Silent Night, Holy Knight

Recently I read (in Chris Seay’s ‘The Gospel AccordingTo Jesus’) that a very high percentage of people today do not know and understand what the ‘Gospel’ truly is. It means ‘Good News’, but when you ask someone what it means you usually get a long and boring answer from a person with a bummed out look on their face. Many times people will begin to describe it using words like, ‘salvation’ and ‘heaven’… both of which are results of the Gospel, but not really definitions of what the Gospel is.

I see the ‘Gospel’ as basically the story of a ‘Rescue Mission’ - Much like the old legends of a damsel in distress and her white knight riding in to rescue her, the Gospel is the true story of humanity… and it’s need for a Savior to rescue it.

But this story, as we’ve been discussing recently, didn’t happen as everyone was expecting. The ‘Rescuer’… the ‘Knight in shining armor’… came in a way that was a complete surprise. It still catches most people by surprise… for to most people the story of Jesus Christ is seen as simply that… only a ‘story’; One that is placed on an equal shelf of other fantastical stories such as; Santa Clause, Robin Hood, or Lancelot. Yet, to many others, the story is absolutely true… and represents the very anchor of our lives.

But how is His story a rescue?

For that answer, let’s look a little closer at one part of the Christmas story we haven’t looked at yet.

At this time of year, we often remind ourselves of His humble beginnings and the impact of His coming. We read the familiar story that includes angels, a virgin girl, a surprised fiancé, an evil king, lowly shepherds, donkeys, camels and some wise men called ‘magi’… with incredibly expensive gifts of gold, rare special oils and fragrant spices.

It’s those wise men, the magi, and their special gifts that I want to look at for a moment…

Matthew 2:1-2

“After Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of King Herod, wise men from the east arrived unexpectedly in Jerusalem, saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him.”

Matthew 2:9-11

“After hearing the king, they went on their way. And there it was—the star they had seen in the east! It led them until it came and stopped above the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed beyond measure. Entering the house, they saw the child with Mary His mother, and falling to their knees, they worshiped Him. Then they opened their treasures and presented Him with gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.”

To describe all the reasons these wise men, also called ‘three kings’, traveled so great a distance would mean that I’d be reading you massive amounts of Old Testament Scripture, prophesies that these men knew and believed and trusted to be pointing them to this particular location, at this particular time, to see this particular baby (Micah 5:2-4, 1 Chronicles 17:10b-14, Isaiah 60:1-6, Psalm 72: 4-5 & 8-15, Numbers 24:17-18). Suffice it to say, they BELIEVED this child to be the anointed King sent from the one, true, Almighty God! And they brought this G0d-King extremely expensive gifts, because in those days when a powerful king arises in a country, other kings would often give him gifts to get on his good side, form alliances and basically just show friendliness toward that nation. (David and Solomon, Israel's most powerful kings, formed many alliances with the nations around them, and we have recorded where expensive gifts would be exchanged - 1 Kings 10:1-2, 10).

To travel as far as they did, and to give the precious gifts that they gave, was a major sacrifice.

It was an act of worship… an act of recognizing the superiority of the One they were giving their sacrificial gifts to. But it’s important to understand that to them… the sacrifice was TOTALLY WORTH IT… because it would mean that they would be in “good relationship” with this new King.

All throughout the Bible we read about that word ‘sacrifice’ a lot…especially as it relates to worship.

There is probably nothing in the Bible so perplexing to modern Christians as the sacrifices of the Old Testament (Leviticus). We struggle with why God instituted a form of worship that was so bloody.

The idea of sacrifice was not something that first originated in the Bible - it was familiar throughout the ancient world. God often spoke to His people in customs that they already understood, but then modified them to say something different about Himself.  Polytheists in the ancient near east believed that by making idols, they were making a bodily form for their god to inhabit, and when they put them in temples, they were giving them a home to live in. By furnishing the god's home lavishly and bringing them the finest of foods as sacrifices, the god could be petitioned for favors.

The ancients also believed that the world was the property of the gods, and since the gods controlled all fertility, a person must always offer some of the harvest back to them. A planted field was sacred and off-limits until its first crops were given to the god, and all firstborn animals were the property of the gods too. If a person killed an animal, he was obligated to give an offering from the animal to pay the gods for its life. Because a person's life depended on fertility of the soil and of animals, it was imperative to honor the gods in this way.

