Colin S. Smith's Blog, page 58

Comparing the Bible’s First and Last Miraculous Birth

The creation of Adam and the birth of Jesus Christ. The first and the last miraculous birth described in the Bible. I want to compare these two this Christmas season as we remember and celebrate the coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Adam: The First Miraculous Birth 

…then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature (Genesis 2:7) 

This is a wonderful miracle. God intervened into the natural, physical realm and formed Adam. Not only did he work a miracle through making Adam, but he also put his divine mark on him. The verse above says that God “breathed into his nostrils the breath of life.” Before this, the formation of Adam was a natural process of bringing physical elements together, but God’s life-giving work comes through divine intervention and can only be a miracle.

Note that when God creates a living thing in Genesis 1, he creates them “according to their/its kind” (1:21, 24, 25). But when God creates humanity, he creates them “in our image, after our likeness”(1:26, emphasis mine). Surely, humanity is divinely set apart from the rest!

Because God created Adam like this, we might be tempted to describe him as perfect. While this word can mean “really good,” it more appropriately points to something that is complete. Consider the two verses before Genesis 2;7:  

When no bush of the field was yet in the land and no small plant of the field had yet sprung up—for the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the land, and there was no man to work the ground, and a mist was going up from the land and was watering the whole face of the ground. (Genesis 2:5-6) 

Potential 

In the verses above, everything is still developing. Everything is good, we know that from Genesis 1. But this place is far from completion. A more appropriate word would be potential. This move from potential to perfection is something in which God wants Adam to be a major participant: 

And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground the Lord God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. (Genesis 2: 8-9) 

Here God has given Adam a place to work. He has given him a place to rule. There is great potential in Eden. But inherent to potential is some amount of tension. The tension here comes not from God’s faithfulness to Adam, but from Adam’s willingness to participate in God’s vision for him. What will Adam choose? Will he avoid temptation?

We know how the story goes. Adam will choose sin over God, and will ruin his potential for perfection, leading humanity into a downward spiral of pride and self-reliance.  

For as by a man came death… For as in Adam all die… (1 Corinthians 15:21-22)  

Jesus Christ: The Last Miraculous Birth 

“Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”  

And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?” (Luke 1:30-34)  

Here is the greatest miracle of all time. The miraculous conception and birth of Jesus Christ. He is the God who came to be with us. He is the divine, Almighty God who took on human form. More than being endowed with God’s image, as Adam was (Genesis 1:26), Jesus is God himself.  

And Jesus’s coming brought so much more than potential, for his coming brought no tension for his people. The Birth of Jesus meant redemption and resolution. The life of Christ started with a fulfilled promise and ended with a proclamation of perfection on the cross:  

It is finished. (John 19:30) 

Fulfillment  

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14) 

Jesus was born to fulfill the law. He came to earth to reconcile us to God the Father. Jesus came to fulfill all the Old Testament prophecies given to God’s people through his prophets. He was, and is, the fulfillment of their, and our, hope.  

For those who knew what this meant, there was no tension in them. Consider Simon who saw baby Jesus and exclaimed: “for my eyes have seen your salvation” (Luke 2:30). He does not beg the Lord to let him live longer to see more—he has seen fulfillment!  

Or the angel who appeared to the shepherds and said, “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11). The angel does not say “For unto you is born this day in the city of David someone who will become your Savior.” Jesus is the Savior!  

For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. (1 Corinthians 15:21-22) 

Remaining Tension  

Since Christ fulfilled the law and offered salvation to all who believe in him, the tension between the serpent and the offspring (Genesis 3:15) has been resolved. The offspring, Christ, though bitten by death, has defeated death and was raised to new, everlasting life. That conflict is resolved.  

But there may be some tension that needs resolving this Christmas season for you, reader. Christ has offered you great potential—a new life found in him. And you face a choice like the one Adam faced. Like Adam, you can choose self-reliance and place yourself at the center of your life. Or in Christ, you choose to live for the vision God has for your life.  

Which will you choose this Christmas? 

[Photo Credit: Unsplash]

Key Connections: Christmas, Financial Giving, and more…

Here are some of my favorite quotes from Christian articles around the web, including the often overlooked difficulty of the Christmas season, and a post offering a biblical framework for why financial giving is an important aspect of the Christian life.

