Christmas message for Radio 2 Good Morning Sunday on Christmas Day, 25 December 2016
Here’s the secret of Christmas in 20 words: in Jesus, God embraces our poverty, so that in Jesus, God can raise us up to share in his glory. It’s a simple as that and as complex as we are!
We know our poverty: the shallowness of so many of the things we boast about; the mess we make of our world. It is all so clear. Yet God embraces it all because he loves us, each one without exception and all of us together. Out of that unfailing love, he wants to raise us up, so that we stand tall, with elegant poise, rejoicing in all we have been given. That is what we long for but find so elusive.
At the time of his birth, Jesus was spoken of as ‘the rising Sun, come to visit us, to give light to those who live in darkness and to guide our feet into the way of peace.’ (Luke 1.78-79)
Our darkness is real. Our longing is clear. May this coming of Christ give us fresh heart todayand a flow of hope and peace for tomorrow. For this is the secret of Christmas.
A happy Christmas everyone.