The birth of Jesus brought great joy to Mary and Joseph, but it also involved great trauma. The news that Mary was pregnant seriously threatened her reputation for purity and integrity in her home village of Nazareth. The circumstances of the birth were extremely difficult as Mary gave birth to her first child in a stable, in a strange town, without the support of family and friends. Then, soon after the birth, Joseph had a dream in which an angel of the Lord told him, ““Get up! Flee to Egypt with the child and his mother. Stay there until I tell you to return, because Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.” So they left Bethlehem at night and went to Egypt to live there in exile before Herod sent soldiers to kill all boys in Bethlehem under the age of 2. It was several years before Mary and Joseph and Jesus could safely return to their home village of Nazareth.
In our world today there are many people who have had to leave their home countries in fear of their lives. Some have been threatened by those with political power; others fear religious persecution. They have experienced great trauma in leaving their home country, family and friends and settling in a strange place and still face a very uncertain future.
In both the Old and New Testaments God commanded his people to welcome strangers and to be kind to them. The reason for this is that the Jews had suffered as slaves in Egypt until God delivered them, setting them free and giving them a home of their own. Many of the early Christians also experienced persecution and had to flee to places of safety. The kindness we show to people from other countries living amongst us is a response to the kindness we have experienced from God.
A few years ago, a young couple from the Middle East arrived in Britain as refugees. They were facing persecution in their own country. When they arrived in Britain they were detained in separate holding centres. It was their first experience of Britain and they were afraid, especially as the wife was expecting her first child. While she was in the holding centre, she was given a Bible and began reading it. It was the first time she had read the Bible. In Psalm 42 she read, “Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise him again – my Saviour and my God!” God spoke to her through these words and gave her hope and his peace.