What the Bible Says to the Jaded, Discouraged, and Worn Out (Colin Smith, Unlocking the Bible)

Christ gives his Spirit to those who hope in him so that something of his divine power may touch us in our human weakness. Strength comes as we ascend by faith into the presence of the Lord and commune with our living Savior. Here’s what will come from that: You will keep running. You will keep walking. You will keep pressing on.

Did We Finish Any Good Work This Year? (Autumn Kern, Risen Motherhood)

But God prepared the work before us, which means making lunches and scrubbing toilets can become eternally important work. He uses everyday activities and moments to bring about his plans and glory. He wills and works in all things for his pleasure and our good. And since God prepared these works, his standard remains: perfection.

5 Reasons to Financially Support Christian Ministries (Brad Wetherell, Unlocking the Bible)

We worship when we give. Giving is not merely about supporting a person or a ministry. Giving is not merely about following a command. More than this, giving is about heartfelt worship to the Lord. You are acknowledging, “God, you own everything. All that I have is a gift from you. So, I willingly and joyfully release your resources for your work.”

What the driving-home-for-Christmas feeling tells you (Rachel Jones, The Good Book Company)

Best of all, waiting eagerly at the door to welcome us in is Jesus himself. He’s the One who knows us and loves us more deeply than we can imagine—the One who left his home in heaven, lived the life of a roaming preacher and died the death of a social outcast to bring us home. Now he’s standing at heaven’s door, ready to embrace us and say, “Welcome home.”

Christmas Light Shines On Humanity’s Wounds (Chad Bird, Unlocking the Bible)

Are you joyless? He is born as the light that no darkness can overcome. Counts our every tear. Sits with us in ICU. Stands with us at the graveside. And promises, though weeping may last the night, that joy comes in the morning, for he himself is our joy. 

Christmas Is For The Lonely And Grieving (Leah Baugh, Core Christianity)

He came into this world, with all its sufferings, loneliness, and tragedy. Christmas is a season for meditating upon this great and comforting truth: that the Son of God came down and took on flesh, took on the sufferings of this fractured and estranged world, to draw near to us.

5 Reasons to Financially Support Christian Ministries

It’s the season of giving, and there are many opportunities to give this December. Have you ever wondered why we, as Christians, give financially to support Christian ministries and causes? Consider reading Philippians. Philippians blends deep theology and immense practicality. This letter declares the joys of knowing Jesus repeatedly. And it portrays a church living in light of all that Christ has done. 

Philippians teaches us the goal of every church, the goal of every Christian, is to look more like Jesus Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit, for the glory of God the Father. And in the fourth chapter of Philippians, Paul shows that this kind of life involves and a generous spirit. 

I want to look at this passage because I trust this will help us think biblically about our giving. And I trust it will help us continue to pursue the kind of generosity that marked the Philippian church and should mark all of Christ’s people. 

So, why should we give money to support our church or to support Christian ministries? 

1.) Giving is compassionate

Yet it was kind of you to share my trouble. (Philippians 4:14) 

Paul suffered throughout his ministry. And the Philippians, in an act of kindness and compassion, sent him financial aid to alleviate some of his sufferings.  

God’s servants are not immune to suffering. Maybe you know of a pastor, church planter, or missionary who is enduring painful trials. You certainly know of ministries caring for hurting people around the world. If financial assistance will bring some relief, then giving will be an act of compassion. 

Of course, Christian compassion will always extend beyond care for people’s physical well-being to their spiritual well-being. If a person never knows Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, his or her life will end in tragedy. As Christians, we keep that at the forefront of our minds.

We do not neglect soul-care as we engage in physical care.  

When you support Christian ministries striving to advance the soul-saving, and eternal-comfort-giving gospel of Jesus Christ, you are being compassionate.  

2.) Giving is ministry

…no church entered into partnership with me in giving and receiving, except you only. (Philippians 4:15) 

Notice what Paul is saying. In their giving, the Philippians were not merely supporting Paul’s ministry, they were partnering in his ministry. Their financial assistance of Paul’s missionary activity made them a part of that work themselves!  

That’s so important for us to understand. Giving is not simply a way to support Christian ministries. Giving makes you a part of the ministry itself! 

3.) Giving is wise

Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that increases to your credit. (Philippians 4:17) 

I don’t know much about investing, but here’s what I do know: Wise investing, successful investing, produces increasing returns. When Scripture talks about investing our resources in gospel ministry, we see again and again that this is wise, because it is abundantly fruitful. 