When God gave His people instructions for worship, He used these cultural ideas to teach them about Himself. Because God is the true Creator of the universe, and the "earth is the Lord's, and everything in it" (Ex. 9:29, Ps. 24:1) it was appropriate that the Israelites brought their harvest offerings to Him. He was the One Who gave their animals and fields fertility, not the idols that their neighbors worshipped.

The overall idea of sacrifices were that they were intended for drawing near to God. God wanted to dwell among His people. When we read the Christmas story, we focus on the idea that in Jesus Christ, God came to dwell with us, and we see it as a miracle that for a short time God would come so close to lowly humanity. But if we examine the rest of the Scriptures, it becomes evident that this has been God's goal from the very beginning, and will finally be reached in Revelation.

When God first made man and woman, they dwelled with Him in the Garden of Eden; after they sinned, they were cast out of God's presence. This is the fundamental consequence of sin - the breach of intimacy with God. But God immediately began to repair the breach by making a covenant with Abraham, and later with Israel. When the covenant with Israel was first made and before it was broken, seventy elders could enter God's presence and not suffer harm (Exodus 24:9-14). God had begun to mend the relationship between mankind and Himself, so that a few people could enter His presence once again, even if only temporarily.

God then gave the Israelites instructions to make a tabernacle, saying, “They are to make a sanctuary for Me so that I may dwell among them” (Ex. 25:8). Interestingly, His goal is not to dwell in it, but to dwell among them. His goal was to have intimacy with His people, for them to live in His presence. This idea is literally all throughout the Bible… skip to the end:

Revelation. 21:3-4

“Then I heard a loud voice from the throne: Look! God’s dwelling is with humanity, and He will live with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will no longer exist; grief, crying, and pain will exist no longer, because the previous things have passed away.”

An important part of the sacrifice was its costliness to the worshipper. Before money had been invented, animals and crops were the "currency" of the world, and each animal would have been very expensive. Offerings that could be obtained with little expense or effort, like fish or game caught from the wild, were not used as sacrifices. Instead, animals that a person raised himself or that were purchased were required. As King David said, “No, I insist on buying it from you for a price, for I will not offer to the Lord my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing.” (2 Sam. 24:24)

Jesus also pointed this out when He said that the widow's mite was worth far more to God than the larger offerings of the wealthy donor, because her gift was a real sacrifice - all that she had to live on (Mark 12:43).

To ancient people it was very meaningful to feel that they had taken something precious of theirs and given it to God and that He had accepted it. They felt that they had come close to God, and that He would respond to the needs they brought to Him. Today we pretty much define ‘worship’ as prayer and singing, but an ancient person likely would have felt that this was a little less genuine - like saying that you loved someone, rather than showing your love for them. Certainly at some points the system of offering animal and grain sacrifice was abused, but for thousands of years, people expressed their love for God by taking the very best things they had and offering them up to Him.

Even though we don’t give God these types of sacrifices today, the idea of love being expressed through sacrifice is still universally understood. Many remember the classic short story, 

The Gift of the Magi, by O. Henry. 

A young couple was nearly penniless, but had two prized possessions: the husband's pocket watch that had been his father's and grandfather's, and the wife's long, beautiful hair. At Christmas each one wanted to give the other a gift, so the woman secretly cut off her hair and sold it to a wig maker, and bought her husband a gold chain for the watch. The same day, the man secretly sold his watch to buy an expensive set of combs for her hair.

The beauty of the story is in the fact that each was willing to sacrifice their most prized possession for the other. We all can instinctively feel the depth of the love they had for each other.

The truth is, most people won’t do something sacrificial for someone else… unless they deeply love them. This is the most awesome part of the Gospel; that Jesus suffered and died for us, without us doing anything to deserve it.  As Paul said,

Romans 5:7-8

“For rarely will someone die for a just person—though for a good person perhaps someone might even dare to die. But God proves His own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us!”

For those of us who believe that Jesus is the Rescuer that we all needed, this is something we can cling to during times of suffering, when it seems that God might not really care about us.

You see, knowing that God was willing to suffer for us decides the matter once and for all:

God loves us deeply and His great love for us can never be shaken, He proved it… because He was willing to die for us at our very worst.

It is interesting to me that throughout history when humans desired to come near to God,

they sacrificed their very finest things to show Him their love, and when God desired to draw near to humans, He sacrificed His precious Son!

That ‘sacrifice’ was the rescue… because it made a way for you and I to be forgiven. And that's awesome, not because it keeps us out of Hell... it's awesome because being forgiven means that we can now enter into God's presence... draw near to Him... dwell with Him!

