As the most beautiful of heavenly creations, the angels
played a part in the whole nativity story (foretelling Zechariah and Elizabeth
to be the parents of John the Baptist, a few months later appearing to Mary with
the news that she too was going to have a son, appearing to Joseph as well
telling him of Mary’s pregnancy and reassuring him that it was all part of God’s
plan, and then appearing to the shepherds, of course, announcing the Savior’s
birth).
But have you thought about the fact that they were actually there at
the birth of Christ? The point where heaven and earth actually met and
collided?
These angels were created by Christ, they were with Him in His
heavenly realm and glory, saw what he was giving up… imagine knowing this God
who gave you life, created you to be the bearers of His news throughout
creation… now He was giving it all up to go down THERE?!
As his cherubim
and seraphim must they have thought that this was absolute madness? Would they
have wondered at the sense of the plan? Ever since they had been brought into
existence they had watched Him create - the earth, the universe, witnessed Him
spinning the cosmos, creating us with such care and love, now they were to
witness Him setting aside His glory, His heavenly home, His heavenly robe to put
on a flesh robe, a very costly robe, a plan that would end in His pain and
death…
When God decreed that He was putting on this flesh –
coming as baby no less – needing diapers changed, needing food, being cold,
hungry, alone in their eyes because they as His heavenly host, His army if you
will, would not be staying with Him in quite the same way as they had before...
And the fact that
He would arrive in a dirty stall or cave where animals lay and ate… that gold
and frankincense and myrrh could not compare to all the riches
He would be
leaving - what must they have thought of this sacrifice?
It would be easy
just to say that they would think it crazy – and that may be true – but
I think that when they were told of the plan, the cost, the sacrifice, they
then must have realized just how precious we were to Him and how immense the
sacrifice would be and that they were more than proud, more than humbled, more
than blown away by the fact that they would play such a integral part of that
night.
Of all the figures and beings hovering and kneeling around the stable
at the first Christmas, only the angels knew just how much that Christmas really
cost. Not in dollars and cents, of course, but in sacrifice and love. It cost
Him everything.
They must have watched the event unfolding with wonder
and love for their King… that He would leave their undying worship and love of
Him to be with us. I think they thought how much more blessed we were to be
receiving such a love, and how their hearts were breaking at the thought of the
journey and where it would take Him.
I think those heavenly beings
may have even bordered on jealousy for a moment – in my finite mind I can hardly
comprehend them not being envious as they looked at the love Mary had
for Jesus, the awestruck wonder of the shepherds, heard the earth whisper and
rumbled on a deep level that only their ears and hearts could hear... and that the
most important event in history was beginning right then and there before their
eyes – and it was all for us… not them, but for us… and they realized we would
have the choice to love Him and know Him in a way they never could.
Maybe
this Christmas when we look at the birth of Christ through the eyes of the
angels we can begin to truly see the sacrifice made only for us, and
worship Him in a way only we can.
