Day 36 Resolutions

He went out as usual to the Mount of Olives, and his disciples followed him. On reaching the place, he said to them, "Pray that you will not fall into temptation."

When he rose from prayer and went back to the disciples, he found them asleep, exhausted from sorrow.  "Why are you sleeping?" he asked them. "Get up and pray so that you will not fall into temptation." Luke 22: 39-46

New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day are times when we reflect back on the year, and what the coming year might bring. After we reflect, we make resolutions. When we make them, we have every intention of keeping them. But by the middle of January, most of our resolutions have already been forgotten.  Then for many of us, we lapse into self-disappointment,  as we wonder what happened to all our good intentions!  Our spirit was willing back on New Year's day, but our flesh was weaker than we thought.

Hearing what God wants is one thing--doing it is another. No matter how well-intentioned our thoughts may be the weakness of our sinful selves seems to get  in the way of our obedience.

Jesus' disciples had the same problem. On the eve of his crucifixion,  Jesus made a simple request to His disciples. He didn't ask for miracles or hard effort He only asked that they spend the night in prayer with Him.    Within an hour, they all fell asleep.  Earlier that evening, Simon Peter had sworn that he would go to his death for Him. Now Jesus had made the simplest of requests, and he failed at it. Peter must have thought that he was the weakest man in the world.

How many times have we made resolutions to lose weight, keep a house clean,  get into a devotional routine, or go back to church and not done them?  Eventually we must realize that resolutions don’t work.  Without God,  our resolutions are worthless! 

 Every time we make a resolution and break it, we break a little of ourselves. A resolution is a covenant  we make with ourselves,  not a momentary whim. 

Resolutions are not commanded in the Bible. There is nothing in the Word that says we should make them.  God does not demand resolutions from us. The forgiveness of Jesus has already covered our broken resolutions, even the ones we have not made and broken.  He demands nothing of us except faith in Him. Resolutions are nothing but a tool to help us as we struggle to follow Him daily.  

If we do make resolutions, however, we should  carefully consider how to keep them. Here are a few steps to keeping our resolutions.

1.  Whenever you begin a new resolution, start with prayer.  Jesus began everything with prayer.  Before He started his ministry, he spent forty days fasting and praying.  Before he chose His disciples, he spent a whole night in vigil before God.  Before He faced the cross, He retreated to the garden of Gethsemane to pray through the evening, until the soldiers came to arrest Him.

The passion that is needed to keep resolutions comes from our passion for God.  Prayer and study of His divine Word ignites that passion. Prayer changes the heart as well as the mind.  If we receive God’s purpose, without receiving God’s passion, our minds will be frustrated, because our hearts are unchanged.  Prayer softens the heart, and opens us up to the Spirit of God.

2.  Pray through opposition. In the garden Jesus  struggled with the temptations that bedevil and defeat us. But unlike us, He overcame Satan and emerged with His moral resolve intact.

Never underestimate the size or intensity of spiritual opposition.  Satan and the flesh are very clever in overcoming our resolve.  That is why we need to be in constant prayer throughout the year.  If Jesus, who was God, needed to pray to the Father to overcome opposition, how much more do we need to pray?  The strength we need to continue when things get hard comes through regular connection to the Father.

3.  Pray with others.  Jesus sought out the prayer of His disciples at this critical moment of His life.  Jesus as God had the power to overcome Satan in Himself. But Jesus was also human and as an example to others, He sought their help.  People need to pray together. There is power in united prayer.

Christian friends are usually more than willing to help us and pray for us. But if we don't ask for help, we do not get it. Sometimes we try to spiritualize our lack of asking by saying "Oh, I don't want to be a bother." But really, we are just too proud to let others know that we need help. God humbles the proud by letting them fail at their resolutions, but to those who are willing to humbly ask for help from God and others, He exalts them by helping them succeed.

No one can keep resolutions by themselves. We need the power of God and the support of others to keep us on the right path.  

Make the first act of the New Year to pray. The first prayer sets the tone of the whole year.  Then this year may turn out to be the best year yet.

"Father, help me to make serious resolutions and keep them, so that this year I may end it closer to you than I began it. In Jesus' name, Amen." 

Day 35 The Three Gifts

And going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. Matt 2:11  ESV

When the Magi arrived, the holy family was no longer in the stable, but in a house. The word Luke uses indicates not a newborn, but an older baby. From this we infer that the Magi probably arrived several months after Jesus was born, while  Mary and Joseph still resided in Bethlehem.

The gifts they presented to the child seem inappropriate for a child.  Toys or clothes would seem to have been more useful.  But the gifts had symbolic significance as well as great practicality.  When Mary and Joseph had to flee Bethlehem due to Herod's persecution, these gifts gave them the means to travel and to relocate. 

The gifts of the Magi were traditional gifts to honor a king or deity. In Isaiah 60: 6 the prophet says  that nations of kings will come to honor the Messiahs and "bring gold and frankincense and shall praise the Name of the Lord."   They were very expensive gifts, but they were also very symbolic.

Gold  is (of course) a precious metal.  Gold was a traditional tribute to give a king.  Monarchs would adorn themselves with gold. They also used gold to pay for their troops and castles. The wealth of gold was converted into power that a king would use to rule his kingdom It was the symbol of a kingly office.