This CHRISTMAS…

May you and I see Jesus as the Rescuer… the Holy Knight… the Savior of the world.

May we see that God has always had a goal, and that is to be in relationship with people.

May we understand that on that “silent night” in Bethlehem, God accomplished that goal. In Jesus, God walked, talked, laughed and cried with His people, and showed His great love for them. Ultimately, His dying for people’s sins not only provided forgiveness, but has opened the door for them to live forever in His presence. 

You see, I said earlier that most people don’t really know what the Gospel is. Well, that’s it…

It’s two-fold:

The first part is that we’ve been rescued from our sin, because He was born… to die.

The second part is that we can draw near to Almighty God and live forever in His presence… because He didn’t stay dead… He lives!

In light of His love for us and the great Sacrifice He made to prove it…

May you and I offer up a meaningful sacrifice too. Not just “thanks God, we love You too”… but offering something that costs us… something that really shows the depths of our love for Him… something that shows we really want to be near to Him too.

What would that look like for you this Christmas?

What sacrifice could you bring… that would be fit for a King?

They're Playing Our Song

A man by the name of Jack Kornfield, (one of the leading Buddhist teachers in America and not at all a professing “Christ-Follower”) recounts in his book “How, Then, Shall We Live?” the custom of one African tribe. He says that in this tribe, when a woman decides to have a child, she goes and sits alone under a tree, and she listens. She listens until she hears the song of the child who wants to come.

Once she hears the song, she returns to the man who will be the child’s father and teaches the song to him. When they make love to conceive the child, they sing the song to call the child to them.

When the woman is pregnant, she teaches the child’s song to the midwives and old women of the village so that when the birth time arrives, the people surrounding the mother sing the song to welcome the child among them.

Then as the child grows up, the other villagers learn the song. If the child falls or hurts his knee someone picks him up and sings the song. When the child does something wonderful, the people of the village sing this song. When the child goes through the rites of puberty and becomes an adult, the villagers sing the song.

It goes this way through life. At a wedding, the songs of both husband and wife are sung together. Finally, when this child grows old, and lies in bed ready to die, all the villagers know the song, and they sing it for the last time.

That, to me, is a very beautiful thought; The idea that each person in that village has their own, special, very individual and personal, song… a song they carry with them throughout their lives. Reading that this week, I began to think about Jesus, and the song of HIS life. I wonder if Mary, during her nine month pregnancy, ever sang to Jesus?

When Kelli was pregnant with our children, at night… every night, we’d read and sing and talk to her belly. She had read that that was important, and so it’s something that we did. When our first son, Conor, was born there were some immediate concerns. The doctors didn’t have time to let me cut his cord; they quickly cut it and rushed him out of the room and into a smaller room where they checked him out. It was after a few moments of him screaming at the top of his little lungs that they asked if I would want to cut the chord. I was so nervous and happy and scared… I began to talk and say ‘yes, I’d love to’. As soon as Conor heard my voice, not the voices of all the nurses and doctors talking, he stopped crying! He even slightly turned his head… and stopped crying! It was as though he recognized my voice. All that time talking, praying, and singing to him… had caused him to know me!

We’re told in Luke 1:46-55 that Mary did indeed sing while Jesus was in her womb:

Luke 1:46-55  - HCSB

And Mary said: My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior, because He has looked with favor on the humble condition of His slave. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed, because the Mighty One has done great things for me, and His name is holy. His mercy is from generation to generation on those who fear Him. He has done a mighty deed with His arm; He has scattered the proud because of the thoughts of their hearts; He has toppled the mighty from their thrones and exalted the lowly. He has satisfied the hungry with good things and sent the rich away empty. He has helped His servant Israel, mindful of His mercy, just as He spoke to our ancestors, to Abraham and his descendants forever.

When you read this song of praise it’s easy to see why Mary is so revered. Truly, she is a pretty neat young woman. She is totally humble, but also recognizes that “all generations will call her blessed”. I believe that this young woman had a major impact. Of course, Jesus was the Son of God, but God chose for this particular woman to be His mother, because His mother’s influence was something that, I believe, would help shape His life and ministry… beginning with the words that she spoke and sang over Him in the womb!

