Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.   (Philippians 2:5-8 ESV)

The Apostle makes it clear that though Jesus was and is one with God, He didn’t view His Divine status as something to be grasped, something to be exploited or taken advantage of for His own gain.

Quite the opposite.  The essence of God’s character is to give, give, give – so our Lord “made himself nothing taking the form of a servant [or slave] being born in the likeness of men….” In coming to earth, Jesus gave up for a time the privileges, the prerogatives, the prestige, the status that were His as God.   In the incarnation, in coming to earth as a babe in a manger, he became as a slave.  He also set aside His visible glory for a time.   His glory was “veiled in flesh.”

But that’s not all.  Jesus, fully human and fully God, humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. This Christmas season, as we celebrate the incarnation in a focused way, may we not disconnect the manger from Jesus’ life and death. May we remember – the One “conceived of the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary,” the One who caused angels and shepherds to praise God, the One the wise men came to see, is also the Lord of the universe.  He is the One who lived the sinless life we couldn’t live.  He died the death we should have died.  And he did this that we might know forgiveness; that we might know eternity in the presence of God.

What a joy it was on the day after Thanksgiving to go with my wife Fibia and our four boys to Coleman’s Christmas Tree Farm to cut down our Christmas tree. This was a wonderful memory for me, to be able to enjoy this special moment with Fibia and our young children. This also was also the first time that I’ve ever cut down a Christmas tree. And without question, my boys derive great joy from seeing me with saw in hand as at this stage of their lives Daddy handling tools uniquely provides me with hero-like status in their eyes. What a great time we had together!

Guys, as you know Christmas can be a great time to surprise and delight your wife in some romantic way. If your wife is a Jane Austen fan, you might consider taking her to the Corbit-Sharp House in Odessa sometime in between now and Dec.31st. The Middletown Transcript notes that the house will host a display of “scenes and vignettes from author Jane Austen’s famous novels.” For more information from the Historic Odessa Foundation click here.