Look at verse 17. “I’m not ultimately seeking your money,” Paul says emphatically. “I’m seeking the fruit that increases to your credit.” What does that mean? Well, Paul is simply following a principle laid out by Jesus: 

Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth… but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven… (Matthew 6:19-20) 

Jesus is saying that it’s possible to invest in all kinds of things in this life. Treasures on earth can be taken from us. Criminals can steal them. Time and age can wear them down and destroy them. Markets can crash and diminish them.  

But, there is another kind of investing that is completely secure. We can lay up treasures in heavenly things. We can invest in the work of building Christ’s kingdom.  

Investing in Christ’s kingdom produces an amazing return. 

4.) Giving is worship

I have received full payment, and more. I am well supplied, having received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent, a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God. (Philippians 4:18) 

Paul is taking language straight out of the Old Testament. When you read the commands about worship through sacrifice in the Bible you find this kind of language over and over again (see Leviticus 1:9). 

Paul uses this language of fragrant offerings and acceptable sacrifices to make a clear point: the gift the Philippians sent him was an act of worship, and it was pleasing to God. 

And when he says it was pleasing to God, he does not mean that their giving earned God’s favor and love. It is the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross that makes us right with God. Faith in him alone is the basis of our forgiveness and eternal life. But sacrifice in the Old Testament was a part of Israel’s worship, and the same can be said of us today. 

We worship when we give. Giving is not merely about supporting a person or a ministry. Giving is not merely about following a command. More than this, giving is about heartfelt worship to the Lord. You are acknowledging, “God, you own everything. All that I have is a gift from you. So, I willingly and joyfully release your resources for your work.”

5.) Giving is safe

And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:19) 

Most investing involves risk. And this is often the obvious reason we struggle with giving. You might be wondering, If I give to the Lord, if I support Christian ministries, how can I be sure that I’ll have enough for everything else? 

Well, verse 19 provides a wonderful promise to rest in: “My God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” We need to let that sink in.  

Two Things You Need to Know about Philippians 4:19 

1.) This verse is not describing God like some kind of vending machine. If you put in some cash, he’ll pour out all the blessings you can imagine. That false teaching is being promoted in the name of Jesus all over this country and sadly all over this world. The so-called “prosperity gospel” that calls on people to send in their cash so that God can pour out material blessing is a lie. The blessing of the true gospel is Christ and eternal glory with him, not material wealth in this life.  

2.) What you think you need and what God knows you need may be two different things. In God’s perfect wisdom he may withhold many things that you feel are necessities. But because he is your loving Father in Christ, you can always trust that he is doing this for your good.

So, with those qualifications in place, hear this wonderful news one more time: My God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. 

Why should we support Christian ministries?  

Giving is compassionate, giving is ministry, giving is wise, giving is worship, and giving is safe because we serve the God of abundant riches. He will take care of us.

At the end of the day, our greatest desire is that the God who made us, the God who saved us, and the God who will bring us into his kingdom one day will receive glory forever and ever. 

There is no greater motivator than the glory of God, and giving is one way we honor him.

But we must remember that every Christian virtue, including giving, happens under the banner of his grace. Philippians ends with these words, “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit” (Philippians 4:23).

We do not support Christian ministries in order to earn God’s favor, we do not pray in order to earn God’s favor, we do not attend church in order to earn God’s favor, we do not do anything in order to earn God’s favor.

We do everything in response to the favor he has graciously shown us, and continues to graciously show us each day, and will graciously show us forever.

[Photo Credit: Unsplash]

What the Bible Says to the Jaded, Discouraged, and Worn Out

Christmas season is the season of joy, but it is also a time when the cumulative weight of all that has happened in the course of the year catches up with you. Moving into the last month of the year often causes a sense of being worn out, discouraged, or stretched thin. Someone described it to me as a “collective weariness.”  

What is the answer to collective weariness? Where would we look in the Bible for help when we feel jaded, discouraged, and generally worn out? 

My mind goes to Isaiah 40: “They who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength” (Isaiah 40:31). That speaks to me. That’s what I need, but how do I get there? How do I get to Isaiah 40:31? The first 30 verses of this chapter might have something to do with it! 

Isaiah 40 is full of anticipations of the birth of Christ, but I want to use this article to show the promise of renewed strength God gives to all those who are discouraged at the end of the chapter. 

Lean into The Truth You Know about God 

Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. (Isaiah 40:28) 

God reminds his people of what they already know, what they have often heard, because faith is strengthened, not by learning something new, but by coming back to what we have heard and known. 

