Christmas

Christmas
The apostle Luke records,
“In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.)  
And everyone went to his own town to register. 
So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David.  
He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child.  
While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.... 
On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise him, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he had been conceived. 
When the time of their purification according to the Law of Moses had been completed, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord  (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, “Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord” ),  and to offer a sacrifice in keeping with what is said in the Law of the Lord: “a pair of doves or two young pigeons.” 
Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him.  
It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.  
Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required,  Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying: 
“Sovereign Lord, as you have promised,you now dismiss your servant in peace. 
For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all people, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.”
                                                                                      Luke 2:1-7, 21-31.
The Apostle John put things this way,
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  
He was with God in the beginning. 
Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.  
In him was life, and that life was the light of men.  
The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it. ...
He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him.  
He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.  
Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—  children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. 
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” 
                                                                                                     John 1:1-5, 10-14.
God became a man. The God that created the heavens and the earth became a man. This is the most fundamental belief of Christianity.
I personally believe it.
I believe the apostle John who wrote,
“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
God loved man so much that He came to this world in the form of Jesus that all who believe in Him should have eternal life.
The Apostle Paul reminds us that eternal life is free. That salvation is through faith in God, faith in Christ. Writing,
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—  not by works, so that no one can boast.” 
                                                          Ephesians 2:8,9.
The writer of Hebrews reminds us,
“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”                                                                                                                                                   Hebrews 11:6.
I believe this.
 So at this Christmas time as I do every day throughout the year I will worship God.
And as it is Christmas time when we, my family, friends, and all Christians celebrate the birth of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. I will praise Him all the more.
And while I may not have all the instruments mentioned I will as the Psalmist did,

“Praise the LORD. 

Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens. 

Praise him for his acts of power; praise him for his surpassing greatness. 

Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet,

 praise him with the harp and lyre, 

praise him with tambourine and dancing, 

praise him with the strings and flute, 

praise him with the clash of cymbals, 

praise him with resounding cymbals. 

Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. 

Praise the LORD.” 

                                                                                      Psalm 150.
And that I do not have to think about.
So to all who reads this Christian, or not, may God bless you richly and show you the truth about Jesus Christ this Christmas day, and throughout the coming year.

A Lesson from a Birth

A Lesson from a Birth
“In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee,  
to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.  
The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” 
Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.  
But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God.  
You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus.  
He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David,  and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.” 
“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” 
The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come upon 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 barren is in her sixth month.  
For nothing is impossible with God.” 
“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her.” 
     Luke 1:26-38.
Here is if you think about it a remarkable account of an angel telling a young Jewish girl that she would be the mother of the Messiah.
This is one of the core beliefs of Christianity. If not true, Christians around the world are believing a lie.
The writer Luke states at the beginning of his gospel,
“Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us,  just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word.  
Therefore, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus,  so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.” 
                                                                         Luke 1:1-4.
We are not entirely sure who Theophilus was but it doesn’t matter. What matters is Luke who is considered by historians to be well educated, put down for us what he found out about Jesus. Luke is believed to have had access to first hand accounts of many of the events.
If what Luke is saying is untrue and Mary was not visited by an angel then like I said Christians are believing a lie.
Likewise if we question the reliability of even one part of Luke’s account of the life of Jesus then it brings all of his account into question.
If Luke is writing a lie then why put into his account the visitation of angels to Mary and indeed Joseph and the shepherds?
Why include throughout his gospel the accounts of miracles and other fantastic events like the resurrection.
The fact is Luke was telling the truth. A truth that Christians present to individuals everyday giving them the choice to believe it or not.
So the question becomes do you believe Jesus is the Son of God, the Saviour of mankind?
Please think about it.

Have a very Merry Christmas.

May the Love of Christ come into your heart and life this Christmas season,

 and bless you richly.

Merry Christmas

To all those who read my blogs. Who believe in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. May God’s Peace, Joy and Love be with you this day.
To those of us who live in freedom I would ask that you please remember to pray for our Christian brethren who are under persecution this day around the world. That they will also feel  the Peace, Joy and Love that comes from God our Father and His One and Only Son Jesus Christ.
Pray that they will be freed from the hands of their persecutors.
That their persecutors will see the error of their ways and come to know Christ as their Lord and Saviour.