Last week the reminder was given that as we approach the manger, we must not only appreciate the serenity of the moment as we sing “Silent Night” and hold our candle. We must also “pick the baby Jesus up”! Spiritually, we bring Jesus to our chest, into our hearts, and let Him create, change, or recharge our personal relationship with both God and neighbor.

As we step away from the nativity and turn to face a new year, the simple two-word question becomes, “Now what?” What will change in how we relate to God and neighbor, now that Jesus is in our hearts? What will the example that Jesus demonstrates do to our attitudes, our actions, our acceptance of who we are and who we are to our neighbor? What will those who encounter us notice more…just us…or Christ in us?

“Now what?” This is perhaps the shortest of questions, yet one of the most common following significant events that have the potential to create a spiritual stirring within our souls. Let me offer a two-word answer to this two-word question. “I am”.

I recall a poster that was displayed in the youth area of an earlier appointment I served. It had a black background and featured all the names, metaphors, and descriptors found in scripture for Jesus. Different colors were used for various identifiers, such as Prince of Peace, Light of the World, Alpha and Omega, Chief Cornerstone, Lion of the Tribe of Judah, Lamb of God, and many more. But in the center of the poster were two words, the only two in white – “I am”.

John’s gospel contains more “I am’s” for Jesus than anywhere else in the Bible. These are just a few:            “I am the bread of life“ (John 6), “I am the good shepherd“ (John 10), “I am the resurrection and the life“ (John 11), “I am the way, the truth, and the life“ (John 14), “I am the true vine“ (John 15).

In John, chapter 8, Jesus is speaking with various Jewish leaders. In the barrage of questions about who Jesus is, what it means to be a true disciple, and how can Jesus authorize freedom from sin, Jesus says in verse 58, “Very truly, I tell you, before Abraham was, I am.”

What we can appreciate in this response is that it creates a permanent present tense for Jesus…then and now. Jesus has always been with God, has always been with us, and always will be. At Christmas, we do not celebrate what happened back then…we celebrate what was already happening that day, is happening today, and can happen ANY day when we turn to Jesus and ask, “You there?”, because He is going to respond, “I am!”.

I pray that this Christmas you have claimed the Christ Child, the Messiah, the Son of God, the Great I AM, as your Shepherd and Savior. The world needs the heart, mind, hands, and feet of Christ to be engaging and sharing the love of God now more than ever. Christ has come…now what? Go and be I AM, so that those to whom love is a stranger, will find in you generous friends.

In Christ,

Rev. Dr. David O. Weatherly