When the time for Jesus to come to earth arrived, the last time anyone heard anything from God was 400 years prior with the prophet Malachi. As had happened in the past, when God had a message to specific individuals, He would send a prophet or an angel to notify the person of His message. This is how God spoke in the days of old.
When it came time to save the world from its sin and the horrors of it, there was more announcement and setup than for any other person in history. Jesus would have His birth announced by an angel to Mary, primarily to let her know what was about to happen to her and so she could walk in faith, which she did. Jesus would require both of His parents to get a special message from God regarding His birth because His life would be so special and unique.
Jesus is the only person in Scripture to have His path paved by a forerunner. All the other prophets simply went about their business to preach and to give God’s message He told them. John the Baptist was the last of such prophets, but he also had the great privilege of alerting the people that the Messiah had come.
Jesus is also the only person in Scripture or anywhere else in history to have a host of angels announce He had come – to the lowest social rank of society: the shepherds. This announcement to the shepherds indicated who Jesus was coming for – the lost, the sick, the outcast, and those who were sinners and knew of their need for a Savior.
The announcement to shepherds also highlights whom the angels DID NOT announce to: anyone of political or religious affluence. The Magi were looking for the Promised Messiah, and God directed them to come and worship Jesus, just in time for Him to flee to Egypt and survive the massacre from Herod. But angels did not appear to Herod, the Pharisees, the Sanhedrin, or any other self-righteous group, but instead to the “dregs” of society. Jesus would be for all types of people, not merely the elite. Magi visited Him as well, so we see Jesus being accessible to the rich and wealthy, though very few would chase after Him.
But the announcement of Jesus was not welcome by everyone. Mary had to go live with Elizabeth for six months of her pregnancy. Elizabeth wasn’t merely a relative; she was the only one who knew and understood the special and precious gift that Mary was carrying. Mary would be tolerated in her community later, but Jesus was always known to be a “bastard” son, and Mary herself was not seen the same ever again. They would be outcasts, tolerated at best their whole lives. This was one of the key arguments used by those in Nazareth to reject Him when He came and declared Himself the Messiah in teaching about Isaiah 61.
Even before this rejection by Jesus’ hometown, we see two types of responses in Matthew’s account to the announcement of Jesus’ birth that I will address: one of total nonchalance by the scribes who reported about where the Messiah would be born when the Magi came, and another from Herod himself who feigned to seek Jesus but had the intention of murdering Him. Herod was so scared of Jesus, because Satan was scared that the One who would crush his head was born, that he had every baby murdered just to try to get that one.
But the scribes’ response is something I want to focus on briefly. They knew the prophecies. They knew what God said, and when the opportunity for it to actually happen had arrived, they totally missed it. The best benefit of the doubt I can give them is that they were just answering another of Herod’s questions about the Jewish faith. There is little in the text that indicates that the scribes and chief priests met the Magi directly because Herod called the Magi secretly to learn of the star’s location. However, he summoned all the scribes and chief priests, and the news disturbed both Herod and the scribes and priests. The King of the Jews had been born. Why were they so nonchalant about it?
The answer is simple: they were not even looking for the Messiah. They knew the Scriptures. They knew what it said, but it was purely intellectual and nothing else. There was no reality to it for them. They knew the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem, and yet they were never even looking towards that direction for Him. How did they miss that? It’s the same way that we all miss Jesus, too. They had ideas that the Messiah would come as a conquering hero who would defeat Rome. How did they get that idea? Look at their past. All their previous heroes delivered them from physical oppressors. They never got the picture that the real oppressor was sin. They were looking in the wrong places for the wrong person. So, when Jesus was right in front of their eyes, they missed Him.
Which response do we have? When we hear of Jesus, the true Jesus of Nazareth, the one described in the Bible, which are we like? Are we like Mary and Joseph, who, in belief, obeyed their instructions regarding what to do with Jesus? Are we like the Magi who saw the signs and then pursued them so that they might worship the Lord Jesus? Are we like the shepherds who heard the proclamation and left their jobs to go seek after Jesus? Are we like the scribes and priests who heard the news and listed the Scripture but nonchalantly went about their business? Are we like Herod, who declared the intention to worship but held murderous jealousy in his heart, not only not wanting anyone to take his position but didn’t want anyone else following Him either?
This is the ultimate question we must all face and ask ourselves: what will we do with Jesus? In the passages of Matthew 2 and Luke 1-2, we see different answers to how people will respond to Jesus. While there are others that we’ll see throughout this study, the Bible gives us every type of response that can be given. Which one we are will be seen and demonstrated. Let us examine ourselves. Jesus has been announced. He has come, and He is coming again. Will you be ready for Him? Are you not going to care? Are you going to resist Him? The choice is yours, but when Jesus does return, He won’t be coming as a baby but as the warrior-king that the scribes and Pharisees thought was coming before. He will damn, He will slaughter, and He will rescue His people. We will be ready, and will we respond?
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Tomorrow is Christmas Day. So why am I writing about Jesus’ crucifixion instead of His birth? The answer is simple: Jesus came and was born for the purpose of dying for the sins of the world. Back in November, I spoke at El Paso’s first Creation Conference and gave the closing keynote. When I stepped off the stage, I was greeted by a number of friends who mostly had one thing they liked about my keynote: the crown of thorns. And what does that have to do with Creation? Actually everything. If Paul’s statement about Jesus being the “last Adam” doesn’t connect the Fall of Man and the Genesis account to the cross, the crowns of thorns should remove any doubt to the honest listener.
Genesis is the historical text about the origins of the universe and the establishment of the nation through whom the Savior would come. The first eleven chapters cover 2000 years of world history, concluding with the dispersion of the nations and people groups before zooming in onto one man: Abraham. The rest of the OT centers around Abraham and his descendants, a nation that would bring Jesus Christ. It is in these first eleven chapters that we are introduced to the setting of world history, the description of how this world went wrong, and the first messages and pictures of the Gospel. This is our origins: where we came from. And if we are to have a Biblical worldview, we must have a correct view of origins.
When I teach about worldviews, I address five major questions. “Where did I come from?” “Why am I here?” “Who am I?” “Where am I going?” and “Who do I listen to?” There are others as well, some of which are answered within these questions. A big one that I’ll address is, “What is wrong with the world?” This is part of the question about origins. This world is broken. It’s messed up. How did this happen? There are two competing ideas: 1) It was always this way. 2) Man is the problem, according to Genesis 3. In case #1, this is what is behind every single model that teaches the earth is billions of years old. The earth has always been corrupted and broken; it was created this way. The models that try to include Adam say that Adam’s sin didn’t actually corrupt the Creation; it just corrupted life in the Garden. In case #2, man is the problem; this is what Scripture teaches. This is no secondary issue because case #1 blames God (or just nature) for what’s wrong with this world. The Gospel and Christianity blame man for what is wrong with the world and the curse upon all creation that followed.
When God issued out the curse upon Adam, there are several things to note. First, the ground won’t produce for man readily; man will have to work brutally for it. Next, the ground will produce thorns and thistles, and then man would eventually die and return to the dust from which he came. The earth as a whole was cursed. It would no longer operate as originally created. The implications of this are well beyond what I can say, especially in a scientific sense, but what is clear is that pre-sin, the universe operated on a different set of commands than post-sin. Mainstream scientists today struggle to grasp this notion because they believe in the uniformitarian principle that what they observe today (in a sin-cursed world) is what has always happened, so they dismiss it entirely. But I want to dwell on this point.
Jesus came and was born not just as a human, but He came from His residence in perfect paradise to a sin-cursed world. John Hyde described how this revelation hit him – even the very air that Jesus breathed was sin-cursed. So it’s no wonder why He constantly snuck out to pray. Then the fateful day arrived. Jesus, having already prayed for any other option, submitted to His Father and faced His betrayer. He faced an illegal, illegitimate trial and a Roman beating that alone could have killed Him, and part of all of that was the greatest form of mockery: the crown of thorns.
Jesus was the rightful king, and to mock it, the Romans put a crown of thorns on Jesus’ head. They put the very thing God specifically singled out to be the constant, visual, physical mark of the curse of sin – thorns and thistles – on the head of Christ. Russ Miller posted a comment on Facebook that related to the thorns being part of the curse on the world. It was a good point, but when I thought about it, it hit me. Jesus wore a crown of thorns. Jesus wore the literal symbol of sin on His head as He went to the cross. John teaches that Jesus bore the sins of the world, that He would be the propitiation for sin. That’s what Jesus came to do – to be the ultimate and final sacrifice that would not only appease the wrath of God upon sin, but also to enable the Father to be both just upon the wicked, and the justifier of those who have their faith in Christ. Jesus wore a crown of thorns. He took our sin literally, and He took it to death and satisfied God’s righteous justice. When I gave the closing keynote to the Creation conference I mentioned above, I brought this point up. Afterwards, this point was by far the point that resonated the most with those I spoke with.