She sings of how God would use her Son to;

          “show mercy to generation after generation”

 “scatter the proud, because of the thoughts of their hearts”

“topple the mighty from their thrones”

“exalt the lowly”

“satisfy the hungry”

Some of these thoughts should ring a bell for those of us who are familiar with the life and teachings of Jesus Christ…

The very first sermon He ever preached, He stood up in the local synagogue, grabbed the Scroll of Isaiah and read;

                “God’s Spirit is upon Me”
                “He has anointed Me”

                “to preach Good News… to the poor and lowly”

                “to proclaim freedom to captives”

                “recovery of sight to the blind”

His most famous sermon ever was the Sermon on the Mount, where He declared;

          “the poor in Spirit are the ones who are blessed”

                “those who hunger and thirst for righteousness are blessed”

                “those who show mercy… blessed”

His most famous miracles were probably when He physically fed thousands who were hungry… just like His mother’s song spoke of… that He’d “satisfy the hungry”. And the times He “exalted the lowly” by bringing sight to the blind, eating & hanging out with sinners, and touching lepers.

As He hung on the Cross, He said seven specific statements that included:

Extending grace to a sinner being murdered for his crimes by declaring that the guy would be forgiven and freed from the captivity of sin that very day and be with Him “in Paradise”.

Declaring “It is finished” – speaking of the price being paid for redemption – the forgiveness of the sins of the world – freedom of the oppressed and captives of sins!

“Take care of My mother” – a woman who without a living husband would need to be cared for, especially during a terrific grieving process.

               

As a matter of fact, I’d suggest that if you do a careful study of the seven letters that Jesus commands John to write to the seven churches of Revelation, you’ll find the very same themes He was known for throughout His life and ministry;

God wants to show mercy to generation after generation
God will scatter the proud, because of the thoughts of their hearts
God will exalt the lowly
God will satisfy those who are hungry… for HIM – even come in and dine with them in intimate relationship.

What’s my point? What if Mary’s famous song, the song she sang while He was still in her womb – was not only ‘prophetic’… but was something that would help shape and mold her Son’s life and ministry?

What if Jesus’ song, like the song of the villagers I mentioned earlier, was something that was sung over Him from before He was born, during His life here, and even afterwards to this very day?

And when I think of that ‘song’…

              …the ‘Jesus Song’…

                                               …do I really know it...

                                                                     … and am I truly singing it?

If there were a “song” that defined my life… your life… what would it be?

Jesus’ song was one that exalted the poor and lowly

                …it sang of God’s amazing grace and incredible mercy to all generations

                                                                …it truly satisfied people’s deepest hunger.

What’s the song of my life doing?

         Is it a buddy-bear-drinking song that talks about all the good ‘ol friends I have?

                Is it a romantic love song that speaks only of my relationship with my wife?

Is it an annoying little commercial ‘diddy’ that speaks of nothing more than my materialistic concerns… and materialistic stuff?

                “Come on down to the GrassPad… the GrassPad’s high on grass!”

                “Every kiss begins with ‘K’…”

                “The Mid-West Hemorrhoid Treatment Center… Don’t Suffer In Silence”

Or is the song of our lives WAY MORE THAN THAT?

What if this Christmas we decided to make the song of our lives…the song of the Lamb… Jesus’ Song?

Revelation 15:2-3 - HCSB

“I also saw something like a sea of glass mixed with fire, and those who had won the victory over the beast, his image, and the number of his name, were standing on the sea of glass with harps from God. They sang the song of God’s servant Moses and the song of the Lamb: Great and awe-inspiring are Your works, Lord God, the Almighty; righteous and true are Your ways, King of the Nations.”

Better yet… what if we made the song of our lives not just the song of the Lamb… but the Lamb Himself? 

What if Jesus, Himself could be the very core of who we are… the Song of our hearts? This Christmas – let us not just strive to keep “Christ” in “CHRISTmas”… but may we strive to keep “CHRIST Jesus” as the song of our hearts.

Letter of Encouragement

I received the following words of encouragement from a truly lovely person this morning. I wanted to share them here, with those who read my 'thoughts'. Truthfully, this has been an incredibly hard season for me and my family. I am so grateful to God for His willingness to put up with me, His strength that He gives me, and especially for the loved ones He has placed in my(our) life.

To the person who wrote this. Thanks... it means more than I can express.

Michael, although your life is going through many trials and struggles we can't help but notice how the voice of God, the influence of the Spirit, and the walk of discipleship is screaming from you louder and stronger than ever.  Sometimes, I wonder, how do you do it?  You have the role of husband and dad but also "shepherd" and I am truly impressed and thanking our God that you, Michael, can stand the test of time and not stutter or skip a beat in your sermons or your drive to be our church leader. 

