same. Neither can we.
The central truth of Christianity is that God has entered human history in order to provide for our salvation. What we could not do, God did for us through God’s Son. Everything else flows from this truth. If Christ had not been born, he could not have died for our sins. And he would not have risen from the dead. He had to become like us in order to save us. There was no other way.
We hear the Christmas story over and over again, year after year. The Lord from heaven entered this earth as a tiny, helpless baby. But the story is not simply the retelling of an event that happened centuries ago. This story teaches us that we deserve nothing that God has given us, but God has been good to us—amazingly good to us.
Christ the Lord is born for you!
May the blessings of our Lord Jesus Christ fill your heart with joy this Christmas and always.
+Bishop Abraham Allende
Christmas 2016