Christ came to be a ruler.  He did not need gold, as earthly rules used, but He had within Himself the full power of the Godhead.  His glory did not depend on gold, but came directly from God.

Frankincense  was used by the temple priests in the incense burner inside the temple. This incense was symbolic of the prayers of the people going up to God, as well as many other uses.  What gold is to the king, frankincense is to the priest. It was a symbol of his position. The priest stood between God and humanity.

Christ needed no incense to carry out his priestly office. His position of high priest was given by the Father. The sacrifice that He offered was not incense, but His own blood. In His priestly office, He would provide the link between God and humanity.

Frankincense was also medicinal.  In the Middle East and north Africa, frankincense was used as a folk remedy for arthritic inflammation.  For a doctor, frankincense was an important part of his medical bag

Myrrh was a spice that in Jesus' time was more valuable per ounce than gold. Myrrh was sometimes used as an analgesic and as an element in perfume. However, it's most common usage was in embalming the dead.  What a strange gift for a baby!

The symbolism of myrrh is obvious to us today. The Christ child was born to die. His death and  resurrection became a perfume of life.  Myrrh covered His body as He lay in the tomb. It is probable that those who first met Jesus after His resurrection would have  detected he smell of myrrh upon Him.

The gifts of the magi remind us of what Jesus came to do. He is our king,  who rules over our life. He is our priest, who opens the way to God for us.  He is also the sacrifice for our sins, who died so that we might live, opening the door for our resurrection.  In all three of these roles,  Christ fulfilled His mission on earth.

"Father, we thank you for the gifts of the Magi, which remind us of the what Christ has done and is doing for us.  Help us to accept Him as our King, Priest, and Atoning sacrifice.  In Jesus' name, amen."

Day 34 The Star over Bethlehem

After listening to the king, they went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. Matt 2:9-10  ESV

Bethlehem is just four miles from Jerusalem--a little over an hour's walk away. The Magi had already been traveling for  around eighteen months.  What's another hour  or so?

But as close as they were, they were not close enough.  When they got to Bethlehem they needed further guidance. 

The scribes  had already told them that the Messiah would be in Bethlehem, but  Bethlehem had a population of about six hundred people, with about hundreds of homes and cottages.  The Messiah was in one of them, but which one?  If they asked around,  they would might attract the wrong kind of attention.  Herod's men were no doubt following them. They needed to find the Christ Child discreetly, without causing a fuss. They needed guidance, but they needed to say as anonymous as possible.

God provided the answer. When they arrived in town,  they simply kept following the star.  They saw it rest over the house where Mary and Joseph were living. 

The Magi's problem was similar to the problem that we have often. We know the general direction that God wants us to go, but we still need specific guidance.  Do we take this road or that? Do we marry this person or that?  Do we go to this college or that college?  Knowing the general way is often not enough We want specifics.  God often doesn't tell us until we arrive at the point of decision.

There is no use for us to look for signs.  When God gives a sign it is wonderful, but most of the time God wants us to use our own judgment.  The best thing about God's will for our lives is that we don't need to find it. He finds us. God's will is not as easily missed as we think. God makes His will obvious at the right time.

In the case of the Magi, they found the right path by doing four things.

First, they relied on His Word.  The scribes in Jerusalem told them the Christ child would be in Bethlehem, and they went  to Bethlehem. When we follow what the Word says, God will give us grace to go the rest of the way. But if we ignore what God is saying in His written Word, we will soon become hopelessly lost.

Second, they asked for guidance from God. The Bible doesn't specifically say they prayed about it, but we know they must have prayed.  If God could send a sign that would lead them eighteen months over the desert, surely He could be trusted to lead them for the short distance to the right house.  They kept relying on God and they found Him.

Third, the followed the light they had already been given.  They didn't seek for additional guidance, but simply followed the same star they had been following. God's light shines from the outside. When we see it, we keep going until God shows us a different way.

Fourth, the used their own judgment.  They were astrologers, skilled in celestial navigation.  Most of us could not tell one star from the other, but they could. They checked the positions of stars daily.

We do not know what "the Christmas star" actually was. Some have suggested that it was something obvious, like  a comet, or a supernova. Others suggest, though that the star was just an ordinary planet in a position that would have meant nothing to a casual observer. But these men were not  casual observers. They knew to attach great importance to what they saw because of the training they received. God used  their judgment and skills  to enable them to reveal something of great importance to the whole world.

We find God's path for our lives by a similar process. Study the word. Pray for guidance. Follow the light you have been given. Then use your own best judgment. God will not allow you to go long down the wrong road.  He will patiently help you to find the right one.  Just follow His Word and He will show you the way to Him.

"Father, thank you for guiding me this far in my life. Lead me during this year to study Your Word, so that I may be guided correctly through the coming year. In Jesus' name. Amen."  

Day 33 The Proud King

 When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him;  and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. They told him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it is written by the prophet:

"'And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;

for from you shall come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.'"

Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared. And

he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, "Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him, bring me word, that I too may come and worship him." Matt 2:3-8 ESV

 Herod the Great lived from 73 BC to 4 BC.  He was a man of many accomplishments.  He built many structures in Israel such as aqueducts and pleasure palaces that still exist today.  He governed the areas of Judea and Galilee for more than thirty years.  He was also paranoid, ruthless, and an intentionally cruel ruler.