The pressure you are under is tremendous, yet I (and I'm sure I speak for hundreds) am continually learning more about how to serve God, and keep our fire going for Him. Without a doubt, you are a great example to all of us when we face tough times, we must bathe ourselves in the Word and trust that God remains our source of strength. I love when you share that you have no mysterious privilege with God, pastors go through it just like the rest of us. You question God, you don't find the answers, you get overwhelmed with wondering "why" won't you "heal her" God, you cry, you get burnt out on trying to juggle all the "hats" you wear. The difference between you and me is that as you are going through your daily garbage you are pouring your heart into creating an atmosphere where a bunch of sinners..some whiners...some complainers...some idiots...some addicts...some broken...some normal, gather to try to grow their relationship with Messiah and put their life in order, not for their benefit,but for God's and you do this so smoothly and wonderfully.

The Truth Project is meat to chew on...we need that, thank you for leading that. I am certainly grateful for your sermons....I ALWAYS walk away with more knowledge and it feels good. The smile, the humor, the physical energy---bouncing around that stage, the voice, the commitment to God, to your family and to us. You keep on making it look easy when I know you are in a very hard place....that's when I look at you and I see the Lord.

YOU ARE LOVED AND APPRECIATED.  Always here if you need me (us!) :)

Baby Love Crashed Into The World

This season I’ve decided to step back and do two things:

First, I want to approach this time of year ‘positively’. Sure, there is much we can complain about with crowded stores, traffic jams, greed and materialism, and lots of distractions from what’s important… but there is also much to be grateful to God for. So… we’re gonna stay positive!

Second, I want to really look for Jesus this year! I want to slow down and seek ‘God’ – in the littlest of things. We’re winding up 2012, where our church has had the theme ‘KAIROS MOMENTS’ – moments where God has made Himself real – moments where God has shown up – moments where God has interrupted our lives. I want to spend this final season of the year… really seeking Jesus, and recognizing Him in everything I’m doing.

With all that in mind, let’s dive into our text…

Luke 2:8-11  - HCSB

In the same region, shepherds were staying out in the fields and keeping watch at night over their flock. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.  But the angel said to them, “Don’t be afraid, for look, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people: Today a Savior, who is Messiah the Lord, was born for you in the city of David.

I don’t know if you’ve ever been in an accident… or better yet, a “crash”, but if you have then you know it can be quite surprising. You are on your way somewhere, your mind is imagining that certain things will take place… and then suddenly… CRASH! It’s not expected. It’s not something you thought was going to happen. It catches you off-guard. It catches you by surprise. Even though you have auto-insurance and you pay money each month towards it… even though you’ve been warned by driver’s-ed teachers, and parents, and a multitude of signs and advertising that a crash could occur at any moment… it still catches you by surprise. And after it’s happened, many times, the person involved is so caught by surprise that they are fumbling through their glove-box for paperwork, or completely at a loss as to what to do. Maybe it’s just… ‘shock’.

Years ago, in 2003, after the massive tornado that rocked this area I climbed out of my basement to see that our home was a wreck. The doors had blown open, mud and water and wind had wrecked much. Our bedroom window was gone, and our entire roof had lifted up and then dropped back down suddenly causing lots of damage. It was shocking to say the least. Then we remembered our friends, the Sharps, who lived just over the hill. I got on my mountain bike and rode over there as fast as I could to see if they were okay. When I arrived, their house wasn’t just messy… it was gone! I’ll never forget seeing all that chaos and then seeing Mark… bending over and picking up little potted plants and placing them in a row. I thought, “Mark! What the heck are you doing? Who cares about those plants, your house is gone! Your family is freaking out!” But… he was in shock. He had experienced a crash… was totally surprised... at a loss as to what to do.

When God crashed into this world… when God became a human being… this world wasn’t expecting it to happen like it did. To many… that believed they were ready… who had supposedly been anxiously awaiting His arrival… it just didn’t happen like they had envisioned at all. And that’s why I call it a ‘crash’. It wasn’t exactly a smooth landing.

BABY 

First… He came crashing in... as a baby. Our text says, in Luke 2:11 , that He “…was born…”. I mean, maybe it is just ridiculous to think that the Promised Deliverer – Liberator – Messiah… wouldn’t come as a baby… but it sure seems to have caught some by surprise… not all… but some. Later, in Jesus’ life, it would be asked about Him, “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t His mother called Mary, and His brothers James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas?” (Matthew 13:55). That He would be born and ‘crash land’ into an average family was surprising… and speaks of how He came in humbleness.

