December 25: Christ the Messiah
Day 26 - Thursday, December 25
Christmas Day
Title: Christ the Messiah
Scripture #1: John 1:41–42 (NKJV)
He first found his own brother Simon, and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which is translated, the Christ). And he brought him to Jesus.
Scripture #2: John 4:25–26 (NKJV)
The woman said to Him, “I know that Messiah is coming” (who is called Christ). “When He comes, He will tell us all things.” Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am He.”
Scripture #3: Matthew 1:16 (NKJV)
And Jacob begot Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus who is called Christ.
Poetry & Poet:
“Christmas”
by John Betjeman
The bells of waiting Advent ring,
The Tortoise stove is lit again
And lamp-oil light across the night
Has caught the streaks of winter rain
In many a stained-glass window sheen
From Crimson Lake to Hookers Green.
The holly in the windy hedge
And round the Manor House the yew
Will soon be stripped to deck the ledge,
The altar, font and arch and pew,
So that the villagers can say
'The church looks nice' on Christmas Day.
Provincial Public Houses blaze,
Corporation tramcars clang,
On lighted tenements I gaze,
Where paper decorations hang,
And bunting in the red Town Hall
Says 'Merry Christmas to you all'.
And London shops on Christmas Eve
Are strung with silver bells and flowers
As hurrying clerks the City leave
To pigeon-haunted classic towers,
And marbled clouds go scudding by
The many-steepled London sky.
And girls in slacks remember Dad,
And oafish louts remember Mum,
And sleepless children's hearts are glad.
And Christmas-morning bells say 'Come!'
Even to shining ones who dwell
Safe in the Dorchester Hotel.
And is it true,
This most tremendous tale of all,
Seen in a stained-glass window's hue,
A Baby in an ox's stall ?
The Maker of the stars and sea
Become a Child on earth for me ?
And is it true ? For if it is,
No loving fingers tying strings
Around those tissued fripperies,
The sweet and silly Christmas things,
Bath salts and inexpensive scent
And hideous tie so kindly meant,
No love that in a family dwells,
No carolling in frosty air,
Nor all the steeple-shaking bells
Can with this single Truth compare —
That God was man in Palestine
And lives today in Bread and Wine.
Christ the Messiah
I was surprised, when I watched this morning’s video for the first time, to find tears stinging my eyes. A sweet sort of pang hit me with each new image of Christ as if I was seeing pictures of a loved one I longed for: like seeing photographs that don’t fully capture them but remind me how much I cannot wait until they get off the plane or walk through the door again.
What I found within my heart was this:
Lord, I don’t want all these images. I don’t want all these words. I just want YOU.
The man I love.
The God I love.
This blessed day, Christmas Day, is the day set aside to remember that the God of Love has answered me. He has answered us all. He answered us with Jesus: The Word. The Beginning and the End. King of Glory. God Almighty. Good Shepherd. Counselor. Teacher. Healer. Advocate. Servant. Light of the World. Bread of Life. Cornerstone. Stumbling Block. Promised One…Messiah.
These are some of the names of Christ appearing in this year’s Advent meditations as we have prepared our hearts for Christmas Day. Which of these names resonates with you this morning?
Perhaps it is one you have always loved. Perhaps it is not the one you expected. Whatever the case, I encourage you to take a few minutes at some point today and present it in the presence of Jesus, the Living God. Ask Him what He wants you to know about the name that stood out to you. What invitation might He have for you in it?
When I read these names myself, I noticed a burden of weariness in trying to understand them––to unravel them with my mind––so I presented this weariness to God.
In reply, God reminded me of something a dear friend of His once said to me: “You know, Grace, the more I come to know how good He really is, the less I want to understand. The less I even want to be understood. I just want Him.”
Don’t get me wrong; I am someone who thrives on understanding. I also experience love when I am understood. One of Christ’s most sacred names to me is “Teacher.” Yet, something the Teacher has been teaching me is that the kind of knowledge of Him which matters most is a kind of knowing-by-heart. This kind of heart-knowledge allows me to recognize Him the way I recognize a beloved friend: His countenance (no fear), the look in His eyes (deep, sturdy kindness), His presence (sure), His touch (gentle, healing), His embrace (strong). When He speaks, I know His voice because… it’s Him.
Knowing God like this became possible when Jesus the Messiah was born in Bethlehem, and praise Him, the wait is over.
He is here. Come. Know and be known by Him. Merry Christmas!
Prayer:
Jesus, know me.