Herod knew about the coming the Messiah, but knew nothing of the prophecies.  His family converted to Judaism as a matter of political convenience, but he had not studied much of the Bible.  When the Magi showed up wanting to know about the newborn king, he had to consult with the religious scribes to know that the Messiah was to be born in Bethlehem.  When he discovered this, he pretended to be interested in worshiping with them, so he could discover the Messiah's identity and kill him. 

Herod was a terrible sinner in many ways, but his greatest sin was pride.  He enjoyed being ruler, and wanted no one else to rule the kingdom, not even God's Son.

Pride is dangerous. If it does not lead us to destroy others, like it did Herod, it can destroy us.  When we think we are the only one worthy of running our affairs and believe we are irreplaceable, we are guilty of pride.  Nobody stays in control forever except God. We can't even rule our own lives without God's help. When we try, we usually make a mess of things.

Herod didn't want to surrender his kingdom, so he lied to the Magi, saying he wanted to worship the Messiah, when he really intended to kill Him while he was still a child.  If Herod was sincere in wanting to worship the Christ child,  how different the world might have been!

But his pride got in the way of that.  He rejected even the possibility of surrendering to God.

Sooner or later we all face a choice between surrendering to Someone greater than ourselves, or dying in our pride.  If we learn to yield to God, surrendering to the King of Kings, we can learn the joy of being free. But if we hold on to pride,  we must face the consequences and we will know the results of pride, which is our own  destruction.

By laying aside our pride, we trust that God will be a better ruler than we ever could be.  He will provide for us like no other. Other people will always fail us, but they are not God. God is the one who is really in control in our lives.    Whatever happens to us is in His hands, not in our or in the hands of others. God is both our ultimate protector and provider. 

We are in God's hands no matter what we think or feel. He is our true ruler. We must yield the sovereignty of our lives to Him 

Father, help me to surrender my pride, so that I will not be ashamed to yield my personal kingdom to You. Crucify my pride, so I can live. In Jesus' name, Amen."

Day 32 The Star in the East

"Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, "Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him."  Matt 2:1-2  ESV

We are fairly certain  who the wise men were. They were Persian priests of the Zoroastrian religion. Zoroastrianism  began about the time the Persians took over the Babylonian empire, which had taken the Jews into exile. The founder was called Zoroaster, or Zarathustra.  Zoroastrianism shared some beliefs with Judaism, and appeared to be influenced by the Jewish prophets.

Zoroastrians believed that there were two God--a good god and an evil god.  The  good god was supreme and would win in the end. The good god sends messages to the earth through the stars, which were angels moving through the heavens.  The modern belief in astrology came from these  magi.  They believed that by studying the movements of stars and planets, they could tell what would happen on earth.

If all this sounds like a crazy parody of Judaism, you would be right!  There is some truth here, but it is mixed with a heavy dose of superstition and imagination.

Even so, God really did communicate with these pagan priests through the stars.  They saw something in the heavens that told them a king was born to the Jews who would be the ruler of the whole earth.

Why did God speak to these men in such a way? Did it confirm their strange beliefs?  Not at all! 

God speaks to us in ways that that we can understand. God recognized in these men a genuine desire to seek the truth. So He used a star system of pagan astrology to call them to Christ.

That star is a good picture of the light of God.  Starlight comes from far away, from blazing suns of immeasurable power, yet appears to us as dim and distant lights in the sky. God's truth is often the same with us.  We may think we know understand His thoughts, but all we really know of the infinite God is far away and distant, and is surrounded by a sea of ignorance. Our knowledge of God, compared to His infinity, is not much greater than that of the Magi.

The only way we know God is through the Light that God permits us to see through a sea of blackness.  That light is Christ. We may not understand the inner workings of the trinity, or how God became man, but we can see Him.  He is the only light of the world.  That light points to the manger, and beyond the manger to the cross.

"Father, thank you for leading me to you, using the light I understand.  Help me to follow that light the way the magi followed the star. In Jesus' name, Amen."

Day 31 The Twelve Days of Christmas

"But grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ's gift.  Therefore it says,  'When he ascended on high he led a host of captives, and he gave gifts to men.'"    Eph 4:7-8  ESV

We have all heard the song "The Twelve days of Christmas," but most of us don't know what they are.  Christmas used to last for twelve days, from December 25 till January 6. Before Christmas people fasted and prayed.  For the twelve days of Christmas people feasted and celebrated. In parts of the American South,  slaves were freed from their work during those day to celebrate. In ancient Rome, masters served their servants.  In ancient Rome, masters served their servants.  It was a time of charity and joy.

In England today is Boxing Day--a traditional day for presents. Christmas Day is reserved for worshiping and feasting. Boxing day is a day for remembering the Lord's great gift to us through giving to others.

Winter gift giving has been around from pre-Christian times.  The Romans celebrated a December holiday called saturnalia which included the gift exchanges. Early Christian accounts of Christmas  often included gifts.   St. Nicolas of Myra, whose story provided the basis for Santa Claus, was remembered in a December feast day that included giving of gifts to children.  In many countries, January 6, the Feast of the Magi, is when they give gifts. 

Why should Christians give gifts?  There is no Biblical mandate for it, of course, but neither is there any Biblical reason not to.  If gift-giving is in the Bible, it isn't in the Christmas story. Maybe a better justification for gift-giving is to be found in the story of Christ's crucifixion and resurrection of Christ.

