Humility and Fearlessness: A Christmas Calling

Posted on by Jennifer Arimborgo

Why lies he in such mean estate
Where ox and ass are feeding
The end of fear for all who hear
The silent Word is speaking
This, this is Christ the king
Whom shepherds guard and angels sing
Haste, haste to bring him laud
The babe, the son of Mary

A Merry Christmas Eve to you! I am so privileged to spend a few minutes with you as we meditate on our Savior’s arrival on this precious occasion. As we ponder the verse above commemorating His coming, two things jump out:

1) The call to humility. “In such mean estate.” The Lord of Lords, the King of the Universe, subjected Himself to birth in a barn. Cattle shuffled in close proximity to Mary’s laboring with the Savior. The odor of manure hung in the air around Him as He made His entrance into our world. He moved from the very highest place to the very lowest place, releasing a newborn’s squall from His bitty lungs newly filled with air. From the very first second of His earthly sojourn, He showed us how to be “gentle and humble in heart.” In the greatest act of humbling that creation has ever witnessed, He became a tiny human. From there, He continued to humble Himself, obedient to the death, even death on a cross.

Christmas teaches us the beauty of humility. As we celebrate His advent today, He calls us to imitate Him. In our current life circumstances, are we willing to humble ourselves, as He did? Are we willing to live lives worthy of Him?

“For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps” (1 Peter 2:21, NKJV).

2) The call to fearlessness. Our lovely verse goes on, proclaiming “The end of fear for all who hear.” Jesus also showed us the way on this one. Leaving behind His glory, He climbed into a human body and lived a fearless human life. Today, His perfect love casts every fear from our hearts as we turn to Him as our Savior. He was born, lived, died, and rose again, for this reason:

“To grant us that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, might serve Him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our life” (Luke 1:74-75, NKJV, emphasis mine).

These were the words of Zechariah as he prophetically trumpeted the joy of the Savior’s appearing, just months before Jesus’ birth. Christmas teaches you and me that we really can live free from fear. Will we open our hearts to receive this most magnificent of gifts?

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What are some practical ways that we can humble ourselves like Jesus, right now in our current context? And what does it look like to serve Him without fear?

31 thoughts on “Humility and Fearlessness: A Christmas Calling”

  1. hello my dear friend Jennifer, hope you having a great time.
    Reading this post, it comes to my mind the hole chapter of “Mary” in the holy Quran and would like to share with you her story ( peace and blessings upon her and Jesus)

    I quote from Quran Chapter 19 verse 16 : [ And mention, [O Muhammad], in the Book [the story of] Mary, when she withdrew from her family to a place toward the east.
    ( 17 ) And she took, in seclusion from them, a screen. Then We sent to her Our Angel, and he represented himself to her as a well-proportioned man.
    ( 18 ) She said, “Indeed, I seek refuge in the Most Merciful from you, [so leave me], if you should be fearing of Allah.”
    ( 19 ) He said, “I am only the messenger of your Lord to give you [news of] a pure boy.”
    ( 20 ) She said, “How can I have a boy while no man has touched me and I have not been unchaste?”
    ( 21 ) He said, “Thus [it will be]; your Lord says, ‘It is easy for Me, and We will make him a sign to the people and a mercy from Us. And it is a matter [already] decreed.’ ”
    ( 22 ) So she conceived him, and she withdrew with him to a remote place.
    ( 23 ) And the pains of childbirth drove her to the trunk of a palm tree. She said, “Oh, I wish I had died before this and was in oblivion, forgotten.”
    ( 24 ) But he called her from below her, “Do not grieve; your Lord has provided beneath you a stream.
    ( 25 ) And shake toward you the trunk of the palm tree; it will drop upon you ripe, fresh dates.
    ( 26 ) So eat and drink and be contented. And if you see from among humanity anyone, say, ‘Indeed, I have vowed to the Most Merciful abstention, so I will not speak today to [any] man.’ ”
    ( 27 ) Then she brought him to her people, carrying him. They said, “O Mary, you have certainly done a thing unprecedented.
    ( 28 ) O sister of Aaron, your father was not a man of evil, nor was your mother unchaste.”
    ( 29 ) So she pointed to him. They said, “How can we speak to one who is in the cradle a child?”
    ( 30 ) [Jesus] said, “Indeed, I am the servant of Allah. He has given me the Scripture and made me a prophet.
    ( 31 ) And He has made me blessed wherever I am and has enjoined upon me prayer and zakah as long as I remain alive
    ( 32 ) And [made me] dutiful to my mother, and He has not made me a wretched tyrant.
    ( 33 ) And peace is on me the day I was born and the day I will die and the day I am raised alive.”
    ( 34 ) That is Jesus, the son of Mary – the word of truth about which they are in dispute.
    ( 35 ) It is not [befitting] for Allah to take a son; exalted is He! When He decrees an affair, He only says to it, “Be,” and it is.
    ( 36 ) [Jesus said], “And indeed, Allah is my Lord and your Lord, so worship Him. That is a straight path.”
    ( 37 ) Then the factions differed [concerning Jesus] from among them, so woe to those who disbelieved – from the scene of a tremendous Day.
    ( 38 ) How [clearly] they will hear and see the Day they come to Us, but the wrongdoers today are in clear error.
    ( 39 ) And warn them, [O Muhammad], of the Day of Regret, when the matter will be concluded; and [yet], they are in [a state of] heedlessness, and they do not believe.
    ( 40 ) Indeed, it is We who will inherit the earth and whoever is on it, and to Us they will be returned.

