“This child is destined to cause many in Israel to fall, and many others to rise. He has been sent as a sign from God, but many will oppose him. As a result, the deepest thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your very soul” (Luke 2:34, 35).
The Christmas story is full of opposites. On one hand, we have the much-awaited arrival of baby Jesus. On the other hand, we have a mean king who wants to hurt Him. We have a miracle pregnancy and birth, followed soon after by the young family having to flee for their lives in the middle of the night. We have Jesus’ birth ignored by the important people in positions of power but celebrated by a group of scruffy shepherds. Sometimes it can be hard to make sense of all these opposites.
