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Showing posts with label Christmas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Christmas. Show all posts
Saturday, December 24, 2011
The Reason For The Season
The baby in the manger grew up. He came with a mission. He had the power to lay His life down and the power to take it up again. Why was this necessary? The Bottom Line presents to you my Christmas e-card . . .
Click Here To View and be sure to scroll down.
Click Here To View and be sure to scroll down.
Friday, December 23, 2011
Beware Of Christmas Idolatry
As I prepare for Christmas 2009, I feel the same disturbance in my soul that I felt last year and I want to get at its source. The reason I have put these thoughts down on paper is so they may have the ability to provoke thought in someone who is possibly feeling some of the same unease.
I try to sing Christmas anthems of “joy” and “celebration” with feeling, yet I know that my thoughts are far from jubilation. In fact they dwell in the realm of conviction, guilt and even sadness. I know that in order to fully and joyfully celebrate the incarnation, I can never lose sight of my lost and helpless state before it. In order to praise the value of the virgin’s birth, I must first contemplate the intensity of a wickedness that required the slaughter of the son of God to drag me from the precipice of hell.
Each year it’s getting easier to see, in the Christmas rush, a peculiar blend of self-approval and importance, self-deservedness, self-satisfaction and a good old hearty human ‘pat on the back’. Only now you can find that same attitude telegraphed from the pulpit. A Christmas 2007 address on national tv by Pastor Rick Warren included the idea “God is not mad at you....He is mad about you”. So, with that in mind, I can’t help but share a few reflections that I have had with regards to this Christmas, and the idea that we need to hold our heads high, because our Creator has tremendous faith in the human being.
There is a link between the manner in which mankind carries itself at Christmas, and the increasing idea that God had previously somehow placed enormous worth on sinful man, and I can never put my finger on it. It’s obvious that Christmas is the greatest time of idolatry on our calendar. You can sit at the carols with thousands of people, and most will have created a God in their own image to sing to. That’s why you can be promiscuous on stage and seductive while singing to Jesus. That’s why you can sing ‘O Holy Night’ while your molestation or assault charge is going through the courts.
But God doesn’t stop being God at Christmas and His standards don’t change because we wish to be merry. I never want to see myself as the ‘apple of His eye’. He doesn’t expect big things from me, nor does He need my help to make His message more relevant, and He’s not waiting to see what I can do for Him. He is waiting patiently, withholding Judgement, in order to receive maximum glory in every human life.
God knew that we were the only agents of His creation capable of coming up with such an exquisitely cruel method of putting to death our only Saviour, and the unimaginable daring to carry through with the ultimate betrayal. So, in a sense, I do agree that God did look down from Heaven and see such worth and value in the human being. But only in their worth to bring Him ultimate magnificence by committing the greatest crime of injustice of all time. The reality of the extent of our evil and self-justification vividly beams forth when we suggest that our Lord, the one Adam defied, pictured us with a doting adoration and preciousness, and incredible potential.
We underestimate our potential, but omniscient God certainly doesn’t. He understood the potential for evil for the Roman crucifiers to cast lots for the innocent Saviour’s clothing, while He screamed prayers for them. He understood the potential for one of the disciples to reject and betray his deliverer. He saw the potential of the miraculously rescued Israelite nation to turn their backs on Him during decades of supernatural provision.
No. I should not hold my head a little higher at Christmas. The truth is that while santa rewards people who think they have been nice, God’s righteous fury would boil at the idea of Jesus looking down from the bloodied cross at His murderers and seeing such worth and preciousness in the human “enemy of God”
soul.
Looking at the face that was “marred beyond description” were the agents of their master, the devil. Speaking blasphemies and ridicule against God were the same mouths that cried “Hosanna”.
Christmas is not Christmas without the cross of our Saviour. The incarnation of God Himself, and conception of the creator of the universe to a God hating and lawless human race, cannot be remembered without contemplating the slaying that the helpless babe in the manger would receive a few decades after that silent night in Bethlehem, to seal our redemption.
How can I be happy at Christmas? Not by feeling good about myself. The only way I can feel joy is to concentrate on the fact that Christ’s story was all brought about this way because it was precisely how God will receive His greatest honour. That’s the ‘joy’ that Christ felt as he ‘endured the cross, despising its shame’.
The following hymn reminds me to place complete faith in God the Creator, and brings the correct perspective of our human potential this Christmas:
My Song Is Love Unknown Hymn Samuel Crossman 1664
My song is love unknown,
My Savior’s love to me;
Love to the loveless shown,
That they might lovely be.
O who am I, that for my sake
My Lord should take, frail flesh and die?
He came from His blest throne
Salvation to bestow;
But men made strange, and none
The longed for Christ would know:
But O! my Friend, my Friend indeed,
Who at my need His life did spend.
Sometimes they strew His way,
And His sweet praises sing;
Resounding all the day
Hosannas to their King:
Then “Crucify!” is all their breath,
And for His death they thirst and cry.
Why, what hath my Lord done?
What makes this rage and spite?
He made the lame to run,
He gave the blind their sight,
Sweet injuries! Yet they at these
Themselves displease, and ’gainst Him rise.
With angry shouts they have
My dear Lord made away;
A murderer they saved,
The Prince of life they slay,
Yet cheerful He to suffering goes,
That He His foes from thence might free.
In life, no house, no home
My Lord on earth might have;
In death no friendly tomb
But what a stranger gave.
What may I say? Heav’n was His home;
But mine the tomb wherein He lay.
Here might I stay and sing,
No story so divine;
Never was love, dear King!
Never was grief like Thine.
This is my Friend, in Whose sweet praise
I all my days could gladly spend.
Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence by Gerard Moultrie
1. Let all mortal flesh keep silence,
and with fear and trembling stand;
ponder nothing earthly-minded,
for with blessing in his hand,
Christ our God to earth descendeth,
our full homage to demand.
2. King of kings, yet born of Mary,
as of old on earth he stood,
Lord of lords, in human vesture,
in the body and the blood;
he will give to all the faithful
his own self for heavenly food.
3. Rank on rank the host of heaven
spreads its vanguard on the way,
as the Light of light descendeth
from the realms of endless day,
that the powers of hell may vanish
as the darkness clears away.
4. At his feet the six-winged seraph,
cherubim, with sleepless eye,
veil their faces to the presence,
as with ceaseless voice they cry:
Alleluia, Alleluia,
Alleluia, Lord Most High!
(Article courtesy of Nick Booth)
I try to sing Christmas anthems of “joy” and “celebration” with feeling, yet I know that my thoughts are far from jubilation. In fact they dwell in the realm of conviction, guilt and even sadness. I know that in order to fully and joyfully celebrate the incarnation, I can never lose sight of my lost and helpless state before it. In order to praise the value of the virgin’s birth, I must first contemplate the intensity of a wickedness that required the slaughter of the son of God to drag me from the precipice of hell.
Each year it’s getting easier to see, in the Christmas rush, a peculiar blend of self-approval and importance, self-deservedness, self-satisfaction and a good old hearty human ‘pat on the back’. Only now you can find that same attitude telegraphed from the pulpit. A Christmas 2007 address on national tv by Pastor Rick Warren included the idea “God is not mad at you....He is mad about you”. So, with that in mind, I can’t help but share a few reflections that I have had with regards to this Christmas, and the idea that we need to hold our heads high, because our Creator has tremendous faith in the human being.
There is a link between the manner in which mankind carries itself at Christmas, and the increasing idea that God had previously somehow placed enormous worth on sinful man, and I can never put my finger on it. It’s obvious that Christmas is the greatest time of idolatry on our calendar. You can sit at the carols with thousands of people, and most will have created a God in their own image to sing to. That’s why you can be promiscuous on stage and seductive while singing to Jesus. That’s why you can sing ‘O Holy Night’ while your molestation or assault charge is going through the courts.
But God doesn’t stop being God at Christmas and His standards don’t change because we wish to be merry. I never want to see myself as the ‘apple of His eye’. He doesn’t expect big things from me, nor does He need my help to make His message more relevant, and He’s not waiting to see what I can do for Him. He is waiting patiently, withholding Judgement, in order to receive maximum glory in every human life.
God knew that we were the only agents of His creation capable of coming up with such an exquisitely cruel method of putting to death our only Saviour, and the unimaginable daring to carry through with the ultimate betrayal. So, in a sense, I do agree that God did look down from Heaven and see such worth and value in the human being. But only in their worth to bring Him ultimate magnificence by committing the greatest crime of injustice of all time. The reality of the extent of our evil and self-justification vividly beams forth when we suggest that our Lord, the one Adam defied, pictured us with a doting adoration and preciousness, and incredible potential.
We underestimate our potential, but omniscient God certainly doesn’t. He understood the potential for evil for the Roman crucifiers to cast lots for the innocent Saviour’s clothing, while He screamed prayers for them. He understood the potential for one of the disciples to reject and betray his deliverer. He saw the potential of the miraculously rescued Israelite nation to turn their backs on Him during decades of supernatural provision.
