The Infant Christ A Christmas Sermon
INTRODUCTORY WORDS
In a manger, on the hay,
There, incarnate God, once lay:
From the Father's throne He came
To a world all sunk in shame;
Came a Babe, of virgin born,
Came from Heaven, of glory shorn,
Came with swaddling clothes wrapped round,
Came with limitations bound.
In a manger, on the hay,
There, Immanuel once lay;
"God with us," on earth He trod
Fashioned man, yet very God;
"God with us," a Babe, He came
To declare the Father's Name;
"God with us," from realms above
Came to show the Father's love.
In a manger, on the hay,
With the cattle, Jesus lay;
Not as monarch, with a crown,
Not as wizard, with renown;
Nay, He came the Holy One.
Came the meek and lowly One,
Came that shepherds might abide
Unembarrassed at His side.
In a manger, on the hay,
Christ, the Saviour, sweetly lay;
He took flesh and blood to die
That the sinner might draw nigh;
Came to open wide the door,
Came the wand'rer to restore;
Came, that all might enter in,
Blood-washed, saved from ev'ry sin.
In a manger, on the hay.
Christ, the "Jewish Sign" once lay;
To a nation all forlorn,
Trodden down, all rent and torn
Came a Babe, to certify,
Virgin born, to verify
That God's nation was secure,
Israel shall e'er endure.
In a manger, on the hay,
Babe, yet "destined King," He lay;
Wise men, guided by a star,
Came from other lands afar,
Worshiped Him, "King of the Jews,"
While His own refused the news;
Yet, He'll surely come again,
Come as King of kings, to reign.
I. GOD WITH US (Isaiah 7:14 with Matthew 1:23)
How striking are the words, "And she brought forth her firstborn Son * * and laid Him in a manger"!
He was Son of a virgin, and yet, withal, He was the Son of God. This is the message of the whole Bible: "Great is the mystery * * God was manifest in the flesh." The Prophet of old had written, "Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a Son, and shall call His Name Immanuel." Christ was indeed Son of God, and God the Son. He was "God with us."
Jesus Christ was, according to the flesh, of the seed of David, a son of Abraham, made of a woman, made under the Law. Jesus Christ was, according to the Spirit, "the True God, and eternal life."
Jesus Christ was begotten of the Holy Ghost. Mary knew that, according to nature, she could not bring forth a son; therefore, she said to the angel, Gabriel, "How can this be, seeing I know not a man?"
The angel quickly replied, "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."
No other child in the history of the world was ever conceived as this Child was conceived. He received His body, made of a woman; yet He was born, Son of God. It is no marvel, then, that His Name was called "Wonderful, Counsellor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."
Christ truly could say, "Ye are from beneath; I am from above: ye are of this world; I am not of this world."
Christ was God in the ages past; therefore, in the flesh, He was God made manifest, God incarnate. He knew from whence He came, for He said, "I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world." He came to show us the Father, to declare Him, to interpret Him; therefore, He could say, "He that hath seen Me hath seen the Father."
From God up above, from Heaven in love,
The Lord of all glory came down;
He was God, yet an infant in weakness He lay,
He was God, but was God on a cradle of hay;
He wore neither signet nor crown.
II. WRAPPED IN SWADDLING CLOTHES (Luke 2:6-7)
It is difficult for us to fathom the mystery of God made flesh: but it is more difficult for us to think of God as swaddled, bound, and hemmed in.
He who created man, became man; that is, the Creator became the creature.
He who gave to man "richly all things to enjoy" became man, with nowhere to lay His head; that is, He, by whom and for whom are all things, became poor, that we "through His poverty might be rich."
He who was Lord of all became servant of all. The disciples worshiped Him, yet He girded Himself and washed their feet.
He it was before whom the seraphims continually cried, "Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of Hosts"; and yet, it was He who, "being found in fashion as a man, * * humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the Cross."
As a babe, as a youth, and as a man fulfilling His ministry, He was always God, yet He was always straitened.
He said with His own lips, "I have a baptism to be baptized with; and how am I straitened till it be accomplished."
