Christmas Pondering

It must have been difficult; for both Mary and Joseph but particularly so for Mary.  He was her child, her FIRST child.  It is almost universally true that an unseen bond is quickly and naturally established between a mother and her child.  That bond is characterized by a fierce protectiveness enhanced by a sharp nurturing instinct and colored with love, pride and self-sacrifice.  “Maternal instincts” is the term we sometimes use to describe it.  I find it curious that such feelings seem to find their beginnings even before young women become mothers.  Watch the behavior of most young childless women when there are babies around and you will see what I mean.

And yet, while it must have been somewhat the same for Mary, there was an added element that made it all quite different.  The circumstances surrounding the birth of the Lord Jesus; the things that happened and the things that were said all caused this young, first-time mother to respond in a way that on more than one occasion is described in the Scripture as treasuring these things and pondering them with her heart.

Side by side with all of the feelings and instincts of new motherhood, Mary was also dealing with the dawning recognition of the fact that this baby was more than merely her baby, her son.  He was the Son of God … the Sacrificial Lamb of God who would die to take away the sin of the world … He was the Savior of the world.  I suspect that, even as a new mother, Mary’s joy in knowing what He was – her son – was far out-stripped by her joy in knowing what He would become – Her Savior!

At Christmas time, there is a tendency to dote over the baby Jesus.  The infant child is often the centerpiece of our Christmas displays.  Children love to hear about Baby Jesus and we sing sweet carols about Him that we never sing at any other time of year, even singing “Happy Birthday” to Him.  It would do us well to take a lesson from Mary.  As wonderful as it is to linger beside the manger and gaze upon the sweet, holy child with His young mother … how much more wonderful to stand, at the same time, beside the Cross and gaze upon the sinless Son bearing the weight of my sin.