Category: Fear

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Happy New Year: January 1, 2022

For January 1, 2022
It;s amazing how we continue to number the years since Jesus Christ walked the earth? Anno Domini (AD/A.D.) is Latin for: “in the year of the Lord.” A.D. is also termed Common, Current, or Christian Era (CE/C.E.), distinguishing our current age from the time Before Christ (BC/B.C.).

Two thousand and twenty two years have passed since Jesus’ birth.1 And numbering the years since our Savior’s birth reminds us that He remains most greatest and most influential person in human history,

By any and all standards Jesus Christ has always been regarded as the greatest figure in human history. On any list of the world’s greatest men we always find at its head Jesus of Nazareth. Regardless of whether or not men acknowledge him as Savior and Lord they must pay tribute to Him as the world’s outstanding man.2

No figure demonstrated such moral and spiritual excellence, with such selfless humility. He showed grace to those He encountered through healing, helping, encouraging, and loving. Then He surrendered Himself for the benefit of all who would believe in Him. Only through Christ can we experience a new spiritual identity through the New Birth process, which He makes available to us by faith,

No one has ever gone to heaven and returned. But the Son of Mane has come down from heaven. And as Moses lifted up the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him will have eternal life. For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him. John 3:13-17 (NLT)

Some associate the New Birth with race or pedigree. But the Lord is no respecter of persons and His Kingdom is spiritual, not material. He wants our hearts, because when He has it, He possesses our all. The New Birth may not bring us any significant external changes, but it is a complete, spiritual overhaul as new persons in Christ,

This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NLT)

New Birth is happens when we hear that God loves us and wants to satisfy our deepest longings. By faith, we turn from our sin, and we turn to Christ by inviting Him into our hearts to be our Lord and Savior. Then His Spirit takes control of our hearts so that we can become God’s beloved children forever. Won’t you begin the year accepting Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior? He can change your life!

What a Wonderful Savior!

Happy 2022 Years since Jesus’ birth!

 

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December 25, 2021 – Happy Birthday, Jesus!

For December 25, 2021

Christmas is my favorite time of the year because we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ through acts of kindness, singing Christmas Carols, and reading the account of His birth, which Luke offers for our greatest benefit today,

So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid.

Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.”

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”

So it was, when the angels had gone away from them into heaven, that the shepherds said to one another, “Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us.” And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a manger.

Now when they had seen Him, they made widely known the saying which was told them concerning this Child. And all those who heard it marveled at those things which were told them by the shepherds. But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart. Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told them.  Luke 2:6-20 (NKJV)

As with the shepherds of old, we too can observe the Lord’s birthday as grateful recipients of God’s grace and love. By faith in Jesus Christ, we can have unimpeded access to our holy and loving God for forgiveness of sin and the blessings of an abundant, eternal life. Won’t you accept this gift today and experience the true meaning of Christmas?

What a marvelous Christmas present God has given us though this Wonderful Savior!

Merry Christmas to all, and Happy Birthday, Jesus!

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In Darkness, We Await A New Dawning!

For December 19, 2021
Seven-hundred years before the birth of Jesus Christ, Isaiah writes these prophetic words,

For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6 (NKJV)

Before Christ, the world groped in darkness; doomed to spend eternity separated from God. But this announcement would signal a new day for those of us without affiliation with Israel’s Covenant God.

At the time of Jesus’ birth, most people were oblivious to His low-profile birth in a secluded Bethlehem manger. For the shepherds’ testimony of the Heavenly Host declaring: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men!” (Luke 2:14 NKJV), was its first report.

Yet today, our world has grown even more dark and civility deficient, leaving us wondering how even young children can conduct vicious murder without conscience. Our fallen world rejects the notion of inherent, personal sin producing our most evil tendencies like:

    • Pride, selfishness, and dishonesty in our dealings with God, others, and ourselves.
    • A lifestyle that embraces disobedience, rebellion, and sexual immorality consistently.
    • Rejection of the biblical truth that our loving, benevolent Creator—God is real. Instead, our “reality” is only what we see, feel, touch, taste, and smell. Only our subjective, empirical knowledge is real or relevant.
    • Our sin-darkened mind conjures evil acts that we do to exploit or harm people.

The world awaited the birth of Jesus Christ, who would embody the grace and love of God. He became our Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace to reconcile us to God. Moreover, Jesus, the Son of God became the Lamb of God; our sin-less substitute to appease the wrath of God.

Through Jesus Christ, have become the redeemed recipients of God’s mercy, through faith, who have a different outlook and lifestyle because:

    • His precious blood washed away our sins. As a result, God has forgiven us and we are no longer bound by guilt, fear, doubt, or shame.
    • The Holy Spirit, who lives inside us, produces the fruits of noble Christian character and conduct.
    • We have the mind of Christ, which influences our godly thoughts, words, and actions as we encounter others either in public and private settings.

