He Stands By You
And she gave birth to her first born son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the in. Luke 2.7
Who is this child who was born the son of Mary? Notice I do not say who was he. Christmas is not a birthday celebration of a man who lived long ago. True he lived and died but He also rose from the dead. Therefore, Jesus lives and is present among us now. And He lives and is present as the God who stands by you! He stands by you without an ulterior motive and thinking of himself. He does not stand by you as a friend or member of your family does. There is always a shadow of doubt with all of our earthly relationships. No matter who or how close they are to us, there are always some reciprocal expectations. But that is not the case with Jesus. He stands by you without thinking of Himself, nor demanding anything from you. He reaps no benefit from it. He is concerned only with you.
Furthermore, Jesus stands by you as the Son of God and thus with authority and power. No one else can stand by you with such unlimited power and authority. But Jesus does not use his authority and power indiscriminately or force it upon you. He will only use it when you invite Him to do so. When you do He uses it to help you no matter how much it may cost Him to shield you from your enemies, the worst one being yourself! Jesus was born on Christmas Day to save you from your own insecurities, doubts, and unreasonable demands upon yourself. He was born to free you from the darkness of your heart and soul.
But how does He do this? There was no room in the inn for Joseph and Mary, no room for Son of God to enter the world He created. He was rejected before he was even born! Let us not be too harsh on the innkeeper for we too are quick to reject letting the Son of God enter into the inns of our lives. The excuses are many. Maybe we’re too busy preparing for Christmas. I don’t have time for Jesus right now. I have too many presents to buy and Christmas parties to attend. Or maybe we’re too worried about paying the bills, preparing for our winter vacations or worried about whatever we choose to worry about.
We might be too busy to let Jesus into our lives but I dare say that’s not the real reason. Jesus did not find room in the inn but this did not hinder Him from being born elsewhere. It wasn’t the nicest of places. It was likely an open air stable full of smelly and dirty animals. It certainly was not a cozy and warm place as many Christmas cards portray. It was a dark, uncomfortable and scary place. Yet in this place God became man so He can stand by us.
Jesus comes to stand by us in the dark and uncomfortable places of our heart, soul and mind. It’s the place we do not want to go to because we don’t want to admit there is such a place. We don’t want to admit that deep down we are poor beggars, lost sinners, and people who have lost their way. Yet that is where Jesus sets up His quarters. It’s the only place you can meet Him. You need not be scared to go there because He will stand by you no matter what. So let us not be ashamed that the donkey and oxen are close by. For it is there where Jesus stands by us!