The Christmas Story Is a Story

My title sounds like something written by that famous government department, “The Department of Redundancy Department.” But unlike that fictional department, my title has a point, namely that despite the fact that many of us would like something stronger and better, we learn about the nativity of Jesus from two sources, Matthew and Luke, and both are told in story form.

So, let’s break it down and think about the nativity story.

First, It Is a Story.

For many Canadians, both those who are Christians and those who are not, the whole category of “story” sounds weak, not very serious, not even third best. Why can’t we have a catalogue of facts? A flawless philosophical argument? A thoroughly documented academic work of history? A summary of scientific findings? A fact-checked autobiography? An authoritative report from a panel of experts?

A story is something that you read to children. A story is something that the busy businesswoman picks up to pass the time on her flight, or the harassed dad brings to the beach in the summer. But, the Triune God, in His wisdom, saw fit to communicate to us, at least in regards to the nativity of Jesus, in the form of a story, or better, several stories to tell one story.

Second, It Is a True Story.

I used to read stories to my children. (Full disclosure, my wife was the principal reader). After reading something about P.J. Funny Bunny or something by Dr. Seuss, I would read them a Bible story. However, I always said something to my children before I read the Bible story. I’d say, “It is good to read these stories, but you need to know that this story that I am about to read is a true story.”

To say that the story of the nativity of Jesus is true is of course highly contested, but so what? Anything and everything can be contested. You could almost say that one of the things that defines human beings is that we can and will contest anything and everything. The fact is, that an open minded reading of Matthew and Luke will see that they intended to write the true story of Jesus. The reasonable claim is that Matthew and Luke are both eyewitness-based histories written when lots of eyewitnesses were still alive. People can say the stories are not true, but it is not true to say that the authors did not intend to write a true story. I think the evidence is there that the story is true – historically, factually, emotionally, morally, spiritually, and aesthetically true. The truth in the biblical nativity stories is multifaceted and deep.

Third, It Is a True Story About God.

Obviously the nativity stories have several people in the story, and each person is important to the story. But the only reason these stories are still read is because they are stories about God, and not just any god, but the God of Abraham, Moses and David. In fact, these stories begin a profound and necessary act of clarification, that the God revealed in the Old Testament (so called by Christians and most of the world) or the Tanach (by our Jewish friends), is really one God and three persons – the Triune God.

To our normal human religious imagination this cannot be a story about God. The normal human religious imagination projects unto god what we would do if we were god. We would not belittle ourselves and become little. Zygote? Gestation? Birth? Baby? Poor and human and unrecognised? No self respecting god would ever act like this! I wouldn’t act like this! How can something so outrageous and counter-intuitive be true? You see, it is not that any aspect of the nativity story is opposed to reason or evidence, but the story is implausible to us, and therefore it cannot be true according to the “normal religious imagination.” Even when clever arguments against the nativity story crash and burn people cling to the implausibility of the story.

Fourth, It Is a True Story from God About God.

Skeptics love to harass and mock people with “scriptures.” The Bible, to them, is just one in a long catalogue of “scriptures” that includes the Koran, the Bhagavad Gita, the Tibetan Book of the Dead etc., etc. They say, How on earth do you think a puny person could ever describe and know God or even god? Someone can see the invisible? Invisible means, by definition, that you cannot see what is invisible! Someone can hear the inaudible? Someone can reach up to the “heavens?” You can know the end from the beginning. People cannot even understand themselves! People cannot understand their spouse or their friend! How do you think any person can definitively and authoritatively understand god?

It is a surprise to skeptics that a well-instructed Christian agrees with almost everything they say! All their comments about the foolishness of thinking any person can definitively encompass God should receive a loud “AMEN” from the aunt about to read the nativity story to her nephew and niece. The biblical claim is the same as the claim made by Jesus, that the Bible is not a repository of human words about God, but is God Himself speaking to human beings. Only God can understand God, and only God can understand each human being as you really are, and the Bible is ultimately, from each word to the whole, the Triune God speaking to us. Why believe this? Simply put, the resurrection of Jesus changes everything. The death and resurrection of Jesus authenticates and vindicates His person, His work, and His words. We believe in Him, we believe what He says, and from Him we learn and trust that the Bible is God’s word written.

Fifth, It Is a True Story from God About God Coming to Save Us.

Canadians think that the best stories are ones where the hero or the heroine saves themselves and others. We Canadians as Canadians think that the best thing that God could do is to get out of the way while we save ourselves, or if necessary, He could provide a few pointers so we can save ourselves. This of course feeds into the normal religious imagination which determines not only what is plausible, but also what is best.

Frankly, it is a disappointment to the average Canadian to discover that God does not really care about Canadians’ criteria for plausibility. But the best stories have a twist. In this case, the twist is the joyful news that you can never save yourself, and that salvation comes as an undeserved and unforeseen gift when you lay aside the burden of being the saviour, and allow God to do what only He can do, which is save those who trust in God the Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ.

The nativity stories are the first stories in the bigger story of Jesus. The cross, the empty tomb, and the resurrection makes no sense without the incarnation and the nativity of Jesus. The point of the nativity stories – that the Triune God has acted to save human beings who cannot save themselves – is most easily seen in the two names which feature in the nativity stories. Jesus means “The Lord is salvation” or “God saves.” The name/title “Immanuel” means “God with us.” The Triune God Himself, in the person of God the Son of God, was with us in our sin and mess to save you. All this is from God’s mercy bestowed to ordinary and unworthy people like you and me.

So, Finally, Praise God from Whom all Blessings Flow!

Stories are weak – easily mocked and easily dismissed. But the weakness of God is stronger than all human strength, and the foolishness of God is wiser than all human plausibility and wisdom (First Corinthians 1:25). The Triune God Himself chose to impart these most profound and necessary truths in the form of a story – a story so simple, but so profound that a young child, a PhD, a street person or a soccer mom can read and be formed by! Let us joyfully receive and accept all that the Lord, in His wisdom, has provided for us!

Have a blessed time remembering and celebrating the good news in the nativity stories!

George Sinclair has served in a suburban and in a rural “multi-point” church. He is currently the Rector of Church of the Messiah in the heart of urban Ottawa. He was the Chair of Essentials Canada and founding Chair of his denomination, the Anglican Network in Canada (ANiC). He currently serves as the Chair of the ANiC task force to make it more deeply biblical at every level. He is the Principal of Ryle Seminary. He is blessed to have been married to Louise since 1981. They have 9 children and lots of sons and daughters-in-law and grandchildren. George is an original Council Member for The Gospel Coalition Canada.