“You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus.”
Luke 1:31
If you ask the man on the street what he thinks of the babe of Christmas, you’ll be surprised at the answers. Just look at the folks who were there when it happened.
The innkeeper was downright indifferent – a census had come to town, and he was busy ringing up the cash register. Then there was Herod – he tried to destroy everything connected with the Christmas celebration. Consider the shepherds in the field – only after the angels bent over backward to explain the celestial fireworks were their fears finally put to rest.
The wise men were curious, poking here and there with questions until they found answers that satisfied. Still others, like Simeon in the temple, waited. Other people hoped, like Anna the prophetess. Then there were those who, like Mary and Joseph, worshiped the newborn King.
People haven’t changed much since Bible times, and the man on the street responds in much the same way. Are you, like the innkeeper, indifferent? Too busy? Are you still searching, looking for answers? Or maybe you’re frightened because the baby in the manger asks too much of you. Stop to think how you would have responded had you been the man on the streets of Bethlehem that night.
There are a thousand different ways to respond to the news that a Savior has been born to deliver man from his sins. But the fact remains that until a child was born, this world was cloaked in utter darkness, abandoned, hopeless, and lost. But for unto us, a child is born, a Son is given! There is only one response: Worship and joyous praise!
Lord Jesus, I only have one response to Your birth: Joy! No more let sin and sorrow reign, nor thorns infest the ground! For You have come to make God’s blessings known far as the curse is found!