No. I should not hold my head a little higher at Christmas. The truth is that while santa rewards people who think they have been nice, God’s righteous fury would boil at the idea of Jesus looking down from the bloodied cross at His murderers and seeing such worth and preciousness in the human “enemy of God”
soul.
Looking at the face that was “marred beyond description” were the agents of their master, the devil. Speaking blasphemies and ridicule against God were the same mouths that cried “Hosanna”.
Christmas is not Christmas without the cross of our Saviour. The incarnation of God Himself, and conception of the creator of the universe to a God hating and lawless human race, cannot be remembered without contemplating the slaying that the helpless babe in the manger would receive a few decades after that silent night in Bethlehem, to seal our redemption.
How can I be happy at Christmas? Not by feeling good about myself. The only way I can feel joy is to concentrate on the fact that Christ’s story was all brought about this way because it was precisely how God will receive His greatest honour. That’s the ‘joy’ that Christ felt as he ‘endured the cross, despising its shame’.
The following hymn reminds me to place complete faith in God the Creator, and brings the correct perspective of our human potential this Christmas:
My Song Is Love Unknown Hymn Samuel Crossman 1664
My song is love unknown,
My Savior’s love to me;
Love to the loveless shown,
That they might lovely be.
O who am I, that for my sake
My Lord should take, frail flesh and die?
He came from His blest throne
Salvation to bestow;
But men made strange, and none
The longed for Christ would know:
But O! my Friend, my Friend indeed,
Who at my need His life did spend.
Sometimes they strew His way,
And His sweet praises sing;
Resounding all the day
Hosannas to their King:
Then “Crucify!” is all their breath,
And for His death they thirst and cry.
Why, what hath my Lord done?
What makes this rage and spite?
He made the lame to run,
He gave the blind their sight,
Sweet injuries! Yet they at these
Themselves displease, and ’gainst Him rise.
With angry shouts they have
My dear Lord made away;
A murderer they saved,
The Prince of life they slay,
Yet cheerful He to suffering goes,
That He His foes from thence might free.
In life, no house, no home
My Lord on earth might have;
In death no friendly tomb
But what a stranger gave.
What may I say? Heav’n was His home;
But mine the tomb wherein He lay.
Here might I stay and sing,
No story so divine;
Never was love, dear King!
Never was grief like Thine.
This is my Friend, in Whose sweet praise
I all my days could gladly spend.
Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence by Gerard Moultrie
1. Let all mortal flesh keep silence,
and with fear and trembling stand;
ponder nothing earthly-minded,
for with blessing in his hand,
Christ our God to earth descendeth,
our full homage to demand.
2. King of kings, yet born of Mary,
as of old on earth he stood,
Lord of lords, in human vesture,
in the body and the blood;
he will give to all the faithful
his own self for heavenly food.
3. Rank on rank the host of heaven
spreads its vanguard on the way,
as the Light of light descendeth
from the realms of endless day,
that the powers of hell may vanish
as the darkness clears away.
4. At his feet the six-winged seraph,
cherubim, with sleepless eye,
veil their faces to the presence,
as with ceaseless voice they cry:
Alleluia, Alleluia,
Alleluia, Lord Most High!
(Article courtesy of Nick Booth)
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
The Man Who Was Born To Die
My family and I have now arrived safely in Southern California and are excited at the prospect of experiencing Christmas in the USA for the first time. Yes, I know that many outside America bewail the superficiality and consumerism that gets plastered all over their television screens as they experience it from the outside looking in. But being on the inside for the first time I am heartened and greatly encouraged by the large number of authentic Christ centered people we have already met. I have never experienced so much kindness and generosity from strangers and, though we are far from extended family, we have no shortage of families who have invited us to celebrate the incarnation of Jesus Christ next Sunday. This is one of the great things about being a Christian - that we have been adopted into a far greater family that comprises every tribe, race, and tongue. I think this is what Jesus was referring to when He said:
"Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and for the gospel, who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life. (Mark 10:29-30)
There is persecution in this life as a Christian. And it is great to have our adopted family around us as we go through it. May we remember those who are persecuted at this time, pray for them, and be reminded that fellowship in Christ's sufferings ultimately points us to Christ's mission - a mission He fully accomplished. May we remember that this Christmas . . . lest we forget.
"You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, 28even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." (Matthew 20:25b-28)
He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own people 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 the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:10-14)
That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life — the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us — that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete. This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. (1 John 1:1-10)
"Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and for the gospel, who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life. (Mark 10:29-30)
There is persecution in this life as a Christian. And it is great to have our adopted family around us as we go through it. May we remember those who are persecuted at this time, pray for them, and be reminded that fellowship in Christ's sufferings ultimately points us to Christ's mission - a mission He fully accomplished. May we remember that this Christmas . . . lest we forget.
"You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, 28even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." (Matthew 20:25b-28)
He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own people 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 the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:10-14)
That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life — the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us — that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete. This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. (1 John 1:1-10)
Monday, March 21, 2011
Lame Attempts At Relevance (Part 5)
Ed Young Jr's secret to winning over unchurched people in the 21st century certainly has a lot to do with his study of the latest trends that emerge in his surrounding culture. It would certainly seem the billboard on the right did not escape Pastor Ed's eagle eye of relevance. It is certainly a persuasive advertisement for 3D movie technology and how it is the latest, greatest, and coolest thing to ever hit our screens. Except for one small oversight - this 3D promotional poster is from the 1950's - yes, more than 50 years ago! I am already drafting my apology to all churches that use 80's music as a lure for people who were born after 1990. Their lameness does not even come close to the new dizzy heights achieved by Ed Young Jr!The following quotes that appear in italics are from the Dallas Morning News who ran a story on Young's "latest innovation":
To Young, taking advantage of the latest 3-D craze is just another way to reach people who might not otherwise come to church. "Christmas is the best time of the year for people to give God a shot," he said.
What does he mean by "give God a shot"? That people should visit his aisle in the idol supermarket? That he lives in the hope that his god might measure up to the requirements of discerning pagans? "Hey you've tried everything else, why not try out my god!"
"What a great opportunity for the church," Young said. "3-D is so hot."
This reminds me of every item of clothing in my wardrobe. Yes it is all "so hot" - it's just that the era I wore each item never happened to coincide with the historical moment when it was "so hot".
Young emerged from a critique session after the service to say he was "blown away" by how things went, but would be working with staff to improve instructions for when people should put on and take off the glasses.Great to see Ed Young Jr prioritizing his time like all good shepherds should - as the CEO of a marketing firm with a low view of their clients!
Dave Travis, managing director of Dallas-based Leadership Network - a firm that advises churches in growth strategies - said as far as he knows this is the first time churches have used 3-D.
Wow - only 50 years after the cinemas caught on to the idea! Maybe there is a reason why churches have never used 3D. Maybe they were too busy doing stuff like . . . . I don't know . . . . preaching??!!!
Most in attendance gave a big thumbs-up, though some added that the makers of Avatar shouldn't feel threatened. "It was old school, like when 3-D first came on," said Marque Ross.
So it didn't quite measure up to James Cameron's work? What a surprise . . .
"It's a little cheesy, but cheese works," said Ed Young, pastor of the Grapevine-based megachurch. On Saturday night about 4,000 people - nearly a full house - came for the first of the church's well-advertised 3-D Christmas services. Adults and children alike each got a pair of paper-frame glasses with red and blue plastic lenses. They donned them for three brief videos shot in 3-D. The third re-created a real-life episode from last Christmas, in which Young's dogs got into the living room and tore up gift packages.
We're talking quality cheese here! Watching dogs eat gift wrapping through red and blue plastic lenses certainly has deep seated connections with the Christmas story . . . somehow . . . actually I need some help on this one . . .
After that video, the lights went up, and Young himself, fully dimensional in jeans and a sweater, appeared on stage. "You can take your glasses off now," he said, laughing. He then preached on the Christmas story, arguing that accepting Jesus as savior is the way to find depth in life.
Jesus does not need our acceptance Ed, but it seems that you need the world's. Unfortunately, embracing the latest craze from the 50's may not be the best way to go about it.
Ed Young Jr has now appeared twice in the "Lame Attempts At Relevance" archive making him a true hall of shamer.
Go On To Part 6
Go Back To Part 4
Go Back To Part 1
Friday, December 24, 2010
The Bottom Line Christmas Message
The baby in the manger grew up. He came with a mission. He had the power to lay His life down and the power to take it up again. Why was this necessary? The Bottom Line presents to you my Christmas e-card . . .
Click Here To View and be sure to scroll down.
Click Here To View and be sure to scroll down.
Thursday, December 23, 2010
8 Days of Christmas on The Bottom Line - Day 8
Today is the day my eager young children salivate over their impending gifts. I am reminded of the Lord's words to His disciples - "If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!" (Luke 11:13).
May the delights of this world, so evident at this time of year, never blind us to the true riches found only in being born again with the indwelling of God's Holy Spirit. Well may we remind our children, that as much as we love to give them the desires of their hearts, it is ultimately only eternal things that matter. How wonderful it is to look "unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God" (Hebrews 12:2).
