Icicles and Lambs

And she gave birth to her firstborn, a Son. She wrapped Him in swaddling cloths and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.…

Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

Luke 2:7 Berean Study Bible            John 1:29 ESV

I love all things sparkly! Every year I layer our Christmas tree with an entire package of hand-me-down silvery icicles. I so enjoy the way the Christmas lights reflect off the silvery beauty! As much as I love the sparkle of Christmas decorations, I know this isn’t the real meaning and symbol of Christmas.

The original “Christmas scene” is rich with symbolism and depth of meaning, and definitely no cutesy fairy tale or sterile religious scene as we may accidentally portray it with our graceful Nativity figures. The authentic Nativity is gritty real-life embedded with layers of meaning. And the only sparkle were the stars of heaven. Come with me for a few moments, step away from ribbons and bows or perhaps the grief that some are experiencing this Holy-Day and let us push back the hay, peering into the stable …

The Lamb of God, born alongside smelling, dirty lambs. The Lamb of God, born to take away the sin of the world, birthed alongside animals intended to temporarily cover the sin of the people. John 1:29 Jesus, The Bread of Life, lain in a feeding trough. Beckoning us to feed on the only thing that authentically satisfies the hunger of our soul and deepest longings. Him. John 6:33

His teenager mom,  gave birth in a barn/cave, not because she enjoyed the rustic setting, but because there was no room for them anywhere else. They were not wanted or welcomed or cared for by others. From His first Word-made-flesh-Divine-breath to His crucifixion on Mt. Calvary, He experienced the pains of our humanness. Rejected. Outcast. Sorrow. Misunderstood. As the Holy Spirit spoke through Isaiah the prophet 700 years earlier, “He was a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief…. Despised and rejected by men …”

His birth announcement didn’t include a Santa-hat photo in the society pages of Bethlehem but did make the shepherd evening news. Angels arrived during the night-shift of lowest-on-the-totem-pole of that society to proclaim the good news for all the world (Isn’t that just like our God?). “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”  And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.” Luke 2

Stepping away from the stable and back into my modern-day Charles Dickens-esq Christmas celebrations I am reminded … that Jesus is the Lamb of God, who came to take away my sins … He is the Bread of Life sent from heaven, the only One who can truly satisfy our needs. He knows our pain of rejection or grief.  And Jesus offers us joy beyond measure as we bow our heart and kneel before the Lord our Maker –a Maker Who came wrapped in swaddling clothes laying in a feeding trough.

He offers all this to us, beloved.

God became flesh – doing it all in a most unexpected way, in a most unexpected place to a most undeserving people. The world. You. Me.

Whatever the Christmas holiday looks like in your world, from my never-enough-sparkles, to alone in a  prison cell (physical or emotional) or taking in the reality of  a cancer diagnosis, to a military spouse teary-eyed with loneliness, to a new mom holding her own swaddled child. Lean hard into the Lamb of God this Christmas…

“Christ didn’t only come into the world that first Christmas night in Bethlehem, but He wants to come into our lives today, and every day of the year.” – Billy Graham

Billy Graham

Father God, I bow before You in awe of Your faithfulness. Providing the spotless Lamb, Your very own Son … for me … Please show me where I “don’t make room” for You in my life … and enable me to daily recognize the depth of my need for You … as I bask in Your goodness, even as it comes in ways and by means that I did not expect. I love You. In Jesus’ name, Amen

Written by Becky White for the Lord Jesus