What Child Is This?
“What child is this, who, laid to rest, on Mary’s lap is sleeping, whom angels greet with anthems sweet while shepherds watch are keeping? “
Familiar lyrics, yes? And we all know the next stanza “This this is Christ the King, whom shepherds guard and angels sing. Haste, haste to bring Him laud, the babe, the son of Mary!”
The son of Mary …. yes, she carried Him inside her and bore the one who was called Christ the King. She is rightly revered through the ages as a model of faith and humility and personally chosen by God. But to many people’s chagrins, Mary is not to be placed on a human pedestal because Jesus is solely God’s child.
That is why it was imperative that Jesus be born of a virgin. And here’s some interesting facts that support this most supernatural immaculate conception, which helps build on the magnificence and purity of this miracle.
When pregnant, a baby draws nutrients and liquids from the mother, it draws blood from its own blood supply, which is determined by the father.
The fact that Jesus was divinely conceived without a human father and developed in the womb without drawing blood from His mother meant that His blood, unlike any other blood in human history, was free from human pollution of any kind – and was, therefore able to cleanse us of our sin.
Mary was the blessed vessel that carried the living Christ inside her. And this great mystery of His beginnings is just a miniscule piece of a much greater miracle: How we, as humans, get to be vessels that have access to carry the Lord Jesus inside of us just like Mary.
It boggles the mind that this mighty God could live in the midst of all of me through the indwelling of His Holy Spirit. That person of God, who always was and always will be, chose to indwell any who believe and transform our hearts, guide our actions, and shape our lives to reflect His character and purpose and it doesn’t make any human sense.
What child is this?
This child is the plan of God, Emmanuel—God in us, God with us, and God through us. He delights to use the weak to confound the strong. He does this daily. So as spirit-filled Christians we get to develop the fruits of His Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). It is not a one and done event, but a journey of being sanctified by His grace.
The more we submit to His teachings, study His Word and live out the Scripture the more alive He becomes within us to be seen by the eyes of the world. That is God in us. It is His Holy Spirit within us that is responsible when we perform acts of kindness and compassion, when we reflect Christ’s love and make Him visible to the world.
The apostle Paul writes, “I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me”(Galatians 2:20).
So, in essence, I get to be pregnant with God, a mighty mystery that should astound every aspect of our being and cause a daily celebration of faith, fellowship, and encouraging a deeper connection with God while inspiring others with this great hope of Christ.