Faith is strengthened, not by learning something new, but by coming back to what we have heard and known: Christ crucified and risen for us. What is it that every believer knows and has heard about God that we need to lean into in these times of weariness? 

God is your Creator

The Lord is…the Creator of the ends of the earth. (Isaiah 40:28)  

God formed you in your mother’s womb. He gave you life with the purpose of redeeming you. He purchased you at the cost of his own Son. And, he infused a new life into you, recreating you in Jesus Christ. 

God does not grow weary

He does not faint or grow weary. (Isaiah 40:28) 

God sustains all that he has made. He never runs out of resources. He never tires of you. There is never a time when God looks at you and says, “Where do we go from here?” 

God works on an everlasting timescale

The Lord is the everlasting God. (Isaiah 40:28) 

Time is at his disposal. None of us knows what God will do in the coming year, let alone in 10 years or in 50 years, or what God will do in the lives of our children or grandchildren. The granddaughter of your rebel son may turn out to have a ministry beyond anything you can imagine. 

No one can fathom his understanding

His understanding is unsearchable. (Isaiah 40:28) 

None of us will ever fathom the mind of God, or gain a full picture of what he is doing. So why even try? His understanding is unsearchable! 

Lean into The Truth That You Know About Yourself 

He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted. (Isaiah 40:29-30) 

Notice the words that are used here: “faint,” “no might,” “weary,” “fall exhausted.” That’s us! And notice that this is us at our best: “even youths shall be faint and weary.” 

Then God says “Young men shall fall exhausted.” The phrase “young men” literally means “picked men.” This is like athletes who are in peak condition, the ones who catch the eye of the Olympic selection committee. 

At the end of the marathon, even athletes in peak condition are weary. Some fall exhausted. Others look faint. Why? Because their bodies have been through a test of endurance that has pushed them to the limits. 

There are limits to all human endurance. Paul describes our bodies as tents (2 Corinthians 5), not palaces made of stone and held up by marble pillars, but tents made of canvas and held up by ropes that stretch, sag, and fray. So, no Christian should be surprised at this experience of weariness. God has placed his treasure in jars of clay. We live in this earthly tent that one day will be torn down. 

Here’s what you know about yourself: You are not God. You’re a created being with limits to your own strength and endurance. You will become weary. You will know what it is to feel spent and exhausted. Feeling worn out should not take you by surprise. Lean into the truth that you know. But that’s only half the answer. 

Lay Hold of the Hope That You Have 

Laying hold of the hope that you have is the natural result of leaning into the truth that you know. When you lean into what you know about God (that God is the everlasting Creator and that he does not grow weary), you will look to him and, as you do, he will give you strength:  

He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. (Isaiah 40:29)  

Notice the word “gives.” This is an action of God in relation to his own people at times when we feel our strength is depleted, and our faith is burning low. He “gives power” and he “increases strength!” 

How does God do this? God does not faint or grow weary (Isaiah 40:28). The way he gives strength to the weary is that he gives himself to you.  This is not some zapping with power that moves an exhausted Christian into bionic overdrive. The effect of this strength is that God’s people keep pressing on. They keep running. They keep walking. 

Christ gives his Spirit to those who hope in him so that something of his divine power may touch us in our human weakness. Strength comes as we ascend by faith into the presence of the Lord and commune with our living Savior. Here’s what will come from that: You will keep running. You will keep walking. You will keep pressing on. 

Go to Jesus this Christmas 

Some of you do not yet have a living faith in Jesus Christ. I ask you today: Do you not know your own Creator? Have you not heard that strength and hope can be yours through Jesus Christ? This Savior says to you who are worn out, and to all of us, today, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). 

[This article was adapted from Pastor Colin’s sermon, “Collective Weariness,” from his series Waiting for the Lord] [Photo Credit:Unsplash]

The Birth of Jesus Is Only The Beginning

As a baby, laying in the manger, Jesus was the eternal, infinite, and unchangeable Creator of the universe, while taking on a temporal, finite, and changeable human body. People had strong reactions to the birth of Jesus. Consumed with fear, shepherds cowered. Consumed with jealousy and hatred, Herod attempted to murder Jesus. And, consumed with joy, angels worshipped and proclaimed: 

“Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger” (Luke 2:10-12). 