The word "grace" and the word "gift" are the from the same root word in Greek. The grace of Jesus is also the gift of Jesus.  His death on the cross was a free and willing sacrifice on our behalf--a gift--which demanded nothing in return except acceptance and faith.  

Christ's resurrection from the dead is His triumphant victory over death.  Generals who won great victories were honored in triumphant festivals which included the giving of gifts. Paul no doubt had such parades in mind when he quoted Psalm 68:18  as a statement of Christ's victory over death.  "When he ascended on high he led a host of captives, and he gave gifts to men."  Paul describes Christ's resurrection in the same terms as a Greco-Roman military triumph. When a conquering general returned to Rome, he drove his military captives before him. Often he would have them put to death before the cheers of the crowd. But if a general wanted to display his grace and generosity, he would pardon them publicly.  Along with the prisoners came the spoils of war, which the general would spread among the people as gifts.

Christ who took death and hell itself captive through His resurrection. He pardoned those who had once followed him, but now had sought forgiveness, publicly displaying them as tokens of His grace.  Then he distributed the gifts of the Holy Spirit among His people as a symbol of His blessing. 

What better way may we celebrate His generosity but by being generous with others? We give to others--especially to the poor and the needy--because of the way in which we received from Christ, who gave to us when we did not deserve it.  The giving of gifts  to the poor at this time of year are not just for our own sake, but for Christ's sake.  Our giving is a reminder of His giving.  Every gift we give to another is made possible only because God has given to us. 

"Father, we have received freely from your generosity. Help us to be as generous to others as you are to us, to help those most in need, to give forgiveness to those who have wronged us, and to set free those who are in bondage. Give u hearts, filled with courage and generosity, so we can represent you by loving others they was we ourselves have been loved. In Jesus' name, Amen."

Christmas Day Holding God's Baby

"And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger." Luke 2:7  ESV

When I was a boy, I never wanted to hold babies. All that ended when we had one of our own. The minute I stared into the beautiful blue eyes of my first-born, I understood what all the fuss was about.

A few days after she was born, we took her to church. I was the proudest father there. I held her and showed her off to everyone.

Many members of the church approached me and asked  “May I hold the baby?”

Hold the baby?  Hold my child? How dare they ask to hold my baby! My most perfect child!  I thought. No one is touching my child! What if they drop her? What if they have an infectious disease?  How do I know if they are worthy to touch my child? 

Now that I’m older, and my babies are grown, I understand. Once you fall in love with babies, you never get over it. For the rest of your life, you’ll want to hold every baby you see..

We were made in God’s image. Our feelings reflect God’s. We may therefore assume that God’s feelings for His child are at least as strong as ours. Our love is imperfect—His is perfect.  God knew the ache of parenthood, just like us 

Look at how proud God was at the birth of his Only Begotten Son--so proud that He put a special star in the sky just to celebrate. So proud He sent an army of angels to announce it. God was bragging, like every father brags. God’s angels partied over the fields of Bethlehem. “Come see God’s Boy!”

The shepherds came at the angels' call.  There they found Mary holding God's baby. 

Then (though it isn't recorded in the Bible) the shepherds must have asked,  “May we hold the baby?”

Mary looked at those shepherds. When was the last time they took a bath?  Do they know how to hold a baby?  Could she entrust the Son of God to the rough hands of clumsy men?   

Was it any easier for God? God gave his Son to the world, but He never left his side. There was no place that His Son went that his Father did not accompany Him.  All through His earthly life God held Jesus.  When He was baptized, He was there.  When He came up out of the water, God would keep silent no more.  His voice boomed out “This is My beloved Son!” Which is God's way of saying "That's My Boy!"

But in the end, God gave him up. God turned his back on His Son as he hung on the cross. Jesus cried out “My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken Me?” And for the only time, God didn't answer. 

On the cross, God stopped holding His baby. 

God gave up His son because He loves us so much. He let go of His baby, so He could hold us. Christ suffered for our comfort. He took pain for your relief. No love is greater than this.  He gave up His Son, so we could become His children.

This is the reason Jesus was born.   He came—to be given up for us.   No one ever loved you more than this.   Through His willingness to give Him up, he showed His love to us.

Now, God gives His son to us—His baby.  Only we don’t hold him.  He holds us, and he will never let us go.

"Thank you, Jesus for holding us in Your divine love.  In Jesus' Name. Amen"

Christmas Eve The Lad\st Night of the World

"And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn"  Luke 2:6-7   ESV

When we pick up the Bible, the first thing we notice is that the book is arranged in two sections--the Old Testament and the New Testament.  The Bible is one continuous story, but it breaks into two pieces, with the coming of Christ. The Old Testament predicts His coming.  The New Testament fulfills that prediction.  The Old Testament promises--the New Testament delivers.  

History breaks at this same place.  BC becomes AD.   One minute before we stand in one world.  One minute after,  we stand in another.  Christ is the continental divide of history.

Christmas reminds us of that night when history changed.  It was the end of one world.  It was the beginning of another. 

The way we look at Christmas can change our whole lives.  If we get the message of the day, it will transform us.  If we miss the message, if we remain stuck in the old world,  it will mean nothing.  What we do with Christmas will change our whole lives.

