Understanding Christmas means.....

For those of you who have been in Sunday School regularly for years have you ever had the thought of "didn't we study those same passages last year at this time?" I would venture to say that this thinking would be especially true for those of you were in Sunday School through out your childhood. I know even for me, someone who did not grow up in church, I have had these kinds of thoughts. In light of this I have made it my goal each year to look at the birth of Christ with a different kind of lens each year. Some years I have examined through the more typical lenses and some years I have sought out those miniscule details and pour over them with a fine tooth comb.

This year God has placed it on my heart to look at the birth of Christ through the light of the Cross. My thinkinking has simply been that while the birth story is amazing and wonderful it is not unique to Christianity. In fact, Muslims agree with us on many of the major elements of the birth if Jesus. Therefore, if I am going to best understand the significance of the birth then I must look at from the view of the Cross (the one thing that sepearates my belief from that of others). To do this I am revisiting an old bible study by Dawson McAllister, A Walk with Christ to The Cross. This bible study will forever remain etched in my mind because it was this very study that we were working through at a  Dawson conference when I first gave my life to Christ.

This week I have been looking over the time of the Passover Feast and the scene in which Judas is identified as the one who would betray Jesus. Have you ever really wondered why judas did what he did. I know that the Bible tells us that Satan entered in to him and from that point forward I believe that Judas has no real understanding of what he is doing but that is only part of the picture. The fact is that the deal to turn over Jesus was already in place before Satan entered in to him. So why was judas so willing to go in that direction?

I think the bottom line was Judas had lost patience with Jesus. He had started following Jesus with the wrong motives and hopes. He had expected Jesus to gather an army of followers that would literally bring about a formal Kingdom here on earth. He believe that Jesus would forcibly remove the Romans from Israel. He wanted to be on the front lines of such an event. At first, it easy to see how Jesus' actions would have coincided with Judas's desires. Over time though we see Jesus saying and doing things that are driving away the large masses and thus ruining whatever chances there was of building up an army to defeat the Romans. As this realization began to come over Judas it is conceivable that Judas had one of two thoughts. 1. If he hands Jesus over to the religious leaders then he forces Jesus' hand and the battle will finally commence. 2. He is spiteful and full of rage and by handing over Jesus exacts some level of vengeance for the 3 years of his life he has spent (wasted) with Jesus.

I am not really sure which path Judas went down and in the end I am not so sure that it matters. What does matter is the way in which Christ handle all of this. Up until the very last possible moment Jesus offerred Judas a second chance. When Jesus dips the bread and offers it to Judas He is essentially giving Judas a peace offering, a means of saying I desire peace between us and you don't have to do this. Judas of course rejects this offer. Jesus does not sulk at this rejection, in fact He basically asserts His authority and orders Judas to do his job quickly.

I cannot imagine how hard that entire scene must have been for Jesus. To be in a place where you are literally face to face with the one who will betray you. To have the armies of heaven at your disposable yet knowing that You cannnot use them because You must go down this path of sufferring and death. To be face to face with a friend who is about to commit a wrong that will be more than he can handle and yet be unable to stop him.

The fact that Jesus willingly placed Himself in this most difficult of positions is amazing. It is my hope that as we approach the day in which we celebrate the birth of Christ that we will always see His birth in light of the great sacrifice He made for us on the Cross.