Go Back To Day 7
Go Back To Day 1
May the delights of this world, so evident at this time of year, never blind us to the true riches found only in being born again with the indwelling of God's Holy Spirit. Well may we remind our children, that as much as we love to give them the desires of their hearts, it is ultimately only eternal things that matter. How wonderful it is to look "unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God" (Hebrews 12:2).
Go Back To Day 7
Go Back To Day 1
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
8 Days of Christmas on The Bottom Line - Day 7
Continued from yesterday.
Today is the seventh part of our 8 part series dissecting the famous Christmas carol "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" line by line to understand the underlying message of Christmas which has ultimately more to do with a rugged wooden cross than a manger in Bethlehem.
Yesterday we finished looking at the text of "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen". What can we learn from this examination?
One thing we can learn is how oblivious we often are to the meaning of a song that becomes little more than Christmas tradition. Whenever we sing anything we should pause and ponder the theology behind it. We will one day give answer for every idle word we speak. Be careful what you proclaim. I can remember being at a gathering of Danish Christians once where they all stood to sing their national anthem. The only problem with this was that (as I sat and listened in disbelief) they proclaimed, in accordance with the song, that their homeland belongs to a false god called Freja.
Conversely with a song like "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" we can fall into the other ditch by ignoring the wonderful truths being proclaimed. That the Gospel is exceedingly good news. That this good news can only be properly understood in the light of a true grasp of our own depravity. That if Christ is a Savior then we had better know what we need saving from. That Christmas ultimately points to the cross of Jesus Christ as the pinnacle of human history. That the greatest gift will not be found under a shiny tree but at the foot of a blood stained wooden cross. That the greatest gift we can give will be wrapped in the lips of him who preaches this Gospel.
Go On To Day 8
Go Back To Day 6
Go Back To Day 1
Today is the seventh part of our 8 part series dissecting the famous Christmas carol "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" line by line to understand the underlying message of Christmas which has ultimately more to do with a rugged wooden cross than a manger in Bethlehem.
Yesterday we finished looking at the text of "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen". What can we learn from this examination?
One thing we can learn is how oblivious we often are to the meaning of a song that becomes little more than Christmas tradition. Whenever we sing anything we should pause and ponder the theology behind it. We will one day give answer for every idle word we speak. Be careful what you proclaim. I can remember being at a gathering of Danish Christians once where they all stood to sing their national anthem. The only problem with this was that (as I sat and listened in disbelief) they proclaimed, in accordance with the song, that their homeland belongs to a false god called Freja.
Conversely with a song like "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" we can fall into the other ditch by ignoring the wonderful truths being proclaimed. That the Gospel is exceedingly good news. That this good news can only be properly understood in the light of a true grasp of our own depravity. That if Christ is a Savior then we had better know what we need saving from. That Christmas ultimately points to the cross of Jesus Christ as the pinnacle of human history. That the greatest gift will not be found under a shiny tree but at the foot of a blood stained wooden cross. That the greatest gift we can give will be wrapped in the lips of him who preaches this Gospel.
Go On To Day 8
Go Back To Day 6
Go Back To Day 1
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
8 Days of Christmas on The Bottom Line - Day 6
Continued from yesterday.
Today is the sixth part of our 8 part series dissecting the famous Christmas carol "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" line by line to understand the underlying message of Christmas which has ultimately more to do with a rugged wooden cross than a manger in Bethlehem.
The sixth line in the song is:
O tidings of comfort and joy, Comfort and joy, O tidings of comfort and joy
It is the “good news” that brings us tidings of comfort and joy. At Christmas 2000 years ago, God appeared in human form as a baby born in Israel. Jesus Christ came on a mission to fulfill the law that we had broken and then pay the penalty for our crimes with His own blood (II Corinthians 5:21). The cross He died on was meant for you and me. The only way God could make reconciliation possible was by living a perfect sinless life as a human and then paying for our sin with His own blood (I Peter 1:18-19). He then rose from the dead defeating the curse of sin and death because of His own righteousness (Romans 4:25) and ascended up into heaven to prepare a place for those who follow Him (John 14:2). God showed us His love in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8). To receive God’s free gift of payment for our sin and inherit eternal life we must repent of our sin and put our complete trust in Him to save us (Acts 20:21) from His terrible day of judgement (Romans 5:9). To repent is to turn away from our sin and apologise to God with genuine sorrow. To trust in Him means to put our complete hope in Jesus work on the cross because no other prophet or religious leader has done that for you. Trust in Him like you would in a parachute when jumping from 10000 feet. If we confess our sin He is faithful to forgive us and clean us from all unrighteousness (I John 1:9). That is tidings of comfort and joy.
I hope and pray that you would consider these things as we approach the season when Christ was born.
You are in my prayers
Go On To Day 7
Go Back To Day 5
Go Back To Day 1
Today is the sixth part of our 8 part series dissecting the famous Christmas carol "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" line by line to understand the underlying message of Christmas which has ultimately more to do with a rugged wooden cross than a manger in Bethlehem.
The sixth line in the song is:
O tidings of comfort and joy, Comfort and joy, O tidings of comfort and joy
It is the “good news” that brings us tidings of comfort and joy. At Christmas 2000 years ago, God appeared in human form as a baby born in Israel. Jesus Christ came on a mission to fulfill the law that we had broken and then pay the penalty for our crimes with His own blood (II Corinthians 5:21). The cross He died on was meant for you and me. The only way God could make reconciliation possible was by living a perfect sinless life as a human and then paying for our sin with His own blood (I Peter 1:18-19). He then rose from the dead defeating the curse of sin and death because of His own righteousness (Romans 4:25) and ascended up into heaven to prepare a place for those who follow Him (John 14:2). God showed us His love in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8). To receive God’s free gift of payment for our sin and inherit eternal life we must repent of our sin and put our complete trust in Him to save us (Acts 20:21) from His terrible day of judgement (Romans 5:9). To repent is to turn away from our sin and apologise to God with genuine sorrow. To trust in Him means to put our complete hope in Jesus work on the cross because no other prophet or religious leader has done that for you. Trust in Him like you would in a parachute when jumping from 10000 feet. If we confess our sin He is faithful to forgive us and clean us from all unrighteousness (I John 1:9). That is tidings of comfort and joy.
I hope and pray that you would consider these things as we approach the season when Christ was born.
You are in my prayers
Go On To Day 7
Go Back To Day 5
Go Back To Day 1
Monday, December 20, 2010
8 Days of Christmas on The Bottom Line - Day 5
Continued from yesterday.
Today is the fifth part of our 8 part series dissecting the famous Christmas carol "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" line by line to understand the underlying message of Christmas which has ultimately more to do with a rugged wooden cross than a manger in Bethlehem.
The fifth line in the song is:
When we were gone astray
Please bear with me as I labor this point because it is so important that we grasp what this line is saying.
People often ask the question that if there is a loving God then why is there so much evil in the world today? The problem with this question is that it is built upon a wrong view of humanity. The Bible tells us that many men “proclaim their own goodness” (Proverbs 20:6) and are “clean in their own eyes” (Proverbs 16:2) but that we have all “sinned and fallen short” (Romans 3:23) of God’s standard. This is far more serious than most of us realise. God, being good, is a just and righteous judge and He must punish the Hitlers, Stalins, and Bin Ladins of this world, otherwise He would be corrupt. Because we are all made in God’s image we crave justice to be done with the wrong things we see in this world. An infinite God must punish infinitely and that is why there is a Hell, and why Jesus warned so much about it (Matthew 10:28).
But when God’s judgement comes to this earth it won’t stop with murderers, rapists, and paedophiles. He must also deal with liars, thieves, blasphemers…… even every wrong thought. As painful as it is, it is always good to examine ourselves in the light of God’s justice system. Martin Luther said that we should hold up the mirror of the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:1-17) so we can see ourselves as we really are and what our real need is.
Have you ever lied? The Bible says that all liars will end up in Hell(Revelation 21:8). If that seems overly harsh then consider this: If I lie to my daughter there is nothing she can do to me. But if I lie to my wife then my sleeping arrangements are likely to shift from the bedroom to the garage. If I lie to my employer then I’ll probably get fired. If I lie to the government then I can end up in jail. Though the crime never changed in each situation, the level of punishment did in proportion to the level of authority being dealt with. How serious is it then to lie to an infinite and perfect God?
Have you ever stolen anything? The Bible says that no thief can inherit God’s kingdom (I Corinthians 6:10).
Have you ever used God’s name as a swear word? The Bible tells us that God will not hold anyone guiltless who blasphemes His Holy Name (Exodus 20:7). God will judge every word spoken.
Have you ever committed sexual immorality outside of the confines of marriage? Jesus took it even further to tell us that even a lustful thought makes us guilty of adultery of the heart (Matthew 5:28). God will even judge our thought life. Nothing is hidden from Him (Ecclesiastes 12:14).
If you are anything like me and have broken those four commandments then you are a liar, a thief, a blasphemer, and an adulterer at heart. And that is just four of the Ten Commandments. And here’s the killer punch, if you break just one commandment then you are guilty of all of them anyway (James 2:10). The line of the song “when we had gone astray” means that every single person has strayed from God because of our own exceeding sinfulness (Isaiah 53:6).
