Celebrate the Love of God this
Christmas!
How
did the early Church celebrate Christmas? In some of the most
ancient records, they focused on the theological idea of
"incarnation." Incarnation literally means "enfleshment": the
mystical God takes on a body.
Other religions had the idea of gods
entering into bodies for a brief period; they talk about the
gods doing this multiple times. In that, the god's toyed with
humans and dabbled in their affairs, amusing themselves by using
the less powerful humans.The Christian idea was different.
For the Christians, incarnation/enfleshment
was a once-and-for-all event in Jesus Christ. Existence changed
in Jesus. From now on, "Jesus" was the central way of
interpreting the presence of God. In
other words, in Jesus, God made a
commitment. God's well-being was tied to human well-being. In
Jesus, there is no "toying" with us, no "maybe-maybe not," no
holding back. Jesus is God with us and God for us. Forever.
Period.
We live in a world of half-truths, thinly
veiled manipulations, and ideologies that justify using people
for profit motives, power grabs, and feathering the nest of the
comfortable. The good news of Christmas is that, into such a
world, the Creator of the Universe has taken a stand: with us
and for us. God is bound to us in total, committed love.
Christmas transforms existence for us: we
are free to bind ourselves to God in total devotion. And we are
able to bind ourselves to the cause of God: the good of the
whole human race within the creation.
The global scope of this commitment is
breath-taking. And it calls us to change our priorities. To let
God's global love be "embodied" in those who bind themselves to
God in Christ. The love of God
has been "fleshed out" in Jesus: if we
believe it, that love of God can become embodied in us too.
May you feel the commitment God makes to
you. May it be incarnate for you -- and may you feel the "enfleshment"
of God's love in Jesus.
Merry Christmas!
Andrew L. McDonald, Pastor
