There are two stories of Christmas. We usually blend them into one chronological account, but they are very distinct. One appears in the Gospel of Matthew, 1:18-25, 2:1-23, and the other in Luke 2: 6-20.

Matthew tells the story from Joseph’s point of view. The angel appears to him, telling him not to fear to take Mary as his wife, even though she is expecting a Child. He names the child. The wise men appear, and then Joseph is warned to flee to Egypt, and told to return when Herod died.

Luke is Mary’s story - in fact, she alone could have recounted these things to Luke. The story of Zacharias and Elisabeth; Mary’s visit to Elisabeth; the birth of John; the angel appearing to Mary, the birth of Jesus, and the tale of the shepherds all speak of Mary’s part in this event.

There are remarkably consistent differences in the accounts. In the Matthew story the angel always appears in a dream, and he gives commands. “Do not be afraid to take to yourself Mary your wife.” “Call His name Jesus.” “Do not return to Herod” was the command to the wise men. “Arise, take the young child and Mary his mother, and flee into Egypt.” “Return, for they are dead who sought the young Child’s life.” Specific commands, which Joseph and the wise men obeyed.

In the Luke story the angel is actually seen, and carries on conversations with both Zacharias and Mary. An angel choir appears to the shepherds. What is surprising is that no actual commands are given. Zacharias is told that his prayer will be answered, and he will have a son. Mary is told she will be with child of the Holy Spirit, and she willingly accepts it. The shepherds are told the tidings of great joy, but it is they who say, one to another, “Let us now go, even to Bethlehem, and see this thing which has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us.”

Another amazing difference is the presence of Herod and his people in Matthew. He is shown in his wickedness and deceit, pretending to wish to worship Jesus while plotting to kill Him. He uses his counselors, none of whom are interested in the actual birth of the Christ, though they now know that a star has heralded His birth. Then there is the terrible story of Herod’s murder of the little ones around Bethlehem.

None of this appears in Luke. There is just a glancing reference: “There was in the days of Herod the king of Judea......” What a different tone, therefore, appears in Luke. It is one of peace and rejoicing, of wonder and gratitude, spoken from the heart by Zacharias, by Mary, and by Simeon. By contrast, Matthew tells of Joseph’s sadness and thought of putting Mary away privately, of Herod’s treachery and the sin of infanticide. And Matthew tells also how futile were Herod’s efforts, for the angel of the Lord provided that Joseph brought the infant Lord safely out of his reach.

So what are these two stories telling us about our lives, here, today? They speak of how the Lord is born in our minds and hearts. Let us leave Zacharias and Elisabeth and John out of this sermon. John represents repentance, and his birth precedes the birth of Jesus. But after we have repented of our sins, then the Lord Himself comes to be born in us. That birth is the implanting within us of charity - the ability to love others unselfishly. It is this birth which makes us into angels, which puts the stamp of eternal love in our hearts, which causes us to be “born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”

When charity begins to become felt in us we respond in two distinct ways. Matthew tells how our understanding reacts to His coming. Luke speaks of how His birth receives a response in the new will which the Lord is creating in us.

Joseph seems to represent the good of truth. He was a carpenter, working with tools of iron on wood to shape it, and his very act pictures the efforts of the human understanding, taking the truths of revelation and working to apply them to a life of goodness.

Joseph at first feared that Mary had been unfaithful to him, and that the child was conceived of a man. When we have done the deeds of repentance, and the Lord begins to create this wonderful, heavenly love inside of us, we too will doubt. How can I, a person who has been selfish up to date, how can I feel these tender, loving thoughts towards others? How can I be moved to do kind deeds with no thought of reward? I must be deceiving myself. This is just human-born selfishness under another guise.

But an angel of the Lord told Joseph that this birth was unique in all of history. The angel represents an insight from within, the presence of the Lord within the truths that we have learned, which gives us assurance that indeed unselfish love can be ours. The Word has promised that it will be so. Don’t doubt it. You can be a truly loving, unselfish, caring person. And when you feel this love inside of you, call it by its proper name. Call it “Jesus,” which means, “Jehovah is the Savior.” Realize that this is salvation come into your heart.

Joseph obeyed the angel. We need to believe that charity can be ours, and unite ourselves to the innocent love for the truth (which is what Mary represents).

Then, when this beautiful charity blossoms in our hearts, new truths come to herald that birth. The wise men had studied the Word, knew that a star would appear when the Christ was born, and took a long journey to find Him. The truths they represent, learned because we are moved to study and reflect on His Word, are the ones that tell us how to live the life of love. They are conscious truths, and they spur us to action.

