December 23, 2010

"But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people." Luke 2:10

Christmas is supposed to be a season of joy. In this series of posts I am taking a closer look at this topic of joy. What is it and where does it come from?

Joy comes from God's presence. Christmas is when God came to us in the person of Christ.

Also, joy comes from God's pardon.

Jesus came to be our Savior. Savior from what? He saved us from the penalty of sin. As sinners we were spiritually dead and destined for eternal death. But Jesus, because He was without sin, took our sins upon Himself. He died for you and me.

Because He took our penalty, we can be pardoned.

It would be the equivalent of you receiving a death sentence because of a heinous crime you committed. You are arrested and tried and found guilty by a jury - because you ARE guilty. When you appear before the judge he sentences you to death and you are taken to death row. You remain there for several years until the time comes for your sentence to be carried out and you hear footsteps coming down the long hallway toward your isolated cell. Your heart quickens, a big lump develops in your throat and there is a sinking feeling in your stomach. "This is it!", you think to yourself. But, the guard opens the door and announces, "You are free to go!"

"What?", you reply.

"You are free to go. Report to the Warden and he will make sure you get your belongings."

"But........why........how?"

"The Warden's son volunteered to take your death sentence. He will die tonight in you place! Since he has taken your sentence you are free!"

As the news begins to sink into your consciousness, you feel a great sense of relief and then slowly a joy arises in you as you realize you are free! You will get to grow old! You will get to see your children grow up! You will live out your days in freedom because someone's son died in your place!

That is the pardon you receive in Jesus when you put your faith in Him. And that is why Jesus came at Christmas. He came to pay the penalty for your sins so you can be pardoned!

Joy results from God's presence and joy arises from His pardon. Christmas is where it all began!

December 22, 2010

"for behold, I bring you good news of great joy......" Luke 2:10

Like you, I have had good news and I have had bad news and good news is definitely better! But, not all good news brings great joy. The news about Christmas did! Why?

I want to examine this "joy thing" over the next few posts and perhaps you can gain a better understanding of what theangel was talking about and why you don't experience more of it.

How does that sound?

As meditated on this question, "What was it about Christmas that brought joy?" I came up with a number of answers that worked for me. We will see if they matter to you.

The first source of joy in the Christmas story is God's Presence!

God's greatest present was His presence! Jesus was "the Word that became flesh" to dwell among us! Jesus was "Immanuel", " God with us!

For centuries only the High Priest could enter presence of God and only on special occasions. But now, because of Jesus, God would realize His greatest desire and your deepest need could be met! He could dwell in you and you can live in His presence! Since that is exactly what you were created for, that brings joy!

Will you know the joy of His presence today? Will you enter in? Will you welcome Him into your spirit? Will you fellowship with Him by faith? Will you walk with Him in obedience? Will you commune with Him through prayer? Will you encounter Him in the Word? Will you partner with Him in service?

You will never know joy apart from the presence of God. And the good news of great joy is that Jesus has come to dwell in you!

December 21, 2010

"You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly." Romans 5:6

You are likely familiar with Murphy's Law which says, "Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong". If there is any time of the year when Murphy's Law is most likely to happen it is surely at Christmas time! During Christmas there are so many plans made that something is certain to go wrong. And usually does.

When we think of the first Christmas it conjures up sentimental pictures of a sweet baby in a manger with mother Mary and Joseph looking on in wonder surrounded by shepherds and wise men. Such a tranquil scene!

But in real life, as the Christmas story was unfolding there was a series of things that seemingly went wrong. For Mary and Joseph it might have seemed like Murphy's Law was in play! What do I mean?

What a terrible time for the Caesar to get greedy and decide on a tax increase!

What a terrible time to get pregnant! Mary was engaged to be married to a fine young man and was waist deep in wedding plans when the angel showed up with his incredible announcement. If she went along with this amazing plan, there would be not dreamy wedding. She not only would forfeit her wedding, she would risk her reputation and her relationship with Joseph. In a matter of minutes her life went from great happiness to hardship.

What a terrible time to have to take a trip! Just days before Mary was due to deliver her baby she had to climb on a donkey and ride 60 miles on a donkey over rugged terrain. How hard is that? What else could go wrong to complicate things?

