Christmas Day
The goal of any good communicator is not
necessarily to speak well with perfect English, but to be heard and understood.
In the Old Testament God spoke clearly through the prophets, but nobody
listened. God spoke through the scriptures, but nobody listened. In our
scripture today, God spoke through angels and the testimony of others, but they
still did not listen. It says they were “amazed” but they were not listening!
Today God still speaks in ways that we can hear Him, receive his message
clearly, and understand Him…if we are listening.
One of the most important Christian concepts that we can grasp is that
when God speaks he is speaking to us personally. Every scripture we read, God
speaks to us. Every scripture we hear, God speaks to us. Every message given,
every study taught, every testimony heard; God is speaking to us.
I don’t know how many times you have heard the Christmas story, perhaps
every year of your life since you started school, but if you don’t hear
anything else I have said today, hear this; “God loves you!” The child Jesus –
born of the virgin Mary – the Son of God – in the manger of Bethlehem – was
born for you because God loves you! I
hope you hear what I hear…
Now think
about it for a moment, where in our world today do we most often see “death
working backward?” Spring… When the harsh cold, and barren grip of winter gives
way to new life. In a way, it helps add some meaning to these two wonderful
times of year we celebrate -Christmas and Easter.
At
Christmas: Jesus comes to a world that is cold and bleak, just as he comes to
us in our darkest, most difficult times and points to God’s eternal promises of
love, forgiveness, and comfort. And then
Easter: Jesus gives his life for us, and in doing so breaks the power of sin’s
winter and brings new life, just as he offers new life to each of us who would
put our faith and trust in Him.
When Simeon
looked at the Christ child, he saw the Savior he had been waiting for! The one
he was expecting to come! When you look
into the manger, do you see what I see?
The Christmas story is a celebration of
“truth” concerning God’s love. God’s love for us was demonstrated in the birth,
the life, the death, and the resurrection of Jesus Christ. To stand before the manger and contemplate
the truth of God’s love is all these things and more. The truth is that Jesus
is the only Way to Life! He came that we
may have life and have it in abundance!
What a joy to know him! What a joy to serve him! The birth of a Savior draws near; Get ready! Keep watch!
Look up! Lest the star appears and not be seen or understood. Lest the
child be born, and not be found.
There is no greater purpose of Christmas
than for us to truly understand and know this one who lay in the manger of
Bethlehem - Who he was, why he came, why he died, and why he will come again…
“Do you know what I know?”…
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