December 25 - Morning"Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel." — Isaiah 7:14
Let us to-day go down to Bethlehem, and in company with wondering
shepherds and adoring Magi, let us see Him who was born King of the
Jews, for we by faith can claim an interest in Him, and can sing, "Unto us a
child is born, unto us a son is given." Jesus is Jehovah incarnate, our Lord
and our God, and yet our brother and friend; let us adore and admire. Let
us notice at the very first glance His miraculous conception. It was a thing
unheard of before, and unparalleled since, that a virgin should conceive and
bear a Son. The first promise ran thus, "The seed of the woman," not the
offspring of the man.
Since venturous woman led the way in the sin which
brought forth Paradise lost, she, and she alone, ushers in the Regainer of
Paradise. Our Saviour, although truly man, was as to His human nature the
Holy One of God. Let us reverently bow before the holy Child whose
innocence restores to manhood its ancient glory; and let us pray that He
may be formed in us, the hope of glory.
Fail not to note His humble
parentage. His mother has been described simply as "a virgin," not a
princess, or prophetess, nor a matron of large estate. True the blood of
kings ran in her veins; nor was her mind a weak and untaught one, for she
could sing most sweetly a song of praise; but yet how humble her
position, how poor the man to whom she stood affianced, and how
miserable the accommodation afforded to the new-born King!
Immanuel, God with us in our nature, in our sorrow, in our lifework, in our
punishment, in our grave, and now with us, or rather we with Him, in
resurrection, ascension, triumph, and Second Advent splendour. December 25 - Evening"And it was so, when the days of their feasting were gone about, that Job sent and sanctified them, and rose up early in the morning, and offered burnt offerings according to the number of them all: for Job said, It may be that my sons have sinned, and cursed God in their hearts. Thus did Job continually." — Job 1:5
What the patriarch did early in the morning, after the family festivities, it
will be well for the believer to do for himself ere he rests tonight. Amid the
cheerfulness of household gatherings it is easy to slide into sinful levities,
and to forget our avowed character as Christians. It ought not to be so, but
so it is, that our days of feasting are very seldom days of sanctified
enjoyment, but too frequently degenerate into unhallowed mirth. There is a
way of joy as pure and sanctifying as though one bathed in the rivers of
Eden: holy gratitude should be quite as purifying an element as grief. Alas!
for our poor hearts, that facts prove that the house of mourning is better
than the house of feasting.
Come, believer, in what have you sinned
to-day? Have you been forgetful of your high calling? Have you been even
as others in idle words and loose speeches? Then confess the sin, and fly
to the sacrifice. The sacrifice sanctifies. The precious blood of the Lamb
slain removes the guilt, and purges away the defilement of our sins of
ignorance and carelessness. This is the best ending of a Christmas-day —
to wash anew in the cleansing fountain. Believer, come to this sacrifice
continually; if it be so good to-night, it is good every night. To live at the
altar is the privilege of the royal priesthood; to them sin, great as it is, is
nevertheless no cause for despair, since they draw near yet again to the
sin-atoning victim, and their conscience is purged from dead works.
Gladly I close this festive day, December 25 |