The wise men gave three gifts to Jesus, and for two thousand years they were the last people on earth to know why these gifts, and no others, were suitable. For there are only three things we can give to the Lord, only three things we can withhold. Myrrh represents obedience; frankincense, love to others; and gold, love to the Lord Himself. We can withhold these from the Lord and He cannot make us give them to Him. When moved by charity, we plan to offer Him the only gifts which we can possibly give - the offerings of a grateful heart to obey, to love His children, and to love Him.

But the Matthew story contains Herod also. Within each of us there is a powerful love of self, and all sorts of false and horrible thoughts are tied to it. Through this love the hells seek to kill our unselfish instincts. They use deceit, they even use the truths of the Word (as Herod did when seeking to know where Christ should be born). For much of our lives we have given a fairly free rein to our selfish impulses. They don’t relinquish their kingship over us without a struggle. The story of Herod speaks of the plots of the hells to destroy our love for others, and of how the Lord protects us. When we obey the commands of His Word our love grows, quietly and secretly, in a safe place where Herod cannot find it.

So we come to the gospel of Luke. Why is Herod not mentioned there? It is in the Lord’s amazing mercy that there are times when selfishness seems to be a distant memory. We know it’s there - “In the days of Herod the King,” Luke says. We know that battles lie ahead, but there are moments when we see the joy of life, and these feelings give us an inner reason to fight for heaven. When you first fall in love, you feel only unselfish love for that person. At times you read the Word, and feel in its pages the certainty of the Lord’s love, and its promise of a heaven, a life of charity, just for you!

Selfishness seems far off. You know it will come back, but right now you know that there is a life beyond selfishness. There truly is a greater love that leaves self behind, and at times, at oh-so-precious times, you are allowed to feel it. The Lord touches our hearts, and the best image of that is Christmas night in the stable in Bethlehem.

In our peaceful states there is Mary, the innocent affection for truth. We often call it idealism. It is a deep-seated conviction about the highest ideals in life. We see deeply into the Word, see the values it teaches, we want a value system that will last for all time. We want the Lord to be our God, the God of our hearts and minds. In our innocent times we just don’t question these things, we long for them. Mary, betrothed, and longing for marriage, represents this innocent love, longing to experience the full heavenly marriage of good and truth, to make ideals work.

Mary went to Bethlehem, for that little town represents new truth, the truth of the internal sense of the Word. To go from Galilee to Bethlehem is to go upward, into the deeper regions of our minds, and experience that love which is the birth of the Lord in us. It is to feel, in the living waters of the Word, that we do love others, and this love is “God with us.”

Yet the inn at Bethlehem had no room for the infant Jesus. Many spiritual truths in our minds have languished, and lost their meaning. Other needs have crowded them out, even falsified them. There are many places in our minds where we know the truth, but that knowledge is full of earthly concerns which take the joy, the wonder out of it.

In His mercy the Lord prepares other places in our minds. The spiritual manger stands for lower truths, simple ideals long held precious. For example, you have truths in your minds about how to care for infants and how to teach little children about the Word and how to care for the needs of the elderly or those who are hurting. You understand these truths. A manger, where horses feed, represents such an understanding.

And you have simple, innocent ideas in your minds also which are, as it were, wrapped around charity. These truths tell you that certain things hurt others, that certain things, said with gentleness, touch their hearts. These truths tell you when to deal gently with others, and when to be firm but loving at the same time. They are simple ideas from the Word, first truths, which keep charity warm in your heart. “....and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger.”

How beautiful is the story of the shepherds. They too represent interior truths, long held, which through the night of our selfish lives have kept us turning towards good values. They kept watch over our spiritual flock, our valuable feelings, even though we have often been selfish and uncaring. These values are called forth, and respond with joy when love is born in our hearts.

The story of Luke is one of a free response to the Lord and His creation of heaven in our minds. It is full of joy. Zacharias prophesied, with a heart full of gratitude. Mary’s soul magnified the Lord and her spirit rejoiced in God her Savior. Simeon gave thanks because he had seen the Lord’s salvation, prepared for all people. The shepherds returned, praising God for all that they had seen.

When you feel heartfelt gratitude in your lives because of a special love the Lord has granted you, - why then, stop, stand still, lift up your heart and rejoice in that moment. And know this: that if you persist in following Him, that special love will become your heaven. It will be a love born of no human father. The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you, and that holy love growing in you is indeed born of God.

Two stories of Christmas. Both so beautiful. The Lord gave each to us that we may see with our understandings, and feel in our hearts the wonder of this holy birth. They are secret stories, scarce felt because of the noisy pressures of worldly life, but revealed in all their wonder for the New Church. The spiritual Joseph and wise men are conscious, understood truths which are obeyed, and bring deep joy to the human mind. The spiritual Mary and Bethlehem and the manger and the swaddling cloths and the shepherds represent affections for deep ideals, and for practical ideas. These find inner happiness and peace when He comes to us.

