It’s Christmas Eve. Our family lights the fifth candle— the Christ Candle! It is known as the Candle of Light because of the light that Jesus’ birth has brought into the world.
For Starr and me lighting this candle is the seasonal reminder that we are to be the light of the world, especially in this time of such spiritual darkness. We believe that Christ came into this world to restore us to God and to make us messengers of His grace, love and forgiveness.
Too often in our witness we dwell on the darkness within us and our need to have it exposed to the light. We forget that the Light does its own illumination and cleanses us from all unrighteousness. We are simply to be messengers of the Light, proclaiming that we can be made whole again; we can be reunited with the God who made us to make a difference in this world for His glory. For Christmas IS all about Him.
But in another sense Christmas is also about us. Christ came to this earth to pay the penalty for our rebellion against God and to make our restoration [read salvation] possible.
What a great privilege we have!
Take time over the next day and a half to reread the Christmas story. Try to place yourself in the troubled dark times that Mary and Joseph lived in. Feel the jostling baby in your womb (women only); feel the discomfort of the journey, and the disappointment of finding no rooms available in your own home town. Then, conceive giving birth in a family animal stall. A feeding troth for a cradle.
And then all heaven breaks loose! The emotions Mary and Joseph must have experienced could barely be imagined.
We live in the wrong kind of “light” this Christmas season; too many twinkling lights on our trees, too many festive decorations all around us. Wonderful though they are, they can distract us from the True Light that we celebrate at this time of year; all the more important that we become Light to those around us. Clarification is the natural companion of Light.
So, if you can grab any moments of peace and silence in our noisy culture this Christmas Eve, remember why our Lord came in the fullness of time to bring salvation to all mankind. Maybe you will capture a glimpse of the role you are meant to play in this great scene.
Merry Christmas!
Gary
NEXT— …on a personal note
Clueless Christianity 