Don’t Miss the Bliss!

Have you ever had the experience of missing a train or a flight? I have had both. It’s a mess when we miss. There had been people who have missed blissful situations due to various reasons. I go back to the happenings around the first Christmas event in a time frame of nearly 2000 years back to the land of Palestine. The Jews living during that time of history were waiting for a Messiah who would liberate them from the bondage of the Romans who were ruling their land at that time. We see different attitudes in people who lived during the birth of Jesus because of which they missed the bliss of a historic event in their lives.

Hard-hearted Innkeepers

A liberator appeared for the people in the name of “Jesus.” But who will ever know if he comes knocking at the door step hiding himself inside the womb of a woman? The inn keepers for sure at one look at Mary and Joseph concluded that they were from a poor back ground. They also had a reason: they had no room in the inn. But they could have pitied for a woman who was on the verge of her delivery. They narrowly missed the bliss of having the Savior being born in their inn! The only place that welcomed the Saviour was the manger with the sheep and the cattle in it. Blessed ones!

To people with a cold attitude, Jesus would say on the judgement day: “ I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me…” (Matthew 25:43). Our hard heartedness leads us to a state of unblessedness. We receive Jesus, when we receive least persons in our midst and care for their needs because whatever we do for one of the least, we do for Jesus.’ (V.40).

Insecure Herod and Jerusalemites

King Herod was a mighty man of the time. He knew that the baby that was born was a King. Yet he and all Jerusalem were disturbed because of the birth of the baby. Insecurity plagued them. Part of the fearing of the people of Jerusalem was the fulfillment of the prophecy mentioned in Genesis 49:10: “The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it belongs and the obedience of the nations is his.” Fear and insecurity made a big chunk of the Jerusalem community miss the bliss of the Christ child.

There can be no fear in a blessed situation. Perfect love drives away fear (1 John 4:18). One common message of the first Christmas event to Mary, Zechariah and the shepherds was: "fear not". They did not fear and became the recipients of the greatest blessing in their lives.

Dumb Religious Leaders

The chief priests and the teachers of the law knew the Scriptures and the exact place where the Redeemer would be born. They quoted Micah 5:2 and pointed out the place as Bethlehem. But they did not bother to walk up few miles from Jerusalem to Bethlehem. They were not curious enough to see even whether such an event was true. They for sure missed the bliss of the wonder of wonders of their time. In contradiction, the magi from the east were curious enough and traveled miles to see the King of kings.

The religious leaders knew the Scripture which was not of any use for them. Even satan knows the Scriptures. What is more important is that effort to see for ourselves and experience Christ in the closest proximity. The shepherds in contradiction to the chief priests and teachers of the law were not experts in the Scripture but they had the instinct in them to obey the angelic command and walk up to the manger and see for themselves the Saviour of the world. There were also the old Simon and Anna who lived in the temple of Jerusalem, who received the bliss of seeing the Saviour before their deaths.

Christianity is not a dumb religion. We can feel Christ in us. If you have not done that, start right away.  Caste away any sort of hard heartedness, fear, insecurity, and useless knowledge. Invite Jesus and taste and see that the Lord is good. If you have done that already, enjoy Christ living in you every day of your life. Don’t miss this bliss for anything else! A Happy and Blessed Christmas, folks!