Tomorrow, as you go about your Christmas celebrations, let us remember Christ over the festivities. Let us remember not just that He came, but why He had to come. He had to come because that was the only way God could save us and maintain His perfect moral righteous standards. The crown of thorns is just a small detail most of us skim over, but Jesus wore sin to that cross, and He suffered the wrath of God. In that death, mankind was given the open door to be saved. People may reject the teaching of the thorns and thistles in Genesis, and they unwittingly do that when they suggest that they preceded Adam by teaching an “ancient” earth. Their belief may not determine their salvation, but unless Genesis happened as recorded, no one can be saved. The crown of thorns is just one proof of this. Let us remember what Jesus came to do and let us be thankful that He did, because He did not have to. Merry Christmas and may we honor our blessed Savior.
This forum is meant to foster discussion and allow for differing viewpoints to be explored with equal and respectful consideration. All comments are moderated and any foul language or threatening/abusive comments will not be approved. Users who engage in threatening or abusive comments which are physically harmful in nature will be reported to the authorities.
by Steve Risner
Editor’s note: Due to the upcoming Christmas holiday, we’re re-posting this blog post today for your enjoyment.
Today we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. Last Thursday, I released a blog post about the origins of some of our more popular or well known Christmas holiday traditions. You can read that here. Today, I wanted to look at some of the historical facts that some skeptics take issue with – things like the census that Luke reported and who was governor at the time of Christ's birth. Also, what was the star that led the wise men to Bethlehem? Why are there differences in the genealogies of Matthew and Luke? Some of these alleged issues have been covered literally for hundreds of years while others have found a more contemporary response. Either way, we can trust the Gospel story as it's written in the 4 books dedicated to the life of Christ we find in the Bible and, specifically for today's writing, the 2 Gospels that give us details of the birth of Jesus.
For Bible believers, it's accepted that the Bible is very likely accurate in all it records (with a few exceptions that can be traced back to copying errors and are of no consequence at all). Luke is considered by many to be a top rate historian who was very concerned with accurately recording things in an orderly fashion so the reader may know the account is true. He didn't take things lightly and he interviewed those who were there (or he himself was there) for his historical account of the life of Jesus and the early church. It's unlikely Luke would include something of minute detail if it was not correct since he was primarily concerned with accuracy and orderliness. Let's look at some alleged issues.
The census that had Joseph take his pregnant soon-to-be-wife to Bethlehem is an area history has an issue with. It's one of the toughest to answer satisfactorily, but I'm okay with unanswered questions. There are certainly some things from God's Word that we're not 100% clear on, but none of these things are of major importance from a theological stand point. They are the details. We, as believers, must be united on the essentials but allow freedom in those things that are more preferential than essential. If we stand united on the important stuff, we'll make a great deal of headway for the Kingdom. But this issue does have some options as for an answer. The issue here is that Quirinius wasn't governor of the area when Jesus was born nor did he have a census taken during the time generally accepted as the time Christ was born—about 4 BC. His census was done around 6 AD. He also claims that Herod the Great was ruling at the time. Herod died probably early in 1 BC. Many suggest it was 4 BC, but more recently that has been questioned for various reasons. It seems to make more sense it was 1 BC. So this means we cannot assume the census spoken of was done in 6 AD and this was the census Luke wrote about for the time of Christ's birth. Early church father Tertullian indicates that Saturninus was in charge during Christ's birth, as Roman records seem to indicate as well.
There are several explanations that have been put forth for this issue. One is that Quirinius was put in charge of the census only during the time Saturninus was over the area. Another is that Quirinius finished the census, which was first imposed by Augustus over the Roman world, going from province to province. The Jews may have been allowed to use their “own town” as the text suggests rather than their Roman town. This has historical support. But it is possible the Quirinius is credited with the census because he, in fact, finished it. Another possible explanation is that Quirinius had some other official position that put him in a leadership role at the time. The text uses words that can indicate governor but also other positions are possible. There is historical documentation that indicates an official around this time held office twice. That could well have been Quirinius.
Still another possible explanation is the text itself. Reading ancient Greek can be tricky. It's possible the text doesn't say it occurred during the reign of Quirinius but prior to the reign of Quirinius or prior to the census of Quirinius. We need to understand how the grammar works here. The census of Augustus was not a one time, empire-wide event but multiple events over a longer time period. Luke indicates this with his use of the present tense in reference to Augustus's census of the world (the Roman world that is). It was ongoing. Then he hones in on the area known as Syria. It's also likely from the text that Luke is referring to one of two censuses that took place near that time. He indicates it was the first census, rather than the more commonly referred to one of 6 AD. Any of these, or some other explanation, could adequately deal with the skeptic's complaint. Some other historical documents may be found to further confirm the accuracy of Luke's narrative.
Let’s look at another question. Joseph should not have had to go to Bethlehem but to his current home town, and Mary should not have been required to accompany him at all since she wouldn't need to register. This is not so. There Egyptian records that indicate Rome frequently allowed local cultural traditions to be used during certain things. There is no reason to suggest it wasn't okay in this instance. In Jewish culture, property (which Joseph may likely have owned in the area of Bethlehem since his family was from the area) was passed down through the father. This would have demanded Joseph go to his own town and register. Why did his pregnant fiance join him? A couple good reasons, I think: 1) she was about to give birth and wanted to be with Joseph at the time, and 2) she and Joseph were aware of the Messianic prophecies indicating where Jesus would be born. They knew the child she carried was the prophesied Messiah, so she needed to get him to Bethlehem. Watching the Lord work out the details that not only allowed for her to be in Bethlehem but even required her to be there was probably a faith builder for the couple.
What was the star the Magi saw? I don't know. Many have suggested a few different things that, to me, don't follow. A common thought is a conjunction of multiple planets that made some sort of super star in the night sky. Another is the idea that a comet may have been in the sky, leading the wise men on their journey. Still another possible explanation is a supernova—an exploding star. None of these work for me. The star rested over a house and led the men on their journey. A conjunction of planets or exploding star in the sky wouldn't lead them. A comet wouldn't lead them. It's likely it was a supernatural event, like the pillar of fire at night and pillar of cloud during the day that led the Hebrews as they left Egypt. The text seems to tell us that only the Magi saw the star and that it led them from Jerusalem to Bethlehem which is north to south. Normal objects in the sky travel from east to west.
The apparent differences in the genealogies of Jesus from Matthew to Luke are very simple to address. Luke was referencing Jesus’s mother's lineage while Matthew was highlighting Joseph's—Jesus’s legal father. However, Mary's lineage through David was not cursed while Joseph's was. Christ could not have been the King if his real father was Joseph due to Jehoiachin. The grammar used in Luke's list indicates he was giving us Mary's line up until Joseph, who was indicated by the text as the son-in-law.
I'm sure there are other issues skeptics have, but that's what they do: they seek out reasons to not believe rather than accepting the obviousness of the accuracy and authority of the Bible to proclaim God's Word to us. This Christmas, praise Him for His amazing acts. He became flesh and dwelt among us. Christ's birth is, in my opinion, the second greatest event in the history of the universe only topped by the Resurrection. Celebrate and worship Him! Rest in the facts of the day—Jesus was born! God sent us the greatest gift of all—that of His Son. God is with us.
This forum is meant to foster discussion and allow for differing viewpoints to be explored with equal and respectful consideration. All comments are moderated and any foul language or threatening/abusive comments will not be approved. Users who engage in threatening or abusive comments which are physically harmful in nature will be reported to the authorities.
by Steve Risner
Editor’s note: Due to the upcoming Christmas holiday, we’re re-posting this blog post today for your enjoyment.
As we approach the day that Christians (and many non-Christians) celebrate called Christmas, I wanted to clear some things up as to the origins of many of the traditions we hold so dear when we honor the birth of the Savior of mankind. Some have said that Christians should not celebrate this day because it's actually pagan in its origins, as are many of the traditions associated with it. Some have left churches or been estranged from family or friends because of this misunderstanding. I'd like to look at a few of these traditions and where they come from.
