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December 25, 2022: All it Takes is Faith
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“This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about.”
Matthew’s Gospel provides the world a detailed account of how the birth of Jesus came about. After the above verse from chapter 1, the former tax collector turned Apostle of the Lord moves into the details of Mary’s pregnancy, of how Joseph was beside himself after learning of Mary’s pregnancy, of how the angel of the Lord came to Joseph in a dream, instructing the most holy man to take Mary his wife into his home, and how Mary, the mother of Jesus, was to give birth to a Son to be named Jesus, saving his people from their sins, for “God is with us.” And Joseph, being the great husband and listener he was, took Mary into his home, obeying the command of the angel so that the holy couple could unite a marital relationship that would help to form and shape the child Jesus in the ways of his Jewish roots; the Chosen People whom God would send the Messiah as told by the Prophets.
How the birth of Jesus came about is blessedly and thankfully present in the first pages of Matthew, as well as St. Luke. Where we would be in our faith without these two birth narratives would be a place where our faith and understanding of God’s power and will for human salvation would be much, much poorer for those of us who want to know how Jesus’ birth came about. Knowing a portion of the background the Scriptures provide concerning how the birth of Jesus came about, particularly in these two Gospels, helps our understanding of God’s ways more than all other sources of knowledge. Matthew and Luke offer to believers – and non-believers too – some rock solid details; a set of characters, including an angel from heaven; entering into the dream of the man who would be our Lord’s father in the flesh; and how those who truly listen like Joseph did will trust in God’s plan that far surpasses our own ideas.
How the birth of Jesus Christ came about, and how Matthew and Luke tell the story, removes much of the guessing on our part. The story of how our Lord’s birth came about would not be in the Scriptures if it was not central to our coming to faith in Christ Jesus as Messiah and Lord. To contrast the importance of the details of Jesus’ birth known for our benefit, there’s the long absence of details on his life from the age of 12 to the start of his public ministry around the age of 30. The thousands of details for approximately 18 years that we could know about – and would love to know about - concerning the life of Jesus of Nazareth, are blank. We can conjecture on this period of Jesus’ life, as some have done through educated means. What was the life of a teenager from Nazareth like 2000 years ago? What were some of the prayers he or she would have prayed? What was their relationship like with their parents? What were the expectations of a teenager/20 something year old regarding responsibility within the household? A thousand questions and more could be asked. But without any solid sources, aside of any possible mystical visions, and without a word of those years of Jesus’ life to be found in the Scriptures, his personal 18-plus years remains much of an undeveloped mystery where our curiosity will not be satisfied until we see the Lord face-to-face. Thank God, however, we have some good information on how the birth of Jesus Christ came about.
Whereas Matthew and Luke touch on some of the details regarding how the birth of Jesus Christ came about, again, providing us with a wealth of knowledge to be carried in our hearts over the length of our lives, leaving little room for guessing, what also leaves little room for guessing is why the birth of Jesus Christ came about. It seems it would be fair to say that, after the birth narratives of Matthew and Luke are finished in their respective Gospels, the rest of the New Testament Scriptures answers why the birth of Jesus Christ came about. We certainly receive a strong sense of why Jesus’ birth happened in the birth narratives themselves. But when the birth narratives are completed after the first couple of chapters, what we read in the remaining chapters is why Jesus comes to us in the flesh. Why Jesus is Emmanuel. The Word made flesh. Making his dwelling among us. Once the Scriptures hit the raceway, shall we say, we’re blessed to learn the reasons why God needed to come to us. Not for His sake, but for ours.
Yet, the how and why of Jesus’s birth coming about cannot be separated. The how shows the real human details of God entering a shaky, dangerous world of sin and violence, a world that needed redemption. The Roman Empire, into which Jesus was born, reached across the Mediterranean Sea from Rome all the way to the land flowing with milk and honey, with an important governor’s seat in Jerusalem to keep those rebellious Israelites in line. This is the same Roman Empire that glorified the human body in the most sinful, unholy ways. The same Roman Empire that would cut down any individual or group (large or small) that threatened their power, or even the “divinity” of Caesar. It seems to me like these last two parts of the Roman Empire are alive and unwell in present day America, with misdeeds of the human body surrounding us, and a government that abuses its power to an extreme rather than being the public servants they are elected to be. You think we need Jesus even more in this time?
Whereas how the Lord’s birth came about; a potential divorce between Joseph and Mary; not finding a room at the inn; having to escape to Egypt from the clutches of Herod who wants to kill the child due to the false belief his power is threatened… Whereas how the Lord’s birth came about into a world of uncertainty and instability, the why of Jesus’ birth coming about is an answer of victory and joy, eventually. Not as much now in this world of human uncertainty and instability (reflecting our economy), although we are to carry the Lord’s victory in our hearts, especially in the rougher times of life. But why Jesus’ birth happens is an answer that speaks much more to the long haul of our human condition. Really, the eternal part of how God has created us.
A central understanding as to why Jesus was born is the understanding that we are not long for this world, but we are very, very long for eternal life. This time and place, this life, is really fast, even though the seconds tick away at the same rate they did when we were teenagers looking to finally graduate from high school and get out into the world on our own. That couldn’t come fast enough. Remember? I sure do! But as old and bald (men) like yours truly, we hopefully realize with a bolt of truth that this place we inhabit here on earth is brief. Very brief, even if we live 100 years or more.
Why Jesus’ birth came about, and why we celebrate his birth as One who is fully human and fully divine, points toward the longer stretch, the much longer stretch, the marathon of where this story is going. Yes, the why of his birth came about touches on the here and now of our lives in a broken world. And how we choose to live our lives matters to God in the fullest sense of mattering. To live in a world where choices do not presently matter is to live in a world of full-on chaos, possessing a soul destined for hell. Such chaos is presently present to a large degree here in America. Which tells us that God has been tossed out of certain areas of the world He created. Chaos and Christianity do not relate to one another. They have nothing in common. Where chaos abounds, we can be certain that God is absent, been tossed aside, and you-know-who is present with his pitchfork. For us to make Christian choices every waking day, we make present in our relationships the “why” of Jesus’ birth. Why holiness matters. Why peace shared matters. Why love of neighbor matters. Why mercy matters. These and all the virtues are the “why” of Jesus’ birth.
The Gospel of Matthew that addresses how the birth of Jesus Christ came about is a Gospel that penetrates the heart of any listener open to a living relationship with our Savior. We are given the knowledge of how the Lord’s birth came about. The details are found early in the New Testament Gospels of Matthew and Luke. But if our search is also for why the birth of Jesus came about, then we must keep on reading, as Paul Harvey would say, “the rest of the story.” This, we are blessed to do in our Church over a 3-year cycle. The rest of the story that follows Jesus’ birth, and why he was born into a dangerous world, is the story of our salvation. We earthlings are not ultimately created for Mother Earth. It would be a better world if so many people stopped acting like we were. Rather, we are heavenly beings destined for everlasting peace and joy in the company of the saints in light. God found us worthy enough to die for us so that we may live. It begins with his conception and subsequent birth, the “how” his birth came about. But the “why” his birth came about is an even more enticing story. All it takes is faith. Merry Christmas.