The vast majority of the inhabitants of Bethlehem in Mary and Joseph's time did not understand this.  The night Jesus was born was just another night to them.  There was nothing to indicate that it was the last night of their world. 

On the last night of the world, there were beggars in the streets, as there were every night. 

On the last night of the world, soldiers kept watch from the guard towers around the city.  They watched the same fields the shepherds did, yet no angels appeared to them.  They never saw the angels.

On the last night of the world,  there were  drunks on the street,  just like every other night. Tavern keepers keep late hours, serving those miserable souls who try to drown out their pain with the bottle.  It never works. There are those who think they can’t go through the day, or sleep through the night without some kind of chemical assistance.

On the last night of the world, bartenders and shopkeepers cleaned their shops. Thieves in the hills met to divide their spoils.   Priests in the temple went about early morning ministrations.   All these people were awake when the shepherds were awake, but they never heard the angels. If they did hear the angels, they paid no attention.  They were busy.  Who has time to go outside and see what the noise is all about? Business is business. They had no time to stop what they were doing to  see what was going on. 

What we do for a living is not more important than living. Suppose Jesus were to come today?  Would you leave your occupation to meet Him?  On the last night of the old world,  business was king.  On the first day of the new world,  Jesus was king.  We must sometimes leave the one to see the other.

There were some--the shepherds, for example--who left their business and found the Lord. They were the ones who heard the “glad tidings of great joy” 

In the world before Christ, there were divisions between people of different countries, races, and social structures. But in the new world, these differences disappeared.   God summoned worshippers from all over the world to join at the manger--wise men came from the east, for example.  The divisions between Jew and Gentile were over.  Now, we join in a new world, under a single Savior.  When the old world dies, the new  one begins.  

 If peace is ever to  come to our world, it will not come through political reform or social reform. It won't come because of the latest scientific breakthrough, either. . It will come when each of us lets Christ into our hearts, and we join the new world where He reigns supreme.  When Jesus comes to us, He brings a new world with Him..

On which side of Christmas do you live?  Are you in the old world, or the new? Have you surrendered your life to Him? Have you been to the manger?  Have you been to the Cross?  If you have not,  come this day to Him.   He has already come for you.

"Jesus, in your coming you have begun a new world. Let me live in the light of Your presence, and rejoice in my part of that new world.  In Jesus' name, Amen."

Day 28 No Room at the Inn

"And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn." Luke:7 2 ESV

Bethlehem was the ancient equivalent of a truck stop with a hotel just outside of any major city in America. It was the last stop before Jerusalem on the ancient caravan route. The people who stayed at the inn  were the ancient equivalent of truck drivers--camel herders, merchants, and traveling salesmen. Archaeologists tell us that there was a single inn in Bethlehem, near the center of town. 

Having no room in the inn meant that if they could not find private lodging, travelers would have to sleep in the streets. Not that the inn was much better.  Inside the inn, they might be sleeping in a room with a dozen or more other people.  If Mary and Joseph had secured a place on the floor at the inn, the other lodgers would have kept them up most of the night.  An inn was a rough place to have a baby. 

It is entirely possible that the stable was considered deluxe accommodations.  The stable of the inn was a natural cave beneath it. It was clean and dry, relatively quiet with a constant temperature in summer and winter.  Straw made the manger a comfortable place to lay a child.  It may well have been an act of grace on the part of the innkeeper to let them sleep in the stable. The animals may have been cleaner than most of the men in the inn.

Whether the manger in the inn was the worst place to have a baby or the best accommodations available isn't the point, of course. There's no place on earth good enough for Christ's cradle.   God's Son came from an infinite paradise where angels attended Him constantly  If he had been born in Caesar's palace, it wouldn't have been grand enough for the King of Kings. 

We think in earthly terms. God thinks in heavenly terms. What we think of as grand and majestic is nothing in the economy of heaven. We seek earthly rewards, but they are nothing compared to heaven. People of this world seek for worldly comfort and pleasure. But these are not good enough for God's people. Here we endure the degraded squalor of the earth, because we know we are traveling to a heavenly home. For those who are God's people,  a far greater future home awaits us.

Have you ever been on a camping trip. It's fun to sleep in tents for a few days, but that is because we know we have an air conditioned living room to return to at the end of the journey.  We endure the deprivations of the woods because we will return to some place better. The journey of a Christian through earth is  just a camping trip in the wilderness compared with the comfort and peace we will find in our Father's house.

Christ's birth in a stable was an act of divine condescension. He did not hold on to His heavenly glory, but came to join us in our earthly squalor.  Paul writes in Philippians 2:5 -9

"Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,  who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant,  being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross."

His love for us is shown in His willingness to join us where we are, so that we may be where He is now.

"Father, thank you for your love, to set aside the glories of heaven and be born as a child on earth, in Jesus' Name, Amen"

Day 27 Peace on Earth

"When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us." And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. Luke 2:15-19  ESV

The worst side effect of the over-commercialization of Christmas is that we have been so bombarded by it that Christmas has lost its wonder.  Christmas is supposed to be a time of holy contemplation and rejoicing. Instead, it has become a time of busyness, overindulgence, and debt.

