Between The Occupied Cradle and The Empty Tomb
He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.
- (Matthew 28: 06) -
All of us would carefully remember what happened the night when Christ Jesus was born. Shepherds were keeping watch at night in the fields, and then "an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Saviour has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger (Luke 02: 09-12).
A week ago, we would have come across another important event in the gospels that tells us what happened to two women, namely Mary Magdalene and the other Mary (according to Matthew's gospel), who went to see the tomb in which they had laid Jesus. There was an angel at the empty tomb, and the angel said to the women, Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay (Matthew 28: 05-06).
Do those words and the incidents ring a bell of hope in your heart? Look at Christ's birth and Christ's resurrection. Imagine the shepherds of Bethlehem and the women in Jerusalem. Both incidents bring good news to a hopeless world. Both situations were occupied by people who were looked down on and were marginalised. At Christ's birth, the angels ask the shepherds to go and find the baby lying in the manger, but in Christ's resurrection, the angels say that Jesus is not here and invite the women to come and witness the empty tomb. The comforting phrase of hope, "Do Not Be Afraid," reverberates so clearly in both of these historic moments. The echo of this hope is amplified in our minds, too. This is the fulfilment that the occupied cradle of Bethlehem and the empty tomb of Jerusalem bring to the world. It is within these two incidents that a Christian's witness of Christ begins and finds fulfilment in the everlasting presence of Christ in this world.
As followers of Christ, we are challenged by these two marvellous events. Both of these incidents call us to witness and then to share what we have witnessed. We are witnesses of Christ's birth and His resurrection, and we are called to take forward the good news - "Do Not Be Afraid." In the manger, they found the baby, but in the tomb, they did not find Him. But what is so common about the shepherds of Bethlehem and the women of Jerusalem is that they were called to witness. Unable to keep the weight of hope within themselves, the shepherds and the women ran, sharing the good news of hope they had found. As we look back at the entire season of Christmas and Easter, we could ask, to what extent are we assured of the hope we find in Christ's life and ministry of service in this world? Moreover, to what extent are we sharing the hope we find in Him?
Christ calls us to be hopeful and to share the hope. He calls us to be witnesses of His birth and resurrection. He calls us to be His true servants as we share the fulfilment we find between the cradle and the tomb. Listening to this great call and diligently serving would be the fulfilment of God's purpose in our lives.
May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us, now and forever more. Amen.
May God bless you.
Yours in Christ,
Ebenezer Breman Veerasingam
"I Hear Your Call 🎶"
by Alexander James