And what a terrible place to have to go! Bethlehem was a tiny out of the way place that happened to be the ancestral home of Joseph. Why else would anyone go there?

What a terrible time to go to Bethlehem! The place was crawling with cousins and aunts and uncles who had also come to register for the census and be taxed. There was only one place to stay in the whole town and by the time Mary and Joseph arrived, all the rooms were filled! They came all this way only to find themselves without a room. What else could go wrong?

What an awful place to have to deliver a baby! In a stable? Inside a manger? How humiliating! What else could go wrong?

And what a terrible time for the King to get parnoid and launch an assault against all baby boys in the land! What else could go wrong?

What a terrible place to have to flee! Just when they should have been heading back home to set up their lives, they had to make a midnight trip to Egypt!

For Mary and Joseph it must have seemed like Murphy's Law was in full effect! And yet the Scripture tells us "at just the right time Jesus was born"! What certainly looked like terrible timing was in fact, God's perfect timing! There was a greater law that Murphy's Law! What law was that? Mercy's Law! Mercy's Law says, "When everything seems to be going wrong - a miracle can still happen!"

Are things tough for you this Christmas? Does life seem to be going against you? Do circumstances seem to be conspiring against you? Are you asking, "what else can go wrong?" Have you convinced yourself you are a victim of Murphy's Law? Child of God, let me remind you of a higher law that is at work in your life - Mercy's Law. God's plan is right on time for your life!

Mercy's Law trumps Murphy's Law everytime and Christmas proves it!

December 20, 2010

"So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told." Luke 2:16-20

I am still focused on the good news this morning! This "good news of great joy" has never been more needed than it is at Christmas 2010 - and it has never been more powerful! I am rejoicing this morning in the fact that bad news ends but the good news only gets better! Forever! There is a day coming when we will only know good news!

So, what do we do in the mean time? How do "good news" people operate in a bad news world?

BELIEVE the good news!

I talked about that yesterday. Everyday you must awake and decided which you are going to believe and which you are going to allow to define your reality. Will you choose to be overcome by the bad news or will you stand firmly on the good news? Only you can decide and what you choose will shape your awareness, your attitude and your actions.

BEHOLD the good news!

The shepherds believed the good news but they still went to see it for themselves. Believing the news got them to the stable, but drove them into the world! Hearing the news charged them but seeing the good news changed them!

Every day you must SEE the good news! How?

See Him in your spirit as you pray. See Him in His words as you read and study. See Him in the beauty of nature and in the grace of other believers. See His Spirit as work through your hands. Sense His Spirit dwelling in your heart!

If you BELIEVE the good news. And if you BEHOLD the good news. You will naturally BECOME the good news!

That is exactly what the shepherds did! They told everyone they knew about what they believed and what they had beheld. That is what you must do! It is what I must do! How can you believe the good news and behold the good news without becoming the good news? I am not sure that is possible. If that happens either you don't believe or you are not beholding on a regular basis. OR there is some dysfunction or a disconnect in your faith.

Believe it. Behold it. Become it!

Christmas 2010 will change and Spotsylvania County 2011 will change when you decide to become the good news!

December 19, 2010

"But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord." Luke 2:10-11

The angel came bringing good news!

And not just good news - good news of great joy!

That announcement presupposes that there was some bad news going on. Uh, yeah! This proclaimation came to a people whose politics were bad news. They lived under Roman oppression. And their economy was bad news. They earned very little and much of what they did earn went to the Romans. There was an ultra-wealthy ruling class and a lot of really poor folks and no welfare program. Even worse, their religion was a disaster! It was oppressive, demanding, impersonal and corrupt. This was the world the average Jew lived in! And there was no hope on the horizon!

But then in a remote pasture to some lonely shepherds, hope came! Good news was announced!

As a pastor, I live in a world of bad news. Hardly a day goes by that I don't hear some bad news about someone. I have my own bad news to deal with, too. How do I cope with all the bad news? What am I to do in an ever worsening economy, an ever expanding increasingly oppressive government, and a religion that is daily attacked and minimized?

What are you to do?