BREAD

Our text says that the angels announced that He was born “…in the city of David.” The city of David is widely known to be the city of Bethlehem, which was the city that Israel’s second, and most beloved, king, David had been born. It was widely believed that the Promised Deliverer – Liberator – Messiah would be born there… specifically. “Bethlehem Ephrathah, you are small among the clans of Judah; One will come fromyou to be ruler over Israel for Me. His origin is from antiquity, from eternity” (Micah 5:2). It’s interesting to me that the name ‘Bethlehem’ in that language is translated, “House of Bread” or “House where bread comes from”. That’s interesting because Jesus would later say of Himself, “I am the bread of life,” …. “No one who comes to Me will ever be hungry, and no one who believes in Me will ever be thirsty again” (John 6:35).

LAMB 

Despite all the peaceful scenes of Bethlehem on our Christmas cards, today it is often a place of strife, off limits to tourists. On December 21, 1995, Israeli troops withdrew from Bethlehem, and three days later, on Christmas Eve, the city came under the complete administration and military control of the Palestinian National Authority in conformance with the Interim Agreement on the West Bank and the Gaza Strip in 1995. 

("Palestine Facts Timeline: 1994-1995". Palestinian Academic Society for the Study of International Affairs. Retrieved 2008-03-29.  Kessel, Jerrold (1995-12-24). "Muslims, Christians celebrate in Bethlehem". CNN News (Cable News Network). Retrieved 2008-01-22.)

Bethlehem is found in the central hill country of Israel, surprisingly close to the city of  Jerusalem. It is also on the border between the farm belt and the wilderness — literally right across the road from each other — so farmers like Boaz and shepherds like David coexisted here (a little more peacefully than Palestinians and Israelis do today!). One sign of that is especially apparent in the fall: for the only time all year, sheep are allowed to graze in farmers’ fields. It proves a symbiotic relationship: sheep, normally confined to desert grazing, get the crop leftovers, but also leave behind fertilizer for the upcoming growing season.

This phenomenon, which occurs only in “frontier” towns like Bethlehem, may explain the wording of Luke 2:8 that the shepherds were “out in the fields” nearby Bethlehem. If that’s true, it dates Jesus’ birth to sometime in the summer or fall (perhaps in conjunction with the Feast of Tabernacles [Sukkot]?). But the fact that these sheep were in the Bethlehem area also suggests another interesting insight: that they were Temple flocks being raised for sacrifice.

The Mishnah (the first major written redaction of the Jewish oral traditions called the "Oral Torah". It is also the first major work of Rabbinic Judaism) tells us that only sheep from the flocks of Bethlehem were to be used for Temple sacrifice. Jesus, of course, was the sacrificial lamb of God? “The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Here is the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). Truly, the angels message: “Today a Savior... is born” was absolutely correct.

KING 

The angels didn’t just call Him a Savior, but went on to call Him “…Messiah the Lord”. The World English Dictionary defines ‘Lord’ as: “a person who has power or authority over others, such as a monarch, king, or master”.

Interesting: So… God crashes into the world as a;

BABY,   

    BREAD of LIFE,   

        SACRIFICIAL LAMB OF GOD,   

            and… KING.

So... do you buy all that? I mean,... really?

There’s an amazing feature in the area of Bethlehem, which is the Herodian fortress-palace, which actually casts a shadow over the entire town in the early mornings. I’ve read that from the top, one can see not only Bethlehem but even Jerusalem to the west, as well as a good view of the wilderness to the east. 

Maybe you say, “Well… so what?” Picture that for a second, because it means that every person in the Christmas story — whether Mary & Joseph, the shepherds, the Wise-Magi, Simeon & Anna — they’d all have to “buy into” the idea that this poor child was the true King of the world, when King Herod’s presence was so obvious and ominous nearby. I mean, they’ve got this massive shadow looming over them… literally… reminding them of who the king REALLY was – and yet you see each of these people completely buying into the fact that Jesus… this poor, little baby – was the real KING, sent from God!

It certainly took a lot of faith to be part of that first Christmas story set in Bethlehem. But I’d suggest that it takes no less faith today — when so many other “things” and “kings” compete for our attention, when evil sometimes seems enthroned and casts a shadow over our entire world. It takes faith… and hope.

How about you and I today? 

    How is our faith? 

          How is our hope?

                What exactly are we putting our trust in?

                                Who exactly are we trusting our lives to?

·        The Baby of Bethlehem? – The One Who comes in this humble, non-forceful way… Who doesn’t force Himself into your life?

