December 2007

Angels feature prominently in the message of Christmas and are depicted in books, Christmas cards, and calendars. They often appear as round-faced, smiling babies, with curly hair, bare bottoms and wings, playing a harp. The word ‘angel’ comes from the Greek word angelos and means ‘a messenger’. Angels appearing in the Bible were usually sent bearing a message from God. Some angels appeared as men and were not recognised as angels. The warrior Gideon didn’t realise that he had been conversing with an angel until the visitor set a rock on fire by tapping it with a cane. It is interesting that usually they greeted a person with the words ‘Fear not’. The reason they said that is that you have every reason to fear these awesome spiritual beings.

Christmas has been made safe by all the camouflage of glitter and tinsel because the real message is dangerous and many people don’t want us to know that. The real message is that the little baby born in the cradle would one day grow up to confront all the forces of evil. The little baby grew up to be a man who forces us to make a choice as to whether we are willing to follow Him and give our lives to Him or continue to ignore him and all he offers. The little baby will one day return as the conquering Lord of lords with a host of an army of angels that no movie could ever depict.

Yes, it is much safer just to see Christmas as glitter and tinsel and a short interlude from the hustle and bustle of life. Someone wrote: ‘If our greatest need had been information, God would have sent us an educator; if our greatest need had been technology, God would have sent us a scientist; if our greatest need had been money, God would have sent us an economist; if our greatest need had been pleasure, God would have sent us an entertainer; but our greatest need was forgiveness, so God sent us a Saviour.

I hope you will meet the Saviour this Christmas and maybe take time to look underneath the trappings of Christmas and find the real excitement of being a follower of the King of kings, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Billy Kelly