In the year of Matthew, we turn to Luke for Christmas Day because of Luke’s memorable story of Jesus’ birth. In Luke’s story, Jesus came into the world at a given time, when Caesar Augustus issued a decree for a census of the whole world. Two ordinary people, Joseph and Mary, set out for Bethlehem, but find all the usual resting places for the journey are full. Jesus is born on a journey for a journey, and he will later call others to follow him on the most challenging journey of their lives.
Luke’s story of the birth of Jesus highlights the reversal of the value system of the world into which Jesus is born. It opens with acknowledgement of the people the world regarded as the greatest – Caesar Augustus and Quirinius – but the story is not about them. It continues with humble shepherds called from their fields to be the first to acknowledge the birth of the Christ-child, now swaddled and born in a stable to a humble woman of God.
Where do we look for God? Where can we find Him? Can He be born in us again today? Are we ready for the journey of our lives?
Rev Adelene Mills