With praise and thanksgiving…

I have struggled to write this blog entry because nothing I seem to write says exactly what I want to say. The subject matter is so profound, it defies full expression in mere words. As I said in my previous post, I would never be able to express in words all that this season means, what we celebrate. No one can, really. It is just that amazing.

In the hustle and bustle of the Christmas season, it is very easy to forget the reason why we celebrate. Gifts, food (my personal favorite…), parties and family gatherings can crowd out the very reason for this season. It is cliched I know to say that, but it is true. The lament of Charlie Brown a half a century ago rings true even today, and perhaps even more so: Can anyone tell me what Christmas is all about?

So instead of wracking my brain trying to come up with the right words to say, I decided to let the Word speak for Himself. Nothing expresses the beauty of Christmas any better than the words we have in Scripture, the words that herald the coming of the Living Word, the Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ…

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God…in Him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it…

…And the Word became flesh and dwelled among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth…for He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of His nature, the image of the invisible God, and He upholds the universe by the word of His power…

…In Him the fullness of Deity dwells bodily…and all things were made through Him and without Him was not any thing made that was made…He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, yet the world did not know Him. He came to His own people and they did not receive Him. But to all who did receive Him, who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God, who were born not of blood, nor of the will of man, but of God…

…for through Him God reconciled all things to Himself, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of His cross.

This is He Whom we celebrate this day. May your Christmas be filled with thoughts, with praise, and with thanksgiving for the One who came and died that we might live.

Merry Christmas.

(Scripture references: John 1:1-18; Colossians 1:15-20, 2:9-10;  Hebrews 1:1-3 ESV)

 

In the most unexpected fashion…

But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law so that we might receive adoption as sons. – Galatians 4:4-5 ESV

My mind and heart have indeed been occupied lately by thoughts of the birth of our Savior, the Lord Jesus. I don’t think I could ever write anything that would come close to expressing the wondrous miracle of the Incarnation. It transcends our comprehension. That God would come in flesh to dwell among us; that He would die for us; that He would purchase us. This King, this Lord, that is above all others, was born as a baby in a smelly barn in a small town. His earthly parents were a poor couple from Nazareth with no social influence. The first to be told of His birth were lowly shepherds, not exactly the social elites of the day. Herod so feared this baby that he ordered all boys in Bethlehem 2 years and younger to be put to death in an effort to snuff Him out.

There was no fanfare…no parades and pagentry. So simple, so quiet, so still. And yet it was the event that changed the whole course of human history.

Kind of changes the perspective, no? We seem to always look for the big things, the spectular things, the razzle dazzle. Surely that’s where God’s power will shows itself! And indeed it does – you can’t get anymore razzle dazzle than a sea parting or a river turning to blood. But when God chose to enter our world, He did so in the most unexpected fashion. He did so quietly, unassuming. And yet, this quiet, simple event of a baby being born is the most important thing that could have ever happened.

I pray that you will all have opportunity to be still and silent this Christmas and ponder the magnficent beauty of God’s love for us. That is, after all, what Christmas is all about.

More later…

Grace and peace…

 

In the still of the night…

I am currently working through the book of Romans, something I like to do at least once a year. I cannot seem to get enough of this book – its theology is so rich, so deep, I could study it for the rest of my life and still feel I need to know more. Paul’s eloquence in proclaiming the excellencies of Christ is at its best in Romans. In the preface to his commentary on Romans, Martin Luther stated:

This letter is truly the most important piece in the New Testament. It is purest Gospel. It is well worth a Christian’s while not only to memorize it word for word but also to occupy himself with it daily, as though it were the daily bread of the soul. It is impossible to read or to meditate on this letter too much or too well. The more one deals with it, the more precious it becomes and the better it tastes.

Working through the first three chapters of Romans in the week leading up to Christmas is a most blessed thing. Who would think that to be true? For in these chapters Pauls lays out an indictment against all mankind that paints a rather bleak and hopeless picture that excludes no one. He exposes the darkness of our hearts and removes any reason self-justification – there is no wiggle room in his argument. By Romans 3:20, everyone is tried and convicted, with no hope of every satisfying the sentence to be imposed for our guilt by a righteous and holy God.

Not very merry, eh?

Or is it? For it is with this truth fully explained and laid bear before us that Paul begins with equal fullness to explain the Gospel, in all its beauty, with two simple words: “But now…”

But now…in the quiet darkness of night in a seemingly insignficant village, a baby is born and the miracle of all miracles occurs. All that was promised comes to pass as God becomes man, taking the form of a servant, shedding His glory to condescend to us in our lowly state. What we celebrate – the Incarnation, the Word becoming flesh and dwelling among us – is made more beautiful against the backdrop of our need for His appearance. How can we appreciate the significance of this blessed event if we are not aware of our absolute need for Him?

The Light has pierced the darkness…let us rejoice…let us adore Him…

Grace and peace…

 

In the begnning…

Hard to believe that Christmas is only a short week away. I seem to say that every year…and every year Christmas seems to sneak up on me and catch me unawares. As if I don’t know that it’s always on December 25…

Last night they showed Charlie Brown Christmas on TV. This is by far my favorite Christmas special. I actually own this show in DVD! That’s how much I love it. As a child, I didn’t get the significance of Charlie’s message. But now, I can see his lament, and I carry that same lament in my heart. Christmas has become a commercialized racket. Much more so now than when Charlie first started voicing his complaints and Linus so eloquently and profoundly answered his cry “Can anyone tell me what Christmas is all about?!”

Given the “PC” climate of our day, I am amazed that this show is even considered suitable for puclic viewing on primetime TV. But, I suppose its distinction as a “classic” warrants that it be shown every year. And I am very glad about that!

Too bad we don’t heed its message as we should…I so wish to focus on the true meaning of Christmas this year and quiet the clamor of the retail giants begging me to spend money I don’t have on things that I and my family and friends don’t need. At the risk of sounding too corny, I want to return to the true Christmas story…

I think it is appropriate to begin the Christmas story at, well, the beginning. And by “beginning” I mean Genesis. Do we ever think to do such a thing? To me, it is of utmost importance to be reminded…

…that we were created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-28);

…that we sinned and marred that image (Genesis 3:1-14);

…and that Christ was promised at the point of our fall to set right what was made wrong (Genesis 3:15).

Galatians 4:4 states: “When the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.” Christ is the promised offspring that crushes the head of the serpent. It is our Redeemer, the promised seed that would crush the head of the enemy, the One who would take on the penalty for our sinfulness…it is He who has come.

It is He whose birth we herald at Christmas.

Now, I promise you, this post and the previous two post are related to one another. There is a point, a method to my madness. I’m going somewhere with this. I’m just taking the long way around block. So hang tight as my thoughts formulate.

There’s more to come.

Grace and peace…