I, too, had been told and even accepted the fact that many of the things we do for Christmas had pagan beginnings, but I brushed it off as something Christians took from their pagan cultures and made their own. I was wrong. But in reality, I don't feel that these traditions, even if they did have pagan origins, would be an insult to our Lord. His grace is sufficient and, as Paul tells us, much of these things are meaningless anyway. We are not celebrating pagan things here. We're celebrating Christ Jesus! And keep in mind that God has filled the Old Testament with celebrations that are to honor the Lord and bring glory to His Name. Those listed in Leviticus 22 are Passover, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Firstfruits, the Feast of Weeks, the Feast of Trumpets, the Day of Atonement, and the Feast of Tabernacles. Now, Colossians 2:16 tells us that we are under no obligation to observe these days or times, but it wouldn't be a bad idea to know what each of them was about. But the point of me bringing this up is to demonstrate the fact that God clearly feels remembering great events is important.
That's why, for me anyway, Christmas (in my estimation the second greatest event in all of history behind the Resurrection) is an obvious time to celebrate what God has done! It's been tarnished for many by the commercialization and other unimportant things that people have added onto it, but it's still one of the greatest events the world has ever known. And I wouldn't think that we would be honoring God by throwing out this celebration simply to not participate in the nonsense that others have applied to it. Just don't participate in the nonsense. It began and continued for centuries as a celebration pointing us to Christ. Let's look at a few traditions and where they come from. There is no question that Christmas has its origins in the Church.
Firstly, I'll just say that Christmas has many traditions that actually predate the pagan equivalent in many instances, so this would make it impossible to have its origins in paganism. The word Christmas comes from Christ and mass. This is not a reference to a Roman Catholic meeting. The word “mass” is from Latin and means to be sent on a mission. So Christ-mass was when God sent Christ to the earth to fulfill His mission, becoming a human and dying and Resurrecting as our Savior.
Christmas was celebrated as early as AD 202 (possibly earlier) and we know this from the writings of Hippolytus of Rome. He stated that Christ was born shortly before January and that He was resurrected shortly before April. Tertullian also confirmed this. This goes along with the Jewish tradition called the integral age that a prophet was conceived on the same day he died. This tradition is not Biblical, but it give us an important look at where the dates for Christmas and the Resurrection come from. This states that Christ died on March 25th (the early Church determined this) and would be the same day He was conceived, exactly 9 months before December 25th. This is why we celebrate on December 25th. There is controversy as to whether this Jewish tradition was real. I can't say as I'm not an ancient Jew. But it makes sense as to the timing/dates of the events in question. Was this the actual date Jesus was born? Most likely not, but that's not actually the point at all. We're celebrating the birth of Christ, whether we know exactly what day that was or not. We celebrate the Resurrection every Sunday! It's okay.
The issue some have erroneously placed on the date we celebrate is that the Romans, too, have a holiday honoring the sun god on December 25th. That seems like a slam dunk, right? Obviously the Christians stole this date so they could make the celebration easier for the Romans to accept. Wrong! This Roman holiday is called Sol Invictus. It was first made a holiday by Aurelian in 274 AD. That's at least 72 years after Christmas was first recorded as a Christian holiday. This not only means that December 25th was not taken from the pagan Sol Invictus holiday but, in fact, the Roman holiday was created at least 70 years after December 25th was chosen as Christ's birthday to hijack the Christian observance of the birth of Jesus.
What about Christmas trees? Those things must be taken from some ancient pagan ritual or symbol, right? Not even close. The Christmas tree is also not a pagan tradition. In fact, it's a very recent tradition (relatively speaking) and has a very solid connection to the Bible. This may have started as early as the 1400's but possibly not until the 1600's. It's unclear. However, Christmas Eve, December 24th, was the day Adam and Eve acquired sainthood according to some Christian groups. Adam and Eve were honored this way as our first parents. Plays, called mystery plays, were performed of Adam and Eve and their creation, sin, and banishment. The play would end with the promise of the coming incarnation of the Savior to redeem mankind from their sins. A prop in this play was an evergreen laden with apples (the only green tree to be found on December 24th in Germany most likely) which was the common representation for Adam. This tradition originally came from the Germans and became popular after Queen Victoria brought it to England. There are records from the 1600's of decorations being placed on the trees. This tradition is not pagan but stems from a tradition connected to creation and the Bible.
Then there's Santa Claus. Santa Claus is a distortion of the name Sinterklaas, the Dutch name for Saint Nicholas, a real person. He was considered a saint of the Greek church and lived during the 3rd and into the 4th centuries AD. He was known as a very generous person, frequently giving gifts, often in secret. This, as well as remembering the gifts of the “Wise Men” or Magi, is why we celebrate Christ's birth by giving gifts. Saint Nicholas also blessed 3 sisters with money in their stockings while they hung them over the fire to dry. This is where we get the tradition of the Christmas stocking. It's true that there are many things that have been added to this character. Saint Nicholas didn't fly around in a sleigh pulled by magical reindeer. He didn't go down people's chimneys to drop off gifts. To my knowledge, and judging from his pictures, he was not a fat man. He never even visited the North Pole, let alone lived there with little people with pointy ears. I don't believe any of these things has a pagan origin, although I could be wrong. But they're clearly embellishments or just plain made up things that were added over time to make Christmas not be about Christ and more about gift giving or receiving.
Wreaths are another tradition that was not taken from paganism. In Rome, a wreath was a symbol of victory. To Christians in the Roman world, the wreath symbolized Christ—the Victor over sin and death. Christmas lights have an origin with deep Christian roots as well. Trees were once decorated with candles, symbolizing Christ being the light of the world. These candles became strings of lights in the 20th century and there you have it. It’s another Christmas tradition that is clearly all about Jesus and has nothing to do with pagan traditions. Christmas carols are beautiful songs written with such deep and powerful lyrics. Oh Come All Ye Faithful, God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, What Child is This, O Holy Night, and so many others are very meaningful, powerful worship songs that we sing every Christmas season to worship and praise God for the glorious gift of His Son. How can God be unhappy with such a thing?
What's troubling here is that many have been duped to believe that Christmas is a pagan holiday and if you search on Google for answers, you'll find that this is the widely publicized view. But the facts don't line up with this idea at all. In fact, it doesn't seem like there are any pagan influences whatsoever to the celebration of Christmas. I didn't find any, anyway.
In the end, the fact is the Bible does not condemn nor does it condone celebrating Christmas—the birth of Christ. So, like many other things not specifically mentioned in the Bible, the choice is yours. If you have issues with celebrating Christmas, that's fine. However, I hope I've made it clear that Christmas has literally no connection to any pagan traditions. If you are not comfortable with it, don't celebrate, but don't alienate yourself from believers who do want to celebrate one of the greatest events in all of history. It's not important enough to build a wall. Merry Christmas!
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“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16)
“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)
If any emotion can be considered the cornerstone of the Christian faith, it would be love. Love is why God created us. A lack of love is why humankind fell into sin and separated ourselves from God. Love is why God had a plan to redeem and reconcile us back into a relationship with Him. Love is why we will be able to spend eternity with God forever. As we near the end of this Advent season and approach Christmas Day, love should be on our hearts and minds.
This time of year, we often think of the people we love, our family and our friends. We buy them gifts to show our love for them, and we make plans to celebrate with them. Perhaps we have loved ones that we only get to see at Christmastime. Or perhaps this year, we won’t be seeing as many friends and family as we usually would due to the ongoing Covid situation. Either way, love is a key concept this time of year.
While we do love our friends and family, the two Scripture verses I quoted above show us the truest and purest form of love: the sacrificial love that God has for us, His children.
In the Greek language, there are multiple words for love; up to 6 of them, depending on who you ask. The only two of these words for love used in the New Testament are philia and agape. Philia is the type of love between friends, but it’s more like that of a deep friendship, not just the “Facebook friends” kind of love. Agape is a love so deep it compels a person to sacrifice themselves for those whom they love.
Interestingly, schoalrs believe that before the New Testament was written, agape love was no different than philia love, or even eros (physical attraction) love. The deep meaning of this word agape doesn’t come from the Greek language itself but from the understanding of God’s love that we get from the Bible. This love always starts with God, not with us; God is love and He is the source of all love (1 John 4:7-10). God loves us, and because of that love, He sent Jesus into this world to save us, when we truly didn’t deserve it. This love is shown to us in the love between God the Father and Jesus the Son, and in the love that God shows to us.
Because of God’s great love for us, our response is to love God and love others. In John 13:34, Jesus commands His disciples and us: “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” 1 John 4:11 says, “Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.” When we realize how fully and unconditionally God has loved us, our natural response is to return that love to God and to show that same love to one another, especially those who also love God. But we are also called to show this love to those we consider our enemies. In Matthew 5:44, Jesus tells us, “But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.”
All of these references to love are the agape kind of love. This active love is defined by who God is and how much He loves us, and it should be reflected in our love for God and our fellow people.
