The Christ Child as Refugee: Call to Welcome

Preachers are often told that Jesus has nothing to do with politics and that faith should remain silent when it comes to such things. But as I said before, I don't think and believe that we should be silent on politics from the pulpits or from the table. But I will never say who to vote for. Because the simple truth is that Jesus was political. Not in party terms, but in the deepest living sense. [00:40:22] (29 seconds)  #FaithIsPolitical

Today we're reminded of that as we heard that from the very beginning of his life, he was forced to flee as a child, as a baby, to Egypt and become a refugee. As an adult, he went on to tell the rich that unlike the poor, they were blessed. He criticized King Herod by calling him a fox and in doing so implied that he was unclean. He spoke harsh words to religious and political leaders when they showed no care for those in need. He did all of this because God cares. God cares for those in need and God expects those who claim to love him to do the same. [00:40:51] (45 seconds)  #CareForTheLeast

It means that we are called not just to believe, but to act. This is why churches run food banks and food ladders and cook warm meals for those who need something to keep them going. This is why churches run community cafes to allow people to find a place to belong and find friendship and meaning. This is why churches offer debt counseling, including hosting Christians Against Poverty who help thousands of people every year become debt-free. [00:41:36] (35 seconds)  #ChurchesInAction

And so Joseph got up and took his family to Egypt in fleeing danger to protect his child. Joseph and the family become refugees. It's easy to read this passage as an ancient story with no links to our world today. But we shouldn't and we can't afford to not look around us. We must read it through the lens of our world today. [00:43:39] (28 seconds)  #ScriptureMeetsReality

All of this amounts to 1 in every 70 people on earth being forced to flee their homes in 2025. This is not a distant, ancient problem. This is our world today. And as we reflect on Joseph taking his family and fleeing danger to find refuge, it's important to connect that ancient journey with the reality of our world, especially here in the UK. [00:45:03] (32 seconds)  #RefugeeCrisisIsNow

So the question for us today is not simply what government should do, but what we are called to do as followers of Christ. When Joseph eventually led Mary and Joseph out of Egypt and returned, they did not return to safety. They didn't return to status, nor did they return to power. They returned quietly to Nazareth, to the margins. And so God's one and only Son grew up not protected by wealth, but shaped by vulnerability. [00:49:21] (40 seconds)  #ReturnToTheMargins

The God we worship chose to be known first as a refugee child, carried in secrecy under the cloak of the darkness of the night, dependent on the mercy of others, smuggled out of the country to find refuge in foreign lands. And so what does this all mean? When we encounter the displaced, the frightened, the struggling, the uprooted, we are not facing a problem to be solved or ignored, but a neighbor to be loved, the face in which Christ Himself is found. The gospel doesn't ask us to fix the world, but it does ask us not to turn away. [00:50:01] (46 seconds)  #ChristAmongRefugees

Jesus Christ teaches us not to let fear shape our response. He yearns that we not harden our hearts. Instead, instead we are called to be people of welcome and an anxious age. People of generosity in a time of scarcity. People whose politics, whatever they may be, always to be shaped by compassion, mercy, and love for our neighbor. [00:50:48] (32 seconds)  #WelcomeNotFear