    Hope you will enjoy reading the above verses, they are from a whole chapter named after Mary, peace and blessings upon her and Jesus.

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    1. Dearest Nassima! I missed hearing from you on my blog. I’m so glad you came for a visit again! As always, I find what you share quite interesting, as I had never read those words before. Following is the story as told in the book of Luke, have you read it before? How I cherish it!

      “Luke 1:26-38
      Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, 27 to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!”

      29 But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was. 30 Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. 32 He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. 33 And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.”

      34 Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?”

      35 And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God. 36 Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren. 37 For with God nothing will be impossible.”

      38 Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.”

      I pray you and your family are well, sending much love to you!

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      1. Dear Jennifer, I was so happy to read your answer, and sorry for not showing on my blog for a very long time, It’s just now, that I wanted to check it in a hurry, I’m at work now and got so busy, I hope you are doing well, and your family are all fine and happy, thank you again for sharing this beautiful stroy of our beloved Mary (peace and blessings upon her and her son Issa), by the way, did you know, the name of Jesus in te Quran is “Issa”? also there’s verses in the Quran where Allah the Almighty calls him “Christ” 🙂 Sending you love and hugs my dear friend Jennifer ^_^

        Liked by 1 person

      2. Aw, what a joy to hear from you again, Nassima! I definitely missed it. I also so understand how busy life gets. I actually haven’t written much on my blog for close to two months now myself. In this case, I’ve been healing from a shoulder injury. I am grateful because Jesus is healing me. I have seen Him heal so many times, including my brother, who was in the hospital monthly with terrible asthma attacks that would almost take his life. But Jesus healed him one day, and he hasn’t had a trace of asthma since! I’ve been thinking on this topic a lot since it’s my current journey. Reading a book called 365 Days of Healing. Anyway, I hope you and your family are well too! Recieiving those hugs and sending back lots more!

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  2. Thank you for looking at the Holy Birth and the humility of our Saviour. Divinity and humanity in one tiny baby. This is the miracle and wonder of the Christmas story.
    My prayers and Hope for a special Holy remembrance for you and all you love;

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  4. Wow your observations here were prolific and powerfully uplifting Jennifer, I totally agree with your prudent take on this perspective 💕💕.

    I also want you to know that you have been nothing but a huge bundle of adoration since you introduced yourself to me a while ago and it is always alot of fun seeing you and your work and I hope that GOD willing, I will continue to be blessed by your presence in 2021 and beyond and I wish you and yours and all of your friends and followers, a fantastic Christmas and sensational New Year haha

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. Aw thank you, Pata! Your words are received with true gratitude and joy. That wish is mutual, and I hope your Christmas was extra special too, overflowing with hope, joy, peace, and love! And the Lord’s most abundant blessings to you and yours for the New Year!

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      1. You are welcome Jenn, and thank you for expressing such dignifying and gracious wishes towards me.

        My honor for you is boundless — I am very grateful that you have been welcoming to me for all this time and I have learned so much from your tremendous esteem and dignity. The genuine nature of your precious words have always seamlessly lifted my energy even higher and your insights and perspectives are always dear to me.

        My Christmas and the holidays were very good. Those around me were very positive, happy and cheerful too, so I can’t complain hahaha

        Liked by 1 person

      2. Oh good! That makes so much difference, doesn’t it. And thank YOU for your kind words of encouragement, you have consistently uplifted me and made me laugh and chuckle so many times! I am grateful to God for allowing the mutual edification 🙂

        Liked by 1 person

      3. Yes that is so true; often times it’s how people handle situations that makes all the difference, rather than being influenced desperately by the circumstances, so I was very fortunate to be in good company haha.

        I am enamored with each and every word you have said — I am delighted to know that I have touched you just as you have touched me since I have found you to be nothing short of invigorating, and you have given me one unmistakable smile with the words that you have written ✌️😄

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  5. May we serve HIM without fear by being bold with the GOSPEL to those who need to hear it. But may we also remain humble……and listen with whole heart to people in pain and need. Thank you for this wonderful Christmas Eve post…..may you and your family enjoy a blessed Christmas filled with HIS peace!

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