“As I read the Christmas story that year, I saw I was in good company as a mom when my festive expectations were dashed. Mary was the first mother to experience Christmas, and I doubt it was what she expected” - TGC
Darkness, to our sight, corresponds to silence, in our hearing. It is the absence of any stimulus to inform, direct or encourage us.
But darkness also entails a moral component. Darkness, by its very nature, spreads a covering over sin (see John 3:19-21; 8:12; 12:35, 46; Eph. 5:11-14).
“Christ rescues us from our ability to only see our own culture and moment, and pulls us into a new metaphysical reality….Instead of crafting a Christ exactly like me, the Incarnation makes a way for us to become like Him.” - Mere Orthodoxy
“Going My Way in 1944 summed up America at its most endearing. It was accordingly a blockbuster, the biggest hit of that year, and then the year after it became the big Oscar winner, nabbing the seven major awards out of 10 nominations” - Acton
“even in the midst of a blessed occasion for his family, Zechariah’s first words are about the Rescuer who has come as a horn of salvation for us (Luke 1:69); a Redeemer who is a Dayspring from on high that shatters the darkness (vs. 78-79). The whole Benedictus is vivid and moving.” - Brent Leatherwood
This week, the Western world pauses to remember the birth of the One who divided time, and all of history, by His first coming—our Savior and the Messiah of Israel, Jesus Christ.
As we stop and worship this baby in Bethlehem’s manger once again, let us remember that He, eternal God, came to Earth to become a man, to die for our sins and to rise again. The events of Christmas were an essential step in that process but, of course, they do not tell the full story.
“the date seems already to have been in place by the end of the third and beginning of the fourth century, at a time when Christians were being persecuted, which renders the suggestion of cultural borrowing far less likely.” - Kenneth Berding
“Therefore, let us keep the Feast, not after the manner of a heathen festival, but after a godly sort; not after the way of the world, but in a fashion above the world” - C.Leaders
“By taking our focus off the human receiver and putting it on the divine giver, Christmas can become a symbol of God’s giving heart rather than people’s grabbing hands.” - Randy Alcorn
“How do we navigate this terrain? ….framing the topic through before, during, and after scenarios might ease the burden of our endeavor.” - Desiring God
