The Characters of Christmas

Family policy matters, and engaging in weekly radio show and podcast produced by the North Carolina family policy Council hi this is John Rustin presidency family and were grateful to have you with us for this week's program is our prayer that you will be informed, encouraged and inspired by what you hear on family policy matters and that you will for better equipped to be a voice of persuasion for family values in your community, state and nation, and now here's our house to family policy matters tracing to veterans welcome to family policy matters of radio show and Comcast from the North Carolina family policy Council. Tracy did at Greg's Dir. of communications at NC family as part of the celebration of Jesus's birth were to take a break from our normal public policy topics to bring you some readings from the author of a book entitled the characters of Christmas by Dan Darling.

Danis played a special role here at NC family this year is writing, inspired our end of year theme that you've heard so much about behind every issue is a person, which stems from a body of work surrounding his earlier book, the dignity revolution.

Characters of Christmas. Dan Darling helps us take a fresh look at this age-old story mostly by providing parallels from today's culture and in a very informal way, helping us understand what the characters might've been feeling and placing us squarely in their shoes.

Will Dan begins by reading an excerpt from the chapter on Zachariah and Elizabeth we find Zachariah right after he has questioned the word of an angel who told him that his wife was well past childbearing age would soon have a son. God loves to hear her doubts to field questions to hear our anguish cries, but it is disbelief that is a sin, our unwillingness to trust that God can do the impossible and so Zechariah's punishment was to be struck mute for the duration of Elizabeth's pregnancy and the way this affliction was less of a punishment and more of a gift from God to not speak would be to sit in silence before God to quiet the chattering of the soul, the noise of his circumstances in a way this is a work God seeks to do in the heart of all of us. Christmas is a good time to practice silence to sit and listen to the voice of God to put away the devices and the inputs that so often keep us from faith.

A priest who often spoke words of blessing on God's people would be silenced and would emerge with a renewed faith in the possibility of God's promise. Sometimes God has to quiet us so we can hear sometimes we have to be still, so we can see him move. Sometimes our words and our busyness get in the way of our faith, they form a cynical shell around our hearts. Next let's take a look at Mary who is just received her own surprising news. Gabriel didn't choose to make this announcement to Herod's daughter or a member of elite Jewish society, but to a poor, illiterate, unimportant Jewish girl in Nazareth named Mary as we celebrate Advent this season and as we examine all the characters of Christmas there is none so unlikely to be at the center of this divine story is Mary.

Mary was not looking for prominence. She was like every other Jewish peasant girl in Nazareth simply living out in ordinary life in an ordinary town with unassuming dreams. Yet it is Mary who not only received the first announcement of the Christ child, but he was chosen by God to bear the son of God. This tells us something about Mary. Her simple faith and her willingness to say yes to God.

But it tells us more about Mary's God, we often think God works through extreme giftedness are among those who are wealthy and well-connected but the Christmas story reminds us that God moves in and among those whom society most often leaves behind the threat of redemption woven throughout Scripture winds its way through a lot of small towns and seemingly little lives. Nobody knew Mary's name nobody but God, of course, and God knows your name. This is what it means that God is Immanuel. He visits a lowly of station and lowly of heart he dwells among the broken and the contrite. To quote the hymn writer Charles Wesley Jesus has come to earth to taste her sadness. He whose glories no no end. Our next character in this Christmas story is the innkeeper we are tempted the hindsight of 20 centuries to judge the innkeeper not found better accommodations for Jesus could not have given up his own bed for pregnant woman. But before we judge we should examine our own hearts this Christmas we too are often disrupted by Jesus.

We are religious up and to the point. It costs something we want to Jesus who forms himself around her priorities and who could be sprinkled on top of our agendas. But Jesus invades our lives and disrupts them. He asked us to leave our nets and followed him. He asked us to drop our ambitions and join his mission. He asked us to leave behind her idols and worship and with devotion while we were yet sinners, or were apathetic, ignorant and unphased Jesus came for us. This is the Jesus who knocks you listening to family policy matters weekly radio show and podcast of the North Carolina family policy Council. This is just one of the many ways NC family works to educate and inform citizens across North Carolina about policy issues that impact North Carolina families. Our vision is to create a state and nation were God is honored religious freedom flourishes families for in life is cherished. For more information about his family and how you can help us achieve this incredible vision for North Carolina Internation. Please visit our website@ncfamily.org that's NC family.org and be sure to sign up to receive our email updates, action alerts, and of course her flagship publication family North Carolina magazine. We also look for you to follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Now let's hear about the wisemen. Why were they chosen to be among the first to recognize and worship the child Jesus. Most of Israel slept in spiritual lethargy and those who knew the Scriptures, the scribes and the chief priests were more fearful of Herod than God. These men had the faith to worship the one who deserved worship Jesus. The presence of these men from the East outsiders Gentiles is a confirmation of God's promise to send a Messiah would not only be the king of the Jews, but a Messiah for the nations. Jesus kingdom is a kingdom not just for insiders but for outsiders. In fact, many insiders those who were closest to Jesus were most resistant to his message and so it often is today, those who are most church are often those who are so blinded by self-righteousness that they cannot see we cannot see the gospel and so it is often those who seem so far from God whom God is spirit is drawing the chapter entitled the monster Christmas begins by recounting the more modern villains of Christmas. Mr. Potter from it's a wonderful life the Grinch who stole Christmas and Scrooge in the Christmas Carol.

