“Do you know why time is going by so fast?” my nine-year-old asked me as the days leading up to Christmas flew past. I smiled a bit ruefully and said, “I know how you feel.” How many times have I wished I could freeze a moment, a feeling, a season so I could fully savor it before it slipped away? After weeks of anticipation leading up to Christmas, I want to linger in the moment a bit longer. To savor the sweetness and wonder of a tiny baby.
The arrival in Bethlehem could have been so very different. The prophet Isaiah gives us a glimpse when he describes the arrival of a mighty King in blood-stained clothes declaring, “In my anger I have trampled my enemies as if they were grapes. In my fury I have trampled my foes… The time has come for me to avenge my people, to ransom them from their oppressors” (Isaiah 63:3-4). When the apostle John saw Jesus ready to lead the armies of heaven into the final victory, he wrote – “From his mouth came a sharp sword, and with it he struck down the nations. He ruled them with an iron rod, and he trod the winepress of the fierce wrath of almighty God” (19:11, 15).
Jesus could have arrived in the flesh in any way He chose. But instead of thundering hooves and an iron rod, He chose to enter as a tiny baby in a barn. His advent was the fulfillment of a promise given long ago: “Ask me for a sign… to prove that I will crush your enemies as I have promised” (Isaiah 7:11). What was the sign? You’ve probably heard it many times this Christmas season: “Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel – ‘God is with us’” (Isaiah 7:14).
Jesus’ arrival is proof that God is with us. He’s not remote in the far-reaches of heaven, aloof from our struggle and trials. He’s intimately familiar with our situations, our circumstances, and our suffering. He’s in our midst, on our side. And His arrival as a baby clearly says, I am not here to hurt you.
Rejoice greatly, O people of Zion! Shout in triumph, O people of Jerusalem! Look, your king is coming to you. He is righteous and victorious, yet he is humble, riding on a donkey. Zechariah 9:9
The One who is with us isn’t feeble or helpless but He’s the Lord God Himself. He is mighty to save. He will do for you all that He has promised of His own free will. No one is coercing Him. He’s not under any obligation. Instead, He loves you and cares about what happens to you. He intends good for you and to give you life that is full and lasting.
As we prepare to turn the page into a new year, heady with anticipation, may we remember the fulfilled promises in an ancient barn and look forward with hope for what is still to come.