Baby Jesus

"And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God,  

 and saying, 'glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace, goodwill toward men. . .  and this shall

be a sign unto you, you shall find the baby wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.' That's

what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown."

Of all the Christmas movies we pull out every year, this little thirty minute TV special

from 1965 is one of the most meaningful to me, right up there with the Nativity Story. Most

Christmas movies have the same basic message, the good parents teach their children to believe

in Santa Claus. Santa Claus is what Christmas is all about. For my family, Christmas isn't about a

jolly old man in a red suit, although the legend of St Nicholas does embody a hint of Christmas

spirit. For us, Christmas is about the baby in a manger that Linus reminded Charlie Brown of in

"A Charlie Brown Christmas." Quite frankly, that baby in a manger has given me more than enough

to think about at Christmastime without adding flying reindeer into the mix.

When I was a child, the concept of baby Jesus seemed simple. Likenesses of Him were

everywhere, from pictures on Christmas cards to the Precious Moments Figurine which was a gift

for me from my mom's boss at Hallmark on my mom's last day of work before maternity leave.

During my early childhood years, Christmas was not complete until we had made a birthday cake

for Jesus and set the porcelain baby Jesus on top.

In elementary school, baby Jesus was the doll placed in the manger during our school

Christmas plays. My favorite doll, baby Katie had the honor of playing baby Jesus a few years

in a row. I remember one year my family was in such a hurry to get to the play that we left baby

Katie at home. We turned around at Matheny's Market and  hurried back home to get her. The

Christmas play could not go on without Baby Jesus.

As I got older and time went on, Christmas seemed to become less special and more

 stressful. Instead of looking forward to Christmas and counting down the days, I began to depend on

participating in special events such as a community Christmas choir to help me get in the Christmas

spirit.  I took baby Jesus for granted, only thinking about Him when His name was mentioned in a

Christmas song, and when we revived the tradition of making Him a birthday cake for the benefit

of my little sister.

As I grew in my Christian walk, I started to think about Baby Jesus more, and I began to

realized that I didn't really grasp the reality of His birth. I began the quest to trade the whimsical,

iconic ideal of baby Jesus for the living, breathing reality of God in the flesh. Every year, the reality

of it all has gradually become more clear. This year, as I sat and sang "Silent Night" along with the

audience at a performance of the same Christmas Choir I sang in when I was younger, I looked over

at my four-month-old nephew sleeping in his mother's lap and in my mind's eye I saw him lying in a

manger, "sleeping in heavenly peace."

On the Sunday before Christmas, my pastor brought out a truth about Jesus which I had

never thought of before. Many Bible scholars believe that Joseph likely died a short time after Jesus

first journeyed to the temple and stayed behind to speak with the teachers. This would mean that

Jesus knew what it was like to live in a household with a single mother. As I pondered this new

realization  of how God identified with human needs through Jesus, a new truth to ponder replaced

the one I had been trying to grasp for years. Not only was Jesus a real flesh and blood child, that tiny

helpless child, born in a cave used to house animals, and laid in a stone feeding trough, was God. God

became a baby. I have known this all my life, but do I really understand what it means? I now have a

new truth to ponder, but I am reminded that even if I never understand it with my mind, I know the

reality of who He is in my heart. He is not a porcelain figurine to set atop a cake, or a baby doll to lay

in a rickety wooden manger. He is God who became a man. He is the One who died for my sins and

who lives to make intercession for me. He came for me. He came for you.

Merry Christmas!