The truth can be hard to believe

THIS Christmas I seem to have been surrounded by angels. Some of them children dressed as angels for various Nativity plays. Even more in the New Testament as we hear again the story of Jesus’s birth.

Angels are messengers, that’s what the word means. The vital thing about them is their *message*. The wings, etc, are not important — what counts is the message. But there are messages and messages.

Some messages are hard to understand for technical reasons. Try this crossword clue — “HIJKLMNO — five letters.”

Some messages are hard to understand because of something in *us*. So, sometimes people get really bad news and they don’t want to understand it, they don’t want to believe it.

I know people who won’t even open their bank statements or bills, especially after Christmas, because they just don’t want to see what is there, they don’t want to know. If that’s you and some real practical guidance and support would help, you can contact the Henley Debt Centre on 0800 328 0006. They have helped literally dozens of families and individuals find a way out of debt in their three years of operation so far. They are angels of hope in their own way.

But back to the Biblical angels. Sometimes people get news which is so good they can’t believe it, they don’t dare to believe it. Someone said to me this week: “I won’t believe I’ve got that flat — I’ve paid the deposit but I won’t believe it until I see it in writing.”

— I can’t believe I’ve got the job.

—I can’t believe I’ve won the prize.

— I can’t believe I’ve got such good friends.

— I can’t believe that wonderful man/woman loves me.

But it’s true!

The message of the Angels is like the second kind — good news: so hard to believe that we need an angel to tell us. What’s the message? It’s there in Luke 2.

1. God’s son is going to be born. God’s purposes of love have taken human form so you can see and understand.

2. To a virgin, Mary (a seriously special baby).

3. In the city of David, Bethlehem (i.e., all your history has prepared you for this, all your triumphs, all your disasters, all your hopes and longings).

4. “All the promises of God find their YES in him” .

2 Corinthians 1:20 God says yes to *you*. He has a future and a hope for you however dark things may seem. Your failures can be forgiven, death itself can be beaten with God.

Too good to be true? Well you decide! But that’s the message of Christmas, the message of the angels.

Rev Glyn Millington,
Minister, Christ Church, Henley