Boxing clever!

Today is Boxing Day or St Stephen’s Day! December 26th. People are full of turkey and trimmings and more willing perhaps to reach for an antacid than another mince pie. After all of the build up to Christmas Day; today can seem a bit like an anti-climax.

However, if you take the message of Christmas to heart; today, the day after Christmas is still a day of celebration.

Jesus has come into the world to save!

Emmanuel – God with us, is still with us.

The manger may now be empty, but that is because Jesus did not stay “little, weak and helpless”; He “grew in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.” – Luke 2:52. “He went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him.” – Acts 10:38 and teaching His disciples and the people about the Kingdom of God.

Ultimately He died for us on the cross to pay for the sins of the whole world: our sins. “Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you.” – Acts 13:38. And on the third day He rose again and ascended to heaven and now sits at the right hand of God the Father.

It is this Jesus that we follow.

Not the baby still in the manger.

Not the man crucified as a sin offering for the world, still hanging on a cross.

It is the risen, victorious Lord of life that we follow. The one who defeated sin, death and hell and rose again.

Just as in the famous song ‘Good King Wenceslas‘ where the King’s page that was struggling against the fierce winter storm followed in the footsteps of his master the King, in order to endure the onslaught of the wind. Like the page, we Christians, followers of Jesus. Walk behind our Master and follow in His footsteps. Braving the buffets and blows of the storms of the world, to move forwards into all that He has in store for us; even in the face of disaster and death. Jesus is still there leading us onwards; calling us to follow.

Just like St Stephen, whose martyrdom we remember on this day. He obediently followed in the footsteps of his Master, Jesus;  and was willing to “have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death – even death on a cross!