PASTORAL PONDERINGS

December 2006

by Pastor James Berger

      Greetings on this most joyful season of the Christian Year! Recall with me the Father's love revealed to us in His willingness to see His very Son born to a virgin in a stable.

     His humble birth was not welcomed with pomp and parades. No fireworks were launched in Bethlehem. He was not placed in a specially heated bassinet in a luxury hospital. The King of the World was given to us through a poor couple, in a stable, in the overcrowded village of Bethlehem on a cold night.

     Yet, His coming was not entirely unnoticed. In the nearby fields angels appeared and proclaimed the news of Christ's birth to the outcasts of His day. Shepherds were viewed as undesirable by most. They pastured their flocks in places in which they did not know the owners. They were ceremonially unclean. They were more loyal to each other then to the surrounding communities. They were hard to tax. All these reasons added to their unpopularity.

      Far to the east of Israel, others took notice. God revealed to Wise Men, who were seeking for truth, that a future king had been born in a distant land.

      These were men who may never have heard of the Lord Most High. no doubt they would be considered unclean by all practicing Jews.

They were probably related to the Babylonians who had captured and deported the nation of Israel centuries before. They had to belong to the nation most feared by Rome, the Parthians. They had no business following the star that led them to the village of Bethlehem.

 ^{When the angels had left them and gone into heaven the shepherds said to one another, "Let's go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about." Luke 2:15}

^{After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod. Magi from the east came to Jerusalem (2) and asked, "Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him." Matthew 2:1-2}

      The Wise Men, foreigners and gentiles and Shepherds, outcast and unclean,  were the ones who welcomed Jesus' birth. For, in the end, it was for them He came. The message of Christ has never been welcomed by those who lorded it over others. Those who view themselves as rulers never welcome one who represents someone even more important.

      Jesus loves those who struggle in their lives to know God better and those who do not. But He will not enter into the hearts that have shut Him out. The Shepherds heard the Gospel message and ran to see the new born King. The wise men who found the star journeyed hundreds of miles and crossed an armed and hostile border to see for the Child.

      The pharisees and scribes, the wealthy and elite ignored the news or could not be bothered to listen. They missed out on the most exciting event since the beginning of creation, the birth of the Messiah, who was and is Immanuel, God with us. Because they ignored this, they lost out on the salvation entering the world on the first Christmas.

      Let us follow the way of the shepherds and wise men and not the powerful and self-righteous. Put aside your troubles, worries and concerns and take time this Christmas to remember what happened in Bethlehem! Remember why we celebrate the holiday! Remember the salvation offered to all in the birth of God's Son! Then return to your world knowing that because of this day, all of creation, including yourself, is being renewed.

Have a Merry Christmas!

Pastor Jim, Sarah, Katherine and Dorothy