The birth of Jesus tells me that God, the ruler of the universe, loves and cares about me. That is a concept at once humbling and ennobling. It shows me that I am not in charge around here. My ego has to adjust to his will. But it also indicates that the choices I make and the things I do are important, that they have broader effects than the immediate.
The fact that the Lord humbled himself to be born as a baby sets an example of humility that runs cross-grain to my human impulses. I would like the world to center around me and mine, but the example of Jesus shows me that I should aim higher, reach broader, than my normal human impulses.
The implication of this fact is that God cares about all his people. He wants good for each of us, but not for any of us at the expense of anyone else. God loves and cares for all of us just as he loves and cares for me.
Jesus came to earth to teach us love, both by word and by example. We love others as we love ourselves. We seek good for others as we do for ourselves. And we give of ourselves for others as a pale reflection of the sacrificial love God showed for us in the person of his Son Jesus. |