·        The Bread of Life? – The One Who can truly satisfy the hunger and cravings within each of us?

·        The Lamb of God? – The One Who suffered and died and paid the price for our mistakes?

·        The King?– The One Who truly has all power and authority, yet unconditionally loves His subjects… enough to die for them?

LOVE 

When we slow down and take a good look at Christmas… at how God crashed into this world… as our HUMBLE – SUSTAINING – FORGIVING & REDEEMING – KING…we should be surprised. We should marvel at the incredible LOVE of our God. Maybe that's one of the reasons the angels declare in our text: “…Don’t be afraid, for look, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people…” Someone wiser than I has said that the opposite of fear... is love. Love crashing into the world... THAT really is good news… especially if it is for all people. 

Listen, if we’re celebrating the fact that God crashed into the world… and we can so easily see and read that “God is love” (1 John 4:8)… then Christmas is a time when LOVE has crashed into the world. May we not only celebrate it... but live like it.

You may view the video shown at church by clicking below:

Baby Love Crashed Into The World

Rockin Around The Christmas Tree

It’s that time of year again. Jesus is everywhere! Sure, so are decorated trees, reindeer, colored lights, materialism, Santa Clause, presents and a bunch of other… ‘stuff’. But, if you look and listen carefully you’ll find Jesus Christ everywhere too! You may accept Jesus. You may reject Him. You may affirm Him, or deny Him… but this is the time of year that you certainly cannot ignore Him. For approximately one month, His presence is inescapable. He is proclaimed in sermons absolutely, but He is also being sung about in millions of stores, restaurants, elevators, gas stations and street corners. It’s actually… pretty awesome!

For those who go so far as to call themselves, “Christians” and claim His name for themselves, Christmas is a time where an amazing truth is being trumpeted loudly for all to hear: We have HOPE, because God, Jesus Christ, has come! Because of what God did in a little town called, Bethlehem, we now know that nothing can ever separate us from the love of God. We have Light, life, and love on our side!

But, as happens every year, I’m amazed at how there are always some who choose to condemn this time of year… to only see materialism, the greed, the secularization of it all. I’m annually sent emails and letters informing me of the evilness of this time of year, because of it’s pagan roots and its insistency that CHRIST has been x’ed out of XMAS!

The truth is, ‘X’ looks a lot like the symbol for ‘CHRIST’ and in the early part of the 1400's, the printing press with movable type was invented. In those early days this was all done by hand and was very tedious and very, very expensive. As a result, abbreviations were common. 

The church began to use the abbreviation X for the word "Christ" to cut down on the cost of the production of books and pamphlets. From there, it moved into general use in newspapers and other publications. "Xmas" became an accepted way of printing "Christmas" (along with the abbreviations Xian and Xianity). Even Webster’s dictionary acknowledges that the abbreviation Xmas was in common use by the middle of the sixteenth century.

My point is… there is not necessarily an evil plan of Satan to ‘CROSS OUT CHRIST’… by the way, the ‘n’ at the end of Satan can be moved to the center of the word… and spell ‘Santa’! I believe that God is way more concerned with how we’re treating people, than how we’re greeting people.

 Another common discussion that comes up this time of year is how we could possibly allow there to be a CHRISTMAS TREE in our church? And then this scripture is always cited:

Jeremiah 10:2-4 - HCSB

“This is what the Lord says: Do not learn the way of the nations or be terrified by signs in the heavens, although the nations are terrified by them, for the customs of the peoples are worthless. Someone cuts down a tree from the forest; it is worked by the hands of a craftsman with a chisel. He decorates it with silver and gold. It is fastened with hammer and nails, so it won’t totter.”

Besides that verse being taken way out of context, let me explain this another way:

At Gezer there is a group of ancient standing stones (matzebot in Hebrew) that date from 1500 BC, when the Canaanites were in the land of Israel. In theory, they shouldn't still be standing, because Israelites were given instructions to destroy all of the pagan standing stones in Israel (Deut. 12:3). But Gezer was a very strategic city and only rarely were Israelite kings in control of it (Judges 1:29, 1 Kings 9:16), so during very little of Israel's ancient history could they have knocked down the stones of Gezer.

The standing stones there were part of the ancient practice of setting up stone pillars at pagan worship sites. The practice dates from at least 5000 BC, and many sacred stone sites from 3000 BC and older can still be found in the Negev and Sinai desert, as well as around Europe and elsewhere. They often seemed to be involved in worship of heavenly bodies.

