Merry Priestly Christmas

Much what we know about Christmas is based on carols and legends that have nothing to do with the biblical event we allegedly celebrate. Once we get past the decked halls, the frosty snowmen, and the eight tiny reindeer, we still labor under false ideas that color our understanding. For example, we don’t know (biblically) that there were three wise men; three gifts, yes; men, not for sure. The star the magi saw was not in the east; they were from the east where they saw the star in their western sky. It’s highly unlikely that there was snow on the ground on the night Christ was born. The Bible says the shepherds were in the fields watching their sheep; they weren’t stupid – they didn’t take their flocks out during winter. Regardless, the eventual dating of Christmas on December 25 for convenience sake has duped people into imagining a white Christmas on that fateful night in Bethlehem.

It's humorous to hear children ask why round John Virgin was away in the manger with Mother and Child, but if we are not careful, the eternal truth, the life-saving details of the Christmas story get lost in the mythology. Although it is not wrong to marvel that a King was born in a stable, Jesus was more than just a King. Truth be told, His role as an earthly King is one that is still in our future. He made this clear to His disciples just before His ascension. They asked if He was going to usher in the kingdom at that time. From His answer to them, we infer a “No. Not now.” His directions were to go to Jerusalem and wait for their marching orders.

When the Holy Spirit came ten days later on the Day of Pentecost, the disciples were given a clearer picture of who Jesus was and what He had come to do. They did see themselves as ambassadors of the coming Kingdom of Heaven, but they finally understood that its full realization on earth was something they had to work on and wait for. They may have been disappointed that Jesus had not come to conquer the Romans and free the Jews, but they learned instead that the incarnation of the Son of God involved a three-part program. First, Jesus was the prophet like Moses who was foretold. Looking back, we see this as His primary role while He was walking the roads of first-century Palestine. He  fulfilled the office of prophet by telling people what God wanted of them, and He gave some hints about how their future would play out.

There is another role assigned to the infant Savior that would precede His crowning as the ultimate King. He is a priest of the One True God. The Protestant Reformation may have left a bad taste in people’s mouths when it comes to priests. As Martin Luther rightly pointed out, the Roman Catholic priesthood was messed up. They had begun to do all the distasteful things the writers of the New Testament predicted. They stole the direct access to God from believers and replaced it with the system of works righteousness the Bible condemns. Grace had become a benefit granted by the church rather than the free gift of God through faith. From priest to bishop to cardinal to pope the traditions of men had supplanted the wisdom of God.

But if we disregard the role of Jesus Christ as our High Priest, we lose the wonder of His church-age role as our intercessor before the Heavenly Father. We may also miss the fact that we are all priests under His high priestly administration. Peter reminds us that believers are a royal priesthood. What that means is that we have an intercessory role to play. Just after Paul told the Corinthians that they were new creatures in Christ, he reminded them: “Therefore we are ambassadors on behalf of Christ, as if God were imploring you through us. We beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.” Ambassadors serve a priestly role in that they represent the foreign ruler to the visited people, as Paul says, “And all these things are from God, who has reconciled us to himself through Christ, and who has given us the ministry of reconciliation.”

We are living in a world populated by people who see God as a foreign king. No one serves Him without first being reconciled or repatriated if you will. The truth is that everyone born of Adam is an enemy of God. Keep in mind that God doesn’t send anyone to hell; everyone is born going to hell by virtue of their lineage: “Just as in Adam all die; so also in Christ all will be made alive.” It is our job as ambassadors and under-priests of Jesus to make that fact known. The good news is that we don’t have to offer sacrifices anymore; Christ is the sacrificial Lamb who takes away the sin of the world. Our priestly mission is to let people know that the sacrifice is available to all who will believe.

Joy to the world / The Lord has come / Let Earth receive her Prophet, Priest, and King. Until the fullness of that message is accepted and believed, a future life in a blissful kingdom is a pipe dream. Much of the world borrows false hope from the Hallmark presentation of the Infant Savior of Bethlehem. Unless a person accepts Christ’s sacrifice on the cross as a personal payment for their sin, the Prophet declares that the King will come as judge and the verdict will not be welcome. Go caroling with that message this Christmas if you dare. It is your priestly duty after all. Merry Christmas?