For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.—John 3:16 NIV

God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.—1 John 5:11 NIV

Wander on life’s highway
Wait for a star so bright;
Wake with the angels,
Wonder at the light;
Watch with the shepherds,
Walk through the night;
Whisper by the manger
This Child will make things right.
—Abi May

The Christmas story reminds us once again it was not man’s idea that the Son of God should be born in a stable. And so the first thing we learn from Jesus’ birth is that the Lord will not always be found where we expect to find Him.—James F. Colaianni (b. 1922)

We look for the glory of the life of Jesus in His manhood’s years. Then He wrought great miracles, revealing His divine power. Then He spoke His wonderful words which have touched the world with their influence of blessing. Then He went about doing good, showing the love of God in all His common life and on His cross. …

Yet in no portion of the life of Jesus Christ is there really greater glory than His birth. Nothing showed more love for the world than His condescending to be born. We should say that the heart of the gospel was the cross, but the first act of redemption was the Incarnation, when the Son of God emptied Himself of His divine attributes and entered human life in all the feebleness and helplessness of infancy. In its revealing of love and grace, the cradle of Jesus is as marvelous as His cross.—J. R. Miller (1840–1912) 1

Let us remember that the Christmas heart is a giving heart, a wide-open heart that thinks of others first. The birth of the baby Jesus stands as the most significant event in all history, because it has meant the pouring into a sick world of the healing medicine of love which has transformed all manner of hearts for almost two thousand years.—George Matthew Adams (1878–1962)

He was created of a mother whom He created. He was carried by hands that He formed. He cried in the manger in wordless infancy. He, the Word, without whom all human eloquence is mute.—St. Augustine (354–430)

  1. Bethlehem to Olivet (Hodder and Stoughton, 1905)↑