I was looking for something ‘new’ to say about the birth of our Lord and Savior. I have heard many describe that this Christmas season seemed a bit lack-luster or that the holiday spirit wasn’t as bright as other years. Perhaps this is a reflection of the past 4 years of ‘different’. When I read the morning devotional today from over a hundred years ago, the content was as timeless as the meaning of Christmas itself! I hope you find joy and hope in this:
December 25
Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14)
Let us today go down to Bethlehem, and in company with wondering shepherds and adoring magi, let us see Him who was born King of the Jews, for by faith we can claim a part in Him, and can sing, A child will be born to us, a son will be given to us (Isaiah 9:6).
By Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions, or principalities or powers, and yet Christ is our brother and friend. Let us adore and admire Him!
Let us first notice His miraculous conception. It was a thing unheard of before and unparalleled since – that a virgin should conceive and bear a child. The first promise referred to the seed of the woman (Genesis 3:15), not the offspring of the man. Since a venturesome woman led the way in the sin that brought forth Paradise Lost, she, and she alone, ushers in the One who can regain Paradise. Our Savior, although truly man, was, as to His human nature, the Holy One of God. Let us reverently bow before the holy Child whose innocence restores to manhood its ancient glory. Let us pray that He may be formed in us, the hope of glory (Colossians 1:27).
Do not fail to notice His humble lineage. His mother has been described simply as a virgin, and not as a princess, a prophetess, or one who runs a large estate. It is true that the blood of kings ran in her veins and that her mind was not weak and uneducated, for she could sing a song of praise most sweetly (Luke 1:46-55). Yet how humble her position, how poor the man to whom she was engaged, and how meager the accommodation that was made available to the newborn King! Immanuel, God with us in our nature, in our sorrow, in our lifework, in our punishment, in our grave, and now with us – or rather we with Him – in resurrection, ascension, triumph, and the splendor of His second coming!
— Charles H. Spurgeon Morning by Morning, 1866
