And so, in our plight – and in his love – God took us as we are and came down to our human level and revealed himself to us in terms we could comprehend – all so that he might restore us to himself and lift us up to his Divine level there to share his Divine life.

And so, in the words of the carol, “Love came down at Christmas” – for love is the key to the nature and character of God.  It is not only that God loves all that is good and beautiful and true; not only that he loves all those whom he has made, whatever their own attitude to him may be.  It is that God himself is Love.

We can understand love in our own lives when it is practical and personal.  Actions speak louder than words and so we recognise love only when it expresses itself in deeds and sacrifices.  But besides that, it must also be infused with the warmth of a human heart for us to respond to it.  Without that warmth it will be as the proverb goes, “as cold as charity”.