It was when I examined myself in the light of God’s standard that I realized that if God is good then He should send me to Hell for my crimes against Him. I stopped asking why there is so much evil in the world, and started asking why God has not yet poured out His judgement and justice on me already. And this is why, because it is not God’s will to send anyone to Hell (II Peter 3:9). God is holding back His judgement because He is merciful and giving us time to repent of our crimes against Him. He loves us so much that He made a way for us to be reconciled to Him and be “Saved” from His judgement (John 3:16). This is the amazing “good news”.
But how can we possibly be reconciled in the light of our crimes against God?
Continued tomorrow . . .
Go On To Day 6
Go Back To Day 4
Go Back To Day 1
Today is the fifth part of our 8 part series dissecting the famous Christmas carol "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" line by line to understand the underlying message of Christmas which has ultimately more to do with a rugged wooden cross than a manger in Bethlehem.
The fifth line in the song is:
When we were gone astray
Please bear with me as I labor this point because it is so important that we grasp what this line is saying.
People often ask the question that if there is a loving God then why is there so much evil in the world today? The problem with this question is that it is built upon a wrong view of humanity. The Bible tells us that many men “proclaim their own goodness” (Proverbs 20:6) and are “clean in their own eyes” (Proverbs 16:2) but that we have all “sinned and fallen short” (Romans 3:23) of God’s standard. This is far more serious than most of us realise. God, being good, is a just and righteous judge and He must punish the Hitlers, Stalins, and Bin Ladins of this world, otherwise He would be corrupt. Because we are all made in God’s image we crave justice to be done with the wrong things we see in this world. An infinite God must punish infinitely and that is why there is a Hell, and why Jesus warned so much about it (Matthew 10:28).
But when God’s judgement comes to this earth it won’t stop with murderers, rapists, and paedophiles. He must also deal with liars, thieves, blasphemers…… even every wrong thought. As painful as it is, it is always good to examine ourselves in the light of God’s justice system. Martin Luther said that we should hold up the mirror of the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:1-17) so we can see ourselves as we really are and what our real need is.
Have you ever lied? The Bible says that all liars will end up in Hell(Revelation 21:8). If that seems overly harsh then consider this: If I lie to my daughter there is nothing she can do to me. But if I lie to my wife then my sleeping arrangements are likely to shift from the bedroom to the garage. If I lie to my employer then I’ll probably get fired. If I lie to the government then I can end up in jail. Though the crime never changed in each situation, the level of punishment did in proportion to the level of authority being dealt with. How serious is it then to lie to an infinite and perfect God?
Have you ever stolen anything? The Bible says that no thief can inherit God’s kingdom (I Corinthians 6:10).
Have you ever used God’s name as a swear word? The Bible tells us that God will not hold anyone guiltless who blasphemes His Holy Name (Exodus 20:7). God will judge every word spoken.
Have you ever committed sexual immorality outside of the confines of marriage? Jesus took it even further to tell us that even a lustful thought makes us guilty of adultery of the heart (Matthew 5:28). God will even judge our thought life. Nothing is hidden from Him (Ecclesiastes 12:14).
If you are anything like me and have broken those four commandments then you are a liar, a thief, a blasphemer, and an adulterer at heart. And that is just four of the Ten Commandments. And here’s the killer punch, if you break just one commandment then you are guilty of all of them anyway (James 2:10). The line of the song “when we had gone astray” means that every single person has strayed from God because of our own exceeding sinfulness (Isaiah 53:6).
It was when I examined myself in the light of God’s standard that I realized that if God is good then He should send me to Hell for my crimes against Him. I stopped asking why there is so much evil in the world, and started asking why God has not yet poured out His judgement and justice on me already. And this is why, because it is not God’s will to send anyone to Hell (II Peter 3:9). God is holding back His judgement because He is merciful and giving us time to repent of our crimes against Him. He loves us so much that He made a way for us to be reconciled to Him and be “Saved” from His judgement (John 3:16). This is the amazing “good news”.
But how can we possibly be reconciled in the light of our crimes against God?
Continued tomorrow . . .
Go On To Day 6
Go Back To Day 4
Go Back To Day 1
Sunday, December 19, 2010
8 Days of Christmas on The Bottom Line - Day 4
Continued from yesterday.
Today is the fourth part of our 8 part series dissecting the famous Christmas carol "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" line by line to understand the underlying message of Christmas which has ultimately more to do with a rugged wooden cross than a manger in Bethlehem.
The fourth line in the song is:
To save us all from Satan’s power
Many of us have heard about the story of Adam and Eve. You may think of it as an amusing fairy tale. But Jesus spoke of Adam as a real person (Mark 10:6) who set in motion a disastrous chain of events. The Bible tells us that God made everything perfect in the beginning here on earth and He made Adam and Eve as the very first people to rule over this perfect world (Genesis 1). There was no death or suffering and EVERYTHING WAS GOOD. But Satan (or the Devil) was able to deceive the very first man and woman into rebelling against God and surrendering their rule here on earth (Genesis 3). This rebellion is what is sometimes called original sin. Sin is the breaking of God’s moral laws (I John 3:4) that He has set in place and written on our consciences (Romans 2:15). This sinfulness became mankind’s nature and was passed on from generation to generation. It is the virus that contaminates the whole human race including you and me (Romans 3:23). It is revealed when our thoughts, words, and actions violate our own conscience. Even one of Jesus’ well known followers said “why is it that I continually do what I know is wrong and continually avoid doing what I know is right” (Romans 7:15). The problem of the human heart is the heart of the human problem. The Bible tells us that sin is the reason that we all die (Ezekiel 18:4). Jesus came to save us from Satan’s power which is the curse of sin and death.
But how was that possible?
Continued tomorrow . . .
Go On To Day 5
Go Back To Day 3
Go Back To Day 1
Saturday, December 18, 2010
8 Days of Christmas on The Bottom Line - Day 3
Continued from yesterday.
Today is the third part of our 8 part series dissecting the famous Christmas carol "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" line by line to understand the underlying message of Christmas which has ultimately more to do with a rugged wooden cross than a manger in Bethlehem.
The third line in the song is:
Remember Christ our Saviour was born on Christmas day
In a festive season now overrun with commercialism, many people have forgotten the first six letters of the word Christmas. Christ is the reason for the season. Jesus Christ was and is God, the creator of the universe, appearing in human form (John 1:1,14). That’s right, God walked on this planet over just over 2000 years ago. This song describes Him as our Saviour. This should prompt the question “save or rescue us from what?” A surf lifeguard is sometimes referred to as a rescuer. Even though he is a rescuer, the person who needs rescuing usually has to realise they are in trouble before they call for help. The same goes for us as people. We all need to have our eyes opened to the very serious problem that faces each and everyone of us before we too can cry out to be rescued or “saved”. So what is this serious problem?
Continued tomorrow . . .
Go On To Day 4
Go Back To Day 2
Go Back To Day 1
Today is the third part of our 8 part series dissecting the famous Christmas carol "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" line by line to understand the underlying message of Christmas which has ultimately more to do with a rugged wooden cross than a manger in Bethlehem.
The third line in the song is:
Remember Christ our Saviour was born on Christmas day
In a festive season now overrun with commercialism, many people have forgotten the first six letters of the word Christmas. Christ is the reason for the season. Jesus Christ was and is God, the creator of the universe, appearing in human form (John 1:1,14). That’s right, God walked on this planet over just over 2000 years ago. This song describes Him as our Saviour. This should prompt the question “save or rescue us from what?” A surf lifeguard is sometimes referred to as a rescuer. Even though he is a rescuer, the person who needs rescuing usually has to realise they are in trouble before they call for help. The same goes for us as people. We all need to have our eyes opened to the very serious problem that faces each and everyone of us before we too can cry out to be rescued or “saved”. So what is this serious problem?
Continued tomorrow . . .
Go On To Day 4
Go Back To Day 2
Go Back To Day 1
Friday, December 17, 2010
8 Days of Christmas on The Bottom Line - Day 2
Continued from yesterday.
Today is the second part of our 8 part series dissecting the famous Christmas carol "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" line by line to understand the underlying message of Christmas which has ultimately more to do with a rugged wooden cross than a manger in Bethlehem.
The second line in the song is:
Let nothing you dismay
Nothing lasts forever and sadness and grief will inevitably come our way. For many, our joy comes from the relationships we have with those we love. But the truth of the ultimate statistic (that one out of one people die (Hebrews 9:27)) will ultimately track us down during the course of our lives and bring to an end that which we cherish most. The line “let nothing you dismay” is telling us that this “good news” can override any disaster or tragedy that will strike us in this life. In a world where everything good seems only temporary, the joy of this song is built on something everlasting that death can never take away.
Go On To Day 3
Go Back To Day 1
Today is the second part of our 8 part series dissecting the famous Christmas carol "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" line by line to understand the underlying message of Christmas which has ultimately more to do with a rugged wooden cross than a manger in Bethlehem.