The shepherds, the angels, and Herod all had strong reactions because they knew what the birth of Jesus meant. They knew what would happen next. So, this Christmas season, let’s praise the eternal Son of God not only for taking on human form, but also for dying for humanity’s sin, and being raised from the dead so humanity might do the same.

The Birth of Jesus: The Word Made Flesh

At last, the moment the world greatly anticipated had come. The Logos, the ordering principle behind its creation and preservation, arrived. He lay vulnerable in a manger. He bore the Father’s glory and was full of grace and truth. God’s promises and provisions pointed to this babe. Through Jesus, the world’s groanings of pain and longing will transform into proclamations of joy and satisfaction. 

In taking human form, Jesus experienced many things through his life that we experience. Throughout his life, he experienced the hunger, thirst, exhaustion, and a desire for peace, somewhere to call home, and for his people to accept him. Jesus fasted for forty days and nights. Jesus endured restless nights and mornings. His people rejected him. Jesus had no home.  

Jesus experienced the reality of depending upon the Father for all his need and endured the failure of those needs being met. Two comforts arise from this statement. First, during this, he remained perfectly righteous. And it is this righteousness that can be attributed to us as our own if we believe in him. Second, he is our perfect high priest who sympathizes with our struggles and weaknesses. He hears our prayers and intercedes for us before the Father. 

The Death of Jesus: Our Legal Representative and Perfect Sacrifice 

“He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls” (1 Peter 2:24-25). 

What a humbling contradiction! Jesus is the exact image of Yahweh, the Word through and for whom all things were created, and the preserver of all things (Colossians 1:15-17). Yet, he surrendered himself to a horrendous death. Our imagination quickly runs to the physical which was insufferable. He was stripped, beaten, mocked, and nailed to a cross where he endured great thirst. But, the wrath and rejection of his Father were far worse.  

Can you imagine the suffering? For all of eternity, Jesus fully experienced his Father’s love through the Holy Spirit’s begetting. But, in his humanity, Jesus experienced what we deserved to endure for all eternity. He gasped one last breath, declaring the agony of his suffering. Yet, he was greater than the penalty. He was fully God, and he would overcome death.  

As our representative, Jesus accomplished what Adam failed to do. He surrendered himself to the Father’s will, which was momentarily his humiliation. As our perfect sacrifice, Jesus consumed the Father’s wrath and rejection. Now, in Christ, we are legally holy and blameless before the Father.  

The Resurrection of Jesus: Our Champion Over Sin and Death 

After submitting himself to humiliation, the Father exalted him. On the third day, by the Father’s approval and the Holy Spirit’s power, Jesus rose from the dead. Our ransom had been paid in full. Thus, the Father began his renovation project of creation. After being resurrected, Jesus walked out of his grave in a glorified body, not as some angelic ghostlike figure. He talked with his disciples and ate a breakfast of fish and bread with them on the beach. As the firstborn of this renovation project, Jesus’ glorified body will also be ours one day. 

Formerly, we despised Jesus, rather than holding him up in esteem. But, now by the Father’s approval, the spoken and proclaimed Word, and the Holy Spirit’s power, we are new creations. The renovation accomplished in Jesus’ body has begun in us. Let us take comfort in this good news as we endure various degrees and experiences of chaos and darkness around us. One day, they will be overcome and replaced with overwhelming glory. This glory will enable us to live in joyful and rightful community with God and one another expressed by dancing, singing, and feasting. 

The Christmas season points to this great comfort. Our God is orchestrating all things to that time when all earthly and heavenly things are united in Christ. 

“Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways.

‘For who has known the mind of the Lord,

or who has been his counselor?’

‘Or who has given a gift to him

that he might be repaid?’

For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen” (Romans 11:33-36).

[Photo Credit: Unsplash]

Christmas Light Shines on Humanity’s Wounds

Surgeons don’t operate at midnight in an alley where darkness shrouds the patient. What’s wrong with the patient? Are bones broken? How can I help them? These questions find an inadequate answer, or no answer, until bright bulbs illumine the broken body. Then we examine the damage. Only then, the operation begins. The brighter the light, the better we can see our wounds. 

Watching December inch its way toward the 25th is like watching the sun inch its way upward on the eastern horizon. It shines its light on a broken and brutal world. The annual irony of this season is that the intensified focus on community and joy often results in pushing away those who are dealing with pain and loneliness. The Christmas spirit does not include them in cultural joy, but excludes them from it.

