Two Christmas Trees

At Christmas, we get down to one of the roots of Christianity.  God, greater than Zeus, Odin, Vishnu, Allah, or any of the other impersonal constructs of our superstitious imaginations, came off his throne of glory, into a bed of straw, and onto a cross to rescue us from death.  Immortal, invisible, God only-wise became mortal and visible so that he could be a legitimate hero in our Story, so that he could shed human blood for human sins, and so that he could die a real death to save us from real damnation.  At Christmas, this all started.  At Christmas, our hero-knight entered the story.

I recently told this another way to our students in Assembly.  In the Garden of Eden, Adam sinned at a tree.  At Calvary, Christ (the "second Adam") saved us on a tree (the cross).  At the Garden of Eden, Adam ate the forbidden fruit and received the cup of God's wrath.  In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus accepted the cup of God's wrath on our behalf.

So as we gear up for Christmas and enjoy our decorated trees, let's think about the two historical Trees they point to -- Adam's sinful tree and Christ's redemptive "tree."  And as we look at Baby Jesus underneath the tree, let's remember (in songwriter Andrew Peterson's words) this baby's past resume: Maker of the Moon, Author of the Faith.  And now, lying in the feeding trough, his next job is to slay the Dragon.

And all of it is for us.

Grace and Peace, Nate Ahern