Out Our Way: Thinking of mangers - Luke 2:1-20

Out our way, the trail for home always seems to take forever, but at the same time it is when the heart is lighter and the aches and pains of the day seem less. As I have noted before, ole Doc always seems to have a bit more zip in his gait, holds his head a bit higher, and certainly is in a better mood on the back trail, heading for the stable and manger. He knows what is waiting at the end of this day’s trail and it gives him great joy to know it.

Naturally, “mangers” are a popular theme this time of year for those who recall the CHRISTmas story and not merely the sales gimmick variety. Nothing wrong singing about fictional flying reindeer, but don’t forget the real flying angels that actually did appear on the first CHRISTmas. And that brings back to the subject of mangers.

As most of us recall, Christ was born in a stable and laid in a manger. Romantic in pictures perhaps, but I doubt Mary and Joseph thought so. Yet it is the sign the angels gave to the shepherds — the Jewish equivalent to the cowboy in many ways. Shepherds were looked down upon by society and were not welcomed by most folks. Yet God chose them to be the first to bear witness to the prophecy Isaiah had declared so many years before — that a virgin would conceive and bear a son and call him “Immanuel” — Hebrew for “God is with us. Isaiah 7:10-16.

Of all the worthy people of Judah, God chose shepherds to be the first. And they found the Messiah in a stable lying in a manger. Hardly upper class, what what? Imagine, the lowest of the low being exalted by God by being the first to come to the manger. And here we see the image of the manger transformed. For what is a manger? A feeding tough. A place of nourishment and rejuvenation. A place where life is sustained and restored and increased. Consider Doc’s excitement at being on the trail to the manger and all it meant. Now consider the shepherds — and us — being invited to the manger, which is really the table of God. Yes, kings and emperors will also come in time and bow before the Christ — but they have to wait their turn. Shepherds come first to the manger.

The lowly start of Christ’s ministry began in a stable and His throne was a feeding trough. But can you think of a better way to make it absolutely clear that CHRISTmas is for everybody — that nobody is rejected from coming in. The lowest of the low in society have no sense of inferiority or being unwelcome by the God who came to us lying in a manger. It reminds us there is no barrier between Christ and ourselves unless we put it there. And consider the symbolism of the manger - it is not a throne to ensure we realize how unworthy we are to come into God’s presence — but a welcoming place that invites us all to come in out of the cold, be fed, restored and renewed. Read Paul’s “CHRISTmas message in Romans 1:1-6.

Yup, it seems to me the manger is a pretty great symbol of what CHRISTmas is. See you at the Table.

Be blessed and be a blessing!

Brother John