Christmas

I am preaching a meditation at our 6:30 PM Christmas eve service at Hempfield COB. We are playing a video called "He Came" right before my meditation which is called "He Came...Why?" In it I look at 2 reasons why Jesus came to earth. In my research I realized that we could probably do half a year of Sunday's on just that very question...from coming to seek and save the lost, to die on the cross to redeem us, to the redemption of all of creation (of which we are a part), and the list goes on and on. The two that I am focusing on are John 10:10.. "I came that they may have life and life to the fullest." and Luke 4:16-21
"He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. And he stood up to read. 17The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:
18"The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to release the oppressed,
19to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."^[e]

20Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him, 21and he began by saying to them, "Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."

So when we boil it all down....the shepherd's, the angels, the wisemen, Mary, Joseph, and the baby Jesus....Christmas is all about mission. I found the perfect poem, the perfect ending for my sermon/mediation.

"When the song of the angels is stilled,
when the star in the sky is gone,
when the kings and princes are home,
when the shepherds are back with the flocks,
then the work of Christmas begins:
to find the lost,
to heal those broken in spirit,
to feed the hungry,
to release the oppressed,
to rebuild the nations,
to bring peace among all peoples,
to make a little music with the heart…

And to radiate the Light of Christ,
every day, in every way, in all that we do and in all that we say.
Then the work of Christmas begins.

So my prayer for each of us this Christmas is that we will incarnate Jesus into our lives, into our celebrations, and incarnate him in the world. Be a blessing this Christmas season.

In an instant....

Our lives can be totally changed in an instant...for the better or for the worse. I learned this lesson again on Friday night.

Friday night we were home getting the kids ready for bed and then we had rented "The Dark Knight" after they were in bed. We were getting Trinity ready for bed and in her PJ's. She didn't want to get in them and began to scream and cry. As Kim was holding her and putting the PJ's on, Trinity began a silent scream. Now she has never done that but Kaiden had and we knew that she would come out of it and cry. Well the silent scream went on for probably 30 seconds when all of the sudden her body went limp, and her eyes were glassy. Kim realized that she wasn't breathing. We ran over to where the phone was and called 911. By the time the operator answered the phone, Trinity was breathing again.

We then called our Pediatrician who asked us some questions and we came to the conclusion that she was holding her breathe until she passed out. We were worried that she had a seizure of some kind. Because her body was tensed up it cut the air off and it didn't take long to pass out. When we moved her and changed positions her body was loose and everything started working again. The doctor told us that his nephew does that all the time. I pray that it never happens again. We thought that we were going to lose her. It shook us up all night...every so often we would go into her room just to watch her sleep and check on her breathing.

Realize in an instant life can change...tell someone you love them now. Do something now that you will regret if something happens. Spend more time with family and friends. Make a difference in the world now. In an instant...it might be too late.

Subversive Christmas- 2nd Post

As I mentioned in my last post, I will be posting an article that I had put in my church's newsletter last year around this time. It has spurred my thinking in regards to the subversive nature of Christmas. All too often we see Christmas in sentimental terms and it truly looses power when it is only seen as a cute story, a tradition, or anything other than what it is...a radical life-altering, kingdom of God moment where God broke into the world in the strangest of ways...through the birth of a baby.....

So here is the article (with thanks to Steve Chalke's book "The Lost Message of Jesus"

As we look towards celebrating Christmas later this month, I am reminded of a book that I read a year or two ago that had a chapter about Christmas. The book is entitled “The Lost Message of Jesus” by Steve Chalke and in a chapter entitled “The Promised Prince of Peace” he covers the importance of the Christmas Story. I want to take this space to share with you just how revolutionary the story of the birth of Jesus by including a section from the book.
“The sleeping baby has become the symbol of the status quo- a safe, sanitized, twenty-first century savior. But it is time to take a closer look at the stories of Jesus’ birth, reading them with Israel’s history wrapped around the newborn baby rather than with our sugar-coated sentimentality. Only then will we truly understand that the Christmas story is a radical message that sets the scene for all that is to come from the most challenging and controversial figure of all human history.”
“As we see in the opening chapters of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, Jesus birth took place in the shadow of two great powers: King Herod (Matthew 2:1) and Emperor Augustus (Luke 2:1). But in pointing this out, Matthew and Luke have a greater purpose than simply informing us about geography and chronology. Rather they are setting the scene- sketching the political landscape and the social pecking order of the first-century Palestine, the backdrop against which the events of Jesus birth would take on huge significance.”
Chalke continues, “In such a highly charge atmosphere, it is understandable why wise men who traveled thousands of miles and were guided by an astrological portent in order to visit and worship the child who was called “the new born king” was a hugely provocative event. So Herod, concerned with his own position as ruler of Israel demanded to know, “Where will the Messiah be born?” He knew that if this baby was the true king of Israel, his days were numbered. There was no room for two royal houses in Israel. Herod, for one, would do all he could to resist the charms of this particular baby.”
“The Gospel writers, however, are determined that their readers understand the significance of Jesus’ birth on a larger scale- it struck right at the heart of the mighty Roman Empire. Any power of Herod the Great paled before the might of Caesar Augustus (from which Herod derived his power in the first place). He had single-handedly turned what had become a rocky republic into the greatest and most famous empire of them all. As the establisher and sole leader of the Roman Empire (27BC-AD 14) he developed what the termed his “gospel” for the people, the good news according to Caesar: “Divine Augustus Caesar, son of god, imperator of land and sea, the benefactor and saviour of the whole world, has brought you peace.” Anyone else laying claim to this role would have been treated as a pretender to the throne and permanently silenced.
“Therefore, it is a statement of political dynamite when the God of Israel sends his messenger Gabriel to announce the true saviour of the world and the bringer of real peace, the shalom of God, is now present on earth and that this is genuine good news for all the people. Both Matthew and Luke are making it abundantly clear that the birth of Jesus is a paradigm-shifting event. The gauntlet has been thrown down. From that moment, there was a new kid in town, a new contender vying for the title, Saviour of the World!”
May this Christmas be a time of following our paradigm-shifting, upside down kingdom, radical loving God who came to earth in the most obscure way, a baby born to poor parents in a manager.