Well, I am a minister of "the Gospel". What is the "Gospel"? The "Gospel" means "good news"! In a world of bad news I believe the good news! The very same good news that the angel brought to the shepherds! The good news that Christ has come! A Savior is born! The Savior died for my sins to conquer sin and rose again to conquer death! For me! For you! For everyone who believes and receives the good news!

Am I to deny the bad news? Am I to ignore it? No! I speak good news to it! I deal with bad news in the power of the good news. I live in the knowledge the the good news is more powerful and longer lasting than the bad news! The good news is more real than the bad news! The good news means more and brings more joy in light of the bad news! My hope is in the good news!

As we move into this week before Christmas and as you celebrate Christmas at your church and with your family and in your quiet time with the Lord, rejoice at the reality of the "Gospel" the good news of salvation! God has conquered sin and death and through the power of the good news living in and through you and me He is conquering evil. Rejoice that the bad news will end but the good news is eternal - and only gets better!

That is your good news report for today!

December 18, 2010

"Zechariah asked the angel, “How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.” The angel said to him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news. And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their appointed time.” Luke 1:18-20

“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month." Luke 1:34-36

Have you ever noticed how most people find it easier to believe bad news than to believe good news?

When Zachariah and Mary were presented with some of the best news ever shared, they questioned it. Understandable - but not acceptable.

However, it is encouraging to notice how Gabriel responded in each case. He gave them evidence! And I believe he did so because he understood that they wanted to believe but they weren't used to such good news! so, he helped them!

In Zachariah's case, he struck him dumb, so he could not speak. At first glance it looked like a judgment, but I believe it was evidence. I think it was for Zachariah's benefit. How better to believe a supernatural report than to see something supernatural happen?

For Mary, the angel gave her two proofs, a longer-term proof - pregnancy; and a shorter term proof - her formerly barren cousin, Elizabeth's pregnancy.

Here's the good news I get from both of these examples, God not only asks to have faith, He gives it to us! When He knows we really want to believe He will give us evidence to believe. I like that! I need that!

Now on my part, I need to work on my faith until I find it easier to believe good news from God, from His Word, and by His Spirit. I must condition my faith to expect good things from the Hand of God and to know that He will also turn the bad news into good in His time! That is my part! But I can even count on His grace to help me there! And I can condition my heart and mind and spirit by saturating them in the Word of God.

So this is the good news of Christmas - for those who believe and those who are wanting to believe more - there really is only good news! There is immediate good news and there is ultimate good news! That is the God we serve! Christmas is the evidence!

December 17, 2010

"In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross! " Philippians 2:5-8

Everyone who has ever struggled in a relationship should be thankful for Christmas!

I guess that would include about all of us! I know people who do relationships better than others but I don't know anyone who hasn't struggled with a spouse or a parent or a sibling or a co-worker or a neighbor or someone!

There is a simple reason why we struggle with relationships - SIN! That's right, sin! Sin, as in selfishness. Sin as in self-seeking! Sin as in selfish ambition. When sin rules in your heart and mind, you are a user not a lover. When sin rules in your heart and mind, you are separated from God and God is love. Sin not only brings separation it brings isolation, it brings alienation, it brings humiliation, it brings degradation, and it brings complications.

Christmas reminds us of how much God desires to be in relationship with you and me! He literally moved Heaven and earth to remove the barriers that separated us and Him. I'm not sure any of us will ever understand why He loves us that much, but the "good news of great joy" is that He does love us and Christmas proves it.

There has never been a great or more damaging relationship breech than the one that separated God and man. Only God could bridge that gap and Jesus became that bridge! Because He was conceived by the Holy Spirit He was born sinless and lived His life in perfect obedience. That allowed Him to bear the guilt and penalty of our sins!

Relationship with God is now possible through Christ! Once you enter into relationship with God, healthy relationships with others becomes possible!

As Christmas 2010 draws near, is there a relationship or two that needs some healing? I understand it takes two to heal a relationship (actually it takes three), but with God's help and with Christ's example, you can begin the healing! If Christmas can bridge the gap between God and you, is there any relationship that can't be healed?

Christmas says, "No!" What will you say?