Christ is Born!! Glorify Him!!!

“Christ is Born – Glorify Him!” Last year we were absent in the body from each other, but we are always together in spirit! It is wonderful to worship our precious Lord and saviour Jesus Christ together in the flesh once again! We read the timeless Nativity scripture readings, and they fill our hearts and resonate in our minds. At the very depth of our being, our souls have been created to fervently cry out and worship Him who created us and all that exists. We worship True God of True God. Christ who took flesh, was born of His mother, the precious Virgin Mary, the Mother of God, and joined our race. The first true complete human being, born to gather the rest of us into Himself and into our created destiny as sons and daughters of God.

What glory, God’s glorious, incomprehensible, incarnation, given for our salvation from the beginning of creation, to restore us to all that we had been created for! The genealogy – the begots in the beginning of Mathew which we heard last Sunday, which outline the generations from Abraham through to Joakim and Anna and the birth of their daughter, the most holy Theotokos, found worthy to bear within her womb God Himself.  He whom the entire universe could not contain, dwelt in her womb. This had been carefully prepared to bring us this moment which we celebrate today. Christ is Born!

The hundreds of prophecies throughout the Old Testament; Isaiah proclaiming; (9:5-6) “Unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given, and the government shall be upon His shoulder. His name shall be called the Angel of great council, for I shall bring peace upon the rulers, peace and health by Him. Great shall be His government, and of His peace there is no end. His peace shall be upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, to order and establish it with righteousness and judgement, from that time forward and unto ages of ages. The zeal of the Lord of hosts shall perform this.”

Micah: (5:1) “And you, O Bethlehem, House of Ephrathah, though you are fewest in number among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to me the One to be the ruler of Israel. His goings forth were from the beginning, even from everlasting.”

Isaiah: (7:14) “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign; behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and you shall call His name Immanuel.”  

All of this demonstrates that this was God’s plan for our salvation from the beginning!

Today we also commemorate the wise men coming from outside the initiated circle of “God’s chosen people” to worship Him. The Magi; Casper, Melchoir, and Belthasar – whom we commemorate as great saints. They brought Him appropriate gifts. Gold – fit for a King – the King of all creation, Frankincense the finest of incense. Incense is for worshiping God. Every time we offer incense to God during the Orthodox services the priest prays: “We offer You incense O Christ our God for an odor of spiritual fragrance. Accept it on Your heavenly altar and send down on us in return the grace of Your all-holy Spirit.” Myrrh – the finest fragrant oil used to anoint the body for burial, fit to anoint one who will trample down death by death! Myrrh was used by the Nobel Joseph when taking down Christ’s body from the cross. When the gifts are brought to the Altar during the Great Entrance the priest prays: “The Noble Joseph when he had taken down Your most pure body from the tree, wrapped it in fine linen, anointed it with spices, and placed it in a new tomb.”

Christ was worshiped by the simple working people of Israel, the Shepard’s and later the fishermen. Most of the ones who thought they knew all about the coming Messiah – the Priests and Religious leaders of Israel – completely missed the pivotal point of all human history, not realizing that He for whom all creation had been awaiting had even arrived.

The Shepard’s and the wise men, the Magi, represent us, we who are called by Christ to come and allow Him to lead us into His kingdom. Not through accomplishing great works, but by accepting His gift with great humility. For the unfathomable wonder, the incomprehensible riches that He has called us to, can only be received in complete humility. Pride and self- aggrandizement strip us from our destiny and place us in the enemy’s camp. Christ came to call all, not one human being would He desire to have excluded. The way is clearly open now; He has been born to us in a manger in a cave, in great humility and love, and He has hung on the cross and declared “It is finished!” He has shattered the very gates of hades and brought out all the prisoners who would follow Him. He has accomplished everything that He came to do for us when He condescended to come from the very throne of God to the cave in Bethlehem. It is finished, and everything has been completed – except for our part. Christ has invited us to share eternity with Him in His kingdom, starting here and now. To join in communion with God and His angels. He has paved a path straight to Himself for us, that we may take up our place in His kingdom. Everything is ready and prepared. All that is now required is our willingness to come, and to sing with the angels in worship and thanksgiving for all that we have been given!

Today as we celebrate the birth of the Christ child, this greatest day in the history of our race, let us all come and adore Him and give to Him our very lives in gratefulness. For this life, given us by God, is all we really have to offer.

                     Christ is Born!! … Glorify Him!!!

Nativity Troparion         tone 4

Your Nativity, O Christ our God,

has shone to the world the light of wisdom!

For by it, those who worshipped the stars,

were taught by a star to adore You,

the Sun of righteousness,

and to know You, the Orient from on high. //

O Lord, glory to You!

Nativity Kontakion     tone 3

Today the Virgin gives birth to the Transcendent One,

and the earth offers a cave to the Unapproachable One!

Angels with shepherds glorify Him!

The wise men journey with the star,//

since for our sake the eternal God was born as a little Child!

Nativity Vespers     Tone 2

What shall we offer You, O Christ,

Who for our sakes have appeared on earth as a man?

Every creature made by You offers You thanks:

The Angels offer a hymn, the heavens a star.

The wise men gifts; the Shepherds their wonder.

The earth its cave; the wilderness, a manger…

And we offer You a virgin Mother!

O, Pre-eternal God, have mercy on us!