For the greatest event in human history was the birth on earth of God Himself. And the greatest event in anyone’s life is when there is born to you the love from God that will never die. This is truly the spirit of Christmas.

(References: Apocalypse Explained 706; Matthew 2)

660. Verse 10. And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them and shall be glad, signifies delights from infernal love with those who are opposed to the goods and truths of the church. This is evident from the signification of "they that dwell upon the earth," as being those who are in the church, here those therein who are in evils and in falsities therefrom, thus who are opposed to its goods and truths; also from the signification of "rejoicing and being glad," as being here the delight of infernal love; for all joy and all gladness is of love, since everyone rejoices and is glad when his love is favored, and when he pursues and obtains what he loves; in a word, all the joy of man proceeds from his love and all the sadness and grief of mind from antagonism to his love.

[2] It is said "rejoice and be glad" because of the marriage of good and truth; for "joy" is predicated of good because it relates to love, for it belongs especially to the heart and will, and "gladness" is predicated of truth, because it relates to the love of truth, for it belongs especially to the mind and its thought; therefore we speak of "joy of heart" and "gladness of mind." Everywhere in the Word there are two expressions, one of which has reference to good and the other to truth, and this because it is the conjunction of good and truth that makes both heaven and the church; therefore both heaven and the church are compared to a marriage, for the reason that the Lord is called "Bridegroom" and "Husband," and heaven and the church are called "bride" and "wife." Everyone, therefore, who is not in that marriage is not an angel of heaven nor a man of the church; and the reason is that there is no good with anyone unless it is formed by truths, nor is there truth with anyone unless it is made living by good; for every truth is a form of good, and all good is the being [esse] of truth, and as one is not possible without the other it follows that there must needs be a marriage of good and truth with the man of the church as well as with an angel of heaven. Moreover, all intelligence and wisdom are from that marriage, for from it truths and goods are continually born, by which the understanding and will are formed.

[3] This has been said that it may be known why "to rejoice" and "to be glad" are both mentioned, namely, because "to rejoice" is predicated of good and its love or affection, and "to be glad" is predicated of truth and its love or affection. This is the case in many other passages in the Word, as in the following:

The heavens shall be glad and the earth shall rejoice (Psalms 96:11).

Let all that seek Thee rejoice and be glad in Thee (Psalms 40:16; 70:4).

The righteous shall be glad and exult before God, and shall rejoice in gladness (Psalms 68:3).

That we may rejoice all our days, make us glad according to the days in which Thou hast afflicted us (Psalms 90:14, 15).

Be glad in Jerusalem and exult in her, all ye that love her, rejoice for joy with her, all ye that mourn over her (Isaiah 66:10).

Rejoice and be glad, O daughter of Edom (Lamentations 4:21).

Behold joy and gladness, slaying the ox (Isaiah 22:13).

They shall obtain joy and gladness, sorrow and sighing shall flee away (Isaiah 35:10; 51:11).

Joy and gladness shall be found in Zion, confession and the voice of singing (Isaiah 51:3).

They shall make ¹ me to hear joy and gladness (Psalms 51:8).

Joy and gladness are cut off from the house of our God (Joel 1:16).

The fast of the tenth month shall be to the house of Judah for joy and for gladness (Zechariah 8:19).

The voice of joy and the voice of gladness, and the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride (Jeremiah 7:34; 25:10; 33:11).

[4] In place of joy exultation is also mentioned, because exultation, like joy, is predicated of good, because it relates to love, to the heart, and to the will; as in the following passages:

Jacob shall exult, Israel shall be glad (Psalms 14:7; 53:6).

I exult and am glad in Thy kindness (Psalms 31:7).

Be glad in Jehovah, and exult, ye righteous (Psalms 32:11).

Mount Zion shall be glad, and the daughters of Judah shall exult (Psalms 48:11).

Let all that trust in Thee be glad, and let them that love Thy name exult in Thee (Psalms 5:11).

This is the day that Jehovah hath made, let us exult and be glad in it (Psalms 118:24).

Let us exult and be glad in His salvation (Isaiah 25:9).

Be ye glad and exult forever in the things which I create (Isaiah 65:18).

Exult and be glad that Jehovah hath magnified in doing (Joel 2:21).

Exult, ye sons of Zion, and be glad in Jehovah your God (Joel 2:23; Habakkuk 3:18).

Be glad and exult with all the heart, O daughter of Jerusalem (Zephaniah 3:14).

Gladness and exultation are taken away from Carmel (Isaiah 16:10; Jeremiah 48:33).

The angel said unto Zacharias, Thou shalt have gladness and exultation, and many shall rejoice at His birth (Luke 1:14).

In all these passages, "exultation" signifies delight from love and from the affection of good, and "gladness" signifies pleasure from the love and affection of truth.

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