The Good News Of Christmas

Humankind is hopeless....Hope will depend on a move from God.

- Walter Brueggemann

Christmas represents one such move. Far from being the "unmoved mover", God was moved so much so that he chose to change his own history -- and therefore the history of the world -- in a way that we could never have imagined.

Three early Christian hymns sing about this dramatic move of God. In Philippians 2, one "who was in the form of God" became "born in the likness of humanity". God becomes a servant. God becomes obedient - obedient unto death. What kind of God is this? What kind of move is this?

Colossians 1 sings of the one by whom all things were created. He is the artist whose work of art stands as a testimony to his creativity and beauty. But the painting has been spoiled, and it will take the artist becoming a work of art to restore and renew. As in Philippians, this is a move that anticipates death. It is a move towards the cross. This is not art as we know it. What kind of God is this? What kind of move is this?

John 1 waxes lyrical about The Word. "The Word was with God, and the Word was God." The Word created our world. But one great act of creation was not enough. The darkness of the present world gave need for New Creation. This second great act began with the creation of The Word made flesh. The Word stands at the beginning of the old. The Word made flesh stands at the beginning of the new. The unseen God made a move to be seen. But his act of revelation was met by the world with a "did not know" and "did not receive". "The Word in the world creates conflict", says Dr Autry. Death threatens this move of God. What kind of God is this? What kind of move is this?

To quote my former teacher once more, "The incarnation reveals deity and heals humanity." The incarnation reveals a deity who will stoop as low as he can go in order to heal humanity. He will become like the ones who have chosen to be his enemies. But he will reveal himself to be their friend. The incarnation, in simple terms, is a move of friendship. It is a move toward "shared story". The story of the world, which became the story of Israel, has become the story of God in Jesus. This is why the death of Jesus is inevitable, but this is also why reconciliation becomes possible.

To complete the hat-trick, "Our story became his story so that his story could become our story". The story of Christmas begins the story of life, death, and life again. It is a story which depends from start to finish on "a move from God". Our brokeness moved him with compassion. His compassion moved him to enter fully into our brokenness, even to the point of death. But death does not get the last word.

The good news of Christmas -- the good news of incarnation -- is that creation is swallowed up by life.