Back in the 80s, singer Mark Lowry began writing the lyrics for a song that has grown to become a Christmas favorite. It’s titled, “Mary Did You Know?” It might surprise you to know the answer. There's also another important question that can be asked along with it.

No Christmas gift is of much use if you leave it in the box. It’s not surprising how many people love to think of the “little Lord Jesus asleep on the hay” at Christmas. What is surprising, is when they leave Him there. Here’s the gift that’s no longer in the box. Here’s our Savior who is no longer "away in the manger," in the feed box. And look at all that comes with this gift.

There’s a great English tradition of popping Christmas Crackers at this time of the year. The cracker is a brightly wrapped cardboard tube that’s twisted on the end. Two people, one each side, grab and end of it and pull. When it pops open with a bang, inside is found a colorful tissue paper crown; a small trinket for a prize, and a piece of paper with a riddle or a joke. In Galatians, Paul sounds the good news of our Savior's birth with a bang, presents the crown of our salvation, solves a riddle and reveals the prize of eternal life in Christ.

But now, everything has changed with the birth of our Savior.

If Christmas could have been cancelled it would have been. Not this year’s Christmas, but the first Christmas itself. But here’s the wonderful thing. Jesus did come! Christmas has arrived! Our Savior is born and He has brought salvation with Him. The circumstances of this year bring into unique clarity all that is unchanged – and all which can never be cancelled – God’s eternal love for you and His gift of a Savior.

This night of our holy Savior’s birth is not a distraction from this fear-filled and inquity-infected world, it’s the antidote! It’s the front page news announcing the cure for sin, shame and death. In love, God sent His Son to save us! The angel reports, “You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

This year you and I have been told not to hit the road, not to book flights and not to line up for the train. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend “postponing travel and staying home, as this is the best way to protect yourself and others this year.” As you and I kick the rug and lament that we’re going to be on our own this year for Christmas, it might be useful to recall that’s how seems Joseph and Mary found themselves as the events of that first Christmas drew near.

“With so much going on in the world right now …” Have you heard that phrase recently? It’s been used to launch any number of conversations and news stories this past year. But, it's also a phrase that's been used in almost every year. In the Christmas Gospel, Luke lifts our sight to see the hand of God at work in the midst of all of it. God was pleased to move empires and all of history to ensure your eternal redemption.

It’s the kind of thing that you read and hear about, but you never expect it’s going to happen to you. Mary may have thought this as she heard the angel's announcement. As you hear the familiar words of the Christmas Gospel this week, we have read them and heard them before. But God wants you to know that these words of the forgiveness His Son came to bring are for you.

Living Christmas trees have caught on in recent years. As opposed to cut trees, these trees are sold in containers of soil and intended for replanting after its use as a Christmas tree. They usually usually include such varieties as Spruce, Pines and Firs. Hey, but what about ... an oak? Okay, chances are good that you may not think about an oak tree when we think of Christmas, but Isaiah uses this interesting image to describe the wonderful salvation that God has given to us.