There’s so much to juggle at Christmas time.
Think about Christmas dinner. There’s turkey, stuffing, pigs in blankets, gravy, bread sauce, cranberry sauce, parsnips, potatoes, carrots, and of course sprouts. That’s the main plate on it’s own, and thinking about having to juggle prep and cooking times for that alone gives me a headache.
Then add everything else around Christmas Day. Presents, crackers, setting the table, puddings, drinks. Arranging family to come over, or this Christmas, arranging Zoom meetings for the family.
Some of us might love the thought of planning it all out, but it can easily become overwhelming.
Luke 2:1-7 gives us a brief but beautiful picture of Jesus’ birth.
An empire wide census. A couple from Nazareth. A virgin and her fiancé. A journey made necessary by family heritage. A busy little town of Bethlehem. A lack of appropriate guest rooms. A birth at the right time, but among animals. A child sleeping in a feeding trough.
All part of a grand plan. Not one of these things that we read about here were an accident.
When we look at the rest of the Gospels, we read that there were loads of other details surrounding Jesus’ birth. The star. The wise men. The prophecies. The angels. The cousin. The run to Egypt.
All part of the specific plan for this central point of history.
All planned and implemented by the sovereign God.
This wasn’t just a one off though.
“He is before all things, and by him all things hold together.” Colossians 1:17
Jesus is the sovereign authority of ALL. He created, and He sustains all things. He holds everything together.
Every single part of our human existence is within the ultimate control of the one who humbled himself to be born as a child.
“God is always doing 10,000 things in your life, and you may be aware of three of them.” John Piper
We have no idea about all that Jesus is doing in us, through us, around us and in the world at any given moment. He’s working in absolutely everything that goes on around us. He’s at work in the good, the bad, and even the mundane. And he does it without breaking a sweat.
He orchestrated the whole of history so that He would be born and laid in a manger 2000 years ago, and he’s still working through time to build his church, and fulfil all His purposes.
O Come Let Us Adore Him!
A thought to remember: Jesus is the king who controls all of history.
A question to ask: How might Jesus be at work in your life today?
A bit more to read: Luke 2:1-7 / Colossians 1:15-20
A song to sing: Behold Our God