When Jesus was born as a baby in Bethlehem as we celebrate at Christmas, love came to earth in human form. If there is ever someone who personified love, that is definitely Jesus. His whole life was lived out of love for all of humankind. The fact that He even needed to come to earth was because humanity messed up and separated ourselves from God, and Jesus needed to come to earth to live out love so that we may experience God’s eternal and perfect love with Him forever when we reach eternal life.
What are you doing as Christmas rapidly approaches to show this agape love to one another? What are you doing to not only show this love to those people you like and are close to you but also to those people you may not know, or that you may not even like at all? Jesus didn’t pick and choose; He came to earth to live a life of love for all of humankind.
In order to live out this love, I encourage you to review the other aspects of Advent that we have already discussed: hope, peace, and joy. The basis for all of these is love. We have a certain hope because of the love that God has for us. We will have eternal peace in Christ because of the love that He has for us. We can have joy because of the love that God shows us. God is love, and everything He does is all about love. Imitate God in making your life about truly loving others well this Christmas season. Merry Christmas!
For more on what the Bible says about love, check out this post.
This forum is meant to foster discussion and allow for differing viewpoints to be explored with equal and respectful consideration. All comments are moderated and any foul language or threatening/abusive comments will not be approved. Users who engage in threatening or abusive comments which are physically harmful in nature will be reported to the authorities.
Joy to the world, the Lord is come!
Let Earth receive her King:
Let every heart prepare Him room,
And Heaven and nature sing,
And Heaven and nature sing,
And Heaven, and Heaven, and nature sing.
How many times have you sung that familiar Christmas carol? Probably plenty, and perhaps even at least once already this Christmas season. But the question I want you to consider today is this: What exactly does "joy to the world" look like? How does nature react to the coming of her King, like the song says? Does nature really sing?
Interestingly, the answer to this question can be found in the Old Testament - which was written long before Jesus came to earth as the baby in Bethlehem. Go read Isaiah 35. There is a lot of imagery in Isaiah 35 that points to joy, renewal, healing, hope, and salvation; did you notice it? All the earth is rejoicing, and healing is taking place!
Isaiah was a prophet to the people of Israel more than 700 years before Christ. At this time, the people of Israel were worshiping idols and living in cycles of sinful practices. It was a time of economic prosperity, but there was a large gap between the rich and the poor and it was only getting wider during this time. Unfortunately, this fact led to lots of social vices among the people such as dishonesty, drunkenness, immorality, and idolatry.
This particular passage of Isaiah 35 comes at a transition point in the book overall. The chapters before it discuss judgment on Israel for all the wrongs they have done. The chapters after it promise comfort and salvation for Israel. This chapter shows the transition between judgment and salvation for the people, with all of the creation rejoicing.
So for pretty much the entire book of Isaiah up to this passage, the people of Israel were experiencing judgment. The prophet Isaiah was prophesying all sorts of condemnation on them. He reminds them of their sin and also of what will happen to them because of their sins. That is a lot of condemnation – 34 chapters worth! Think about if someone you know, especially somebody sent by God, spent so much time reminding you of everything you’ve done wrong in your entire life. As human beings, we typically don’t like criticism at all, and we really don’t like it when someone lists off everything we’ve ever done wrong.
But, there was hope for Israel and there is hope for us too. After Isaiah recounts all of the nation’s wrongs, the rest of the book starting in chapter 40 is all prophecies of salvation and comfort for Israel. Even though they messed up, they could still experience salvation. And even though each one of us sins and messes up all the time, we will experience salvation too through our faith in Jesus.
Why else would the whole creation rejoice so much, but for the coming of the long-awaited Savior? Not only were the people given joy through the event of Jesus' birth, but nature rejoiced as well. As the Christmas carol goes, "And heaven and nature sing!" The entire universe would rejoice at the birth of the Savior Jesus. All of creation was thrown into sinfulness when the first people sinned, so all of creation rejoices when the promised savior arrives. God is reconciling all creation to Himself
Just like the whole creation in this passage from Isaiah, we too can rejoice and experience salvation and healing, even though that may not be physical healing in our lifetime. We have the joy of Christ, even when life is hard, and we can know Him personally through the Bible and our relationship with Him. We too can rejoice greatly and shout for joy along with Israel, because we can have salvation through Jesus!
This joy does not have to be contained only within the Christmas season either. We tend to focus on joy this time of year because of the birth of Jesus, the gift-giving, seeing friends and family, and other earthly pleasures - like Christmas cookies and good meals, and singing our favorite Christmas carols. But our joy does not need to stop (and it should not stop) after December 25. Our joy can continue through every single day of the year because God is the same yesterday, today, and every day in the future. The joy of our salvation should not depend on any season of the year, and it should never go away. God is always with us and he can always give us joy.
We may not always feel joyful in our lives, since being a follower of Jesus Christ is not all fun and games. The Bible and even Jesus himself promised that we will definitely have difficult times. I’m sure each one of us here could recount many times that being a Christian has not been easy and where the experiences of life really haven’t gone how we wanted them to. We’ve all experienced and been affected by the sin and sickness and pain that come with living in this world.
But, being joyful is different than being happy. Happiness is a fleeting emotion that changes with our circumstances. I may be happy because it's sunny outside, or happy because I get to spend time with family this week. But true joy is present in our lives regardless of our circumstances. We can be joyful even when life is tough if the reason for our joy is Jesus.
The reason for our joy in Jesus is not only because Jesus left all the glory and splendor of heaven to come down to earth as a little baby. The reason for our joy is what that little baby grew up to do – he grew up to be the Savior of the entire world through his obedience to God and his death and resurrection!
The whole creation has joy because Jesus came to earth, and we can too. With all of creation, we can sing, "Joy to the World!" and truly mean it.
For more on joy and how it’s spoken of in the Bible, check out this post.
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“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” (Luke 2:14)
In this second week of advent, our focus is on peace. Last week, we talked about hope and how we have a certain hope in Jesus Christ and the promises that God has given us. It is because of that hope that we can have peace - true and lasting peace - in Jesus Christ.
The verse I quoted above is a common one from the Christmas story in Luke 2, and it’s where we get the phrase “Peace on earth” that’s commonly spoken during this Christmas and Advent season. The angels proclaim this phrase in the presence of the shepherds who were among the first to hear of the birth of the Savior on earth.
But what exactly is this peace that the angels proclaimed? The Greek word for peace is eirene (pronounced like “ay-RAY-nay”), and it can mean peace, harmony, tranquility, safety, welfare, health, a lack of strife, or reconciliation in a relationship. It can also be used as a greeting for either hello or goodbye, just as the Hebrew word shalom. Using it as a greeting has the implication of wishing God’s peace on the person you are greeting, more than just a simple hello or goodbye.
In this world, we often think of peace as a sense of stillness or the absence of conflict. Perhaps if you have small children at home, you imagine peace as when the kids are sleeping soundly and you have a moment of rest. If you’re dealing with arguments or disagreements in life, perhaps you think of peace as a time when that is no more and everyone can just get along. If you’ve lived through a major war, perhaps peace to you is when that war is finally over.
But, we know from the Scriptures that that is not necessarily the kind of peace that Jesus came to bring us. Jesus’ arrival on earth did not bring a profound sense of quiet and calm to this world. Jesus’ arrival on earth did not cause all conflicts and disagreements to stop. Jesus’ arrival on earth did not end wars.
So what kind of peace did Jesus come to bring? He came to bring us everlasting peace, a peace that passes all understanding. We really can’t understand this peace that Jesus brings; it is supernatural and beyond the full comprehension of our finite human minds. This is a peace that is focused on eternity, not a peace that is focused on the immediate events of this world we live in.
Philippians 4:7 tells us, “And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” When I read that verse again, it struck me that it begins with the conjunction “and.” In the original Greek, it’s significant that this conjunction is “kai,” not “de.” The conjunction “de” can mean and, but, for, etc. depending on the context. The conjunction “kai” typically joins two similar parts of speech (i.e., two nouns, two verbs, etc.) so that means that verse 7 is connected to the phrases before it.
So, the previous verses give us some clues about this peace spoken of that transcends all understanding: “Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God” (Philippians 4:4-6).
How do we try and obtain this eternal peace that Jesus came to bring? Rejoice. Be Gentle. Don’t be anxious. Pray. Be thankful. Most importantly, note that the end of verse 5 says, “The Lord is near.” Near can mean that He is physically nearby, or it can mean that He is near in time. This particular use of the word means the latter, that He is close in time, referring to Jesus’ second coming. The Apostle Paul who wrote this letter to the Philippians believed that Jesus was going to return again in his lifetime. All Christians throughout the ages have believed similarly, and we should as well.