The original Christmas story has its own monster, though his cruelties are far from cute. Herod is a legitimate villain, which is why he's not usually included in many Christmas stories.

I don't think any nativity sets include this guy but Herod figures very prominently in the Christmas story to ignore him is to not only ignore the world into which Jesus was born, but to miss an important thread in God's grand plan of redemption underneath the warm glow of our Christmases is a dark threat of violence, signs of a cosmic war against all that is good Christmas then began long before that starry night in Bethlehem. It began eternity in the councils of the Trinity is God plan to redeem the world from sin. This would involve a long and bloodied struggle between the offspring of Satan and the seed of the woman we see this played out on the pages of the Old Testament were page after page, we find seemingly parallel tracks of good and evil. So now you know that when we read Matthew's account of the birth of Christ and it says in Matthew 21 that Jesus was born in the days of Herod, you know he is writing this narrative as a continuation of what had come before for Jesus to be born.

In these days of Herod might have been the worst possible time for a new king of Israel to be born, but Matthews framing his book not as a tidy biography of Jesus, but is the clash of kingdoms.

The next character is that we visited in our reading by Dan Darling through his book the characters of Christmas are Simeon and Anna, two who were quote clinging to a distant promise in beseeching God to bestow upon the earth that long promised Messiah. This is the central message of Christmas know that today as you read this you are enveloped in the warmth and busyness of another December. But as much as we enjoy the season. Let us remember that we set aside time. As believers, not merely together with family or sip warm beverages, but to acknowledge the central truth of Christianity. Jesus has come to save us from our sins. This Jesus Simon new wasn't just an ordinary baby. He may not have understood exactly how it would all play out in order to fully grasp the mystery of God becoming human. Neither do we.

But Simon knew enough to know that Jesus would not only be the long-awaited Messiah. Every Jewish person long to see he would be a light for the Gentiles. This is repeated often in the gospel narratives of Jesus birth and Mary saw in Zechariah's price in the words of the angel to Joseph Jesus was and is a savior for the entire world. It's important for us to understand this truth. Sometimes we are tempted to think Jesus came only to save people who look like us, but we are told from the promise to Abraham in Genesis to the words of the prophets and on into the gospel narratives and onto the letters of Paul and into John's vision and revelation that the kingdom of God is made up of people from every nation, tribe and tongue and let's not forget the great cost of our salvation this day in the temple was a day of celebration and dedication.

But Simon's words were not at all pleasant for Mary to hear, especially his proclamation that a sword will pierce her soul. This is not what new mothers exactly want to hear about their motherhood, but Simon knew that the promise carried joy and pain blessing and anguish the baby whom Simon held who cooed and kicked and delighted his young parents would one day endure the unjust trial motivated by bloodthirsty crowds, the very people he formed his creator would laugh at his cries of pain the world, he came to save would send him to his death. Most of all, the father, with whom he communed in all eternity would see his son.

That is the pure and spotless lamb but is the embodiment of all the sin and anguish of a rebellious human race. But Mary, like all those who believe could find hope that the baby she held would not only pay for the sins of those who nailed him to the cross but would defeat death in his resurrection. Her son would endure all of this to reconcile sinners like yourself like Simeon like you and me and God.

Jesus future agony would be our salvation and God's glory. Perhaps this is a dreary day for you when you're not feeling all the Christmas feels. Maybe you are lonely and discouraged. Perhaps you've been rejected. But know this, if you are in Christ God leverage the entire universe to shout to you.

His message of love and true you to himself and listening to excerpts from the book the characters of Christmas read by the author Dan Darling as we wrap up 2019. I'd like to send a shout out to our radio show crew Brittany Farrell, Eileen Brown and her editor and general get it all done person Callie Mangum.

Thank you all for your work in a big thank you to all of our listeners and supporters as well.

By listening and learning you become a resource of good information in your community when you respond to our email alerts.

You are the voice for North Carolina families speaking into the legislative process.

When you donate and see family. You allow us to continue our presence at the North Carolina Gen. assembly building relationships, supporting good laws and policies and being your voice on issues that could be harmful to North Carolina families 2020 is sure to be a challenging year. Stay tuned and see family by visiting our website@ncfamily.org and signing up for email updates. Thanks again for joining us on family policy matters