The Attitudes of Advent (part 1)

I know that we all like our nice and neat nativity sets that are on our mantle or tables. But, I think, because we are so used to seeing them in that pose that we loose sight of the reality of who they were. The Christmas story is more than just the birth of the Savior, it also gives us a wonderful view of how the first people to hear or know about the coming King reacted... and it wasn't the nice neat nativity scene that we see today!

Let's take a closer look at some of the characters in the nativity narrative.

Mary...

She was a young, probably teenage, Jewish girl that was pregnant outside of marriage. That's not the best situation to be in. She lives in an ultra-religious culture, and for all intents and purposes is a harlot. In fact, there are even records from antiquity that allege that she had an affair with a Roman guard, but had to keep it concealed. Most of us remember the angel coming down to Mary and telling her that she was been chosen by God, but do you remember her first reaction?... "How can this be?..." She was confused, knowing full well what was in front of her as an unwed pregnant teen.

Joseph...

The bible does not tell us how much time elapsed between the angel coming to Mary, and the message given to Joseph. However, because we know that Joseph wanted to "divorce her quietly" we can infer that the messages weren't simultaneous. He knew that she was pregnant, and being the devout Jew that he was, wanted to divorce her, but he also didn't want to disgrace her. Then, the angel shows up. I'm sure that Mary would have told Joseph about the angel and the message that she had been given, and the baby that they were going to have. So, the question must be asked, why did Joseph still want to divorce her? In my opinion, he was doubtful. Just as much as any man would be today if his fiance said that to him.

Shepherds...

Now, for me, the shepherds are the comedy relief, and oddly the best part of the Christmas story. Shepherds were dirty people. They lived out in the fields with their flock. In a culture that had a million and half rules about washings, this was not the top of the list on the job market. They would have been looked at as a "lower" class of Jews. So, why is this the group that the heavenly host of angels? I think even in the birth of His son, God the Father is showing that Jesus didn't just come to the rich, but His life and ministry would be to those who needed Him, regardless of social or economic standards. The shepherds immediately dropped what they were doing and left to find Jesus.


The Christmas story is a story of faith. Don't forget that people today still have different reactions to the birth, life, death, and Resurrection of Jesus. It's not a new thing, but we must be ready to see past the smoke screen and look to the heart of the issue. Jesus came to save...

- Just a thought.