During this Advent season, we look forward to our annual celebration of Jesus’ birth as a baby in Bethlehem. We should also be looking forward to the time when Jesus will be physically near to us when He comes again at His second coming. Until that time, we will not be able to fully experience or even understand the eternal peace that He brings us. Once Jesus comes again to judge all people, those of us who have faith in Him and His sacrificial death and resurrection will finally understand and be able to experience His perfect peace for all eternity.
Do you have that saving faith in Jesus? He was that little baby born in Bethlehem, but He grew up and lived a perfect life to pay the penalty for the sins that every one of us has committed (and will commit). If you have not yet committed your life to faith in the Savior, I encourage you to do so this Christmas season.
For more on peace and how it’s spoken of in the Bible, check out this post.
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Yesterday marked the first Sunday of the church season of Advent - the season where we celebrate the anticipation of the birth of Jesus on Christmas. Each Sunday of the Advent season has a theme traditionally associated with it, and this year, I will write on each of those themes as we go through this season.
The theme for this first week of Advent is hope. What exactly is hope? Hope can be interpreted in two main ways. One definition for hope is a desire that something we would like to happen, or an expectation that we would like to be fulfilled. A second definition for hope is the knowledge that something will happen for certain. Do you see the difference there? Sometimes, hope is just wishing something would happen; other times, hope is knowing that something will happen and waiting for it expectantly, though we may or may not know exactly when it will happen. The difference is in the degree of certainty we have.
We often hope for things in this life without certainty. Perhaps I hope my job will go smoothly this week; I do not know for certain that will happen, but I hope so. Perhaps I hope there will be a chocolate cake magically waiting for me in my kitchen; that’s unlikely, but a girl can hope, right? These are things that we may want to happen, but they’re not necessarily certain.
The hope that is given to us in the Scriptures, and that we focus on during this Advent season, is one of certainty. When we put our hope in God’s promises, we know He will fulfill them. He may not fulfill His promises in the way we would like Him to, but they will always be fulfilled according to His perfect plan and purpose and to give Him glory.
As we think about hope, take a look at a few passages from Scripture that encompass this idea:
“You are my refuge and my shield; I have put my hope in your word.” (Psalm 119:114)
“Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” (Isaiah 40:30-31)
“Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.” (Hebrews 10:23)
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 15:13)
“I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people.” (Ephesians 1:18)
“I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope. I wait for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning. Israel, put your hope in the Lord, for with the Lord is unfailing love and with him is full redemption.” (Psalm 130:5-7)
There are many more passages in Scripture that point to the certain hope that we have in God. Do you see the difference in these passages between a hope that might happen and a hope that is certain?
Having a hope that is in uncertain things will cause a sense of uncertainty and anxiety in our lives. Instead, hope in the Lord, for He is faithful. He has shown us time and time again through His Word and through His working in our lives that He is worthy of our hope, and He will fulfill HIs promises.
Let me share a story to illustrate this from my own life. In 2010, I graduated from seminary with my Master of Divinity degree. Since not long after then, I desired to pursue another degree, whether it would be another master’s degree or a doctorate. I hoped it would happen, but year after year it didn’t, for a variety of reasons. In 2017, I had a moment of hope when I was told that a doctorate could be possible for me, but then that hope was shot down by some other life factors.
In the early summer of 2020, that hope was reignited in my life, and I began to see how God had been working in my life over the past 10 years to align everything that needed to happen to make my hope a reality. Throughout the summer, God kept revealing more and more how He had been working to make this happen - but in His timing rather than my own. For years, my hope was uncertain, but I kept hoping in the God of certainty and waiting on His plan. In September 2020, I began classes toward my Doctor of Ministry degree. Now, I have the certain hope that God will continue working in my life to sustain me on this journey that He so clearly has prepared for me.
What are you hoping for in your life? Is it a hope of uncertainty or a hope of certainty? Put your hope in the God of certainty that He will keep His promises to you. God promised to send His Son to earth to be born of a woman, live a sinless life, die an atoning death to take on the punishment that we deserve, and be raised again to reign in glory. We know with certainty that all of that happened some 2000 years ago, and every promise God has made has been fulfilled in Jesus. We can truly put our hope in Him, and I encourage you to do so this Advent season.
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Hallelujah! Today’s psalm, Psalm 146, begins the last collection of hallel psalms, named as such because they are full of praise to God and hallal is the verb for “praise” in Hebrew. It is likely that these praise psalms were used as part of the daily prayers for the people of Israel worshiping in the synagogue.
We do not know who wrote this psalm, though there are some theories. The Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Old Testament) and the Latin Vulgate attribute Psalms 146 and 147 to Haggai and Zechariah, but most scholars believe there is not enough evidence for this authorship.
As expected, this praise psalm begins with simply praising God in verses 1-2. The psalmist both individually praises God and invites those around him to join in as well. He knows that his life is to be lived in praise to God at all times because God is the one who gives him life.
In verses 3-4 we see that committing to praise God means that we don’t trust in our fellow humans. While we should have some level of trust for other humans, they cannot save us as God can, and they are not as perfectly trustworthy as God is either. People may leave us or die at any time, while God is eternal and will be the same trustworthy God forever and ever.
Verse 5 shows us that we need to look to God, rather than people, as our true help if we want to be blessed by Him. Again, we need to put our hope in God who will never fail instead of people who can fail us.
So who is this that we should praise? Verse 6 tells us, “He is the Maker of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them — he remains faithful forever.” God is the creator, the one who made everything, just as the Bible tells us in Genesis 1 and Exodus 20:11. He will always remain faithful to us. He is truly worthy of our praise!
What does God do after the work of creation was completed? Verses 7-9 tell us that He sustains His people. The nature of God’s faithfulness is explained here. He upholds His people, feeds the hungry, sets prisoners free, gives sight to the blind, loves us, and watches over and sustains His people. The Hebrew text uses participles for all of these actions, which indicates that God continually does them. He is eternal, and He continues to sustain His people through all generations.
Finally, the psalm closes with another call to praise God in verse 10. We see that the Lord reigns forever. He will be our God for all generations of all people!
As we look forward to celebrating Christmas and the birth of Jesus this week, we need to continue to praise God for all that He has done in our lives. When this psalm was written, the world was still looking forward and waiting expectantly for the Savior who they knew was coming. Today, we can look back a couple of thousand years and see that the Savior has already come! He came in the person of Jesus as a baby, He grew up as both fully human and fully God, and He lived His life without one single sin so that we could be saved and live eternally with God. We live in a time where the promise of salvation has been fulfilled, and that is the best reason there is to praise God all the days of our lives.
Just as the people of Israel used this psalm and others in their daily worship, we can do that also. These psalms have a different meaning to us, being on the other side of the salvation event of Jesus’ death and resurrection, but we are still called to praise God in all that we do. As you’re gathering with family and friends this Christmas, remember the reason for all the celebrating - the birth of Jesus who fulfilled the promises that the psalmists were longing for. If they could praise God before, we can truly praise Him now!
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by Steve Risner
Today we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. Last Thursday, I released a blog post about the origins of some of our more popular or well known Christmas holiday traditions. You can read that here. Today, I wanted to look at some of the historical facts that some skeptics take issue with – things like the census that Luke reported and who was governor at the time of Christ's birth. Also, what was the star that led the wise men to Bethlehem? Why are there differences in the genealogies of Matthew and Luke? Some of these alleged issues have been covered literally for hundreds of years while others have found a more contemporary response. Either way, we can trust the Gospel story as it's written in the 4 books dedicated to the life of Christ we find in the Bible and, specifically for today's writing, the 2 Gospels that give us details of the birth of Jesus.
For Bible believers, it's accepted that the Bible is very likely accurate in all it records (with a few exceptions that can be traced back to copying errors and are of no consequence at all). Luke is considered by many to be a top rate historian who was very concerned with accurately recording things in an orderly fashion so the reader may know the account is true. He didn't take things lightly and he interviewed those who were there (or he himself was there) for his historical account of the life of Jesus and the early church. It's unlikely Luke would include something of minute detail if it was not correct since he was primarily concerned with accuracy and orderliness. Let's look at some alleged issues.