Hope this opens our eyes to see Christmas a little different this year.

Subversive Christmas-1st Post

As we get closer and closer to Christmas, the commercial's take more and more TV time. All promising something they can't deliver...true hope, true joy, true faith, and true life. They can only promise debt, temporary joy, and the fact that what was bought this year will eventually be replaced by the latest model, or a newer outfit, or sitting in the basement gathering dust.

I have been doing a lot of thinking about Christmas and love what is being done through the Advent Conspiracy website and movement. I wrote about it in my last church newsletter. So I thought I would include that here in this space.

It’s that time of year again. When the mall parking lots will fill up with people looking for that perfect gift. When you get something for someone who has got everything they need. I have been wondering lately if there isn’t a better way to celebrate Advent and Christmas this year. I have become aware of an idea that I believe helps us as Christ follower celebrate Christmas in a much more holistic, Christ-honoring, and world changing way. It is called Advent Conspiracy. The four parts to the Advent Conspiracy are: Worship Fully, Spend Less, Give More, and Love All. This is what their website (www.adventconspiracy.org) says about these four parts.
Worship Fully: It starts with Jesus. It ends with Jesus. This is the holistic approach God had in mind for Christmas. It’s a season where we are called to put down our burdens and lift a song up to our God. It’s a season where love wins, peace reigns, and a king is celebrated with each breath. It’s the party of the year. Entering the story of advent means entering this season with an overwhelming passion to worship Jesus to the fullest.
Spend Less: Before you think we’re getting all Scrooge on you, let us explain what we mean. We like gifts. Our kids really like gifts. But consider this: America spends an average of $450 billion a year every Christmas. How often have you spent money on Christmas presents for no other reason than obligation? How many times have you received a gift out of that same obligation? Thanks, but no thanks, right? We’re asking people to consider buying ONE LESS GIFT this Christmas. Just one. Sounds insignificant, yet many who have taken this small sacrifice have experienced something nothing less than a miracle: They have been more available to celebrate Christ during the advent season.
Give More: God’s gift to us was a relationship built on love. So it’s no wonder why we’re drawn to the idea that Christmas should be a time to love our friends and family in the most memorable ways possible. Time is the real gift Christmas offers us, and no matter how hard we look, it can’t be found at the mall. Time to make a gift that turns into the next family heirloom. Time to write mom a letter. Time to take the kids sledding. Time to bake really good cookies and sing really bad Christmas carols. Time to make love visible through relational giving. Sounds a lot better than getting a sweater two sizes too big, right?
Love All: When Jesus loved, He loved in ways never imagined. Though rich, he became poor to love the poor, the forgotten, the overlooked and the sick. He played to the margins. By spending less at Christmas we have the opportunity to join Him in giving resources to those who need help the most. When Advent Conspiracy first began four churches challenged this simple concept to its congregations. The result raised more than a half million dollars to aid those in need. One less gift. One unbelievable present in the name of Christ.
May we as Christ followers this Christmas season live out this Advent Conspiracy. May we worship Christ more fully this Christmas Season. May we spend less. May we give more and may we love all. May this Christmas season be about the best present ever…Jesus and giving that present to others through acts of love, social justice, evangelism, and our time. Christmas can (still) change the world.

I will post another article that I "wrote" (using the book Lost Message of Jesus by Steve Chalke) about the subversive message of Christmas tomorrow.