The choice to open the door
On a cold night a long time ago, a man and a woman searched in desperation for a place to rest. They needed a place to lay down after a long journey, a roof over their heads to provide shelter from the night. They went from house to house and at each door the answer was the same, "We have no room for you to stay." And so the search went on, as their bodies grew weary. She was especially exhausted. Her body had provided the nest for a very special baby these past 9 months. And tonight her body was telling her that her son was ready to breathe his first breath of air and announce his arrival to the world.
However, this was not just any baby, this was the Son of God and the King of Kings. He had come to bring healing, freedom and eternal life. To pay the penalty of sin and redeem God's creation. And yet, even at his arrival all that could be found was the rejection of closed doors and no one willing to make room for Him to enter into their home.
At the last door, they finally met a man willing to give some compassion and the owner of this dwelling offered them a place in his stable to sleep. So there alongside the sheep and the donkeys, a mother brought forth her child, The Messiah. It was a rough place to birth a child, but it provided them shelter and a place to rest.
I love the passage in Matthew 25 where Jesus says,"For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me." And then the righteous answer, "Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?" And then he answers, "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me."
I wonder if the townspeople had known that Mary was about to give birth to The Messiah if they would have made room for him. Would they have sacrificed? Would they have inconvenienced themselves? Or would they instead chose the path of comfort and ease?
We have the same questions to answer today. As Jesus says what we do for others we do for him. When we feed the hungry, give water to the thirsty, provide clothes for the naked, or give support and friendship to those who are sick, hurting and in prison, we are doing this for Christ.
Living a life of love requires that we be willing to inconvenience ourselves and sacrifice. My good friend, Karen, often says,"if it is easy then it is not sacrifice" Kevin and I often find ourselves struggling between what would be easy, comfortable, self serving and loving, serving , sacrificing for others. We have seen how selfish we are and are just beginning to get a glimpse of what it would look like to live a life of justice, one where we abandon the idea that it is "all about me". Our continued prayer for our children is that as they grow up loving others, sacrificing and participating in helping others that it would just become their "normal". If their generation all spent their childhood watching justice lived, imagine what their sacrifice will look like. And then just maybe, they will be a people who when Jesus knocks on the door they will welcome him in with open arms.
However, this was not just any baby, this was the Son of God and the King of Kings. He had come to bring healing, freedom and eternal life. To pay the penalty of sin and redeem God's creation. And yet, even at his arrival all that could be found was the rejection of closed doors and no one willing to make room for Him to enter into their home.
At the last door, they finally met a man willing to give some compassion and the owner of this dwelling offered them a place in his stable to sleep. So there alongside the sheep and the donkeys, a mother brought forth her child, The Messiah. It was a rough place to birth a child, but it provided them shelter and a place to rest.
I love the passage in Matthew 25 where Jesus says,"For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me." And then the righteous answer, "Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?" And then he answers, "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me."
I wonder if the townspeople had known that Mary was about to give birth to The Messiah if they would have made room for him. Would they have sacrificed? Would they have inconvenienced themselves? Or would they instead chose the path of comfort and ease?
We have the same questions to answer today. As Jesus says what we do for others we do for him. When we feed the hungry, give water to the thirsty, provide clothes for the naked, or give support and friendship to those who are sick, hurting and in prison, we are doing this for Christ.
Living a life of love requires that we be willing to inconvenience ourselves and sacrifice. My good friend, Karen, often says,"if it is easy then it is not sacrifice" Kevin and I often find ourselves struggling between what would be easy, comfortable, self serving and loving, serving , sacrificing for others. We have seen how selfish we are and are just beginning to get a glimpse of what it would look like to live a life of justice, one where we abandon the idea that it is "all about me". Our continued prayer for our children is that as they grow up loving others, sacrificing and participating in helping others that it would just become their "normal". If their generation all spent their childhood watching justice lived, imagine what their sacrifice will look like. And then just maybe, they will be a people who when Jesus knocks on the door they will welcome him in with open arms.
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