As a result, the holiday season can actually intensify our own sadness. The loud carolers make us think of our private tears. The gathering of smiling families makes us focus on our own loneliness. And the twinkling, colorful Christmas tree light bulbs shine light on our own wounds. 

Does this describe your Christmas experience?

Culture tells the downcast to wash down their sadness with a glass of eggnog. To watch one more schmaltzy-everyone-is-smiling-at-the-end Hallmark movie we can view while sitting in an apartment to which we alone have the key. But no matter how festive we are, we cannot escape the reminder of our de-ringed finger, the unknown whereabouts of our estranged father, and our unfulfilled life.  

And here’s another irony: the more estrangement we experience this time of year, the heavier the weight of aloneness presses us down, the more out of synch we feel with a culture inundated with merriment and cheer, the closer we are to the original story of Christmas. 

Into Such a World as This

Long before tinseled trees and Rudolph’s glowing nose, there was a man named Joseph. He was on the verge of breaking off his engagement to a girl named Mary. All the evidence pointed to her being a liar and cheat who had been with another man. Before “It’s a Wonderful Life,” there was an unwonderful march from Nazareth to Bethlehem with a woman whose water could break at any moment. Long before a smiling band of carolers came knocking on the door, there were the cries of our Savior come to us as a baby, pushed into the coldness of our world, and welcomed by a stall decorated with the stinking manure of beasts. 

The original Christmas was not sweetness and light. The Son of God showed up in our world far from home, smothered in darkness, with demons lurking nearby, a sociopathic king intent on his murder, facing 33 years of life in which the whole of humanity would misunderstand and backstab and slander and eventually crucify him while soldiers cast lots for his garments. 

Into such a world—our world—the Father sent his Son. Into a world where “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). A world where “people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil” (John 3:19). Yet this is the world that God “so loved… that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16).

This is the world where “the people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone” (Isaiah 9:2). 

In other words, the brighter the Father’s Light shone into our world, the more clearly we see our wounds. And the more clearly we see our wounds, the more clearly we see that this child, this Son, comes as the great Physician of soul and body, who comes to be our healing. 

Christmas Means God Is on Our Side

Are you lonely? He is born as the companion of the lonely, to be blood of our blood, body of our body. The friend who will never leave us or forsake us. For in him we live and move and have friendship with God. 

Are you joyless? He is born as the light that no darkness can overcome. Counts our every tear. Sits with us in ICU. Stands with us at the graveside. And promises, though weeping may last the night, that joy comes in the morning, for he himself is our joy. 

Are you ashamed? He is born as the incarnation of the Father’s heart, the heart that proclaims you are clean in his blood, you are radiant in his sacrifice, you are made perfect and righteous in him who became our sin and shame that we might become his holiness and joy. 

There is no dark pit of sadness so deep that his arm cannot reach to grab you and pull you back into the light of life again. There is no regret so final that his love cannot reverse and transform it into a hope again. No person who feels useless or utterly forgotten that is not precious to him. For he was willing to be born for you, to enter your pain, to absorb your scars, and to bring you out of the grave with him on his and your Easter day. 

Christmas is God’s ways of saying that he is on our side, no matter what. He is Immanuel, after all, God-with-us, God-for-us, God-in-us. Once and for all eternity, God became a living, breathing, blood and bones and skin human being. And, because of that, we are united with God in a bond of intimacy that even the angels cannot experience. 

The brighter the light, the better we can see our wounds. And the brighter God’s love for us in Christ shines this nativity, the better we see our healing. Whoever you are, whoever you’re with or not with, whatever wounds afflict you, that swaddled baby in his mother’s arms—he has come for you. 

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:14)

[Photo Credit: Unsplash]

Key Connections: Old Testament Kings, Cherith, and more…

Here are some of my favorite quotes from Christian articles around the web, including loving hard-to-love Christians, how Old Testament kings point to Jesus Christ, and an explanation of Elijah’s “Cherith Experience!”

Has God Given You A Cherith Experience? (Colin Smith, Unlocking the Bible)

You go to college and train for a particular career, but the door does not open for you. All this preparation and where is the opportunity? You say, “I have the skills. I have the training. But there doesn’t seem to be a place I can use them. The door is not open for me.” Friend, welcome to Cherith.

Love The Christian Who Drive You Crazy (Lara d’Entremont, Revive Our Hearts)

He chose us before the foundation of the world to be His children (Eph. 1:4), died a brutal death on the cross for us, and endured the full wrath of God we deserved for our sins to exchange his righteousness for our sins, so that we could be brought near. He did this not because he looked down the corridor of time and knew that we would choose Him. He did this because He chose to set His love on us. He did this knowing that we would never choose Him unless He first changed our hearts to do so.