The second line in the song is:
Let nothing you dismay
Nothing lasts forever and sadness and grief will inevitably come our way. For many, our joy comes from the relationships we have with those we love. But the truth of the ultimate statistic (that one out of one people die (Hebrews 9:27)) will ultimately track us down during the course of our lives and bring to an end that which we cherish most. The line “let nothing you dismay” is telling us that this “good news” can override any disaster or tragedy that will strike us in this life. In a world where everything good seems only temporary, the joy of this song is built on something everlasting that death can never take away.
Go On To Day 3
Go Back To Day 1
Thursday, December 16, 2010
8 Days of Christmas on The Bottom Line - Day 1
I wish to extend warm greetings to you and your family this Christmas. This is a time of year when people often stop and reflect on the big questions in life. As a Christian it is a time of year that has great significance to me and this year feel greatly convicted to articulate what Christmas is all about. I hope and pray that you would take the time to consider these eternal truths that concern each and every one of us.
The Christmas Carol “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” really captures the true message and meaning of Christmas. You have probably heard this Christmas Carol sung many times throughout your life. It often seems that when we sing songs as ritual or tradition we fail to stop and reflect on the words we are speaking and what they really mean. Would you be so kind as to take the time to journey with me for several minutes and examine the meaning and the message of this timeless song.
God rest ye merry, Gentlemen
A modern reading of this line could say “God make you mighty, gentlemen”. It is an uplifting statement of good news. The message of Jesus Christ is often referred to as the “Good News”. This song actually explains what this unbelievable good news is. But the “good news” makes no sense without understanding the “bad news” and so it is with this song.
Continued tomorrow - Day 2
Go On To Day 2
The Christmas Carol “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” really captures the true message and meaning of Christmas. You have probably heard this Christmas Carol sung many times throughout your life. It often seems that when we sing songs as ritual or tradition we fail to stop and reflect on the words we are speaking and what they really mean. Would you be so kind as to take the time to journey with me for several minutes and examine the meaning and the message of this timeless song.
God rest ye merry, Gentlemen
A modern reading of this line could say “God make you mighty, gentlemen”. It is an uplifting statement of good news. The message of Jesus Christ is often referred to as the “Good News”. This song actually explains what this unbelievable good news is. But the “good news” makes no sense without understanding the “bad news” and so it is with this song.
Continued tomorrow - Day 2
Go On To Day 2
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Door Knocking the House of a Jehovah's Witness - A Bizarre Adventure in Evangelism
My extended Danish family went away for the last week to celebrate Christmas at a place with summer holiday cabins. Why we went there in winter is a good question but the kids had a blast because the centre had an indoor pool and playground. As I checked in at reception I handed the receptionist a tract and she mentioned that the majority of people staying there that week were people who don't celebrate Christmas . . . . NO WAY!! . . . you don't mean . . . . we're surrounded by Jehovah's Witnesses!!!
That's right,there was a whole row of cabins with Jehovah's Witness families staying there. It wasn't hard to tell either as they were completely devoid of any form of decoration. I spent the next day at the pool studying all the different people there and trying to work out what a stereotypical JW looks like. With my profound discerning abilities I was able to narrow down the field . . . that guys' got a tattoo - he couldn't be one; she's puffing on a smoke - no way; he's wearing speedos - couldn't possibly be; whattabout the boy playing Nintendo - nahhh. After successfully exercising my biblical worldview I zeroed in on a few families sitting together. There is nothing like employing the discrete approach in a delicate situation like this so I walked into the middle of the gathering and said "Merry Christmas!" I was greeted by stunned silence until a lady in the group informed me "we don't celebrate Christmas" - Game On!
I decided to ask a probing question and said "are you guys Jehovah's Witnesses?". A chorus of nodding heads responded. I managed to engage in a fairly lengthy conversation. A real danger with witnessing to JW's is debating many fine points of theology and going around in circles all day. It is God who does the converting and I know I have virtually no chance of persuading them to switch camps so my main focus was on the basics. Jesus Christ being fully God and fully man. Using the law to show their exceeding sinfulness and inability to please God through their own endeavors. The reasonableness of Hell. Reasoning with them over their need for a perfect atoning sacrifice that could not be anything less than God in human form. Pleading with them to seek out the truth about the translation they use which has no manuscript support. Ultimately my goal was that they might walk away pondering the possibility that their conscience was in agreement with my testimony.
Check out this page on my website for great resources on witnessing to cults which includes one sight entirely devoted to refuting the doctrines and beliefs of the JW's. It offers tremendous help for people coming out of the cult or for those witnessing to them.
http://www.onceuponacross.com/cultlinks.html
I didn't feel like eating that night. I sat down and glanced at my WWRCD bracelet (What Would Ray Comfort Do) and decided that it was time to turn the tables and go knocking on the doors of these door knockers. How would a JW respond to someone knocking on his door. I felt like I was carrying a mandate of vengeance from millions of angry home owners all around the world. But this sad truth came home to me. Why is it that so few professing Christians share the Gospel - and we have the real one (the late Bill Bright estimated it as being around 2% of all professing Christians who actually witness to others).
C'mon church goer - wake up. Why is it that the 60 year old pagan down the street has been visited by 18 Mormons, 34 JW's, and 73 people selling aluminium siding, all the while never hearing the true Gospel from a member of the mega-church down the street. Does that scenario sound a bit too familiar???
Well I did knock on all their doors, gave them a tract with the real Gospel, told them to watch out for the tower, and left. Sadly, they all seemed quite shocked that a Chrisitan would do such a thing which is a sad reflection on the passivity of many a modern church goer. One of them even saw the ironic humor in what I was doing. Nonetheless, it was very cold and I didn't want to stick around too long and besides, the snot icicle hanging from my left nostril was not a pretty sight for anybody. But I went home to my little cabin knowing that not only did I take out some revenge on those door knocking JW's, maybe I planted a seed of God's Word that won't return void (Isaiah 55:11).
That's right,there was a whole row of cabins with Jehovah's Witness families staying there. It wasn't hard to tell either as they were completely devoid of any form of decoration. I spent the next day at the pool studying all the different people there and trying to work out what a stereotypical JW looks like. With my profound discerning abilities I was able to narrow down the field . . . that guys' got a tattoo - he couldn't be one; she's puffing on a smoke - no way; he's wearing speedos - couldn't possibly be; whattabout the boy playing Nintendo - nahhh. After successfully exercising my biblical worldview I zeroed in on a few families sitting together. There is nothing like employing the discrete approach in a delicate situation like this so I walked into the middle of the gathering and said "Merry Christmas!" I was greeted by stunned silence until a lady in the group informed me "we don't celebrate Christmas" - Game On!
I decided to ask a probing question and said "are you guys Jehovah's Witnesses?". A chorus of nodding heads responded. I managed to engage in a fairly lengthy conversation. A real danger with witnessing to JW's is debating many fine points of theology and going around in circles all day. It is God who does the converting and I know I have virtually no chance of persuading them to switch camps so my main focus was on the basics. Jesus Christ being fully God and fully man. Using the law to show their exceeding sinfulness and inability to please God through their own endeavors. The reasonableness of Hell. Reasoning with them over their need for a perfect atoning sacrifice that could not be anything less than God in human form. Pleading with them to seek out the truth about the translation they use which has no manuscript support. Ultimately my goal was that they might walk away pondering the possibility that their conscience was in agreement with my testimony.
Check out this page on my website for great resources on witnessing to cults which includes one sight entirely devoted to refuting the doctrines and beliefs of the JW's. It offers tremendous help for people coming out of the cult or for those witnessing to them.
http://www.onceuponacross.com/cultlinks.html
I didn't feel like eating that night. I sat down and glanced at my WWRCD bracelet (What Would Ray Comfort Do) and decided that it was time to turn the tables and go knocking on the doors of these door knockers. How would a JW respond to someone knocking on his door. I felt like I was carrying a mandate of vengeance from millions of angry home owners all around the world. But this sad truth came home to me. Why is it that so few professing Christians share the Gospel - and we have the real one (the late Bill Bright estimated it as being around 2% of all professing Christians who actually witness to others).
C'mon church goer - wake up. Why is it that the 60 year old pagan down the street has been visited by 18 Mormons, 34 JW's, and 73 people selling aluminium siding, all the while never hearing the true Gospel from a member of the mega-church down the street. Does that scenario sound a bit too familiar???
Well I did knock on all their doors, gave them a tract with the real Gospel, told them to watch out for the tower, and left. Sadly, they all seemed quite shocked that a Chrisitan would do such a thing which is a sad reflection on the passivity of many a modern church goer. One of them even saw the ironic humor in what I was doing. Nonetheless, it was very cold and I didn't want to stick around too long and besides, the snot icicle hanging from my left nostril was not a pretty sight for anybody. But I went home to my little cabin knowing that not only did I take out some revenge on those door knocking JW's, maybe I planted a seed of God's Word that won't return void (Isaiah 55:11).
Monday, December 15, 2008
No More Sissy Boy Christmas Sermons!!!