The census that had Joseph take his pregnant soon-to-be-wife to Bethlehem is an area history has an issue with. It's one of the toughest to answer satisfactorily, but I'm okay with unanswered questions. There are certainly some things from God's Word that we're not 100% clear on, but none of these things are of major importance from a theological stand point. They are the details. We, as believers, must be united on the essentials but allow freedom in those things that are more preferential than essential. If we stand united on the important stuff, we'll make a great deal of headway for the Kingdom. But this issue does have some options as for an answer. The issue here is that Quirinius wasn't governor of the area when Jesus was born nor did he have a census taken during the time generally accepted as the time Christ was born—about 4 BC. His census was done around 6 AD. He also claims that Herod the Great was ruling at the time. Herod died probably early in 1 BC. Many suggest it was 4 BC, but more recently that has been questioned for various reasons. It seems to make more sense it was 1 BC. So this means we cannot assume the census spoken of was done in 6 AD and this was the census Luke wrote about for the time of Christ's birth. Early church father Tertullian indicates that Saturninus was in charge during Christ's birth, as Roman records seem to indicate as well.
There are several explanations that have been put forth for this issue. One is that Quirinius was put in charge of the census only during the time Saturninus was over the area. Another is that Quirinius finished the census, which was first imposed by Augustus over the Roman world, going from province to province. The Jews may have been allowed to use their “own town” as the text suggests rather than their Roman town. This has historical support. But it is possible the Quirinius is credited with the census because he, in fact, finished it. Another possible explanation is that Quirinius had some other official position that put him in a leadership role at the time. The text uses words that can indicate governor but also other positions are possible. There is historical documentation that indicates an official around this time held office twice. That could well have been Quirinius.
Still another possible explanation is the text itself. Reading ancient Greek can be tricky. It's possible the text doesn't say it occurred during the reign of Quirinius but prior to the reign of Quirinius or prior to the census of Quirinius. We need to understand how the grammar works here. The census of Augustus was not a one time, empire-wide event but multiple events over a longer time period. Luke indicates this with his use of the present tense in reference to Augustus's census of the world (the Roman world that is). It was ongoing. Then he hones in on the area known as Syria. It's also likely from the text that Luke is referring to one of two censuses that took place near that time. He indicates it was the first census, rather than the more commonly referred to one of 6 AD. Any of these, or some other explanation, could adequately deal with the skeptic's complaint. Some other historical documents may be found to further confirm the accuracy of Luke's narrative.
Let’s look at another question. Joseph should not have had to go to Bethlehem but to his current home town, and Mary should not have been required to accompany him at all since she wouldn't need to register. This is not so. There Egyptian records that indicate Rome frequently allowed local cultural traditions to be used during certain things. There is no reason to suggest it wasn't okay in this instance. In Jewish culture, property (which Joseph may likely have owned in the area of Bethlehem since his family was from the area) was passed down through the father. This would have demanded Joseph go to his own town and register. Why did his pregnant fiance join him? A couple good reasons, I think: 1) she was about to give birth and wanted to be with Joseph at the time, and 2) she and Joseph were aware of the Messianic prophecies indicating where Jesus would be born. They knew the child she carried was the prophesied Messiah, so she needed to get him to Bethlehem. Watching the Lord work out the details that not only allowed for her to be in Bethlehem but even required her to be there was probably a faith builder for the couple.
What was the star the Magi saw? I don't know. Many have suggested a few different things that, to me, don't follow. A common thought is a conjunction of multiple planets that made some sort of super star in the night sky. Another is the idea that a comet may have been in the sky, leading the wise men on their journey. Still another possible explanation is a supernova—an exploding star. None of these work for me. The star rested over a house and led the men on their journey. A conjunction of planets or exploding star in the sky wouldn't lead them. A comet wouldn't lead them. It's likely it was a supernatural event, like the pillar of fire at night and pillar of cloud during the day that led the Hebrews as they left Egypt. The text seems to tell us that only the Magi saw the star and that it led them from Jerusalem to Bethlehem which is north to south. Normal objects in the sky travel from east to west.
The apparent differences in the genealogies of Jesus from Matthew to Luke are very simple to address. Luke was referencing Jesus’s mother's lineage while Matthew was highlighting Joseph's—Jesus’s legal father. However, Mary's lineage through David was not cursed while Joseph's was. Christ could not have been the King if his real father was Joseph due to Jehoiachin. The grammar used in Luke's list indicates he was giving us Mary's line up until Joseph, who was indicated by the text as the son-in-law.
I'm sure there are other issues skeptics have, but that's what they do: they seek out reasons to not believe rather than accepting the obviousness of the accuracy and authority of the Bible to proclaim God's Word to us. This Christmas, praise Him for His amazing acts. He became flesh and dwelt among us. Christ's birth is, in my opinion, the second greatest event in the history of the universe only topped by the Resurrection. Celebrate and worship Him! Rest in the facts of the day—Jesus was born! God sent us the greatest gift of all—that of His Son. God is with us.
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For the last eleven weeks, I’ve been writing on the Ten Commandments as found in Exodus 20:1-17. As we’ve explored these commandments, we’ve seen how they’re not just for the people of Israel back in the Old Testament but for us today as well, though with some contextual differences of course.
But with today being Christmas Eve, what do the Ten Commandments have to do with Christmas? A lot, actually.
The connection between the commandments and Christmas actually goes back all the way to the book of Genesis. Genesis 2:15-17 says, “The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the Lord God commanded the man, ‘You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.’” A little while later in Genesis 3, the serpent tempts Eve and she and Adam both fall into sin. Ever since then, all humanity has been sinful and separated from God.
Fast forward a bit to Genesis 15, where God makes the covenant with Abraham. In that covenant, God promised Abraham that He would save him. Traditionally in a covenant such as that, two people would walk through the carcass halves together, meaning that if either one of them broke it, that person would be as good as dead. But in this situation, only God Himself went through the carcass halves as a smoking firepot and a blazing torch. This means that if God breaks the covenant, He should die for it; but if Abraham (or his offspring) breaks the covenant, God will still die for it.
Fast forward a bit more to the book of Exodus. Abraham’s grandson was Jacob, aka Israel, whose offspring from his twelve sons became the people of Israel. When this multitude of people left Egypt years later, they were in the process of becoming a unified nation - God’s chosen people. We read in Exodus 19 that on the first day of the third month after leaving Egypt, the people camped at Mt. Sinai. It was here that God gave their leader, Moses, the law for the people of Israel.
But why did this law matter? And what does that have to do with Jesus? We’re getting there.
If we don’t know what the rules are, we can’t know that we’ve broken them. Way back in Genesis 2, we saw that God clearly told Adam the rule: don’t eat from that one specific tree. Adam (and Eve) broke that rule, and they knew they had broken it because they knew what the rule was. The people of Israel were a sinful people, but they may not have known specifically how they were sinning until God gave them the law, the Ten Commandments. Now, they would know exactly what they were supposed to do (or not do). They also knew that anytime they broke God’s law, that separated them from Him, because God is holy and cannot be around sin.
The problem is, not one single person has been able to fully keep that law. Every last person who has ever lived or will ever live will break God’s law. I have; you have; everyone you know has. That means that we’re all separated from God because of our sin.
That’s where Christmas comes in. Christmas is when we celebrate the birth of Jesus. We know that Jesus was conceived through the power of the Holy Spirit inside Mary (Luke 1:26-38), so He is both fully God and fully human. Jesus had to be fully God in order to live a perfect, sinless life and never break a single one of the Commandments. Jesus had to be fully human in order to be an acceptable sacrifice for all of humanity who has sinned. Jesus couldn’t be fully human without being born of a woman, so that’s exactly what happened.
Jesus’ birth that we celebrate at Christmas time is the beginning of the fulfillment of God’s covenant with Abraham back in Genesis 15, because He had to be born as a human. Jesus’ death and resurrection truly fulfilled that covenant by dying for the sins of all of humanity - every single time that every person who has ever lived or will ever lived has broken or will break any one of the Ten Commandments. That’s how amazing, powerful, and loving our God is!
What are you celebrating this Christmas? Are you celebrating the happiness you get from being around your friends and family, eating good food, and exchanging gifts? I encourage you this Christmas to celebrate way more than that: celebrate the law that was given to us and the Savior who fulfilled it.
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by Logan Ames
If there is one Christmas song/video that just absolutely wrecks me every single time I hear it, it’s definitely “Christmas Shoes." I’m certain that I’m not the only one for whom that is true. Just in case you haven’t been emotional yet this Christmas season, you can find it here. Why is this such an emotional song for me and for so many of you? The obvious answer is that it’s because of the sad nature of the song, but I think it’s more than that. Generally when we hear it, we are in the middle of a Christmas season that has become unnecessarily stressful. We get consumed by plans, parties, and purchases. For me, this year has been especially hectic because of preaching! It’s the first time I’ve handled preaching duties for the entire Christmas season, including a separate children’s program and two Christmas Eve services, by myself at my church. I’ve found myself getting annoyed by those who distract me when I’m trying to “get things done” for the church. How ludicrous! The man in the video was clearly a busy man, living life on the run and trying to get his last-minute shopping done after work. He was in a bit of a hurry, yet there in front of him was a little boy whom God put there to remind him of what Christmas is all about.
