Born to Die

Two people were walking in the middle of the night, on their way to town. One of them was a man pulling a jackass on which a woman, his wife, was riding on. It was a cold night, and the woman was heavy with a baby. They have been walking for days and are in need of a place to stay for the evening.

They knocked at every door, only to be greeted with “no vacancy” signs. Weary and a bit nervous, for his wife might give birth any minute now, he knocked again at a door. Like the previous ones, the inn was occupied, but the keeper was kind enough to offer them the stable where the animals were kept. Beggars can’t be choosers, so they accepted it.

The woman gave birth there, a healthy boy, and wrapped the babe in strips of cloth and placed him on the manger, hay cushioning the delicate body.

Angels sang in the horizon about the birth of the Savior, Lord and Messiah, and called on shepherds to visit the new born baby that’s lying in a stable. Scholars from Far East were given advanced news and, by the guidance of a bright star, were on their way to see the newborn.

All honored him and brought him gifts fit for a king (for that’s who he is). The man and his wife’s hearts are overflowing with joy. The shepherds spread the word to everyone about the baby and all were astonished. The mother treasured this and pondered over them.

She has no idea what the message would mean to her, and especially to her son.

But even before she got to that, an angel warned them of a looming threat on the babe, and told them to escape faraway to Egypt, until the danger has passed. That peril was an order by the King to kill all young boys, threatened that a young child would take over his throne.

Blood was shed that time, but the newborn babe in the manger was spared. It was not yet his time.

The baby was presented to the temple, and wise words were said about him, to the astonishment of his parents. They lived a quiet life in his mother’s hometown, helping his father with his craft (for he is a carpenter).

After years of living like one of the people, he went out to different places and started preaching about love and salvation and a new kingdom. People were enamored by his presence and authority. But some felt threatened. As the priest Simeon told of him when he was presented at the temple “… he will be for [the multitudes] their rise or fall, a sign of contradiction. [He will] bring to light the secret thoughts of all.”

And so he was captured, tortured and hung on two pieces of wooden planks. The King, whom “all were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem” was treated like a low-life criminal. Funny thing about the whole thing was that he did not inasmuch threw a pebble on an unwitting donkey to deserve such punishment.

In the same way that he entered the world, he left it swaddled in strips of cloth.

Like a lamb… brought to slaughter, he did not open his mouth. - Isaiah 53:7

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And so the child who was born that cold fateful night was born so that he may die.

Our sins he borne on his shoulders, so that the punishment we truly deserve will be transferred to him. Why? Because he loves us so much he doesn’t want us to suffer the same fate he underwent. By his death we were given everlasting life.

It is the best Christmas gift we can ever have, and all we need to do is accept it. And since He is the only way to gaining that eternal life, so must we accept him, JESUS, as our only Savior, Lord and Messiah.

May everyone have a blessed and wonderful Christmas!