Our heroes usually wear masks so their true identity can't be known. Like Spiderman and Batman and the Green Lantern and Zorro...and, of course, the original masked man: the Lone Ranger.
We benefit from their kindness -- they frequently save the world from bad guys -- but we don't know who they really are. They may be our heroes, but our knowledge of them is limited.
There's a sense in which the same could have been said about God. In the Old Testament we learned about him, we saw how his people benefited from his kindness, but we couldn't really know him personally, intimately. It was like he was behind a mask.
On Christmas Day, the mask was removed. He revealed himself to us through his Son so that we may know him as he really is. This is why, when Philip asked Jesus to reveal the Father, Jesus said, "Don't you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father." (John 14:9)
God's plan is not to be our hero. He wants to be more than the one we call on in times of trouble. He wants to be our constant companion, our Father, our friend. He wants us to know him personally. This is made possible through his Son, Jesus Christ, who was sent to us two thousand years ago. This is why we celebrate his birth.
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