The last Lectionary reading for 2022 is very appropriate for ending the year and anticipating the new months ahead. The two passages are from John 1, and 1 John 2. They are a contrast of thoughts to me.
The main focus comes from John 1:6-9, “A man named John was sent from God. He came for testimony, to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to testify to the light. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.” May we all make the sacrifice to invest more of ourselves into our faith and relationship with Jesus to ensure we powerfully illumine His Light into the darkness of this world. We need to be like John who testified to the light so that all might believe. The world needs to hear about the redeeming love of God. The world needs to see God through us. As believers, we cannot “just exist” and go about our lives day after day with “self” as our main objective. There are so many people who still need to hear the Gospel….even more need to witness and experience our faith lived out through our lives as a testimony that what we believe is true. Romans 10:13-14, “For ‘Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’ But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them?” We pray that we will actively and passionately live out our faith with intentional zeal now, in 2023, and beyond. I pray that we are not “Christian” in name only. That’s where 1 John 2:18-19 speaks. “Dear children, the last hour is here. You have heard that the Antichrist is coming, and already many such antichrists have appeared. From this we know that the last hour has come. These people left our churches, but they never really belonged with us; otherwise they would have stayed with us. When they left, it proved that they did not belong with us.” There are many in our churches claiming to be Christians. Others have even given up, abandoned what little they did have, and have walked away. They were never really fully surrendered to Jesus. They have been secularly institutionalized, but not spiritually evangelized. These people have joined the Church socially and culturally but have not totally given their lives to Jesus and His Body, the Church. Many of our churches are eroding from the Truth and evolving into a hybrid that looks like a religious-civic organization. Apostate. They are “Revelation 2:4 Churches” that have abandoned their first love. They have become no different than the world around them. In attempts to “reach the world” they have, instead, succumbed to the “agendas” and have become more like it. Strong accusation? Maybe. But, as Matthew 25:16, 20, tells us “You can identify them by their fruit…Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions.” Proof is in action…not talk. Many churches have dwindled to “Sunday only” or are barely active beyond Sunday. As we look to 2023, may we spiritually awaken, focus on what is most important, and commit to the commands of Christ and all things that are of eternal value. Are you ready for that…if not, are you willing to work and prepare? (Matthew 25:1-13). All else regarding our lives will fall into its proper place from there…so don’t fear or worry (Matthew 6:25-34). Let us journey, together, into 2023 with Jesus and each other. Jesus. Priorities. Eternity. Happy New Year.
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We must go back into the middle of the first century (AD) to learn of St. Nicholas of Myra (modern-day Turkey). His “claim to fame” was that he was noted for his extreme generosity to the poor. In most cases, he would secretly provide for people in need. Either way, his kindness and passion for the disenfranchised earned his reputation.
Here we are, several centuries later, and with the help of Thomas Nast’s iconic painting of “Santa Claus” in 1881, with some help from the Coca-Cola bottling company, we have our “jolly fat Santa” immortalized in our imaginations today. Given all the historical evidence of the “real” Saint Nicholas and all the stories and legends of the “mythological” Santa Claus, he has to be, without a doubt, one of the most recognizable icons of the Christmas season. Instead of thinking of Santa Claus as some blasphemous or sacrilegious replacement for the Christmas story of the baby Jesus, I honestly feel we can use the known characteristics of Santa to teach us a wonderful lesson about the Divine Majesty of God using the some of the lyrics from the holiday Song, “Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town” by J. Fred Coots and Haven Gillespie. It is God’s Divine Majesty that heralds a convicting message that a Holy God would take on human flesh. As Martin Luther was noted as saying, “The mystery of the humanity of Christ, that He sunk Himself into our flesh, is beyond all human understanding.” That is why we turn to jolly old Saint Nicholas. The one true God who gave us Jesus (John 3:16-17) can be discovered and the concept of Him becoming flesh, can be better understood if we used some of the words in the song “Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town.” FIRST, the song teaches us that Santa “sees us when we’re sleeping.” This “ability” of Santa teaches us that God watches over us and is with us. This “never-ending” presence of God while we are asleep is called omnipresence. Paul preached in Acts 17:28 that God is “…not far from each one of us, for in Him we live and move, in Him we exist.” Our everlasting God is present in all things and this concept is repeatedly affirmed in Scripture. Jeremiah 23:24, says “‘Am I a God nearby,’ declares the Lord, ‘and not a God far away? Can anyone hide in secret places so that I cannot see him?’ declares the Lord. ‘Do I not fill Heaven and Earth?’ declares the Lord.” Just think, no atomic particle is so small that God is not fully present to it, and no galaxy so vast that God does not surround it. No space is without Divine presence. God is in touch with every part of creation. God cannot be excluded from any location or object in creation. That truly is omnipresence! The song also says, “he knows when you’re awake” and “he knows when you’ve been bad or good” which means that God has knowledge about our active existence. This eternal knowledge God possesses about us is called omniscience (om-nih-shunce). Only God knows all the intricate details about His creation without any limitations. The Psalmist praised God’s limitless wisdom and understanding in Psalm 147:4-5, “He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name. Great is our Lord and mighty in power; his understanding has no limit.” Jesus taught His Disciples in Matthew 6:8, “Your Father knows what your needs are before you ask Him.” We must realize that nothing can hide itself from God’s view. This also includes the intentions held in our heart. Hebrews 4:13, “Nothing in all creation can hide from Him. Everything is