This was brought home to me years ago when I was shopping for Christmas toys on a rainy evening in December.  Traffic was awful.  The stores were crowded, and all the best gifts had already disappeared from the shelves.  I was shopping in a dirty department store full of crabby people and I wasn't much better myself.  I was questioning as I often do, whether the spiritual benefits of the season outweighed the social and moral excesses, the elevated anxiety levels, or the endless frustrations.  That evening I was thinking that they didn't and I was preparing to bet a quick retreat to home, just as soon as I found that one last gift for the kids.

I was standing in the aisle of the store, next to a line of picked over Christmas decoration. My eyes fell on a cheap plastic ornament, a Christmas bell, hanging from a bare hook between the plastic tinsel and a garish green garland.  There was a string coming out of the bottom, with a little knob on the end.  Curiosity overcame me, and I pulled it . Somewhere inside, it began to make music.  Though it was too slow and off key, I could make out the strains of "Silent night." 

Maybe I was tired. Maybe I was just nostalgic for something real about the season,  but as I listened to that squeaky sound,  the words of the carol leapt to mind.

"Silent night, holy night,

All is calm all is bright

Round yon virgin, mother and child

Holy infant so tender and mild,

 Sleep in heavenly peace

Sleep in heavenly peace."

The words affected me deeply. Here in this department store, among the cheesy replicas of snowmen and Santas, I could still hear the words of Franz Gruber's immortal hymn.  Heavenly peace was here at the core of it, and no amound of tinsel and red-nosed reindeer could every completely obscure it.  Christmas is the time of Christ's coming, a time of heavenly peace.

There are two ways of finding peace at Christmas. One way is to walk away from all the hassles and commercialism, and just not celebrate it at all. Stick to God and find peace. The other way is to recognize that peace endures, even among the busyness of life. At the heart of the season is a peace that passes all understanding.  If we take the time to look behind the messiness of the season, we can still find the Christ child sleeping in heavenly peace.

"Father, open out hearts to find the peace of the season in Christ--that peace that passes all understanding.  In Jesus' name, Amen."

Day 26 A Multitude of Angels

"Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."  Luke 2

Look at the exact phrasing of the passage here. Luke does not say that the angel was joined by a heavenly host—he said the heavenly host  just appeared. 

This is the only place in the Bible where a multitude of the heavenly host appeared.  Prophets such as Isaiah and John in Revelation had visions of heaven saw heavenly hosts as visions.  Jacob dreamt of the heavenly host going up and down from heaven, but it was in a dream. This is the only place in the Bible where a heavenly host appears to announce anything.  But they did not arrive,  they appeared. They didn't just fly down from heaven they were already here.  What changed was not the position of the angels, but our human perception. Suddenly, the shepherds saw what had always been there.  Angels are all around us. We just can't see them.

Every day, we are surrounded by a multitude of the heavenly host. They are beside us, above us, around us, in uncounted numbers. Our eyes, unaccustomed to the glory of God, have only limited abilities to see the presence of God's messengers.  Just as we cannot hear sounds that are too high or too low, and cannot perceive infrared or ultraviolet, so our minds cannot comprehend spiritual beings surrounding us on all sides.   It's like the old Spiritual

'All day, all night, angels watching over me, my Lord.

All day, all night, angels watching over me."

 Only at the coming of the Lord does reality appear.  We go through our lives worried that God has abandoned us, when His angels are in every part of the universe we see.  But when the veil of flesh is withdrawn, and the real reality of God’s providential care is revealed, we will know that all of creation is alive with angels, and they are all rejoicing.  This usually comes in the "suddenlys" of life, when our lives have been jarred by the unexpected, that our senses adjust to see greater things beyond our vision and eperience.

The word "angel" does not necessarily refer to a celestial beings though, An "angel" is any messenger of God. Not all angels surrounding you are unseen.  God sends people as well as celestial beings to watch out for you. When you see them, you should not worship them but they should be thanked.  They may include people who are looking out for your benefit,  provisions God has given, and  those who deliver the Good News of the Word of God. Many of these angels are seen every day. 

Not all the seen angels are people, either. There are many blessings in life that God has provided for us The Word of God, the Bible is also an angel, providing us with God's word. The natural world is also another kind of angel, declaring the Glory of God.  Angels are everywhere. Wherever God speaks to us, it is through an angel of one kind or another.  

Do not be afraid when you confront hard times or opposition. God has his angels everywhere. Instead of despairing, pray that God's Spirit will open your eyes to see the angels that are all around you.

"Father, thank you for giving us Your angels to watch over us always. In Jesus' name.  Amen" 

Day 25 "Suddenly. . . "

Luke 2:8-20

"Suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host"

The one word in this passage that sums up the whole story is the word “suddenly.” “Suddenly” means something unexpected, without forewarning.  “Suddenly” can never be predicted or anticipated until it happens. “Suddenly” is something that is always a total surprise.

The visitation of angels to the shepherds was a “suddenly.”  These shepherds were just ordinary people doing a routine, boring job.  They were just night watchmen, fighting to stay awake. But then came a “suddenly” and their beliefs and their lives were shaken to the core.

 “Suddenly” happens to all of us. We may go for days, years, even decades doing pretty much the same old thing every day, when out of the blue comes a “suddenly” that changes everything. One day our boss tells us we’ve been laid off, a stranger’s car runs a red light and smashes into us,. a doctor tells us that we have cancer,  or a phone call tells us that someone close to us has died.  Whether good or bad, they bring stress and confusion. It is human nature to prefer a comfortable, quiet, and predictable life style, like counting sheep on a hillside, to a world of stress and danger. 

