Luke 2: 8-12
And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
Even though the process is painful and somewhat messy, the birth of a child is almost always accompanied by great joy.
I’ve read or heard stories about babies being born in taxi cabs, in a Walmart, even in a Starbucks coffee shop; but the birth of a child always brings joy.
Perhaps the births that bring the most joy are births for which would-be parents have had to wait. I have known couples who have waited 10 or even 15 years before experiencing the birth of a child, or before being blessed to adopt a child, which, of course, is also a cause for great joy!
Waiting is also part of the story that Luke tells, but it’s a waiting that isn’t obvious to us at first.
But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.
The message of the angel is quite clear. The Messiah, the Christ (which is the Greek word for Messiah, or “anointed one”), has been born.
It’s difficult for those of us who are Gentiles (non-Jewish people) to grasp the enormity of this simple announcement. We are so familiar with the story of Jesus’ birth that we can miss the significance of the words “Messiah,” “Christ,” and “Lord.”
The Israelites had been waiting for the Messiah to come for centuries. They read passages like this from the prophet Malachi:
“See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple, the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,” says the Lord Almighty. (Malachi 3:1)
They longed for the appearing of God’s “anointed one,” the Messiah, who would bring deliverance, peace and great joy to their people. But for some 400 years after the prophet spoke those words they had waited, and Messiah had not yet come.
We can scarcely imagine the power of the words spoken by the angel to bring joy!
Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.
The time of waiting has ended! The time for rejoicing has come!
One of our family traditions on Christmas morning has to do with waiting. Like most kids, our boys have always woken up early on Christmas morning; like, 5:30 am early. We make them wait until 6:15 or so to wake us up. Then we make them wait at the top of the stairs while we go down and get everything ready for Christmas morning. That takes another 30 minutes or so. By the time we let them come downstairs they are just about ready to explode! Then comes our family celebration of Christmas.
Waiting is hard. Waiting is good. Waiting is part of the story of Christ’s birth. But the time of waiting is done, the Lord has come! Emmanuel, God is with us!
Brian Coffey
Brian Coffey
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