Last sunday at my wife's behest I attended a Christmas service at a nearby Pentecostal church. Tongues issues aside, most Christians would concede that, historically, a hallmark of the Pentecostal movement has been passionate holiness preaching. It is for this reason that I am staggered at the continuous stream of sissy boy therapeutic preaching emmanating from many modern Pentecostal pulpits. It pains me to say that our local branch is no exception to this modern trend. And tragically, rather than setting them apart it is actually bringing them into line with much of modern evangelicalisms "40 Days of your Best Prayer of Jabez Now".
It is also worth bearing in mind that Christmas services are usually times where unchurched people attend. Preachers are simply derelict in their duty when they fail to faithfully proclaim the one true Gospel in this setting. The preacher in this particular case is someone who vehemently rejects even the slightest suggestion that his preaching might be "seeker sensitive" or watered down. Well - you be the judge! The entire substance of the message I heard last Sunday was that Christmas was about God sending his Son with a message of joy to all people. Reader, this is a message that a Mormon or a universalist could proclaim. There was nothing to distinguish it as Christian let alone address the Gospel. I shudder to think at what a complete pagan would think after hearing that message. He would certainly walk out with the same ignorance but perhaps slightly more comforted about his lifestyle of rebellion.
I am so mad about this. God has given us a beautiful Gospel to deliver to sinful men. The joy the aforementioned preacher spoke of is something that can only be rightly understood in the light of God's Holiness, man's sinfulness, and Christ's redemptive work on the cross to bridge that infinite gulf. It is a message that can be preached lovingly without resorting to pathetic sissy boy therapy. Preacher, man up this Christmas and do not withold the full counsel of God concerning the salvation of damned souls. We are in the business of life and death, not trying to compete with Oprah.
Tomorrow will be the start of an "8 Days of Christmas" series where I will attempt to lovingly proclaim the Gospel by dissecting a famous Christmas carol. It is an attempt to give an example of preaching that is loving in tone without shying away from the offense of the cross . . . all the while remembering that it is an offense to those who are perishing regardless of how nice we are.
Starting tomorrow - 8 Days of Christmas on The Bottom Line
It is also worth bearing in mind that Christmas services are usually times where unchurched people attend. Preachers are simply derelict in their duty when they fail to faithfully proclaim the one true Gospel in this setting. The preacher in this particular case is someone who vehemently rejects even the slightest suggestion that his preaching might be "seeker sensitive" or watered down. Well - you be the judge! The entire substance of the message I heard last Sunday was that Christmas was about God sending his Son with a message of joy to all people. Reader, this is a message that a Mormon or a universalist could proclaim. There was nothing to distinguish it as Christian let alone address the Gospel. I shudder to think at what a complete pagan would think after hearing that message. He would certainly walk out with the same ignorance but perhaps slightly more comforted about his lifestyle of rebellion.
I am so mad about this. God has given us a beautiful Gospel to deliver to sinful men. The joy the aforementioned preacher spoke of is something that can only be rightly understood in the light of God's Holiness, man's sinfulness, and Christ's redemptive work on the cross to bridge that infinite gulf. It is a message that can be preached lovingly without resorting to pathetic sissy boy therapy. Preacher, man up this Christmas and do not withold the full counsel of God concerning the salvation of damned souls. We are in the business of life and death, not trying to compete with Oprah.
Tomorrow will be the start of an "8 Days of Christmas" series where I will attempt to lovingly proclaim the Gospel by dissecting a famous Christmas carol. It is an attempt to give an example of preaching that is loving in tone without shying away from the offense of the cross . . . all the while remembering that it is an offense to those who are perishing regardless of how nice we are.
Starting tomorrow - 8 Days of Christmas on The Bottom Line
Sunday, November 30, 2008
The Business of Life and Death
It is at this time of year that many Danes brave the cold to buy Christmas gifts. Go out and watch the people occupied with things that will never matter in eternity. People, we are in the business of life and death. If we don’t preach the Gospel to them either with our words or with a tract then who will? This is the best time all winter to get out and talk to people.
Dark clouds are gathering all over the world right now as we see the economic crisis unfold. Western people including many professing Christians are going to learn a hard lesson about greed. Many people have been spending recklessly in the last 5 to 10 years and the banks were only too happy to lend them the money to do this. Well the banks aren’t so happy about it anymore and have decided that it’s time to collect. People are very afraid about this, whether it is their home, car, or retirement money. In this time of global fear we need to draw people’s attention to something they should be much more afraid about . . .
Even darker clouds are gathering all over the world right now as the cup of God’s wrath fills up against a wicked generation. Most of these people have been busy pursuing pleasure and material gain never realizing that God continually delays His wrath, giving them time to repent. Well God’s cup of wrath is filling up further every day and it is only a matter of time before it overflows with His righteous judgment on a world bound for Hell. As you gaze on these deluded people running from one store to the next buying another useless thing that will burn up on the day of judgment - remember such were we before God redeemed us by His own blood. As the clock counts down to Armageddon are you going to continue watching? Are you going to believe the evil lie of modern preachers who say “preach the Gospel, if necessary use words” which is like saying “wash always, if necessary use water”? Or are you going to use that voice that God gave you?
"Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning from me. If I say to the wicked, 'You shall surely die,' and you give him no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, in order to save his life, that wicked person shall die for his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand. But if you warn the wicked, and he does not turn from his wickedness, or from his wicked way, he shall die for his iniquity, but you will have delivered your soul. Again, if a righteous person turns from his righteousness and commits injustice, and I lay a stumbling
block before him, he shall die. Because you have not warned him, he shall die for his sin, and his righteous deeds that he has done shall not be remembered, but his blood I will require at your hand. But if you warn the righteous person not to sin, and he does not sin, he shall surely live, because he took warning, and you will have delivered your soul." (Ezekiel 3:17-21)
Stop for a moment and listen. Can you hear it? Do you hear it? It is the sound of thousands of church goers saying absolutely nothing about the glorious blood bought once for all delivered Gospel. Don’t sit in your warm apartment this Christmas season and offend God with silence. Someone recently asked me how he can possibly witness and share the Gospel when he has so many personal struggles. We can and should preach – in season and out of season – because this has everything to do with the fact that Christ is worthy to receive the reward of His suffering.
Whatever you do, don’t do nothing. If you are scared to witness hand out tracts, if you aren’t scared hand out tracts anyway. Talk to people, be friendly regardless of how they speak to us always remembering that we too were once slaves in Egypt.
Danes often tell me that being introverted and private is a Danish cultural issue. Let me ask you whether your evangelism is informed by culture or Scripture. We are all meant to be a part of a culture and it isn’t Danish or Australian or American. As the author of Hebrews made clear we are meant to be strangers in a strange land longing for a city who’s builder and maker is God.
For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return. But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city. (Hebrews 11:14-16)
Tomorrow - A Brief History of the Emergent Church (Part 3)
Dark clouds are gathering all over the world right now as we see the economic crisis unfold. Western people including many professing Christians are going to learn a hard lesson about greed. Many people have been spending recklessly in the last 5 to 10 years and the banks were only too happy to lend them the money to do this. Well the banks aren’t so happy about it anymore and have decided that it’s time to collect. People are very afraid about this, whether it is their home, car, or retirement money. In this time of global fear we need to draw people’s attention to something they should be much more afraid about . . .
Even darker clouds are gathering all over the world right now as the cup of God’s wrath fills up against a wicked generation. Most of these people have been busy pursuing pleasure and material gain never realizing that God continually delays His wrath, giving them time to repent. Well God’s cup of wrath is filling up further every day and it is only a matter of time before it overflows with His righteous judgment on a world bound for Hell. As you gaze on these deluded people running from one store to the next buying another useless thing that will burn up on the day of judgment - remember such were we before God redeemed us by His own blood. As the clock counts down to Armageddon are you going to continue watching? Are you going to believe the evil lie of modern preachers who say “preach the Gospel, if necessary use words” which is like saying “wash always, if necessary use water”? Or are you going to use that voice that God gave you?
"Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning from me. If I say to the wicked, 'You shall surely die,' and you give him no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, in order to save his life, that wicked person shall die for his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand. But if you warn the wicked, and he does not turn from his wickedness, or from his wicked way, he shall die for his iniquity, but you will have delivered your soul. Again, if a righteous person turns from his righteousness and commits injustice, and I lay a stumbling
block before him, he shall die. Because you have not warned him, he shall die for his sin, and his righteous deeds that he has done shall not be remembered, but his blood I will require at your hand. But if you warn the righteous person not to sin, and he does not sin, he shall surely live, because he took warning, and you will have delivered your soul." (Ezekiel 3:17-21)
Stop for a moment and listen. Can you hear it? Do you hear it? It is the sound of thousands of church goers saying absolutely nothing about the glorious blood bought once for all delivered Gospel. Don’t sit in your warm apartment this Christmas season and offend God with silence. Someone recently asked me how he can possibly witness and share the Gospel when he has so many personal struggles. We can and should preach – in season and out of season – because this has everything to do with the fact that Christ is worthy to receive the reward of His suffering.
Whatever you do, don’t do nothing. If you are scared to witness hand out tracts, if you aren’t scared hand out tracts anyway. Talk to people, be friendly regardless of how they speak to us always remembering that we too were once slaves in Egypt.
