Though the Son of God was not born mid-winter as we celebrate, it is perhaps appropriate that we recognise that at the darkest point of history, God scattered the dark night of our broken world by sending the eternal light to shatter the darkness. Knowing this, I am encouraged; I am encouraged because the world is a dark place today. No doubt the world was a dark place when Jesus was born, but I am confident that the world is exceptionally dark today. Evil seems to be unchecked in our world and wickedness appears to be in ascendency while righteousness is in retreat. It is precisely at such a time that God sent His Son, and does it not appear that it will be at such a time that God sends His Son the second time. In the Letter to Hebrew Christians, there is a most encouraging promise. There, we read, “[Christ] has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment, so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him” [HEBREWS 9:26-28]. So, Christmas causes me to hope. I anticipate soon hearing the clarion call to meet the Saviour in the air. Together with all the saints, I shall soon be united with Him; and Christmas is the evidence that this promise will be fulfilled. Amen.