naked and exposed before His eyes. This is the God to whom we must explain all that we have done.” Technically, we say that the Divine Omniscience is seen as the infinite consciousness of God in relation to all possible objects of knowledge. God knows past, present and future all at the same time. He is also aware of all possible outcomes of our situation no matter what decision we choose to make. Simply put: God knows all things all the time! Although omniscience may be a hard concept to grasp, it is simply God’s infinite and intimate knowledge of His creation. God does not have to learn anything as He already knows everything. For example, we do not know next year until next year is complete, but God knows next year already as well as every single day of all eternity. We as mortal, human beings, and we only know things in part and in select pieces. Even with all that we do know and comprehend, we now realize that even that understanding is skewed. This is why we must be taught, study, learn and grow. God knows things fully, all at once, regardless if the event is past, present or future (yet to be). This infinite knowledge is omniscience. So, going back to Santa….we sing like he really knows all about us regardless if we are asleep, awake, naughty or nice? This jolly elf that has the power to go around the world in one single night and shower people with gifts (and to take breaks to eat cookies and drink milk) is the same “all powerful” Claus we believe can magically swoosh up and down chimneys and make reindeer fly? How can one single person be so “everything” and do it in ways that are hard to believe, understand, or grasp logically? How can someone use their powers that defy gravity, scientific explanation, space, time, and dimension? Well, sounds more like God our Father to me than Santa Claus! Yes, these wonderful attributes of Santa’s ability to be Santa is what we call, when referring to God, His omnipotence! When we say “omnipotence,” we are saying that God is all-powerful and all-empowering. Omnipotence is God’s perfect ability to do all things that are consistent with His Divine Character. God can do all that God wills to do. No power has any other source other than God. A good example to explain this comes from Genesis 17:15-17 and 18:12, 14, when God came to Abraham (who was 100-years-old) and announced that Sarah, at the age of 90, would have a son and become “the mother of nations.” What was the response? They laughed at God because, humanly speaking, it was not only humanly impossible but logically-ludicrous. But God lovingly replied to their lack of faith by asking a powerful question: “Is there anything too hard for the Lord?” Nothing that God wills to do or conceives for us is beyond His ability or power to accomplish. Matthew 19:26 clearly states, “…everything is possible for God.” This is why we refer to God as “Almighty.” His “Almightiness” is also His omnipotence! Santa Claus can be a very helpful tool in assisting someone who does not know Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior. Santa Claus can be a very helpful analogy to help someone understand the Divine Majesty of God. Just remember that God’s way of being with the world is omnipresence. God’s way of knowing the world is omniscience. God’s way of influencing the world is omnipotence. So, if all these “omni-words” are hard to remember and you would rather summarize them into a single word, just say that God is transcendent! Yes, another “big word,” but we have to remember that we serve a big God! It is extremely important for us to remember just how great an effort God has gone to in order to reveal himself to us! It was been written by an anonymous author that “if our greatest need had been information, God would have sent us an educator; If our greatest need had been money, God would have sent us an economist; If our greatest need had been technology, God would have sent us a scientist; If our greatest need had been pleasure, God would have sent us an entertainer; but our greatest need was forgiveness, so God sent us a Savior.” Have fun this Christmas season using the imagery of Santa Claus to teach others about God’s Divine Majesty. I pray that through this simple story, others may come to know Jesus Christ personally and place their faith in Him. Merry Christmas! There is an obvious lesson written throughout the Scriptures when referring to God, by name. Reverence. Respect. Honor. We should handle the use of any attribute of God with the utmost sincerity and holiness. Psalm 34:3, “Oh, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His name together.”
Showing the highest degree of respect to God applies to our recognition of who He is in both word and deed. This is why, before I learned this lesson I am sharing with you, I would cringe in disgust when people would “abbreviate” the holiday “Christmas” by taking out the name of “Christ” and replacing it with a big-fat-ugly “X!” It would never fail, at some point, to get a card, letter or email with the inevitable greeting, “Merry X-Mas!” Either way, I always thought it grossly disrespectful to “x-out” the name of “Christ” from the word “Christmas.” However, as I have become a pastor and have studied the Biblical languages, I have come to discover that there is something quite liberating behind the letter “X.” Instead of being upset with others who I accused of being sacrilegious and irreverent, I have now found a new way to view this unsightly penmanship. In fact, what I found is that by saying “Merry X-Mas,” they weren’t really removing the name of “Christ” from Christmas at all. It was still there all along. If we look at the name of Christ as it is spelled in the Greek language, we will see it spelled “χριστός.” Did you notice the first Greek letter of that word? That’s right! It is an “X!” The first letter in the name of Christ is an “X!” One of the abbreviations for “Christ” can be the first letter…which is an “X!” The “X” really doesn’t take “Christ” out of “Christmas” at all. Either way, the name stands and is present in both forms. In fact, even if the intentions were mean-spirited in order to purposely “x-out” the name “Christ,” it is still there right in front of our eyes. No matter how fallible, sinful mortals try to rid their world of Christ, it simply becomes an endless cycle of impossibilities. You just can’t do it. Isaiah 9:6, “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Jesus, Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world. Even the letter “X” cries out in exaltation! Philippians 2:9-11, “Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” So…either way….Merry Christmas…or Merry X-Mas, let us, this Christmas, hail the Heaven-born Prince of Peace! |
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April 2024
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