So, are you ready for Christmas?

There’s food to buy, things to cook and bake, decorations to put up.

And I wonder if you have bought all your presents. Done all the wrapping?

Let me ask you: Are you the type who does their Christmas shopping at 4pm on Christmas Eve; or the type who has everything bought and wrapped by August?

For those who prepare for Christmas well in advance, you may be interested to know that preparations for the first Christmas took a great deal longer.

It all started way back in the book of Genesis.

In Genesis chapter 3, we are told that a descendant of Eve will come and destroy the work of the devil. Many years later, in the book of Deuteronomy, we read of a prophet like Moses who will be raised up from among God’s people, Israel. Thousands of years later, Jesus said, “If you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote about me.” (John 5: 46)

In the book of 2 Samuel, a prophet declares to King David that his royal throne will be established forever. Jesus would come from the line of David, who in turn came from the line of Judah.

The Prophet Micah (prophesying hundreds of years before Jesus) said,

“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,

though you are small among the clans of Judah,

out of you will come for me

one who will be ruler over Israel,

whose origins are from of old,

from ancient times.” (Micah 5: 2)

Somebody from Judah’s line will come - a ruler, whose origins are from old. (I wonder if that means from eternity past – Heaven perhaps?). That person is going to be born in Bethlehem.

And Isaiah prophesied “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel.” The baby will be born to a virgin. We know Mary was a virgin when she gave birth to Jesus. And the prophecy said he will be called Emmanuel, which means God with us.

By the time Jesus was born there was great expectation of a coming king, a Messiah, from the line of Judah, through David, yet coming from eternity past; a prophet like Moses; he will be born of a virgin, and he will be God walking among us.

So, the time came for a secular government to announce a census, which meant that the newly married Joseph and Mary (pregnant with child) had to travel to Bethlehem. Upon arrival, she gave birth to a child. God with us in human form had arrived. The first Christmas was literally thousands of years in the making.

Many of us will be familiar with the Christmas Nativity – the picture or model of characters from the Christmas story.

We often see these printed on Christmas cards or displayed in churches. Mary is crouched down beside the newborn Jesus who is lying in a straw-filled manger. Joseph, her husband, leans over close to her shoulder and then, further out, a handful of shepherds with their sheep and lambs look on in wonder. On the opposite side to the shepherds, Magi (or “wise men” as they are sometimes called), dressed in expensive robes and embroidered turbans present their mysterious gifts.

Everything is arranged and posed for the perfect photo opportunity.

The original Christmas events, of course, were nothing like this! The Magi likely arrived some considerable time after the birth (up to two years), so they never met the shepherds. Having just given birth, Mary probably did not feel like smiling for any camera, had they existed; and then there would have been the smell! A variety of animals in close proximity with everything that comes with them.

But what the scene does show us is a snapshot of the kind of people God loves to bless and include in His plans.

Nine months before, Mary, a young and innocent teenager, had said ‘yes’ to God’s announcement that the Holy Spirit will grow a new life within her, even though she faced the risk of being shamed and losing her husband-to-be, Joseph. In an extraordinary moment, when we might imagine the angels in Heaven holding their breath in anticipation, she simply said, “May it be to me according to your word” (Luke 1: 38).

We meet Joseph in Matthews gospel after he has found out the news. The feeling of betrayal in his heart would have been overwhelming, but even before the angel fills him in on the details, he puts his mind at rest, and Joseph’s plans to call off the wedding are replaced with genuine kindness and compassion. This descendant of David has a heart like God’s.

Joseph and Mary do get married, of course, and head to Bethlehem to fulfill the requirements of the Roman census. On the night of the birth, local shepherds also have an encounter with an angel, and then more angels. You have to ask: why would God choose shepherds? Shepherds were not found in the upper echelons of society. Shepherds were nobody. But God loves the humble and so he chose them to hear his big announcement.

Finally, stargazers from another land were drawn to the Christ-child. For reasons known only to them, they were compelled to honour the boy and his parents with gifts that speak of royalty (gold), relationship with God (frankincense that was burned in the temple) and a message that, somehow, his death will be important (Myrrh). The Magi were seekers and worshippers. They were people who recognised God’s leading and simply obeyed.

There it is – a simple nativity. Each character representing real people who have an incredible story to tell.

For two days shy of six weeks, Moses had been alone on a mountain in the very presence of God. During that time, he received detailed instructions for the building of a tabernacle, where sacrifice and offerings would become the norm and where the people would meet with God.

The walls, furniture and utensils would be made from materials given freely by the Israelite community, from young and old, from everyone ‘whose heart moved him’ (Ex 25: 1). The donations were so generous that Moses was eventually forced to call for a stop to the giving (Ex 36: 6).

It is one particular aspect of God’s instructions to Moses that fascinates me – in Exodus chapter 28: the design of the priests clothing, their uniform for carrying out their duties. The first couple of verses outline God’s purpose for Aaron and his sons to wear special garments – ‘for glory and for beauty’, it says. The reason they had particular clothes to wear was for glory and beauty.

Nearly every other item to be manufactured for the tabernacle had a clear function. The alter was made to burn the sacrifices, the lampstand to light the room and the ark to contain the 10 commandments. What were the priests’ clothes for? Glory and beauty.

Today, God requires no tabernacle to meet with his people. Jesus’ death on the cross has provided a way for us come into his presence through a simple prayer of repentance and faith. Collectively we become building blocks of a new holy place – the church. The New Testament is clear: every time we gather together in his name, God is there too.

So, what are churches for? Why do they exist? I’m sure, between us, we could come up with a sizable list of functions, from preaching and teaching to ministering to the poor, to sharing the Gospel and so on, but I wonder how many would say, ‘churches exist for glory and beauty’?

You see, the church is also described as a bride, so, question: what is usually said of a bride as she walks down the aisle towards her husband-to-be? Easy - She is beautiful! Right?

I recently, and quite suddenly, saw all of this with new eyes as I was thinking about the purpose of the church today. We congregate in churches, and we do the work of serving and building. We carry out the functions of church, but it struck me that we are also called to be beautiful – to radiate the beauty that God gives us; to shine in the world, boldly declaring what he has done, reigning in life as sons and daughters of God, doing his work, and revealing his glory. We were created to be beautiful.

No wonder Jesus said, ‘let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven’ (Matt 5: 16). When we serve God with all of our hearts, according to his mighty plans and purposes, we not only fulfil the functions of church, we display glory and beauty too.

One day we will see a church of every tribe and nation surrounding the throne of the lamb and I bet many will spontaneously fall to their knees and declare, ‘this is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen’.

I believe God wants us to be able to say that about the church today. Imagine us serving well, building well, with pure hearts and true to his plans. Then, maybe a new generation will discover Jesus and, with tears of joy, say of his church, ‘this is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen’.

This devotion is one of many you can find in Bite-size Devotions for the Busy Christian by me – Terry Nightingale, published by Kharis Publishing and available through any Amazon website. Maybe this would make a good Christmas present for someone.