Just as the man in the video was not too busy or hurried to help a stranger, Christmas reminds us that God has never been too busy or distracted to help a hurting world. These past few weeks, I’ve been talking about how Jesus represents the hope, peace, and joy that is available to the world because of him. But I have saved “love” for this last week before Christmas because love is the only one of these things that God actually IS. Moreover, 1 Corinthians 13:13 tells us that even though faith, hope, and love remain, “the greatest of these is love." Love is the greatest because it is personified in Christ, the living God. God doesn’t need faith in anything above himself. He also doesn’t have to find a way to be hopeful. He sees everything, including the future, so hope is not necessary for him. But love is something that God can’t help but do. It is in his very nature, according to 1 John 4:16.
The type of love described in 1 Corinthians 13 and 1 John 4 is based on one of four ancient Greek words used for “love." While the other three describe romantic love, familial love, and brotherly love, the word in these chapters that describe godly love is agape. Agape love can be defined as “self-giving love that gives without expecting repayment; it doesn’t change; it’s a love that is even given to the unlovable, it loves even when it is rejected; self-sacrificing; only possible with Jesus." This is the type of love that God has shown us. True agape love in action always has to do with giving. Robert Louis Stevenson once said, “You can give without loving, but you can never love without giving." God is love and he has been giving since the beginning of time as we know it. Genesis tells us about the beautiful world that he created; then he gave the world mankind. It says he put the man in the Garden of Eden to tend it and take care of it. So, he created a world that couldn't take care of itself, then gave it a human race to take care of it. But man had needs as well, so he also gave man the world. Man could eat from the various plants and fruits. Then, God realized the man was alone and that wasn’t good, so he made a helper suitable for him (Genesis 2:18). So, that’s when Eve came along. God is a Giver and has been in the business of giving to us since.
God continued to give his people what they needed all the way through the Old Testament, and there was much anticipation regarding the ultimate gift that was coming to them - the promised Messiah. Then, God presented that gift to trump all gifts. Many of us have searched all over God’s green earth looking for the best Christmas gifts for our loved ones and the best possible bargain. But God’s best gift looked a little different than ours. It was under a roof in a stable in a dirty manger, not under a pretty green tree. It was wrapped in a swaddling cloth, not shiny wrapping paper. And most importantly, it wasn't purchased on sale. It cost the Giver everything! John 3:16 tells us that God gave up his “only begotten Son” because of his love for us. We often immediately compare it to our own children and say, “Well, I don’t think I could ever give up my child for someone else." But the gift was even greater than that. The phrase “only begotten” is from the Greek monogenes, which means “only one of its kind." So, the gift of Jesus that was given to all of us was not just an only child. He was the only child of his kind that there ever will be!
The question, then, is what are we going to do with this great gift of love that we’ve received. Are we going to be only takers, or givers as well? The Bible doesn’t leave us with much of a choice. 1 John 4:19-20 tells us, "We love because he first loved us. Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen."
So, how do we live that out? Sometimes we're put in situations where we are not sure if we're supposed to help or not. But when it comes to loving others, it's always better to give (money, time, attention, compassion) unless giving would cause greater harm to the person. That’s the only time we should not give, when the loving thing to do is not give. Otherwise, we don't even have to stop and pray about it because we already know what God's Word says about loving others. So let's err on the side of giving and loving. An author by the name of Mishi McCoy said, "I would rather drown in the depths of love than splash around on the shore of complacency." This is how God wants us to live in view of this great gift he has given us out of his love for us. We have to remember that God was not complacent when it came to our needs. He came to our rescue right when we needed him, and he still does to this day.
We celebrate and remember the greatest gift ever given at Christmas each year. We celebrate his birth because we know what he did in death, freely giving up his life for those whom he calls friends (John 15:13). If you are a believer and follower of Jesus, you are his friend. He demonstrated his love for us in letting true agape love drive him to give up everything for us. And now we are called to do the same when we encounter others with needs that we can meet. According to 1 John 3:17, refusing to meet the needs of others is a clear indication that we don’t even have the love of God in us.
Love is a concept most people, even non-Christians, agree should be a priority. It’s very popular nowadays to “talk” about loving everyone. But C.S. Lewis had a great quote about this and it’s possibly my favorite ever. He says, “It is easier to be enthusiastic about Humanity with a capital ‘H’ than it is to love individual men and women, especially those who are uninteresting, exasperating, depraved, or otherwise unattractive. Loving everybody in general may be an excuse for loving nobody in particular." God doesn’t call you to personally show love in action to all 7 billion people on the planet. You’re not going to meet them all. It’s not even likely that you know every person in your hometown. But you WILL have chances every day to SHOW love rather than just talking about loving people. And the ones God puts in your life are the ones he wants you to love, whether they are in your life for 30 seconds or 30 years. As you celebrate the birth of our Savior and Lord this coming week, remember to get out there and take every opportunity to love those God puts in your path. Give freely, just as you have been freely given!
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“Love never fails…” (1 Corinthians 13:8, NKJV)
The past two months has been an incredible revelation for me about what love is and what love does. I opened up with how Paul proclaims that having the greatest talents, the best exposition of Scripture, the ability to perform miracles, the greatest servant, but if there is no love, then it is all worthless. Then I took two descriptors or actions at a time to unpackage this such short description of love that Paul gives, and I have hardly scratched the surface of it. Today, I wrap up Paul’s description of love: love never fails.
A couple years ago, I wrote about “Amen Living,” namely distinguishing the difference between those who lived an “amen” life and those who lived a “fickle” life. Love is not fickle. Love does not waver between opinions and sides. Love does not quit when things get tough or when you no longer see the benefit for you in the effort. Love is amen. Love is faithful and true and loyal. Love does what it says it will do. Love keeps doing what it says it will do until the job is finished. Love does not back away from a commitment, even a bad one, dishonestly.
Love does not have to see the end results or even potential end results to keep on loving. It keeps on loving anyway. Jesus endured the cross in part because he saw the end results. He knew that mankind would be saved through his death. But he also went through that suffering knowing MANY would still die and go to hell in rejecting him. He still loved Judas despite knowing he would betray him.
Love is not dependent upon those who receive that love. It is “unconditional” love. God loved us even while we were still sinners, while we still lived in open, defiant, treacherous, rebellion against God. If it were based on any part from us, it would fail. We could never earn God’s love no matter how much we try. Every other religion puts the salvation of man upon man to earn and deserve, and not a single one is capable of earning it, even to the best of the best. This is part of why Christianity is unique. It is the only religion or faith where salvation is based purely on the love and grace of God regardless of what man does. All we have to do is respond with repentance and faith.
Love never fails. It doesn’t start and quit. That is why we can stand with confidence about our salvation. God doesn’t give us salvation, wait to see if we mess it up or not, and then take it away from us. We are responsible for working out our salvation in fear and trembling, however, if it were possible for us to throw out our salvation and lose it, we would and none of us will get in. God’s love is not that way. Paul told the Roman church that absolutely NOTHING can separate us from the love of God, yet so many think that we have greater power than distance, location, angels, demons, or weapons, or whatever can to separate the born again Christian from God. It makes no sense. That does not give anyone license to sin because Romans 6:1-2 answers that one.
Love never fails. Six thousand years ago, Adam and Eve lived in perfect harmony with God and with nature and then they chose to rebel against God and try to do things their own way. They deserved to die that day, and as a just, righteous, and holy God, sin had to be met with death. And yet Adam and Eve did not die that day. Did God lie? No. He showed his love and provided the first image of the Gospel. An animal died that day in their place giving us a picture of what Jesus would one day do. At the same time, God promised Eve that through her seed (not through Adam’s seed) the Savior would come.
Four thousand years later, that promise and that first image, among many others which would be offered in between, were fulfilled to exact precision. Jesus, the Son of God, the second person of the Trinity, the very Creator and Upholder of the Universe himself, humbled himself and laid aside everything that made him God and became a human being. He left the sinless perfection of heaven and came to live in a world cursed by sin. The very air he breathed was a poisonous fume to the perfect Son of God. It would be well insufficient to take someone who only lived in royalty and wealth, pristine and proper, and suddenly place him in the slums of a garbage dump, where he lived among trash and waste with no hint of sanitation. That does not cut what Jesus did for us just to live as a man. Yet he did it completely of his own will in obedience to his Father. That is before facing the cross. (Thanks to John Hyde for that image.) What is love? THAT is love. And it is a love that was initially shown 6000 years ago and to this day has never let up nor slowed down.
