Christmas is not primarily about a baby in a feeding trough

Christmas, 2024, is now over, except for Eastern Orthodox Christians who celebrate it on January 7^th.  There’s one verse in the Bible that describes what Christmas is all about. It’s 2 Cor 8:9: “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that for your sakes, he, being rich, became poor, in order to make you in your poverty become rich.” I don’t know what it was like for Jesus as he existed before his birth. I assume he was worshiped by the angels. It was, I’m sure, an amazing situation. What Paul says tells me is that whatever it was like for the divine Logos (John 1:1), he gave it up to become the man Jesus, except that he kept his divinity.

What Does Philippians 2:5-11 tell us about Christmas?

Some read Phil 2:6-11 as meaning that he gave up his divinity.  Unlike some Greek myth, however, God cannot cease being God. My favorite Christmas carol, “Hark the Herald Angels Sing,” says that he emptied himself of all but love. I don’t think that’s valid. Others say that Jesus gave up his divine attributes, I don’t see that in Scripture either. Paul defines Jesus’ self-emptying as him taking on human form and humbling himself, even to the point of death on a cross, a shameful death reserved by the Romans for criminals and enemies.

Paul wrote that Jesus did not consider his deity something to be taken advantage of (Phil 2:6). Translations differ over what the word harpagmos, which Paul used, means. It probably meant something like “not to be taken advantage of” or a matter of robbery. The former is much more likely.

Paul wrote that Jesus emptied himself. He was born in a house belonging to Joseph’s relatives. Since there was no space in the guest room, Jesus was placed in a feeding trough inside the house where the animals were kept at night.

Jesus’ Early Life

    Jesus grew up in Nazareth, a small town of no political or economic importance. In U.S. slang, it was a “podunk” town. According to John’s Gospel, Jesus called Philip to follow him. Philip found Nathaniel, another early disciple of Jesus.

He said to Nathaniel, “We found he of whom Moses in the Law and the prophets wrote about, Jesus the son of Joseph from Nazareth” (John 1:45). Nathaniel responded sarcastically, “Is anything good able to come from Nazareth? (John1:46). Many Jews did not think highly of Nazareth. It was a good place to be from, far from. Yet, God did not choose an important city like Jerusalem to live in. He chose a minor town.

Jesus at Age Twelve

Most of Jesus’ life was probably ordinary. The only event that the gospels record is that at age twelve, he accompanied his parents to Jerusalem to attend “the Feast.” This could have been the Passover, Pentecost, or the Feast of Tabernacles, in which Jews built small shelters, booths, to stay in for a week.

You can be certain that the vast majority of Jews who came to such events were relatively poor. They did not find accommodations at a thirty-story luxury hotel. Instead, most would set up a tent or some other temporary shelter. Jesus likely accompanied his parents to several such feasts, as Moses, according to Leviticus, instructed them.

This event in Luke’s Gospel is noteworthy because when his family left Jerusalem and headed for Nazareth, Jesus stayed behind. If you are a parent, have you ever lost a child in a crowd and panicked because of it? We once lost one of our children at an amusement park. We were frantically looking for him, while he was oblivious to the situation. It was a great relief of find  him. That’s life with someone on the Autism spectrum.

Jesus’ parent must have assumed that Jesus was with other relatives. When they began looking for him in the crowd of travelers heading home, they returned to Jerusalem. After three days, which I’m sure were very stressful, they found him. Jesus was at the temple. He was listening to the teachers, probably those who were experts in the Mosaic Law. He also asked them questions.  

Luke wrote that, “All who heard him were amazed at his intelligence and answers” (Luke 2:47).  When his parent found him, however, they were understandably less than pleased. Mary, his mother, asked Jesus, “Child, why have you done this to us? Look, your father and I were anxiously looking for you” (Luke 2:48).

As though nothing was wrong with the situation, Jesus replied, somewhat enigmatically, “Why were you seeking me? Didn’t you know that it was necessary for me to be at my Father’s business/involved with my Father’s things?” (Luke 4:29). The statement is difficult to translate well. Literally, it says, “in the things of my Father.” Other than this extraordinary event, the gospels tell us nothing about Jesus’ young life after he was circumcised.

What probably happened during the rest of his thirty years of life before Jesus’ public ministry was the daily life of any male growing up in Nazareth. He would have learned his father’s business and done that. Joseph was a tekton, which is a builder with stone, wood, or other materials. He would have attended Sabbath services in the local synagogue. Jesus would have done household chores. Probably unlike his brothers, he chose to not get married. He lived out belonging to God his whole life.

Jesus’ Ministry

When I think about Paul’s statement that Jesus gave up power and position to come to earth to take us from the poverty of spiritual death and give us new life, I can’t help but think of a poem, “If That’s Not Love,” on the Christmas album by the “Children of the Day.”

I’m glad to have been chosen to be here tonight,

Singing to these shepherds of their coming King.

But I know when they look at me, they only see an angel.

They can’t see the wonder of the mysteries  I’ve seen today.

I thought I’d seen love in all God’s creation, in his mighty works.

But I saw true love today, perfect love.

I saw my King, the King above all High Kings, remove his crown for love…

take off His robe, remove His shoes, and leave all His Kingdom to find His Bride.

In all his heavenly wisdom he sees her beauty. I look and see only the humility He must suffer.

He will remove Himself from the touch of my help, and finally even His Father’s. Even now he sees the spitting and cursing.

And further ahead, and even more painful, in years when men have grown more tender, He sees them pass Him by without a second glance. And finally he sees their total rejection. It’s not just tonight. THEY NEVER WILL MAKE ROOM FOR HIM. He sees all this as he lays his crown at His Father’s feet. But somewhere down there in their very midst, He sees her, and His hope for His Bride makes everything worthwhile. If that’s not love. 

(Formatting original)

What Do We Do with This?

Jesus’ call to follow him and Paul’s instructions to serve others. The Christmas story encourages us to humble ourselves and to serve others. That’s part of why Christmas is important.

If you found this post helpful, please share it with someone. I welcome your comments in this post. If you’ve faced or are facing suffering, you might find a small booklet I’ve written helpful. You can access it by signing up for my mailing list at kenethduncanlitwak.com.