Skip to main content

The Way in the Manger

This time of year seems to come faster each year. I think that is the definition of aging. I love symbolism and the messages they communicate and this time of year is full of them.

Take the manger. Whether it was a feeding trough of wood, or a hewn rock to hold feed, or whatever you imagine, the couple made due with what they had.

Do you think couples are still doing this today?

Joseph and Mary were supposed to be met by family who were to house them because … they were family. Something always seemed strange to me about this story—no room in the inn. What? Did they think because Joseph took an “adulterous’ woman as his wife they couldn’t suspend judgment to help them? WTC! The expecting couple were coming from Nazareth because of the stupid governmentally imposed census and you can’t house them? Some family you are …

Do you think couples are still dealing with this today?

Angels are the spoilers of this judgmental attitude. They give the message of the Messiah’s birth to stinking shepherds. Next to the cross-dressing tax collectors, shepherds were on the list of the lowly discreditables.

So what do we do with the signs and symbols of the Messiah’s birth?
A sign is any object, action, etc. that conveys a meaning. A symbol is something used for or regarded as representing something else.
As a Bible reader, I am accustomed to signs and symbolic usage in Scriptures: dove, ark, oil, cross, cup, bread, water, baptism, shepherd, angels, bear, beast, crown, door, dragon, snake, fire, goat, gold, harvest, honey, horn, incense, keys, lamb, lion, locust, sun, moon, stars, purple, rainbow, ram, ring, rock, seed, sword, trumpet, 24 elders, white, wind, wine, just to name a few.

Luke 2:12 states, ”And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” The sign was definitely for the shepherds who were going to be testifying about the angelic manifestation and news. But did the news go viral? Well, it was symbolic. It was a sign. It was going to need translation.

In the world of emojis, the meaning of signs and symbols can be misunderstood. Why did God send an angel for this job anyway? Wouldn’t this obscure the symbolism? Not if one reviews the symbolism of angels in biblical history. And this event was ofbiblical proportions.

Newborns not wrapped, bundled, or swaddled with a wrap for carrying the baby meant it was abandoned. This baby belonged to someone. Lying in a manger? Odd. He should be inside with family, but this baby was outside. So, the sign was definitely for the shepherds’ consideration. Did the shepherds find the baby? Wrapped? In a manger? They sure did!

In case you didn’t know, angels are never wrong.

The sign was about the Messiah. Did he come the way thought?

Which leads me to ask, Will Jesus come again in the way thought?

If the glory of God in heaven is revealed in the coming of His Son, the effect for those on the earth would be: Shalom—wholistic peace, or the full sum of blessings associated with the coming of the Messiah, aka, a new way of peace between God and man.

There were three responses to the sign represented by the shepherds, Mary, and the hearers.

Go look and see.


Then answer, What will your response be? Have you found The Way in the Manger?
Labels:

Popular posts from this blog

I Wish We'd All Been ... Left Behind

  Perhaps you have heard the group DC Talk sing the remake of Larry Norman’s’ song, “I Wish We’d All Been Ready”? There is something tragically deceptive about the lyrics though. As we sing along, we find ourselves participating in a couple instances where we wish we had been ready to be taken instead of left behind. But that is not how Jesus tells his side of the story. The words are inspired by Matthew 24:40-41. But let’s look more closely, shall we? MATTHEW 24:37 As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; 39 and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away . That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 40 Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. 41 Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left. ...
Read more

A Joshua-Veneered Judges

Without challenge there will be no growth. Without expectation there will be no challenge. Why is it that we think if we expect "too much" out of people they will turn away? Didn't Jesus issue commands and ultimatums? Why should His Church not remind His people of these things? I was challenged by a statement from someone in Sunday School that people "like" the way things are going. This "liking-ness" caused me to ponder the "state of the union" and internalize a "declaration of dependence" for the name of Christ. I repeat, Without challenge there will be no growth. Without expectation there will be no challenge. I do not want to bow down to "likingness" as the test for spiritual growth. What I see in fruitfulness is sporadic unquestionable commitment .An abandonment to the statements of Christ across the board. This is reflected in the hard work of hospitality we lack in our home-model of being the body of Christ. W...
Read more

Start With The Second Coming In Mind

If you could only answer questions, “Yes,” or “No,” and couldn’t ever use the word “maybe” again, would it make that much of a difference to your life? Take a moment and read James 5:1-12--it is especially very interesting to read in The Message translation. So often we are told to begin with the END in mind. The END is whatever or where ever the certain project we are working on is heading until we say it is DONE. We do need to begin with the END in mind, but James has a different END in mind. There are several things the people have done wrong in James’ mind: laid up treasures in the last days,  kept back wages by fraud,  lived in luxury and self-indulgence,  fattened their hearts,  condemned and murdered people. When James tells the rich to “weep and howl” what is he getting at? What good does it do? What does “the cry of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of the Hosts” mean? What does it mean for "the wages of those abused by fraud...
Read more

Family Time Videos