The Dark Side of Christmas - Pt 6

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!” (Luke 2:13-14 ESV). What could possibly be “dark” when reading this text today? After all, the angels of heaven are praising God before these shepherds in the fields outside of Bethlehem. They are this grand heavenly choir with their angelic voices singing, aren’t they? Well, the answer is not quite as it might seem from our English translations. The Greek word translated “host” here is the word stratia, a word that almost always denotes an “army.” It’s a military word. Their praising may have had more “shout” than “sing” to it. Remember that Christmas is the beginning of war, the war engineered by the devil and his “hosts” against the newborn Son of God (cf. Revelation 12:1-6). Well, Jesus has a heavenly army too, and they are ready here to do battle on behalf of their God. Do you remember the confrontation in the Garden of Gethsemane? The soldiers come to arrest Jesus; Judas is there to betray him with a kiss. They are armed to take him by force is necessary. Peter is surprised and reacts immediately by drawing his sword and cutting the ear off one of the opposing men. Jesus simply tells him to sheath his sword. Peter must have thought Jesus was crazy. This was only going to end in one way, and that was not a pleasant thought. Jesus reminded him though: “Put your sword back in its place . . . Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels?” (cf. Matthew 26:53 ESV). These are the very same angels praising God before the shepherds. These are the angels who are ready to make sure that Jesus remains alive until he fulfills his mission, to die on the cross for the salvation of humanity. We need to remember that Jesus’ birth signaled the beginning in earnest of the war between Satan and God. It was an escalation of the conflict to a point of no return. Someone would win and someone would lose. Of course, we now know the end of this story. Jesus wins! It may seem very dark in your world today. May I remind you that there really is no darkness so pervasive that the Light of the World cannot overcome it? Jesus has already won. The angels shout because of the victory, not as a motivation to battle. When Jesus was born and laid in that manger, they knew that the battle’s outcome had now been finalized. Now it was merely a matter of time before “peace on earth and good will toward men” would be a reality. Let that reality engulf your mind and spirit in a way that will assuage your fears and lighten your burden. The angels shout… join them, won’t you?