The Sacrifice of Christmas

Ladies, are you looking for ways to make the Christmas season more meaningful to your children? With all the shopping, singing, concerts, parties, programs, etc, how can we keep our focus on Jesus? One aspect of Christmas that I like to emphasize with my children is that of SACRIFICE. When you think about it, the whole story of Christmas is one of sacrifice.  Mary's sacrifice of her hopes and plans, the shepherd's sacrifice of time, the Wise Men's sacrifice of months of their lives as they sought the Christ Child, and most important: God's sacrifice of His only Son.  Let's look at this precious aspect of the Christmas story together.

" Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross."
Philippians 2:5-8

We don't usually think of this as Christmas Scripture, but to me, it is some of the very best Christmas Scripture there is! Jesus Christ is our Supreme Example of sacrifice. He left the glories of heaven to come to earth, live, suffer, die and rise again. 2 Corinthians 5:21 tells us

 "For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him."

What manner of love is this? The holy, blameless, undefiled Son of God became sin for US! Talk about sacrifice!! Doesn't that thought humble you? It does me!!

In addition to the example of Christ, we have the example of Mary.
Let's imagine how Mary must have felt when, as a young woman, an angel appeared unto her and told her that she was to bear the Messiah! Like any young girl, her hopes and dreams were probably along the lines of marriage to a wonderful young man, keeping house, and bearing children. Though all the Jews must have dreamed of the coming of the Messiah, it probably never occurred to Mary that SHE might be the one chosen to bear the Holy Child!

"And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth,
 To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary.
 And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be. And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.  Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren. For with God nothing shall be impossible. And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her"  

Luke 1:26-38

"Be it unto me according to thy word." How many young girls would have responded in that way? Mary had to sacrifice her dreams, her plans, and her reputation. Think how the unkind comments must have hurt her, when she knew the truth; Jesus was the Holy Child, the long expected Messiah! Yet she chose obedience to the perfect will of God over her own will. What a challenge....parenting the Son of God, teaching Him the Scriptures when He is the One Who wrote them! Teaching Him about the Father when He is One with the Father!

Joseph also had to sacrifice his own private hopes and dreams and be willing to trust in God's divine plan for His Son. What a position Joseph found himself in....betrothed to a girl who was with child.

"Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a publick example, was minded to put her away privily. But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.
 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.
 Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying,
 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us. Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife: And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS."

Matthew 1:19-25

The Wise Men sacrificed months, even years of their lives as they sought the Holy Child.

"When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh. And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way."
Matthew 2:10-12

Ladies, we as wives and mothers continually have opportunities to sacrifice ourselves and put others first. Jesus' example was that of humbling Himself as a servant. How can we serve our husbands? By putting his happiness before our own! How can we serve our children? By putting our plans, hopes and dreams after their needs. Think of it this way. If your house were on fire and you escaped with your children, but realized that one of them was trapped in the burning structure, would you even hesitate to run to try to rescue him? NO! You would have NO THOUGHT of your own danger or well being, but your only thought would be to rescue that little one. Why, then, should it be any different in our daily lives? Sacrifice is the key to good relationships. A good marriage is never based on the false idea of 50/50, but on the Biblical principle of sacrifice. Each partner giving 150% and putting the happiness of his/her spouse first! Don't be deceived by the world's philosophies! The world would have you believe that you should "take care of yourself." "Pamper yourself." "Look out for number one!" I don't find that philosophy in God's Word. Instead, I see the example of Christ as a servant, I see mothers willing to sacrifice for their children. Look at Moses' mother, Samuel's mother, Timothy's mother. All of these were an example of sacrificing for the ultimate good of their children! This is the example I desire to be for my children!

Lord, give us a servant's heart, help us to put the happiness of others before our own and to be ready to sacrifice our own desires, thus being more like our Lord, Jesus Christ. Amen!
 

Merry Christmas!

Nancy