Christmas Story

“Jesus is the reason for the season” is the oft-repeated phrase in certain circles around America beginning the day after Thanksgiving sometimes. Due to cultural popular and repetitive messaging through movies and selling of merchandise, the Christmas Story has changed over time. Some might call it being progressive. Others might call it being relevant. I happen to call it the wrong story.

Nativity scenes have found their way into stores, homes, and church props on Sundays. The baby in the manger is what has captivated minds and hearts for decades. One’s fascination with the types of gifts that were given, the star that was seen, the number of wise men traveling, and the fact that no space was made available for such an important baby has taken front and center.

But Jesus was not sent to Earth to die as an infant. Think about that for a second. Reread it if you have to. Jesus was not sent to die as an infant. Nor was he spoken into existence as a full grown man like Adam. This point is often overlooked by mostly everyone, but that’s because the perspective taken has been skewed for our own gain or advantage. In other words, we’ve taken quite the privilege in making the Christmas Story fit us.

The gospel of Luke presents its readers with an entirely different perspective if we in fact read it with open ears and mind. Luke 1:26 begins mentioning the angel, Gabriel, being sent on a mission. What’s the mission? Go tell Mary that she will give birth to a son (Genesis 3 promise) named Jesus who will be great and called the Son of the Most High (Abrahamic promise); the Lord will give Jesus the throne of the house of David (Davidic promise); he will reign over the house of Jacob forever (New Covenant promise) and his kingdom will never end. Does any of that sound like the story you often hear?

Very often the way our Christmas story is told begins in Luke 2. We love narratives because they tend to tell a great story. Luke 2.1-20 is that narrative piece that most have been taught and sing about. But verses 21-24 continues this story. After the 8 day period, he was circumcised (like God instructed Abraham in Genesis 17) and then he was called Jesus. Then he was purified according to the law of Moses. His parents brought him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord and offer up sacrifices for purification. I think I know the answer, but does any of that sound like the story you often hear? I’m guessing not.

Verses 25-40 continue on with the story, capped off with a helpful reminder and pointer: “And when they had performed everything according to the Law of the Lord, they returned into Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. And the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom. And the favor of God was upon him.” Baby Jesus experienced what every other Jewish born male experienced as according to the Law. Then we read that Jesus began to grow up. You see the story of his birth was more about fulfilling the requirements of the Law than the normative message of “born to take away our sins” that fit so nicely on bulletins and lesson plans.

The next section in Luke 2 points to Jesus as a twelve year old going to Passover. He’s nowhere near going to the cross at Calvary (aka Golgotha). He’s growing up actively obeying the law of God. He’s growing up actively standing in the place of sinners who will trust in Him. By the time Jesus gets to the cross, he’s passively obeying the requirements of the Law for all who have sinned in order to make the ones trusting in Him reconciled with God. In other words, Jesus gave believers righteousness through his active obedience and reconciliation through his passive obedience. Here is where you can hear the words of 2 Corinthians 5 ringing true – He who knew no sin became sin for us (passive) so that in Him we could become the righteousness of God (active).

I think it’s time we begin telling the right Christmas Story, don’t you? It’s time to tell ourselves and others that Jesus came to obey the Law that Adam broke in Genesis. And he obeyed that law as he grew up from 8 days old until the time Jesus went to the cross. So, yes Jesus came to take away the sins of the world a la Matthew 1.21, but he first had to obey the law like every other Jewish boy and girl. In doing so, he would be called great; he would be given David’s throne forever; he would take away the sins of the world; and yes, through belief in him people would be given eternal life. But that all happened over time beginning with the Bethlehem birthing scene.