The Christmas angel’s announcement of good news resonates deeply with Nigerian Christians today as 2024 has been a terrifying year. The country has faced numerous challenges that have weakened believers’ peace, joy and hope. Food scarcity and poverty have driven many to desperation. Banditry is on the rise, and kidnapping has become a daily horror in village settlements. Economic hardships have claimed lives, with reports suggesting that up to 3,000 Nigerians die each day due to hunger. The poor and marginalized are the most affected by these crises.

Christmas brings a powerful message of hope and joy for all. Shepherds were outcasts in first-century Israel, due to poverty and their questionable integrity. The Jewish sacrificial tradition and the patriarchs’ association with sheep gave the profession some recognition, but society despised shepherds at the time when Christ was born. However, the good news of Christ’s birth coming first to them showed that Jesus cares deeply for the lowly, marginalized and restless. The angelic announcement to the shepherds is a powerful reminder that Jesus’ message is for all—even the weary, burdened and oppressed. As Jesus promised when He said “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28), there is rest for all in Christmas.

Christmas also brings a powerful message of hope and joy amid fear. In Luke 2:10, the angels urged the shepherds not to fear, a message that resonates with us today. They proclaimed the good news of the arrival of a Savior who will deliver from those things that cause fear and bring hopelessness and oppression. To the hard realities of the lived experiences of many people comes news of a solution in the form of the one who would take on sorrow and eventually deliver people from it. That good news is transformative not because it offers an immediate solution but because it introduces hope to conditions of fear and despair. And with hope, we can persevere.

Jesus’ ministry of hope to a crippled woman on the Sabbath demonstrates His saving power and the reason for hope (Luke 13:10–17). This story reveals three powerful truths about Christ’s inclusive mercy.

First, her encounter with Jesus exemplifies His ministry to those on the margins of society. The spirit that crippled her for eighteen years left her on the outside looking in. Despite her condition, Christ did not turn her away. He saw her  pain, understood her situation and brought joy in hopelessness. His act of mercy embraced her fully, showing that no one is beyond His love and care. Second, her story demonstrates that hope and peace at Christmas are not limited to just one aspect of life. Jesus recognized that this woman’s suffering was not just physical but also social and spiritual. He came to heal and transform all areas of brokenness, including restoring this “daughter of Abraham” to her dignified place in the com- munity. Third, when religious leaders criticized Him for healing on the Sabbath, Jesus demonstrated that His mission transcends human legalism and goes beyond religious law. Healing and mercy are the point of all He does, including the intent of His instruction. He cannot be confined by the strict application of laws and the idolatrous power of religious leaders. His salvation breaks through all barriers. His healing of this woman exemplifies the good news that Jesus came “to free all those who trust in him from Satan’s power and might.”

The transformative hope of rescue given at Christmas and exemplified in the gospels is a powerful and needed message for Nigeria and Africa amidst fear and hopelessness. I trust it resonates in your circumstances as well. We do not know for sure when deliverance will come from the many places and effects of Satan’s might. But it will come. This Christmas, may you hear again the angel’s “Fear not …” and find hope and rest in your situation because of the freedom Jesus came to bring.