Why Missionaries Go To Dangerous Places (Dr. Jerry Rankin, imb)

To insist that missionaries avoid dangerous places is to belittle the lostness of a world without Christ, to demean the responsibility of obedience to God’s call, and to succumb to a convoluted system of values that says one’s own safety and comfort is a higher priority than sharing the gospel. But the ultimate reason it is not only appropriate but essential for missionaries to go to places of risk and be willing to die to make the gospel known is a prevailing passion for the glory of God among the nations.

Far as the Curse is Found (Nancy Guthrie, desiringGod)

Our songs at Christmas serve to remind us that this season isn’t merely about looking back at that holy night when Christ was born. Rather, our celebration of his first coming is meant to nurture in us a greater longing for his second coming. In fact, we miss the point of that holy night if it does not awaken in us anticipation for the glorious eternal day to come.

How Old Testament Kings Bear Witness about Jesus (John Woodhouse, Crossway)

“The Scriptures . . . that bear witness about me” (we call them the Old Testament) also illuminate the inscription that was placed over Jesus as he hung on the cross. These Scriptures “bear witness” to Jesus because they promise a king of the Jews who will be the Savior of the world (cf. John 4:42)!

Has God Given You A Cherith Experience?

The word of the Lord came to him, ‘Depart from here and turn eastward and hide yourself by the brook Cherith.’  (1 Kings 17:2)

Elijah has been preparing himself for ministry. He has given himself to studying the Word (Deuteronomy 11) and to prayer (James 5). His ministry is on the launch pad and God says “Go hide yourself!”

Elijah is a prophet. His whole calling is about bringing the word of God to the people of God. But there are no people in Cherith. There is no platform for the work he wants to do, no opportunity for him to pursue his calling. For the next three years Elijah ministers to a congregation of just two people. One is a widow and the other is her son. What is all this about?

This is the “Cherith experience.” Cherith is the place where God withholds what you wanted most. Cherith is the place where God closes the door on what you wanted to do for him.

You go to college and train for a particular career, but the door does not open for you. All this preparation and where is the opportunity? You say, “I have the skills. I have the training. But there doesn’t seem to be a place I can use them. The door is not open for me.”

Friend, welcome to Cherith. It comes to every Christian at some point in their journey. Cherith is where God closes the door to the thing you most want to do.

God Hid Elijah

“Depart from here and turn eastward and hide yourself by the brook Cherith.” (1 Kings 17:3)

You’ll find this all through the Scriptures in the lives of God’s hidden servants: God hid Joseph in a prison before he came to the palace. He hid Moses in the desert for a third of his life before he led the people out of Egypt. God hid David in the mountains, running in and out of caves from Saul, before he was recognized as king.

In the New Testament, God hid Paul for three years in Arabia after his conversion, before he became a missionary. And here, God hides Elijah at Cherith before his great life contribution at Carmel.

God can take you to Cherith by removing you from a position. God can take you to Cherith through a prolonged sickness that limits what you are able to do. Cherith is the place where God hides you and holds back what you most want to do.

Don’t count it a strange thing if God hides you. Here’s the principle: When God chooses to hide you for a time, he is preparing you for a greater purpose.

Everyone knows about the triumphs of Elijah’s ministry on Mount Carmel, but here’s something you must know: God will take you to Cherith before he ever takes you to Carmel.

God Led Elijah

The word of the Lord came to him ‘Depart from here and turn eastward and hide yourself by the brook Cherith which is east of the Jordan…’ So he went and did according to the word of the Lord. (1 Kings 17:2,5)

God led him to Cherith, and then God led him out of Cherith. It will be the same for you. As a believer, you can have absolute confidence through your entire life that God is leading you. The Lord is your shepherd, and he is your shepherd even at Cherith.

One step at a time

God leads his people one step at a time—as we walk in obedience. God does not normally lay out the long-term scenario. When Elijah spoke to Ahab, he had no idea what the next step would be. God made the next step clear as Elijah was faithful in what God had already given him to do.

As you take a step of obedience, then God will show you what to do next. That’s the importance of the link between verse 1 and verse 2. Verse 1 tells us about Elijah’s step of faith and obedience. Then in verse 2 God tells him what to do next.