Christ was Life and the Giver of life, and yet He tasted the cup of death for every man.
Christ was the Author of peace. He said, "My peace I give unto you," and yet, three times we read that He was troubled.
He who was the "Good Shepherd" and the "Great Shepherd" and the "Chief Shepherd" became, for our sakes, the "lamb," voluntarily led to the slaughter, and the "sheep," who before His shearers stood dumb.
He was the Glory of the Father, and yet His face was covered with shame and spitting.
He was the destined King of kings and Lord of lords, and yet He was crowned with thorns, and He died with transgressors, His kingship defamed.
Surely the "swaddling clothes" that wrapped the Babe bore a prophecy of deepest meaning.
They wrapped Him around, with swaddling clothes bound
A ship that was tied to its pier;
He was God, but was straitened, circumscribed, yea,
He was God, but was God on a cradle of hay,
While sorrows were hovering near.
III. NO ROOM IN THE INN (Luke 2:7, l.c.)
The story of Christ's birth is a prophecy of His life.
At His birth, there was "no room for them in the inn." We pass down through thirty years. Was there room for Him in Nazareth? room in His Father's House? room upon the earth? Although the Nazarites at first marveled at the gracious words that proceeded out of His mouth, they soon led Him to the brow of the hill on which the city was built, intending to cast Him down. There was no room for Him in Nazareth.
He entered the Temple to drive out the money changers and the sellers of doves. He said, "My House shall be called the House of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves." There was no room for Him in His Father's House.
Among men, He soon became the "despised and rejected." He moved among the populace, doing good. He fed the hungry, healed the sick, cast out demons, raised the dead. It was not long, however, until the surging crowds learned to cry out against Him, saying, "Let Him be crucified." There was no room for Him on the earth.
In His birth, Herod had sought to slay Him. Then were fulfilled the words of the Prophet, "In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not."
The massacre of the innocents proved to be a prophecy of the close of His days, for as He neared the end of His ministry, once more "they went about to slay Him."
The crucifixion was the climax of the same spirit which marked Christ's reception at His birth. Only, with the years, the people's hatred intensified. They compassed the Cross as dogs; they gaped upon Him as ravening and roaring lions; they wagged the head; they laughed Him to scorn; they shot out the lip against Him.
Amid the gaiety of modern Christmas festivities, the world has no room for the Lord Jesus "in the inn."
With cattle He slept, while vigil was kept
By angels who hovered about:
He was God, yet was God from whom men turned away,
He was God, but was God on a cradle of hay,
Men gave Him no welcome, no shout.
IV. WORSHIPED: KING OF THE JEWS (Matthew 2:11)
Could anything be more striking than the story of the wise men journeying from afar, with gifts of frankincense and myrrh, to worship the holy Babe as King of the Jews?
In His birth, He was worshiped as "King of the Jews." In His death, He was crucified as "King of the Jews." In His Second Advent, He will be heralded as "King of kings."
All of this is in line with the words of the angel, Gabriel, who said unto the virgin Mary, "Thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a Son * * and the Lord God will 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."
Let Christians who rejoice in His birth, also rejoice in the destined Kingship of Christ. The Prophet said, "The zeal of the Lord of Hosts will perform this."
The Children of Israel are still wandering over the face of the earth without a King. Let them, nevertheless, rejoice on this Christmas Day. Let this day bring back to their memory the sure sign which God gave to Ahaz, that Rezin and Pekah could not make a breach against Judah, and set a king in the midst of Jerusalem. God said of their attempt: "It shall not stand, neither shall it come to pass." For this cause, God gave to Ahaz the sign of Judah's security and of the security of Judah's throne. That "sign" was God's promise and pledge to Judah: "Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a Son, and shall call His Name Immanuel."
When Christ was born in Bethlehem of Judea, God's promise to Ahaz was established. During the twenty centuries which have followed, Israel has remained forsaken of both of her kings. She has, however, been kept by God's election, awaiting the day when God's Son shall return as Israel's Messiah, to sit upon David's throne.
