A Story of Epic Proportion

So often as I read through the stories of the Bible I am overwhelmed by the enormity of its stories. They are large, grandiose, big! From these opening words of Genesis a picture is formed in our minds of an immense, immeasurable vastness – it is dark and empty and quite frankly scary. And God is there – and God said let there be light – and we go from empty darkness to a light filled world and it is good. This story of creation continues with God creating day and night, separating land from waters and earth from sky. Creating the world where plants and animals live and thrive and grow and ultimately humanity is born and given rule over God’s creation. Talk about epic stories!

And we don’t have much further to read before we hear the story of Noah and the building of the Ark. Noah and his faithful family are the only ones of civilization who have remained faithful to God. God speaks to Noah and tells him to build an ark. Noah is given the materials, the dimensions, the building plans and ultimately brings the animals two by two into the ark where for forty days and forty nights the rains deluge the world, flooding and cleansing the world of evilness – or at least evil people. And then we read about …

The Tower of Babel – a tower being built that reaches to the skies – the very heavens, yet God scatters the peoples and gives them different languages to speak so they have great difficulty in communicating to one another; Joseph being sold into slavery by his own brothers; the Exodus of the Israelites from Egypt – Moses and the burning bush; the Ten Commandments… Our Bible is filled with stories of wonder and grandeur and largeness.

And we haven’t even begun to look at the New Testament stories of miracles and healings and the birth of a child in an out-of-the way manger in a small town called Bethlehem. Now that is a story of epic proportion!

It is a story that begins with a young girl being visited by an angel of God and being told she is to give birth to a child, a boy; yet, she has never been with a man. This will be no ordinary child but will be the savior of all humanity. This is the story of Joseph’s acceptance of his fiancé’s pregnancy, but not without some initial doubt. There is a journey across the country from Nazareth to Bethlehem where Joseph needs to register his name for a census. And Joseph and Mary, the young girl, barely arrive in Bethlehem when she goes into labor and the only place available to them is a manger offered by a helpful innkeeper.

The child is born and in the night shepherds come down from the hills to pay homage to the new born baby. From the Gospel of Matthew we learn that wisemen from the East come to worship and offer gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. And so there is a new beginning for the people through the birth of this child.

Often a story of epic proportions appears so grand that we say to ourselves – I could never be a part of that story! If my brothers sold me into slavery and I was imprisoned for years I don’t think I could have risen from the depths of that darkness to become second-in-command of an entire country like Joseph.

I could never shepherd an entire nation out of slavery and bondage and lead them from Egypt through 40 years of wilderness wandering and into the Promised Land like Moses. I just don’t have that within me.

If I was Joseph I’m not sure I would respond as he did, with faith and trust.
There are so many of these large stories our bible speaks of that seem beyond our comprehension that we are compelled to accept them on faith, but then we come to this last story I mentioned – the one of the child’s birth in Bethlehem, the birth of the savior, the messiah, Emmanuel – “God with us”

Now this is a story we believe in and accept in faith, but it is also a story we participate in. Every year we spend weeks leading up to the celebration of Christmas - the birth of a Jewish boy. And I am amazed that this is a story celebrated by men and women and children around the world in over two hundred countries and over 2000 different languages.

Some will celebrate this story publicly, others privately and some in secret – yet around the world on December 25th we come together celebrating the birth of this Jewish boy that we believe grew up to become the savior of the world. This is the savior who did not promise to keep us from all sin, but one who promised to save us from our sin and forgive us for our sins.

This is the one who came to us that we might have a platform to stand on when we address God; one who said we are to address God as our heavenly Father in-spite of our past sins, one who came to heal the broken relationship between humanity and our Creator – a relationship broken from the days of the Garden of Eden and never truly repaired until now.

Perhaps in this story we associate best with the wisemen from the east who make a journey seeking out the one they have read about from the prophets of old, and the one whom the shining star leads them too. Perhaps you have been on a journey seeking Jesus Christ in your life. And you have found it is not an easy journey – rather it is filled with hardship, doubt, frustration and even anger at times. Yet, you persevere and are ultimately led to Jesus – you find him and receive him – kneel down and offer your gifts to him.

Or maybe you find yourself being more like the innkeeper – the one who offers up whatever he has available to someone in need, even when everyone around you is saying no, or rejecting those in need. You give what you have gladly, without expectation of repayment.

Perhaps in this story you find yourself one of the crowds of people in Jerusalem and Bethlehem and throughout Israel – calling out for a savior – seeking one who would rescue you from the rule and rod of the oppressor. Perhaps you have found yourself lost, lonely, seeking an answer.

Today we come together in this story, with millions of others around the world, as a savior is born and in this season we are reminded that God has drawn near to those of us who have drawn away and have been drawn away by sin.

Your sin, my sin has been forgiven, because a child has been born, a son has been given to us – a savior who brings peace. A peace that allows us to lie in bed at night knowing that perhaps not everything in the world is good and maybe not everything or everyone around is good, but a peace that helps us to understand that everything is good between you and God.

Not because of what we've done, but because of what he’s done; not because of who we are, but because of who he is. For unto us is born a savior and he is Christ our Lord.