Because of God’s incomparable Christmas gift to the entire world, we are new creatures. Here, God transforms us so that we no longer “live like the world” around us. Instead, we mirror the spiritual and moral image of Jesus Christ, for God’s glory and our collective benefit.

As His blessed benefactors, Jesus qualifies us to have a joyously abundant life now, and then spend a glorious eternity with Him as our Keeper, Friend, and God forever. Herein lies our greatest benefit. Won’t you trust in Him today?

What a Wonderful Savior!

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Peace On Earth And Goodwill Towards Men!

For December 12, 2021
Many social causes clamor for our attention today. Many offer a peace and love though social change. I can remember an age when popular songs promised of a new world where peace and love would reign supreme in the hearts of people everywhere.

Perhaps these ideals are to help us cope with hatred and conflict we experience daily around the world. Or perhaps it is our way of conjuring up a mental place where we can celebrate peace and serenity as our constant standard of living.

Due to our human frailty, the promise of world peace—although appealing—can never be a lasting human proposition. Our sin and selfishness tend to skew our peace and love towards self-service or quid pro quo behavior.

I praise God for the angel who announced to the shepherds nearly two-thousand years ago, “For unto you is born this day in the City of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.” Then, with the angel, a multitude of the heavenly host began praising God and saying,

Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!3

The Lord is not willing that anyone should perish. Instead, He desires that all of us become the beneficiaries of His grace so that we can live in harmony with Him forever in Heaven. The Lord Jesus Christ tells us,

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.4

True peace can only be found in the Prince of Peace—Jesus Christ. For only He can change human hearts in ways that allow us to peacefully live in peace with God and with one another, just as He promises in John 14:27 (NKJV),

Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

The Lord is faithful, and He continues to provide us with His everlasting peace, which never ceases to satisfy the deep longings of the human soul. Won’t you surrender to Him and experience His everlasting peace and goodwill?

What a wonderful Savior!

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There’s Still No Room For Jesus!

For December 5, 2021
There is an account of the Christmas Story found in the second chapter of Luke’s Gospel. The first seven verses in the New Kings James read (my emphasis),

And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This census first took place while Quirinius was governing Syria. So all went to be registered, everyone to his own city. Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was with child. So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

Even during Thanksgiving week, merchants heighten their promotional campaigns to prepare for special Christmas Seasonal sales. Hotels offer discounted rates for post–Thanksgiving occupancy to compensate for the winter offseason period.

But for the Savior of the world, which caused the Heavenly Host to exclaim: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”  (Luke 2:14 NKJV), there is yet no room—even for His own birthday!

The name of Jesus Christ, along with its variations, is being removed from public discourse. Public schools, colleges, and many corporations have chosen to call Christmas—the day designated to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ—to “Winter Break;” but for what purpose? Celebrated persons have been given designated dates to honor their births. Why not Jesus Christ on Christmas?

Luke tells of two weary travelers, Joseph and Mary, who are on their way to Bethlehem to register for the Roman census. But when they arrive, Mary delivers her firstborn son in an animal stable. She wraps Him in rags, and she places him in an animal feeding trough (manger) because of the lack of hotel accommodations—even for an expectant mother.

Usually when dignitaries travel with an entourage, appropriate accommodations are provided. But no room was available for the King of Kings and Lord of Lords or for His entourage, Joseph and Mary.

A crowded Bethlehem suffered a temporary housing shortage due to the census overcrowding. Yet, no room reveals our obsession with coddling those who are “high profile.” This obsession can lead us to adopting a standard where the whims of celebrated personalities become more authoritative than the Bible.

1 Corinthians 1:26-31 tells us that there are not many wise, mighty or noble who will welcome our Lord. Thus, God has chosen the foolish, weak, lowborn, and nothing to refute the wise, mighty, insignificant, and the things that are. In this way, Lord is at the center of all boasting.

The Lord can use celebrated persons to further His cause. These influential people use their resources and influence to lead people to Christ and demonstrate a vibrant, sincere faith in the Lord in the process. It was a very wealthy and influential Joseph of Arimathea who provided his personal burial tomb for Jesus; an empty tomb where we celebrate His resurrection nearly two-thousand years later.

On the other hand, it would be total negligence not to recognize the silent army of Christians who continue to serve the Lord faithfully in places deemed small, worthless or insignificant by the world. These people are significant because the Lord uses them to help transform lives—often without fanfare.

For all those unsung Christian heroes and heroines who continue to labor without recognition, be of good cheer. There was no room for our Lord and Savior either. But as Galatians 6:9 (NLT) tells us, we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.

Let us choose to make room for our Lord and Savior in our hearts first and foremost. Then let us honor the day of His birth: Christmas and seek to mention His name in all phases of our public and private discourses around the world. Then when He returns to take us home, He will welcome us with a hearty well done! Won’t you give Him room today?

What a Wonderful Savior!

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