JESUS CHRIST-BIRTH-GENERAL
He was
conceived by the union of divine grace and human disgrace. He who breathed the
breath of life into the first man is now Himself a men
breathing His first breath. The King of kings now sleeping in
a cow-pen. The Creator of oceans and seas and rivers
afloat in the womb of His mother. God sucking His
thumb. The Alpha and Omega learning His multiplication
tables. He who was once surrounded by the glorious stereophonic praise
of adoring angels now hears the lowing of cattle, the bleating of sheep, the
stammering of bewildering shepherds. He who spoke the universe into being now
coos and cries. Omniscient Deity counting His toes… From the
robes of eternal glory to the rags of swaddling clothes. The omnipresent
Spirit, whose being fills the galaxies, confined to the womb of a peasant girl.
Infinite power learning to crawl.
Sam Storms
Copied
from Pleasures Evermore by Sam Storms © 2000, p. 156. Used by Permission of
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reserved.
Emmanuel. God with us. He who resided in
Heaven, co-equal and co-eternal with the Father and the Spirit, willingly
descended into our world. He breathed our air, felt our pain, knew our sorrows,
and died for our sins. He didn't come to frighten us, but to show us the way to
warmth and safety.
The Finishing Touch. Christianity Today, v. 40, n.
14.
The word of
the Father by whom all time was created was made flesh and born in time for us.
He without whose divine permission no day completes its course, wished to have
one of those days for His human birth. In the bosom of His Father He existed
before all the cycles of the ages. Born of an earthly mother, He entered on the
course of the years on that very day. The maker of man became man that He ruler
of the stars might be nourished at the breast, that He the bread might be
hungry, that He the fountain might thirst, that He the light might sleep, that
He the way might be wearied in the journey, that He the truth might be accused
by false witnesses, that He the judge of the living and the dead might be
brought to trial by a mortal judge, that He justice itself might be condemned
by the unjust, that He discipline personified might be scourged with a whip,
that He the foundation might be suspended on a cross, that He courage incarnate
might be weak, and He security itself might be wounded, and He life itself
might die.
He was
created by a mother whom He created. He was carried by hands that He formed. He
cried in the manger in wordless infancy, He the Word, without whom all human
eloquence is mute.
Jesus’ coming
is the final and unanswerable proof that God cares.
God hath long
contended with a stubborn world, and thrown down many a blessing upon them; and
when all his other gifts could not prevail, He at last made a gift of Himself.
The Life of God in the Soul of Man.
What a
paradox that a babe in a manger should be called mighty! Yet even as a baby,
Jesus Christ revealed power. His birth affected the heavens as that star
appeared. The star affected the Magi, and they left their homes and made that
long journey to Jerusalem. Their announcement shook King Herod and his court.
Jesus' birth brought angels from heaven and simple shepherds from their flocks
on the hillside. Midnight became midday as the glory of the Lord appeared to
men.
His Name is Wonderful, Christianity Today.
In His coming the “last day”’ to which the Old Testament looked
forward arrived, but they have not yet run their course; the Christian church
is still living in this eschaton. Jesus’ first coming
inaugurated it; His second coming will consummate it. The coming of Jesus was,
therefore, the beginning of the end.
Jesus and the Old Testament, Regent, 1998, p.
162.
Immanuel, God
with us in our nature, in our sorrow, in our lifework, in our punishment, in
our grave, and now with us, or rather we with Him, in resurrection, ascension,
triumph, and Second Advent, splendor
Infinite, and an infant. Eternal, and yet born
of a woman. Almighty, and yet hanging on a woman's breast. Supporting a
universe, and yet needing to be carried in a mother's arms. King of angels, and yet the
reputed son of Joseph. Heir of all things, and yet the carpenter's
despised son.
C.H. Spurgeon
How
many observe Christ’s birthday and how few His precepts. It is easier to keep holidays than holy
ways.
Author
Unknown