All posts tagged christmas

Pride gets no pleasure out of having something, only out of having more of it than the next man. We say that people are proud of being rich, or clever, or good-looking, but they are not. They are proud of being richer, or cleverer, or better-looking than others. If everyone else became equally rich, or clever, or good-looking there would be nothing to be proud about. It is the comparison that makes you proud: the pleasure of being above the rest.

This quote is from C.S. Lewis in his great book Mere Christianity.  You can read more of this chapter here.

With the Christmas shopping season in full swing now, this is a potent reminder to find our deepest satisfaction in Jesus.  He is both The Great Gift Giver, and The Great Gift.  He is all that we need, all that we could ask for.

Materialism, which is nothing more than competition rooted in Pride, is swarming like a plague in our culture and it is never more ravenous than this time of year.  We are bombarded with attempts to compell us to compare ourselves to our neighbor, our friends, even imaginary strangers.

Bigger, faster, stronger.  Richer.  Smarter.  More fashionable.  In-the-know and in-the-now.

The antidote to this corrosive sickness, I believe, is not more restraint at the cash register.  The answer is to stir up gratitude and joy in The Great Gift, Jesus Himself.  To wonder like children at the miracle of His incarnation: the majesty of His divinity joined with the meekness of humanity.

Jesus, make me wide-eyed and amazed at the wonder of You.  So much so that all the shining and shimmering glitter of this world cannot distract my gaze.

81 days ago /  Tagged: , 0

God Is With Us

Due to weather here in Kernersville, NC I didn’t get to preach my full Christmas message.  I had about 2 minutes.  I was considering how to distill everything down to one or two sentences.  How could I summarize the fall of man in the beginning, the frustration of mankind’s attempts to rescue himself and the promise of a coming Rescuer in the Old Testament, the humility and glory of the incarnation all into one brief thought?

Matthew 1:23 – “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us).”

Quoting Isaiah 7:14, we are given His name – Immanuel… God with us.  I think this summarizes Christmas well.

God, the divine Creator, Elohim, holy, majestic, righteous, and loving.  He came to rescue us.  He came to reconcile us to himself.

Underneath the stillness of the nativity is a Creator shouting, proclaiming his name and all that it means.  Immanuel.  You are not alone.  I promised I would come.  And now I have done it.

So, after the presents are unwrapped, the tree discarded, the trash bagged and it’s time to do your taxes remember his name.  Remember that no matter what you face in the coming year, or what you face now, the King of Kings is with you.  He promises you that He will come.  And he will do it.

793 days ago /  Tagged: , 0