As you celebrate the Christmas holiday this next week, it is not about the gifts. It is not about the parties. It is not even about family. It is about Christ. It is about one Person whose love for the lost souls of men never failed. We cannot love the way Christ loved us. If we truly learn to lay ourselves down and let him love in and through us, then we will see that love demonstrated in full action.
Jesus set aside everything to live as a man in a sin-cursed world out of his love for us. And in return, what are we offering back? Many churches see large chunks of their congregations who can’t even bother to show up to church on time. Many are fickle on their prayer time and Bible reading (still guilty myself). God loved us by setting aside everything and we struggle to give him five minutes of our time. We have so much to learn and so much of self that needs to die. Love never fails. Despite our shortcomings and despite our fickleness, God is not fickle. His love never fails. It will always be there when we call for it, and it will even be there when we don’t. Jesus gave us everything of himself. Can we not give him everything of us, as little as that is? It’s all he asks. Let us pursue him with all we have.
Next week I will wrap up this series and this year with how love is the greatest thing.
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by Steve Risner
As we approach the day that Christians (and many non-Christians) celebrate called Christmas, I wanted to clear some things up as to the origins of many of the traditions we hold so dear when we honor the birth of the Savior of mankind. Some have said that Christians should not celebrate this day because it's actually pagan in its origins, as are many of the traditions associated with it. Some have left churches or been estranged from family or friends because of this misunderstanding. I'd like to look at a few of these traditions and where they come from.
I, too, had been told and even accepted the fact that many of the things we do for Christmas had pagan beginnings, but I brushed it off as something Christians took from their pagan cultures and made their own. I was wrong. But in reality, I don't feel that these traditions, even if they did have pagan origins, would be an insult to our Lord. His grace is sufficient and, as Paul tells us, much of these things are meaningless anyway. We are not celebrating pagan things here. We're celebrating Christ Jesus! And keep in mind that God has filled the Old Testament with celebrations that are to honor the Lord and bring glory to His Name. Those listed in Leviticus 22 are Passover, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Firstfruits, the Feast of Weeks, the Feast of Trumpets, the Day of Atonement, and the Feast of Tabernacles. Now, Colossians 2:16 tells us that we are under no obligation to observe these days or times, but it wouldn't be a bad idea to know what each of them was about. But the point of me bringing this up is to demonstrate the fact that God clearly feels remembering great events is important.
That's why, for me anyway, Christmas (in my estimation the second greatest event in all of history behind the Resurrection) is an obvious time to celebrate what God has done! It's been tarnished for many by the commercialization and other unimportant things that people have added onto it, but it's still one of the greatest events the world has ever known. And I wouldn't think that we would be honoring God by throwing out this celebration simply to not participate in the nonsense that others have applied to it. Just don't participate in the nonsense. It began and continued for centuries as a celebration pointing us to Christ. Let's look at a few traditions and where they come from. There is no question that Christmas has its origins in the Church.
Firstly, I'll just say that Christmas has many traditions that actually predate the pagan equivalent in many instances, so this would make it impossible to have its origins in paganism. The word Christmas comes from Christ and mass. This is not a reference to a Roman Catholic meeting. The word “mass” is from Latin and means to be sent on a mission. So Christ-mass was when God sent Christ to the earth to fulfill His mission, becoming a human and dying and Resurrecting as our Savior.
Christmas was celebrated as early as AD 202 (possibly earlier) and we know this from the writings of Hippolytus of Rome. He stated that Christ was born shortly before January and that He was resurrected shortly before April. Tertullian also confirmed this. This goes along with the Jewish tradition called the integral age that a prophet was conceived on the same day he died. This tradition is not Biblical, but it give us an important look at where the dates for Christmas and the Resurrection come from. This states that Christ died on March 25th (the early Church determined this) and would be the same day He was conceived, exactly 9 months before December 25th. This is why we celebrate on December 25th. There is controversy as to whether this Jewish tradition was real. I can't say as I'm not an ancient Jew. But it makes sense as to the timing/dates of the events in question. Was this the actual date Jesus was born? Most likely not, but that's not actually the point at all. We're celebrating the birth of Christ, whether we know exactly what day that was or not. We celebrate the Resurrection every Sunday! It's okay.
The issue some have erroneously placed on the date we celebrate is that the Romans, too, have a holiday honoring the sun god on December 25th. That seems like a slam dunk, right? Obviously the Christians stole this date so they could make the celebration easier for the Romans to accept. Wrong! This Roman holiday is called Sol Invictus. It was first made a holiday by Aurelian in 274 AD. That's at least 72 years after Christmas was first recorded as a Christian holiday. This not only means that December 25th was not taken from the pagan Sol Invictus holiday but, in fact, the Roman holiday was created at least 70 years after December 25th was chosen as Christ's birthday to hijack the Christian observance of the birth of Jesus.
What about Christmas trees? Those things must be taken from some ancient pagan ritual or symbol, right? Not even close. The Christmas tree is also not a pagan tradition. In fact, it's a very recent tradition (relatively speaking) and has a very solid connection to the Bible. This may have started as early as the 1400's but possibly not until the 1600's. It's unclear. However, Christmas Eve, December 24th, was the day Adam and Eve acquired sainthood according to some Christian groups. Adam and Eve were honored this way as our first parents. Plays, called mystery plays, were performed of Adam and Eve and their creation, sin, and banishment. The play would end with the promise of the coming incarnation of the Savior to redeem mankind from their sins. A prop in this play was an evergreen laden with apples (the only green tree to be found on December 24th in Germany most likely) which was the common representation for Adam. This tradition originally came from the Germans and became popular after Queen Victoria brought it to England. There are records from the 1600's of decorations being placed on the trees. This tradition is not pagan but stems from a tradition connected to creation and the Bible.
Then there's Santa Claus. Santa Claus is a distortion of the name Sinterklaas, the Dutch name for Saint Nicholas, a real person. He was considered a saint of the Greek church and lived during the 3rd and into the 4th centuries AD. He was known as a very generous person, frequently giving gifts, often in secret. This, as well as remembering the gifts of the “Wise Men” or Magi, is why we celebrate Christ's birth by giving gifts. Saint Nicholas also blessed 3 sisters with money in their stockings while they hung them over the fire to dry. This is where we get the tradition of the Christmas stocking. It's true that there are many things that have been added to this character. Saint Nicholas didn't fly around in a sleigh pulled by magical reindeer. He didn't go down people's chimneys to drop off gifts. To my knowledge, and judging from his pictures, he was not a fat man. He never even visited the North Pole, let alone lived there with little people with pointy ears. I don't believe any of these things has a pagan origin, although I could be wrong. But they're clearly embellishments or just plain made up things that were added over time to make Christmas not be about Christ and more about gift giving or receiving.
Wreaths are another tradition that was not taken from paganism. In Rome, a wreath was a symbol of victory. To Christians in the Roman world, the wreath symbolized Christ—the Victor over sin and death. Christmas lights have an origin with deep Christian roots as well. Trees were once decorated with candles, symbolizing Christ being the light of the world. These candles became strings of lights in the 20th century and there you have it. It’s another Christmas tradition that is clearly all about Jesus and has nothing to do with pagan traditions. Christmas carols are beautiful songs written with such deep and powerful lyrics. Oh Come All Ye Faithful, God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, What Child is This, O Holy Night, and so many others are very meaningful, powerful worship songs that we sing every Christmas season to worship and praise God for the glorious gift of His Son. How can God be unhappy with such a thing?
What's troubling here is that many have been duped to believe that Christmas is a pagan holiday and if you search on Google for answers, you'll find that this is the widely publicized view. But the facts don't line up with this idea at all. In fact, it doesn't seem like there are any pagan influences whatsoever to the celebration of Christmas. I didn't find any, anyway.
In the end, the fact is the Bible does not condemn nor does it condone celebrating Christmas—the birth of Christ. So, like many other things not specifically mentioned in the Bible, the choice is yours. If you have issues with celebrating Christmas, that's fine. However, I hope I've made it clear that Christmas has literally no connection to any pagan traditions. If you are not comfortable with it, don't celebrate, but don't alienate yourself from believers who do want to celebrate one of the greatest events in all of history. It's not important enough to build a wall. Merry Christmas!
This forum is meant to foster discussion and allow for differing viewpoints to be explored with equal and respectful consideration. All comments are moderated and any foul language or threatening/abusive comments will not be approved. Users who engage in threatening or abusive comments which are physically harmful in nature will be reported to the authorities.