These shepherds were peacefully settled on the hillside, when suddenly the glory of the Lord shone around them. They were terrified—“sore afraid” the King James Version puts it.  They’d never seen an angel before, or a bright light of any kind.

We go to great lengths, too, to keep the “suddenlys” from happening. We get regular checkups, take vitamins, buckle our seat belts, get insurance. but the unexpected happens anyway. “Suddenlys” comes when God wants them to come—and when they do, we, too are terrified. 

Christians should not be scared of “suddenlys.”  We have God’s assurance that He is in control.

We think that if we build a wall of precautions around our lives, keeping ourselves covered by careful living and cautious behavior, then nothing bad will happen to us.  It doesn’t work. Nothing could have prevented those angels from appearing. The  greatest problem with the cautious life is that it is basically godless. Instead of trusting God we trust ourselves.  We  assume that we have the power to be our own saviors if we are just smart enough or cautious enough to get by without incident.  But we are not God, and we cannot protect ourselves from “suddenlys”.

When "suddenlys" happen, we must trust that God is in control.  The angel said to the shepherds, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.”   In other words, "Don’t worry--this is a good thing as you will see later."

It’s hard for us to imagine how the “suddenly” in our lives could possibly lead to good--but they often do.  Great blessings  come through great danger.  We cannot get a better world until our present world is shaken.  God is about to shake their world.

The angel continued: “Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."  God has just sent His Son into the world, and this will be a blessing to all people. 

The outcome of the “suddenly” depends on whether or not we go where it is pointing.  If the shepherds had stayed on the hillside that night, then nothing would have changed for them. They would assume it was some kind of collective hallucination and dismissed it. But some of them at least decided to go seek Jesus.  When they found Him, then everything else was changed.

When “suddenlys” happen to us, we have a choice—we can either ignore it, run from it, or listen to it.  The shepherd heard the message and turned to Jesus. 

"Father,   keep me from worry when 'suddenlys' happen. Help me to trust in your grace at all times.  In Jesus' name. Amen"

Day 24 God of Time and Space

 "In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria. 3 And all went to be registered, each to his own town. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called."  Luke 2:1-4 ESV

In the New Testament, dates were not given as calendar years, but by the dates kings or governors of the province.  They knew the date of the census, and there the date of the birth of Jesus, by the name of  the Roman governor-- who happened to be Quirinius.  Later, Luke will record the beginning of Jesus' ministry by mentioning the dates of six different leaders--"The fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas." (Luke 3:1-2) 

Why are the dates of Jesus' life important?  While the specific dates are not important, the times  are very important.   It was important that Jesus came to Israel under Roman occupation in the First Century, AD.   It is important that we remember this, too. Jesus happened in time and space.

The dates of Mohammad's life are disputed in Islam, and regarded as unimportant. Buddhists to not care when Buddha lived. It makes no difference. Shakespeare's plays would still be important if they were written in ancient Rome or Victorian England.  No one cares when Little Red Riding Hood happened, because it is a fairy tale. Whoever tells the story is free to set it whenever he or she wishes.  But Jesus' story is tied to history. Jesus came into the real world, and His presence is vital to the Christian message.

It matters to us whether or not Jesus was born of a virgin, died on the cross, and rose from the dead. These are not just stories, but real events.  Jesus' words are important but His work or redemption is vital to us. Our faith is first of all in what Jesus did. If we think it is just another story,  then how do we know it can be real in our lives?

On my first trip to Israel, we got  off the plane in Tel Aviv, and took a night bus to Tiberius on the sea of Galilee.  It was a cold, rainy night, and our bus's  windshield wipers broke on the way.  What should have taken ninety minutes took hours.  I had been up for thirty-six hours already and everyone was getting cranky.

Then I saw something that gave me a thrill. It was a road sign which simply said "Nazareth, 3 km. I was only two miles from Jesus' home town!  For twenty years I had studied these places,  preached about Jesus,  and based my life on the truth of these stories. But I had never seen the places. Here before me was a visual confirmation that what I had studied actually existed.

The fact that  Christ existed in Israel in the First Century means that God really entered our world. If He was not born, He could not die. If He did not resurrect after He died, then neither will we.  His actual presence in the world made it possible for us to live after our deaths as well.

"Thank you, Father, that you entered time and space, enduring all  that the world could throw at You, to purchase my salvation. Thank you that you entered this world for me, a citizen of this world. Help me to remember that You are real, and that Your promises are real as well. In Jesus' name, Amen." 

Day 23 The Birth of John

In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah,  of the division of Abijah.  And he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord. But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years.

Now while he was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty, according to the custom of the priesthood, he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. And the whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense. And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him. But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb. And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared."

And Zechariah said to the angel, "How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years." 19 And the angel answered him, "I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news. And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time." And the people were waiting for Zechariah, and they were wondering at his delay in the temple. And when he came out, he was unable to speak to them, and they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple. And he kept making signs to them and remained mute. And when his time of service was ended, he went to his home.

Luke 1:5-23 ESV

There were more than 24,000 men qualified for the priesthood in Jesus' day. With so many the duties of the priests were divided into two week tours of duty, with men selected from divisions of a thousand or more to serve annually. The ones who served were chosen by lot. Many priests never got to serve in the temple.