Danes often tell me that being introverted and private is a Danish cultural issue. Let me ask you whether your evangelism is informed by culture or Scripture. We are all meant to be a part of a culture and it isn’t Danish or Australian or American. As the author of Hebrews made clear we are meant to be strangers in a strange land longing for a city who’s builder and maker is God.
For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return. But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city. (Hebrews 11:14-16)
Tomorrow - A Brief History of the Emergent Church (Part 3)
Saturday, October 11, 2008
The True Biblical Gospel - Examine Yourself!
There has been a lot of discussion in recent posts concerning true and false gospels. I have decided to put on the table the Gospel message I have prepared for my e-cards I am sending out this Christmas. By True Gospel I don't mean style of writing or personality. Both of these are extensions of myself. By true Gospel I am talking about the theology of the message which must NEVER change.
Please read on and take the time to do what the Apostle Paul told the Corinthian Church in his second letter "Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?--unless indeed you fail to meet the test!" (II Corinthians 13:5). (The numbers represent corresponding Bible verses that you will find at the bottom of the post).
God rest ye merry, gentlemen
Let nothing you dismay
Remember, Christ, our Saviour
Was born on Christmas day
To save us all from Satan's power
When we were gone astray
O tidings of comfort and joy,
Comfort and joy
O tidings of comfort and joy
I wish to extend warm greetings to you and your family this Christmas. This is a time of year when people often stop and reflect on the big questions in life. As a Christian it is a time of year that has great significance to me and this year feel greatly convicted to articulate what Christmas is all about. I hope and pray that you would take the time to consider these eternal truths that concern each and every one of us.
The Christmas Carol “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” really captures the true message and meaning of Christmas. You have probably heard this Christmas Carol sung many times throughout your life. It often seems that when we sing songs as ritual or tradition we fail to stop and reflect on the words we are speaking and what they really mean. Would you be so kind as to take the time to journey with me for several minutes and examine the meaning and the message of this timeless song.
God rest ye merry, gentlemen
A modern reading of this line could say “God make you mighty, gentlemen”. It is an uplifting statement of good news. The message of Jesus Christ is often referred to as the “Good News”. This song actually explains what this unbelievable good news is. But the “good news” makes no sense without understanding the “bad news” and so it is with this song.
Let nothing you dismay
Nothing lasts forever and sadness and grief will inevitably come our way. For many, our joy comes from the relationships we have with those we love. But the truth of the ultimate statistic (that one out of one people die)1 will ultimately track us down during the course of our lives and bring to an end that which we cherish most. The line “let nothing you dismay” is telling us that this “good news” can override any disaster or tragedy that will strike us in this life. In a world where everything good seems only temporary, the joy of this song is built on something everlasting that death can never take away.
Remember Christ our Saviour was born on Christmas day
In a festive season now overrun with commercialism, many people have forgotten the first six letters of the word Christmas. Christ is the reason for the season. Jesus Christ was and is God, the creator of the universe, appearing in human form.2 That’s right, God walked on this planet over just over 2000 years ago. This song describes Him as our Saviour. This should prompt the question “save or rescue us from what?” A surf lifeguard is sometimes referred to as a rescuer. Even though he is a rescuer, the person who needs rescuing usually has to realise they are in trouble before they call for help. The same goes for us as people. We all need to have our eyes opened to the very serious problem that faces each and everyone of us before we too can cry out to be rescued or “saved”. So what is this serious problem?
To save us all from Satan’s power
Many of us have heard about the story of Adam and Eve. You may think of it as an amusing fairy tale. But Jesus spoke of Adam as a real person3 who set in motion a disastrous chain of events. The Bible tells us that God made everything perfect in the beginning here on earth and He made Adam and Eve as the very first people to rule over this perfect world.4 There was no death or suffering and EVERYTHING WAS GOOD. But Satan (or the Devil) was able to deceive the very first man and woman into rebelling against God and surrendering their rule here on earth.5 This rebellion is what is sometimes called original sin. Sin is the breaking of God’s moral laws6 that He has set in place and written on our consciences.7 This sinfulness became mankind’s nature and was passed on from generation to generation. It is the virus that contaminates the whole human race including you and me.8 It is revealed when our thoughts, words, and actions violate our own conscience. Even one of Jesus’ well known followers said “why is it that I continually do what I know is wrong and continually avoid doing what I know is right”.9 The problem of the human heart is the heart of the human problem. The Bible tells us that sin is the reason that we all die.10 Jesus came to save us from Satan’s power which is the curse of sin and death.
When we were gone astray
Please bear with me as I labor this point because it is so important that we grasp what this line is saying.
People often ask the question that if there is a loving God then why is there so much evil in the world today? The problem with this question is that it is built upon a wrong view of humanity. The Bible tells us that many men “proclaim their own goodness”11 and are “clean in their own eyes”12 but that we have all “sinned and fallen short”13 of God’s standard. This is far more serious than most of us realise. God, being good, is a just and righteous judge and He must punish the Hitlers, Stalins, and Bin Ladins of this world, otherwise He would be corrupt. Because we are all made in God’s image we crave justice to be done with the wrong things we see in this world. An infinite God must punish infinitely and that is why there is a Hell, and why Jesus warned so much about it.14
But when God’s judgement comes to this earth it won’t stop with murderers, rapists, and paedophiles. He must also deal with liars, thieves, blasphemers…… even every wrong thought. As painful as it is, it is always good to examine ourselves in the light of God’s justice system. Martin Luther said that we should hold up the mirror of the Ten Commandments15 so we can see ourselves as we really are and what our real need is.
Have you ever lied? The Bible says that all liars will end up in Hell.16 If that seems overly harsh then consider this: If I lie to my daughter there is nothing she can do to me. But if I lie to my wife then my sleeping arrangements are likely to shift from the bedroom to the garage. If I lie to my employer then I’ll probably get fired. If I lie to the government then I can end up in jail. Though the crime never changed in each situation, the level of punishment did in proportion to the level of authority being dealt with. How serious is it then to lie to an infinite and perfect God?
Have you ever stolen anything? The Bible says that no thief can inherit God’s kingdom.17
Have you ever used God’s name as a swear word? The Bible tells us that God will not hold anyone guiltless who blasphemes His Holy Name.18 God will judge every word spoken.
Have you ever committed sexual immorality outside of the confines of marriage? Jesus took it even further to tell us that even a lustful thought makes us guilty of adultery of the heart.19 God will even judge our thought life. Nothing is hidden from Him.20
If you are anything like me and have broken those four commandments then you are a liar, a thief, a blasphemer, and an adulterer at heart. And that is just four of the Ten Commandments. And here’s the killer punch, if you break just one commandment then you are guilty of all of them anyway.21 The line of the song “when we had gone astray” means that every single person has strayed from God because of our own exceeding sinfulness.22
It was when I examined myself in the light of God’s standard that I realized that if God is good then He should send me to Hell for my crimes against Him. I stopped asking why there is so much evil in the world, and started asking why God has not yet poured out His judgement and justice on me already. And this is why, because it is not God’s will to send anyone to Hell.23 God is holding back His judgement because He is merciful and giving us time to repent of our crimes against Him. He loves us so much that He made a way for us to be reconciled to Him and be “Saved” from His judgement.24 This is the amazing “good news”.
O tidings of comfort and joy, Comfort and joy, O tidings of comfort and joy
It is the “good news” that brings us tidings of comfort and joy. At Christmas 2007 years ago, God appeared in human form as a baby born in Israel. Jesus Christ came on a mission to fulfill the law that we had broken and then pay the penalty for our crimes with His own blood.25 The cross He died on was meant for you and me. The only way God could make reconciliation possible was by living a perfect sinless life as a human and then paying for our sin with His own blood.26 He then rose from the dead defeating the curse of sin and death because of His own righteousness27 and ascended up into heaven to prepare a place for those who follow Him.28 God showed us His love in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.29 To receive God’s free gift of payment for our sin and inherit eternal life we must repent of our sin and put our complete trust in Him to save us30 from His terrible day of judgement.31 To repent is to turn away from our sin and apologise to God with genuine sorrow. To trust in Him means to put our complete hope in Jesus work on the cross because no other prophet or religious leader has done that for you. Trust in Him like you would in a parachute when jumping from 10000 feet. If we confess our sin He is faithful to forgive us and clean us from all unrighteousness32. That is tidings of comfort and joy.
I hope and pray that you would consider these things as we approach the season when Christ was born.
You are in my prayers
Cameron
PS The greatest gift you’ll find this Christmas won’t be under a shiny tree with pretty lights. You’ll find it at the foot of a blood stained wooden cross.
