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Prince of Peace

Hurry! All the big Christmas sales start today. We have to wake up, get dressed, and go. We have to snag that $300 laptop, those 50 percent off shoes, we must have all those outfits that are discounted, and if we get there early enough, we’ll get free holiday knickknack’s at some of the stores.

Hurry up so we can go and wait in the parking lot. Oh, and when those doors open, run fast. We don’t want to get trampled by the other shoppers. Once we get in, we will shop and shop and shop until our arms can’t hold anymore and we’ve maxed out our credit cards.

Prince of Peace.

There are so many Christmas parties to go to this year. It seems like there are more each year. By mid-October every Saturday in December was already booked. We still have to decide when to have our party. Do we work it in 2 days before Christmas when everyone is out of town, or do we do it super-early, say the first week of December? And what happens when Aunt Harriet decides she wants to have her Christmas party and it conflicts with Cousin Gretchen’s? Oh look, another invitation. We have some really difficult choices to make.

Prince of Peace.

This is a mess. If I spend $50 for mom’s gift, dad will notice that I only spent $30 on his. And if I spend more than $25 on the parents, I’ll need to spend at least that for Grandma, but she has everything. Then there are my two brothers. Pete might get offended if I give him one gift and then give Jim two, but I just bought Pete and his wife tickets to a football game two weeks ago. I hope he remembers. I’d really hate to hurt him, and I don’t want to know what that’s going to look like to Mom. She’s still mad about last year’s gifts. Then there’s Uncle Jack. I have to make up for getting him the same thing two years in a row or he might exclude our entire branch of the family tree from his will. I don’t care about it, but dad is concerned.

Prince of Peace.

How am I going to do this? If I get each of my three children the top thing on each of their Christmas lists, I’m going to spend $700, just on one gift for each. They still believe in Santa Claus, so I can’t explain that they each only got one gift because I’ve been unemployed for three months and the finances are tight. I really can’t even afford to give them the top item on their lists, but I can’t stand to see them disappointed. Oh well… Mastercard will have a good year, even if I don’t.

Prince of Peace.

This seating arrangement is killing me. If I sit mom next to Uncle Erwin, things could get dicey, and there’s a slight chance of physical violence. But if I move Uncle Erwin, he will either be across from Kyle, and his foul language could become a problem for an 8-year-old, or he will be across from Uncle Joey who can’t stand the sight of him. Maybe we’ll just eat on the couches this year.

Price of Peace.

Well, looks like the old artificial tree is ready for the junk heap. I guess I’ll have to pack the family into the Impala and pick out a real tree this year. But I really don’t have time for this. It’s already 2 weeks before Christmas, and I haven’t been able to decorate anything on the house. I haven’t checked the lights, so I don’t know how many strands I’ll have to replace. I have to go re-arrange the attic, and take everything out of it since the Christmas stuff is in the back. Then, we’ll have to go buy supplies for the party we’re hosting on Saturday. I have less than a week to completely decorate the house, fix everything that’s broken, and give the entire house a good scrubbing before guests arrive at 7 p.m. Saturday night. I guess I can do it, if I don’t sleep.

Prince of Peace.

“She gave birth to her first son, wrapped him in cloths and laid him in a manger—there was no room for them to stay in the inn. There were some shepherds in that part of the country who were spending the night in the fields, taking care of their flocks. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone over them. They were terribly afraid, but the angel said to them, ‘Don’t be afraid! I am here with good news for you, which will bring great joy to all the people. This very day in David’s town your Savior was born—Christ the Lord! And this is what will prove it to you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.’ Suddenly a great army of heaven’s angels appeared with the angel, singing praises to God: ‘Glory to God in the highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom he is pleased!’” (Luke 2:7-14 Good News Bible)

Prince of Peace.

But Why?

By now you’ve heard the story every Christmas since your birth. A Child was born in Bethlehem to a poor carpenter and his wife. The carpenter wasn’t the father. In fact, an angel appeared and said the child was a King and was from God. The birth itself was unremarkable and took place in a manger, attended by shepherds and livestock.

You’ve heard about a Silent Night that happened Away In A Manger in the Little Town of Bethlehem. You’ve been told that While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks By Night Angels We Have Heard on High appeared and sang Gloria. You have heard that Mary’s Little Boy Child was born to bring Joy To The World. But why? Why did He come, and what does it mean?

It wasn’t to rule. The helpless child the world saw, was actually The King of Kings who already ruled it all. It wasn’t to make His presence known. Few people actually knew about Him during His life. This whole scene, unfolding in a remote village that was barely a dot on the map of the great Roman Empire, was a rescue mission.

God saw what we don’t like to admit. He saw a world in great need. He heard the world crying out for a savior, and He came ― clothed in humanity ― to rescue something precious that was lost. God understood what we often don’t understand ― that when we live our lives separated from Him, we will find ourselves in desperate need of rescue.

The answer to “Why?” is “Because we needed help.” The specific type of help can differ from person to person. Why do you need help?

Are you lonely? Do you long for friendship or love? Do you wish there was just one person in this life who would understand you and who would listen to you?

Are you depressed? Do you fail to see a light at the end of the tunnel no matter how hard you try? Do you ever feel like there is no way out?

Do you feel a sense of guilt that you can’t escape? Is there something in your life that isn’t right, something about yourself that you don’t like, but no matter what you do, you just can’t shake it?

Are you struggling? Are the pressures and the drama of life too much for you to bear?

Are you caught in an addiction of any kind? Do you feel like you desperately want to stop, but you just can’t find the willpower to do it?

That’s why. The baby we celebrate at Christmas came to be a friend to the lonely, a light for the depressed, an advocate for the guilty, a helping hand for the struggling and strength for the addicted. The only thing powerful enough to knock God off His throne was His deep love for people who were in desperate and inescapable need.