THE CHRISTMAS STORY IS NOT GOOD NEWS
by adam harbinson
The Christmas Story is not good news, it’s great news! But we’ve watered it down and misunderstood it, we’ve settled for second best, and we not only miss the best that Christmas means, but this fundamental misunderstanding most of us have about Christmas brings creates confusion and disappointment. I’d better explain.
In M Scott Peck’s excellent book, The Road Less Travelled, the first line on the first page of the first chapter reads, ‘Life is tough.’ He argues that unless we grasp that most obvious of facts, we can never hope to be truly content and at peace with ourselves. We’ll go through life dodging difficulties, negotiating our way around obstacles rather than overcoming them, always moaning that it shouldn’t be like this, convinced that we deserve better. And the result is, our focus is on our problems.
Peck’s point is that once we acknowledge the fact that ‘problems constitute a sign of life,’ as Norman Vincent Peale once said, then we’ll face our problems head on, we’ll learn from them, and we’ll grow stronger and more mature. No longer need we spend our lives ducking and weaving unable or unwilling to deal with the realities of life.
It reminds me of the boy who kept his pet caterpillar in a jam jar. He watched, fascinated as the caterpillar spun a cocoon around itself to keep it safe until it would metamorphose into a butterfly. And then one day the boy saw the cocoon begin to crack and he thought he would help Mother Nature work her miracle. Carefully he split open the cocoon to release the butterfly, but it fell to the ground unable to flap its wings. It’s the struggle to break free from the restrictions of its surroundings that gives it the strength to do what it was created for; to fly.
So what has this got to do with the Christmas Story? When the angelic host almost frightened the life out of the shepherds on a Judean hillside so long ago by announcing that there would be peace on earth, was it a sick joke? Were they lying? Or was their interpretation of the word ‘peace’ different from ours? Peace on earth? Have any of us ever known a single day when there was peace on earth? I have lived for 22,624 days on this planet, and not one of them has been free from war in some part of the world.
But it wasn’t a sick joke, and they weren’t lying, and when they said peace, they meant pace. The explanation is simple; the angels didn’t promise peace on earth; that would only be good news. No, the great news is that the angels promised peace to men, peace between heaven and earth, peace between God and men. The promised Messiah, the Saviour of the world had at last come in the form of a helpless baby in a manger; thus God demonstrated his unfathomable, unconditional love for his creation.
And then for good measure Jesus added, ‘In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world… My peace I give you.’ In other words not only are we at peace with God, we can be at peace with ourselves, and our fellowman, and even the everyday troubles of life are put in their place when he said; ‘Take heart, you’ve nothing to fear. I have overcome the world on your behalf.’
The wonder, the magic of Christmas can touch and refresh and empower every day of our lives. Have a Happy Christmas.
