“Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had ascertained from the wise men. Then was fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Jeremiah: ‘A voice was heard in Ramah, weeping and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be comforted, because they are no more.’” (Matthew 2:15-17)
The gospel reading for New Year’s Day is a sobering one for beginning of the year. It shows us that there is a dark side to Christmas that stands in stark contrast to the celebrations and joy most of us associate with this time of the year. King Herod was so afraid of the slightest threat to his power, that he sought to do away with the new born King of the Jews through murder. Thus, the first Christmas ended not with glorious angels proclaiming good will to all, but with women weeping for their slaughtered children.
This massacre of these children shows us the great evil that human beings are capable of. No doubt, most of us are quite familiar with such evil with our modern day slaughter of the innocents: abortion which, despite the Supreme Court ruling, is still quite active. Not only that, so many millions feel it is a basic woman’s right to choose to kill a baby in utero. Thus those who embrace or advocate for abortion are as heartless and wicked as was King Herod. Though some find that statement offensive, we believers realize that no one is without sin, all are wicked and unrighteous. All of us are evil, to varying degrees, but all fall short of God’s glory. All of us deserve God’s just punishment unless we have come to faith in Christ. Only those who have such faith stand righteous and redeemed in the sight of God for Jesus died in our place on the cross.