Teach my heart to know you.
Praise God you came.
Grace Shaw
Alumna, Talbot Institute for Spiritual Formation
Executive Assistant
Office of the President
Biola University
Image used for Thumbnail:
Christ and His Mother Study the Scriptures (detail)
Henry Ossawa Tanner (1859–1937)
1910
Oil on canvas
Dallas Museum of Art
Dallas, Texas
CCCA Video of the Life of Christ
About the Art in the Music Video:
Using portraits of Christ from a wide variety of artists, this video traces the life of the Savior from His humble birth in a stable to His ascension. Although it is impossible to begin to capture even a bit of Christ’s beauty, artists down through the centuries have nonetheless endeavored to do so. It is no doubt the ultimate artistic challenge. Their attempts reflect the words Dostoyevsky penned in the Brothers Karamazov: “I believe there is nothing lovelier, deeper, more sympathetic and more perfect than the Saviour; I say to myself with jealous love that not only is there no one else like Him, but that there could be no one. I would say even more. If anyone could prove to me that Christ is outside the truth, and if the truth really did exclude Christ, I should prefer to stay with Christ and not with truth. There is in the world only one figure of absolute beauty: Christ. That infinitely lovely figure is as a matter of course an infinite marvel.”
About the Music in the Life of Christ video: “Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring” from the album Ultimate Joy
About the Composer:
Johannes Sebastian Bach (1685–1750) was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist of the baroque period. He established German styles through his skill in counterpoint; harmonic and motivic organization; and the adaptation of rhythms, forms, and textures from abroad, particularly from Italy and France. Bach's compositions include the Brandenburg Concertos, the Mass in B Minor, The Well-Tempered Clavier, two Passions, keyboard works, and more than three hundred cantatas, of which nearly one hundred cantatas have been lost to posterity. His music is revered for its intellectual depth, technical command, and artistic beauty. "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring" is a famous chorale, and was originally the tenth movement of his cantata "Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben.” The title refers to the joy and solace found in Jesus Christ and highlights that in Him is found the source of joy, strength, and love.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johann_Sebastian_Bach
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Johann-Sebastian-Bach
About the Performers:
Orpheus Chamber Orchestra is a radical experiment in musical democracy, proving for over fifty years what happens when exceptional artists gather with total trust in each other and faith in the creative process. Orpheus began in 1972 when cellist Julian Fifer assembled a group of New York freelancers in their early twenties to play orchestral repertoire as if it were chamber music. In that age of co-ops and communes, the idealistic Orpheans snubbed the “corporate” path of symphony orchestras and learned how to play, plan, and promote concerts as a true collective, with leadership roles rotating from the very first performance. Within its first decade, Orpheus made Carnegie Hall their home and became a global sensation through tours of Europe and Asia. Their catalog of recordings for Deutsche Grammophon, Nonesuch, and other labels grew to include more than seventy albums that still stand as benchmarks of the chamber orchestra’s repertoire, including Haydn symphonies, Mozart concertos, and twentieth-century gems by Stravinsky, Schoenberg, Ravel, and Bartók.
https://orpheusnyc.org/about/about-us
About the Poetry & Poet:
Sir John Betjeman (1906–1984) was an English poet, writer, and broadcaster. He was a founding member of the Victorian Society and a passionate defender of Victorian architecture, helping to save St. Pancras Railway Station in London, England, from demolition. He began his career as a journalist and ended it as one of the most popular British poets laureate and a much-loved figure on British television. Betjeman was an Anglican and his religious beliefs are reflected in his poems. In a letter written on Christmas Day 1947 he said, "Also my view of the world is that man is born to fulfil the purposes of his Creator i.e. to Praise his Creator, to stand in awe of Him and to dread Him. In this way I differ from most modern poets, who are agnostics and have an idea that Man is the centre of the Universe or is a helpless bubble blown about by uncontrolled forces."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Betjeman
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/john-betjeman
About the Devotion Author:
Grace Shaw
Alumna, Talbot Institute for Spiritual Formation
Executive Assistant
Office of the President
Biola University
Grace Shaw is a graduate of Gordon College who went on to earn her Master of Fine Arts in Poetry from Seattle Pacific University and her Certificate in Spiritual Formation from Biola’s Talbot Theological Seminary. She is an emerging poet with work appearing in Fathom Magazine, Reformed Journal, and Christianity Today’s Ekstasis Magazine.
You can keep up with her writing at graceshawpoetry.com