In Christmas message, LWF’s President Musa invites us to see God reflected in face of the baby lying in the manger
(LWI) - In his Christmas message, the President of the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) Archbishop Dr Panti Filibus Musa invites Christians worldwide to consider “the astonishing truth” that in the face of a newborn baby in Bethlehem, “we can see the image of God” and his “unending relationship of love” for all of creation.
Reflecting on the words of St Paul’s letter to the Colossians, ‘Christ is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation’, the LWF leader notes that for many people, the nativity scene, with animals, shepherds and angels welcoming the birth of Mary’s son, is among “our earliest and fondest memories of learning about our faith.”
But if we reflect more deeply on the Incarnation, he continues, “are we able to see, in the face of that tiny baby, the image of the invisible God?” And he asks: “Why did the creator of our universe choose this simple family and this humble stable as the setting for an event that would change the course of history?”
Jesus’ model of servant leadership will turn our earthly models of power and authority upside down.
LWF President Archbishop Dr Panti Filibus Musa
The extraordinary message of Christmas, Archbishop Musa says, “is that through Christ’s birth and earthly life, we can see the image of God, perfectly reflected in his Beloved Son.” The choice of a humble family “in an unremarkable corner of the Roman empire", he adds, is an indicator of the way that Jesus’ model of servant leadership will turn “our earthly models of power and authority upside down.”
The LWF President concludes with a reminder that “we too are created in the image of God and that the invisible love of the Triune God is made visible in and through us.”
Read the full message below