Christmas is a time of the year when a lot of families and extended families make the effort to gather together for a meal. These family gatherings can be a lot of fun as we catch up with relatives that we might not have seen for a while. We can share what we’ve been up to, changes that we have experienced, travel stories if we’ve been fortunate to go somewhere different, or even meet new members of the family.
Family gatherings at this or any time of the year can also be a bit awkward sometimes. For example, some families have people in them that can be a bit embarrassing. We might have a relative who tells jokes that aren’t appropriate for the occasion, such as a father who loves telling dad-jokes to the embarrassment of his teenaged child. Someone might either overdress or underdress, like wearing a suit to a barbecue, or shorts and thongs to a more formal family dinner. On a more serious note, some people can experience real shame when they catch up with their families, either for mistakes or bad decisions they have made, conflicts which have occurred in the family, or a breakdown of a marriage or another relationship. While catching up with family over the Christmas and New Year period can be really enjoyable, for others it can be a time when we experience embarrassment or shame.
While we or others in our earthly families might experience embarrassment or shame when we get together, we never have to feel embarrassed or ashamed in our spiritual family. The author of the Letter to the Hebrews tells us in chapter 2 verse 11 that Jesus is never ashamed to call us his sisters and brothers. He writes, ‘Both the one who makes people holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters’ (Hebrews 2:11 NIV).
When the author of Hebrews talks about ‘the one who makes people holy’, he is talking about Jesus. When he refers to ‘those who are made holy’ he is talking about us. Part of the good news of this text is that Jesus makes us holy by forgiving us, making us clean and wiping away the stain of sin from our lives through his birth, death and resurrection. He calls us his brothers and sisters because Jesus has opened up a new relationship with our loving heavenly Father who adopted as his dearly loved children and heirs through baptism. No matter what we’ve done in the past, no matter what mistakes we’ve made or wrongs we’ve committed, when we walk into the family gathering of the children of God, we can be free from all embarrassment, shame or guilt because ‘the one who makes people holy’, namely Jesus, has included us in ‘those who are made holy’ by his unconditional love and grace. When we are members of God’s family, we don’t need to feel embarrassed, awkward or ashamed because our brother Jesus rushes up to us, gives us the biggest hug, and welcomes us to his family gathering.
Jesus makes us holy by taking our human condition on himself, with all its flaws, weaknesses and failings. In verse 14, the author of Hebrews writes, ‘Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity’ (NIV). This is the mystery of what is known as the incarnation – the infinite and divine nature of God making his home in a human, flesh and blood body. The Apostle John talks about this in chapter 1 verse 14 of his gospel when he writes, ‘the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us’ (NIV). Jesus welcomes us into his family by taking our human nature as his own. It’s sort of like walking into a formal family dinner wearing shorts and thongs. Instead of making us feel embarrassed and ashamed of the way we look or telling us to go home and get changed before we’re welcome to the table, Jesus gets changed into his shorts and thongs and sits with us to make us feel welcome and accepted. Obviously human nature runs a lot deeper than a pair of shorts and thongs, but the point is that the eternal Son of God takes on our nature, becomes one of us and even looks like us so we can experience his welcome and acceptance.
The author of Hebrews goes on to write, ‘he had to be made like them, fully human in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people’ (2:17 NIV). These words refer to the Old Testament sacrificial system of worship which was practiced since the time of Moses. People would offer animal sacrifices to remove their guilt and become acceptable to God. The author of Hebrews, writing to a mainly Jewish congregation, uses this to explain that Jesus becomes one of us to remove everything about us that might make us embarrassed, ashamed or unacceptable. If we ever feel embarrassed or ashamed of anything we have done, we can go to the foot of Jesus’ cross in faith, see the gift of his life for us, and trust that whatever it might be that makes us embarrassed or ashamed, Jesus has taken it on himself, died with it in his crucifixion, and freed us from it.
Because Jesus is never ashamed to call us his brothers and sisters, he is always there to help us. Verse 18 tells us that ‘because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted’ (NIV). We might think about temptation as the desire to do something wrong or sinful. In this passage, we can also think about temptation as being lured towards focussing on whatever it is that makes us feel embarrassed or ashamed, and letting that embarrassment or shame define us or overwhelm us. When we start thinking that way, we can go to the manger where we see Jesus take on our human condition and to the cross where we see him remove our sin so we can find freedom from our guilt and shame. When we start dwelling on our wrongs, mistakes or failures, faith leads us to Jesus, to ask him for help by guiding us in the way of grace, love and peace. We can trust that we are Jesus’ brothers and sisters. He is never ashamed of us because he has taken our shame from us. We can live every day in the peace, joy and hope that he gives us as dearly loved children of God, and his holy and clean sisters and brothers.
We hope and pray that your family catch ups over this Christmas and New Year period are full of joy and peace. For a range of reasons, maybe this won’t be the case. Families are complicated, and sometimes it can be hard to let go of the past. Whatever our family gatherings might be like, we can find freedom and joy in the faith that Jesus is never ashamed to call us his sisters and brothers, no matter what has happened in the past, because he shared in our humanity, he took our guilt and shame to the cross, and he is always able to help us when we need it.
More to think about or discuss:
- What are your family gatherings like at this time of year? What do you enjoy most about them? Is there anything you find awkward, embarrassing or maybe shameful in them?
- What is it like for you that Jesus is never ashamed to call you his brother or sister? How might that be good news for you?
- What might you be able to do to remember that Jesus is able to help you if or when you experience shame or guilt? How can we or your church community help you with that?
Pastor Eugene Online 
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