The Babe of Bethlehem still lives, and the "sign" of God still stands. God has given to all mankind His unchangeable oath that He will judge the inhabited earth in righteousness by that Man whom He hath ordained, even by our Lord Jesus Christ. This oath, which was set forth by the "sign" of the conception of the virgin and the birth of Immanuel, was afterward certified and made sure by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
What hallowed and what happy anticipations, therefore, should be ours on this particular Christmas Day! We are living in the midst of a world rent and torn; we are dwelling in the close of an age which finds the hearts of men filled with strange forebodings of the things which are about to come to pass.
He who was born King of the Jews may come soon to take His throne. Come He must, and come He will. His throne shall be established in Truth and righteousness.
The wise men drew near, with gifts and with cheer,
They worshiped Him King of the Jews;
He was God, who is destined to reign one glad day,
He was God, though He lay on a cradle of hay,
Let Christians receive the good news.
V. THE PRESENT GLORY OF THE CHRIST
The Babe of the manger, who was announced as the Son of God, is now heralded as the Son of the Father's right hand.
As we think, therefore, of the birth of Christ, let us permit our minds to pass on to His life, and then on to His death. But we dare not leave Him crucified and buried. We must follow the Babe of Bethlehem past the empty tomb. We need, on this Christmas Day, to stand with the disciples at the Mount of Olives. We need to see the Lord ascending through the Heavens. We need to hear the cry of the angels, a mighty host, saying, "Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of Glory shall come in."
We need to behold our Christ seated at the Father's right hand a Prince and a Saviour. We need to see Him clothed with authority and power, with principalities and the rulers of this world under His feet. We need to see Him coming in the clouds of Heaven, in power and great glory. We need to see Him reigning on David's throne.
How else can we, with the wise men, rightly worship the Babe of Bethlehem?
If we do not recognize in that Babe all the glory which His life and death and resurrection and ascension and Second Coming and eternity give to Him, how can we bring an adoration, on this Christmas Day, which is acceptable unto God?
"Let saints shout and sing,
Their glad anthems ring;
Praise God on this good Christmas tide;
He is God, now exalted with power and sway,
He is God, but not now on a cradle of hay,
Let all in His glory abide."
AN ILLUSTRATION
"Let us, on this Christmas Day, take a long look through faith's telescope. This may be our last Christmas on earth. We may not be here another year. Do not think for a moment that we are expecting to die. We have made no arrangements for such an event. God never told His people to look for death; it may overtake some of us. Bat if it does, we know the sting is removed. We can look out into the future from this Christmas Day with a glorious prospect. There is a possibility, if not a great probability, that we shall spend next Christmas with our Lord Jesus Christ in the Glory. Oh, what a prospect! To be like Him whom we have long loved, when dimly seen from afar! To be with Him and to be like Him! What an inspiration this is to a better service while we wait! What an inspiration for a happier life, and for a more Christlike walk!
Oh, Saviour mine, by birth Divine!
Upon this natal day of Thine
Dwell with our stress of happiness.
Count not our reverence the less,
Because with glee and jubilee
Our hearts go singing up to Thee."
Dr. W. W. White
"Unto you is born this day a Saviour"
Which is Jesus Christ the wondrous Lord;
Not a "teacher," not a "good example,"
But the Son of God, the Living Word.
No "philosopher," his fancies weaving,
Warp of dreams and woof of visions vast,
Not a "prophet," peering down the future,
Not a "scholar," delving in the past.
"Unto you is born this day a Saviour";
Shine, O star! and shout, O angel voice!
Unto you this precious gift is given;
Sing, O earth! and all ye Heavens, rejoice!
Long the world has waited such a Saviour,
Sunk in sin and torn by fear and doubt;
Long in darkness groped for truth and wisdom;
Glory, glory, now the light shines out!
"Unto you is born this day a Saviour,"
Earth's one hope, the Life, the Truth, the Way;
Mighty God and glorious Redeemer,
Jesus Christ the Lord is born today.
Annie Johnson Flint,