God’s Law actually forbid His people to take part of this practice…

Deuteronomy 16:22 - HCSB

“and do not set up a sacred pillar; the Lord your God hates them.”

Interestingly, Jacob (one of the famous ‘fathers’ of God’s people – of Abraham, Isaac, & Jacob fame) uses this practice when he erects a stone, anoints it, dedicates it to God and calls it Bethel, where he had the vision of the heavenly staircase. (Genesis 28:18-28).

Later, when the Israelites cross the Jordan, God commands them to set up twelve stones to be a memorial to the great miracle God did there. The text says, 

Joshua 4:21-24 – HCSB

"and he said to the Israelites, “In the future, when your children ask their fathers, ‘What is the meaning of these stones?’ you should tell your children, ‘Israel crossed the Jordan on dry ground.’ For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed over, just as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea, which He dried up before us until we had crossed over. This is so that all the people of the earth may know that the Lord’s hand is mighty, and so that you may always fear the Lord your God.”

It is ironic that God could use the same practice usually meant for idolatry to show His glory to the world, so that through the generations people would stop and remember what God did there. Otherwise, God forbade standing stones when, as He did in Deuteronomy 16:22.

The difference was the motivation - whether the stones were set up to point people toward God, or away from Him and towards worshipping idols.

A related example is the bronze serpent that God commanded to be made in the wilderness. The people who had been bitten by the snakes who looked at it in faith would live (Numbers 21:9). But later in their history, the same symbol that had helped people have faith in God had become an idol, so it had to be destroyed (2 Kings 18:4). The fact that God created it didn't sanctify it when it was being misused.

Once again, the motivation of the people, not the origins, determined whether a thing was idolatrous or God-honoring.

I believe we can find wisdom in these stories. Christmas, as well as Easter, began as Christians decided to worship the true God on days when pagan gods used to be worshipped. Some of the traditions (like the Christmas tree and the Easter egg) once had pagan meanings that are now all but lost, as they have become opportunities for Christians to celebrate Christ.

There are some people who have rejected celebrating Christmas, with all of its gift-giving and tree-decorating… entirely because of its pagan origins. But it seems that the critical thing is not what the origins are, but whether or not we are worshiping the one true God.

To most of us Christians, this holiday glorifies God like the standing stones by the Jordan did -- they are a continual reminder of the wonderful thing God has done by sending the promised Messiah, who saved us by suffering and dying for our sins.

I believe, the story of Christmas is truly wrapped up in the following verse:

Matthew 1:23 – HCSB

“See, the virgin will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and they will name Him Immanuel, which is translated “God is with us.”

If ‘God’ is really ‘with us’, then that changes everything! And even if God did, in fact, visit this planet in the form of a cute and cuddly, little baby – the fact that He grew up, was murdered, and then rose to life to NEVER DIE AGAIN, and to actually come and live inside of us, His followers – well, that really DOES change everything! It’s not like it is saying, “God used to be with us”… it’s saying, “Right now, this second, the God of all the Universe is right here with us!”

What if, this year, we decided to make "CHRISTMAS" a verb? What I mean by that is, what if we could CHRISTMAS to others? Christmas, as a noun, is a chronos time, a specific moment in time each year. But it is also a KAIROS time, when we Christians celebrate a 'God-Moment', when God interrupted people's lives and was 'birthed'. A time we celebrate how God surprised the richest and the wisest, and the lowliest of shepherds.

Gang, what if we could approach this season as though God was truly WITH us... in a way that surprises the rich and the poor? What if we could be like the stack of stones in the Jordan that reminds people of God? What if this season could be about Jesus 'CHRISTMASING' in each of us and through each of us. What if we could be a people so full of hope, joy, and strength... that others could find in us a source of strength, hope, and joy.

Have you ever missed an event at work, or maybe even a family get-together, and had someone say to you, “We really missed you! We had a great time, but to be honest, it just is not the same when you aren’t here!”

I love when that happens! I want people to miss me! I want people to have more fun when I’m at the party. I want people to feel more comfortable when I’m in the room. I want people to feel safe to be themselves when I’m present. I want GOD WITH ME wherever I go... so that HE can reflect how awesome HE is to others. 

I want to 'birth' Jesus to this world. 

I want Him to 'Christmas' in me... and through me.

Author, Brennan Manning, states:

“Jesus Christmases in us whenever people come home to themselves in our presence, and when they feel a little less hopeful and joyful because we are absent.”

May we understand this season, and forevermore, that God is truly WITH us... and may we live like it. 

Merry Christmas!