1 Hebrews 9:27
2 John 1:1,14
3 Mark 10:6
4 Genesis 1
5 Genesis 3
6 I John 3:4
7 Romans 2:15
8 Romans 3:23
9 Romans 7:15
10 Ezekiel 18:4
11 Proverbs 20:6
12 Proverbs 16:2
13 Romans 3:23
14 Matthew 10:28
15 Exodus 20:1-17
16 Revelation 21:8
17 I Corinthians 6:10
18 Exodus 20:7
19 Matthew 5:28
20 Ecclesiastes 12:14
21 James 2:10
22 Isaiah 53:6
23 II Peter 3:9
24 John 3:16
25 II Corinthians 5:21
26 I Peter 1:18-19
27 Romans 4:25
28 John 14:2
29 Romans 5:8
30 Acts 20:21
31 Romans 5:9
32 I John 1:9
Please read on and take the time to do what the Apostle Paul told the Corinthian Church in his second letter "Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?--unless indeed you fail to meet the test!" (II Corinthians 13:5). (The numbers represent corresponding Bible verses that you will find at the bottom of the post).
God rest ye merry, gentlemen
Let nothing you dismay
Remember, Christ, our Saviour
Was born on Christmas day
To save us all from Satan's power
When we were gone astray
O tidings of comfort and joy,
Comfort and joy
O tidings of comfort and joy
I wish to extend warm greetings to you and your family this Christmas. This is a time of year when people often stop and reflect on the big questions in life. As a Christian it is a time of year that has great significance to me and this year feel greatly convicted to articulate what Christmas is all about. I hope and pray that you would take the time to consider these eternal truths that concern each and every one of us.
The Christmas Carol “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” really captures the true message and meaning of Christmas. You have probably heard this Christmas Carol sung many times throughout your life. It often seems that when we sing songs as ritual or tradition we fail to stop and reflect on the words we are speaking and what they really mean. Would you be so kind as to take the time to journey with me for several minutes and examine the meaning and the message of this timeless song.
God rest ye merry, gentlemen
A modern reading of this line could say “God make you mighty, gentlemen”. It is an uplifting statement of good news. The message of Jesus Christ is often referred to as the “Good News”. This song actually explains what this unbelievable good news is. But the “good news” makes no sense without understanding the “bad news” and so it is with this song.
Let nothing you dismay
Nothing lasts forever and sadness and grief will inevitably come our way. For many, our joy comes from the relationships we have with those we love. But the truth of the ultimate statistic (that one out of one people die)1 will ultimately track us down during the course of our lives and bring to an end that which we cherish most. The line “let nothing you dismay” is telling us that this “good news” can override any disaster or tragedy that will strike us in this life. In a world where everything good seems only temporary, the joy of this song is built on something everlasting that death can never take away.
Remember Christ our Saviour was born on Christmas day
In a festive season now overrun with commercialism, many people have forgotten the first six letters of the word Christmas. Christ is the reason for the season. Jesus Christ was and is God, the creator of the universe, appearing in human form.2 That’s right, God walked on this planet over just over 2000 years ago. This song describes Him as our Saviour. This should prompt the question “save or rescue us from what?” A surf lifeguard is sometimes referred to as a rescuer. Even though he is a rescuer, the person who needs rescuing usually has to realise they are in trouble before they call for help. The same goes for us as people. We all need to have our eyes opened to the very serious problem that faces each and everyone of us before we too can cry out to be rescued or “saved”. So what is this serious problem?
To save us all from Satan’s power
Many of us have heard about the story of Adam and Eve. You may think of it as an amusing fairy tale. But Jesus spoke of Adam as a real person3 who set in motion a disastrous chain of events. The Bible tells us that God made everything perfect in the beginning here on earth and He made Adam and Eve as the very first people to rule over this perfect world.4 There was no death or suffering and EVERYTHING WAS GOOD. But Satan (or the Devil) was able to deceive the very first man and woman into rebelling against God and surrendering their rule here on earth.5 This rebellion is what is sometimes called original sin. Sin is the breaking of God’s moral laws6 that He has set in place and written on our consciences.7 This sinfulness became mankind’s nature and was passed on from generation to generation. It is the virus that contaminates the whole human race including you and me.8 It is revealed when our thoughts, words, and actions violate our own conscience. Even one of Jesus’ well known followers said “why is it that I continually do what I know is wrong and continually avoid doing what I know is right”.9 The problem of the human heart is the heart of the human problem. The Bible tells us that sin is the reason that we all die.10 Jesus came to save us from Satan’s power which is the curse of sin and death.
When we were gone astray
Please bear with me as I labor this point because it is so important that we grasp what this line is saying.
People often ask the question that if there is a loving God then why is there so much evil in the world today? The problem with this question is that it is built upon a wrong view of humanity. The Bible tells us that many men “proclaim their own goodness”11 and are “clean in their own eyes”12 but that we have all “sinned and fallen short”13 of God’s standard. This is far more serious than most of us realise. God, being good, is a just and righteous judge and He must punish the Hitlers, Stalins, and Bin Ladins of this world, otherwise He would be corrupt. Because we are all made in God’s image we crave justice to be done with the wrong things we see in this world. An infinite God must punish infinitely and that is why there is a Hell, and why Jesus warned so much about it.14
But when God’s judgement comes to this earth it won’t stop with murderers, rapists, and paedophiles. He must also deal with liars, thieves, blasphemers…… even every wrong thought. As painful as it is, it is always good to examine ourselves in the light of God’s justice system. Martin Luther said that we should hold up the mirror of the Ten Commandments15 so we can see ourselves as we really are and what our real need is.
Have you ever lied? The Bible says that all liars will end up in Hell.16 If that seems overly harsh then consider this: If I lie to my daughter there is nothing she can do to me. But if I lie to my wife then my sleeping arrangements are likely to shift from the bedroom to the garage. If I lie to my employer then I’ll probably get fired. If I lie to the government then I can end up in jail. Though the crime never changed in each situation, the level of punishment did in proportion to the level of authority being dealt with. How serious is it then to lie to an infinite and perfect God?
Have you ever stolen anything? The Bible says that no thief can inherit God’s kingdom.17
Have you ever used God’s name as a swear word? The Bible tells us that God will not hold anyone guiltless who blasphemes His Holy Name.18 God will judge every word spoken.
Have you ever committed sexual immorality outside of the confines of marriage? Jesus took it even further to tell us that even a lustful thought makes us guilty of adultery of the heart.19 God will even judge our thought life. Nothing is hidden from Him.20
If you are anything like me and have broken those four commandments then you are a liar, a thief, a blasphemer, and an adulterer at heart. And that is just four of the Ten Commandments. And here’s the killer punch, if you break just one commandment then you are guilty of all of them anyway.21 The line of the song “when we had gone astray” means that every single person has strayed from God because of our own exceeding sinfulness.22
It was when I examined myself in the light of God’s standard that I realized that if God is good then He should send me to Hell for my crimes against Him. I stopped asking why there is so much evil in the world, and started asking why God has not yet poured out His judgement and justice on me already. And this is why, because it is not God’s will to send anyone to Hell.23 God is holding back His judgement because He is merciful and giving us time to repent of our crimes against Him. He loves us so much that He made a way for us to be reconciled to Him and be “Saved” from His judgement.24 This is the amazing “good news”.
O tidings of comfort and joy, Comfort and joy, O tidings of comfort and joy
It is the “good news” that brings us tidings of comfort and joy. At Christmas 2007 years ago, God appeared in human form as a baby born in Israel. Jesus Christ came on a mission to fulfill the law that we had broken and then pay the penalty for our crimes with His own blood.25 The cross He died on was meant for you and me. The only way God could make reconciliation possible was by living a perfect sinless life as a human and then paying for our sin with His own blood.26 He then rose from the dead defeating the curse of sin and death because of His own righteousness27 and ascended up into heaven to prepare a place for those who follow Him.28 God showed us His love in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.29 To receive God’s free gift of payment for our sin and inherit eternal life we must repent of our sin and put our complete trust in Him to save us30 from His terrible day of judgement.31 To repent is to turn away from our sin and apologise to God with genuine sorrow. To trust in Him means to put our complete hope in Jesus work on the cross because no other prophet or religious leader has done that for you. Trust in Him like you would in a parachute when jumping from 10000 feet. If we confess our sin He is faithful to forgive us and clean us from all unrighteousness32. That is tidings of comfort and joy.
I hope and pray that you would consider these things as we approach the season when Christ was born.
You are in my prayers
Cameron
PS The greatest gift you’ll find this Christmas won’t be under a shiny tree with pretty lights. You’ll find it at the foot of a blood stained wooden cross.
1 Hebrews 9:27
2 John 1:1,14
3 Mark 10:6
4 Genesis 1
5 Genesis 3
6 I John 3:4
7 Romans 2:15
8 Romans 3:23
9 Romans 7:15
10 Ezekiel 18:4
11 Proverbs 20:6
12 Proverbs 16:2
13 Romans 3:23
14 Matthew 10:28
15 Exodus 20:1-17
16 Revelation 21:8
17 I Corinthians 6:10
18 Exodus 20:7
19 Matthew 5:28
20 Ecclesiastes 12:14
21 James 2:10
22 Isaiah 53:6
23 II Peter 3:9
24 John 3:16
25 II Corinthians 5:21
26 I Peter 1:18-19
27 Romans 4:25
28 John 14:2
29 Romans 5:8
30 Acts 20:21
31 Romans 5:9
32 I John 1:9
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