You can imagine, then how exciting Zechariah must have been to be selected to serve in the holy place!   It was the height of his spiritual experience with the Lord.

When he began to minister, his joy quickly turned to astonishment.  There in the midst of the holy place was an angel of the Lord!  The angel brought a message to him directly from God. He and his wife would have a baby and that the baby will be the prophet would announce Jesus. Zechariah couldn't believe it. 

Disbelief seems to be the most natural thing in the world, especially in Zechariah's circumstance. It was such an emotional experience to serve in the temple. Who would not think that his imagination must be playing tricks on him?  It probably was not unusual for men in situation to experience tricks of the imagination in the excitement of serving in the temple.

God looks gently on our disbelief. But sometimes, disbelief can be dangerous. Questions are good, but too many questions may make us miss an important opportunity. So God confirmed his message to Zechariah and also found a way to keep his unbelief from spreading to others He literally struck him speechless until the baby was born. In this way He proved that it was Him, and also kept him from saying anything else.   Zechariah was a good man, by all accounts.  He was a sincere believer and a diligent priest.  He would have been a man that anyone would be happy to have a spiritual father or pastor. But when confronted with a real angel, his faith wavered.

Did that mean that Zechariah was a poor priest. Not at all. He was just a human, like everyone else, subject to the same doubts and foibles as the rest of us.   If we are in a place of Spiritual leadership, it often happens that God judges us more harshly not because we are bad leaders, but so we can be better ones.  Sometimes God doesn't want us teaching or preaching, but listening and learning.  Zechariah's faith grew in his silence. When he finally opened his mouth, he spoke in poetry. 

When God humbles us, we should accept that humility as an act of grace.  When the humbling is over, God will speak through us more clearly. God may have put you on the shelf for a time, but it is for the same purpose we put grape juice on the shelf--so it can mature into a finer wine.  When God uses us it will be better because of what we have learned through our humbling. 

"God, give me faith to believe the good news of Your grace. Let me not resent the times when you are not using me, but recognize my own need for maturity and strengthening. In Jesus' name, Amen."

Day 22 Jumping for Joy

"My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for he who is mighty has done great things for me,

and holy is his name.  And his mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation  He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts; he has brought down the mighty from their thrones  and exalted those of humble estate; he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent empty away. He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, as he spoke to our fathers,  to Abraham and to his offspring forever."  Luke 1:46-56  ESV

Mary's song is unusual for several reasons. First, it is one of only three songs in Scripture attributed to women.  The others are the song of Miriam in Exodus and the song of Deborah in Judges.  It is one only a few songs in the New Testament.  It is also the only part of the New Testament written by a woman. 

It is a song of pure joy.  Mary was visiting her cousin Elizabeth,  who bore in her womb John the Baptist.  When they met, John jumped in his mother's womb. Mary echoes that joy in her song.

"My soul magnifies the Lord And my spirit rejoices in God my savior."

The word she uses for "rejoice"  literally means to jump for joy. As John jumped for joy in his mother,  Mary jumped for joy in her song as she contemplated what God was doing. 

"Joy" is complicated.  First of all, it comes from knowing, not supposing.  Mary trusted when the angel Gabriel spoke to her, but she did not rejoice. Instead, she bowed her head in meek submission.  She supposed that it was God speaking, but she could have been wrong.  The angel could have been a delusion. But when she met Elizabeth, the words of the angel were confirmed.  Her faith became firm knowledge, so she rejoiced.  Faith produces obedience, but assurance produces joy. She went beyond belief to relief, and from relief to joy.

Joy produces action. All the words in the Old Testament for praise or joy are action words. This word meant  to "jump high."  When joy is in our hearts, we should not keep it inside, but it should be expressed with our hands, feet, and mouths.  Joy unexpressed does not stay around for long.  When we express our joy in the Savior, it echoes back to us, building in depth and resonance.  The more we express our joy, the more we experience it.

Joy is a feeling, but does not exist in our hearts alone. Other emotions are in there also. Joy exists in our hearts side by side with sadness, fear, and even anger. But joy works in our hearts in ways that other emotions don't.

A friend once explained the difference to me between pleasure, satisfaction and joy.  Pleasure is of the flesh, and is superficial enjoyment.  Our bodies may experience pleasure even while we are sad or depressed.  Satisfaction is of the mind or heart. We may experience a long term sense of satisfaction when things are generally all right, and life seems reasonably well. We may be satisfied with what we have, but that it not the same as joy. Joy is  something deeper, a sense of peace with God.  We may not experience pleasure, in fact we may be in pain.  We may be dissatisfied with our current situation. But even so, there may be a deeper sense of joy in our lives.  We may be going through difficult times, doing work we hate, or have our hearts broken, but can still find joy in the assurance that we are in God's hands.  That joy is like a deep well inside of us which bubbles to the surface in unexpected times and does not depend on the disturbances on the surface.

Mary's song expresses this kind of joy. In her heart she knew peace with God. Even though she was facing pain, shame, and pregnancy, Mary found God's promise worth rejoicing about. 

"Father, thank you for giving me the gift of joy.  Help me to become aware of the Spirit's well of joy within me. Help me rejoice in you, even in times of great difficulty. In Jesus' name, Amen."