By the western Christian calendar, today is the seventh day of Christmas. By the secular calendar, today is the last day of the year. In the middle of the Christmas season on the liturgical calendar, the secular calendar changes year.
There is something appropriate about this change of year in the middle of the Christmas season. As we celebrate the birth of Jesus, we are surrounded by images of life and death. The old year has died and the new year is born. People are packing away their decorations, hiding them away till next year, and making resolutions to put old habits to death and give birth to new ones.
Jesus was born so that he could die. His death is presaged in the gifts of the magi: the gold, frankincense and myrrh that they bring are luxury items, worthy gifts for a king, but one of the uses of myrrh is as a burial spice. Every person who is born also dies, but Jesus’ death was the purpose of his birth.
But he was not born only to die. Jesus’ resurrection was in God’s purpose, too. Just as he rose from the dead, resurrection to new life is offered through him to everyone. Not merely life in memory, or even spiritual life in heaven. The resurrection of Jesus is the promise of a future life eternally embodied.
The smile we love, we will see again. The hands that held ours will move again. Those eyes whose sparkle we miss will be re-lit. Jesus was born not only to die, but to be resurrected. And so were we.
Our future is not in a land of puffy clouds and wings. We were made – we were born for the day when Jesus returns, the dead are raised, and God becomes all in all. Of all the heavily-packed, mysterious phrases of the New Testament, that is my favorite: God will be all in all. We will live eternally in union with God, still ourselves, but profoundly altered, too. God will infuse every soul and all of existence.
This is why we were made. This is our purpose. Everything we accomplish in life – growing up and finding a vocation and marrying and having children and grandchildren – is only the classroom for the final graduation, from death to new life.
And it all began in Bethlehem.
These have all been stupendous Veronica. Methinks this would be a great New Years Day linky on my blog!
Okay and now I am completely chilled through and through. BEAUTIFUL.
Happy new year, Veronica.
After reading this I wanted to jump up and shout amen, and I am not the charismatic type either. Great post!
Great post, Veronica. My husband and I have been focusing much more this Christmas on the “big picture.” This Jesus, who came as a baby, is supreme over all creation. His birth isn’t just a sweet and gentle story about a baby being born in a barn. It’s an invasion into enemy territory. It’s powerful and mighty and filled with action and rescuing love. I don’t want to lose sight of the fact that, without Good Friday and Easter, this tender picture of a babe in the manager is ultimately meaningless.
This is just wonderful. I have really enjoyed reading these. This _is_ what we were born for. And I always paraphrase the Westminster Confession: “The chief end of man is to love God and Glorify Him forever!” We decided to have a Twelfth Night (well afternoon in our case because of the toddler) party and that has really kept our mind focused on Christmas. For instance, just today I put out our nativity scene.
Thanks for your perspective, and for your marvelous writing!