Life after birth is what most of us mean by ‘life’. We can’t remember being in our mother’s womb; we count our birthdays from the time we made our visible arrival in the world. Our parents tell us about this time and about our early childhood; almost as soon as we arrive, we are being urged on to grow and develop.
The Gospels tell us very little about Jesus’s childhood and spend most of their time describing the three and a half years of His adult ministry, focussing even more specifically on His death and resurrection. Luke summarises Jesus’s childhood in one sentence: ‘the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was on him.’ (Luke 2:40) We may long to know more details (and some spurious gospel writers made these up quite happily!), but the truth is we know very little about what happened after the birth of Jesus until He began His ministry.
None of us knows what our lifespan will be, but we have been given the precious gift of life and God’s aim for each one of us is to grow into His likeness, learning to love Him and others and serve Him and others. Life after birth should be lived for the glory of God, enjoying Him forever. Birthdays are celebrations of this life and need to be treasured. As we celebrate Christmas on Monday, let’s celebrate the life of Jesus and the life His life brings to us.