That same pattern runs throughout this story. Verse 5 tells us about Elijah’s obedience: “Elijah went and did according to the word of the Lord.” Then in verse 8 God tells him what to do next: “The word of the Lord came to him, ‘Arise and go to Zarepath.’”

If God is not making your next step clear, perhaps it could be that you have not finished what he has called you to do already. Move forward with all that God has given you to do now, and then trust Him to show you the next step at the right time. That’s the principle of Christian obedience.

At Cherith We Learn to Live on God

I take that phrase from John Bunyan. His Cherith experience came when he was thrown into prison. He was a pastor serving the Lord and he had a family. It was a time of persecution for believers like us in England, and Bunyan was seized from his church and from his family and incarcerated in the town of Bedford.

God took Bunyan out of public ministry and hid him in the prison. Out of that came the book Pilgrim’s Progress. When Bunyan wrote about his Cherith experience, he said that he learned “to live upon God who is invisible.”

“God has put me in a place where I can no longer live on my work. I can no longer live on my family… on my friends…on my pleasures… [or,] on my ministry. I have to live on God, who is invisible.” [1]

That’s where Elijah was in Cherith. To live on God who is invisible means to find what you need in God when there isn’t anything or anyone else.

That’s what God does at Cherith. When you come to the place where God hides you, know this: If you will walk with him in faith and obedience, he will lead you and he will feed you. You will find him faithful at Cherith, and you will come out saying, “Even Cherith was in the purpose of God.”

[This article was adapted from Pastor Colin’s sermon, “When God Hides You,” from his series, The Surprising Influence of a Godly Life] [Photo Credit: Unsplash]
____
1 John Bunyan, Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners,” p. 173, Emerald House, 1998

Responding to the Deconversion of a Friend or Family Member

Deconversion. Falling away. Backsliding. However we phrase it, it means the same thing: someone who once believed in Jesus Christ now doesn’t. Unfortunately, this phenomenon seems to be happening more, especially among millennials and Christian “celebrities.” It is quite baffling and thoroughly disheartening, to say the least.  

But when it hits closer to home—with a spouse, a child, a parent, or sibling—the pain cuts deep. Very deep. We ask ourselves: Why? What caused them to stop believing in God and the inerrant truths of the Bible? Could I have done something to prevent them from walking away? Will they ever return to the faith? 

All of these are good and worthy questions. They may not have any discernable or immediate answers, sadly. But there are certain things we can know and specific things we can do when it happens to a loved one. 

Salvation is Assured 

If this person previously, genuinely confessed belief and put their faith in Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord by accepting the free gift of grace through faith, their salvation is secured (Ephesians 2:8-9). Here’s what Paul writes in Ephesians about genuine believers:  

“When [they] heard the word of truth, the gospel of [their] salvation, and believed in him, [they] were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance… [and] by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.” (Ephesians 1:13-14, 4:30; see also 2 Corinthians 1:22, 5:5).  

The word sealed (arrabón) means “earnest, a large part of the payment, given in advance as a security that the whole will be paid afterward” (Strong’s Concordance). In this sense, the Holy Spirit is given as earnest, a down payment, for our inheritance. His indwelling is our guarantee; we can be assured of salvation. It is true of us and true of prodigals. 

But this leads to the question: What can I do about their deconversion in the meantime? 

For the answer, we look at the lives and examples of the prodigal son and his faithful father in the parable of Luke 15:11-32.  

We Pray
We pray that the prodigal will be humbled by their bad choices and their consequences.  

After demanding and receiving his half of the inheritance, the prodigal son speedily took off to spend it on licentious living. His bad choices of cavorting with prostitutes and drinking to excess, however, eventually led to his destitution. This young man, who’d once had everything at his disposal—fine clothes, rich foods, a proper shelter—had sunk to the lowest level possible, finding himself homeless, hungry, hopeless.  

Sometimes—although not always—some prodigals must descend before they look upward. Upward to God and to the restoration he offers through grace and forgiveness in Jesus Christ.  

It may seem mean-spirited, even cruel to pray that our prodigals would “hit rock bottom,” but in reality, it is a kind and gracious prayer. We should pray that they would see their need for God, no matter whatever form that “need” takes. Short of their death, of course. 

We pray that they come to their senses. 

Having found himself penniless, the young man was forced to hire himself out as a pig herdsman. At one point, he found himself envying the pigs their slop and cried:  

“But when he came to himself, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have more than enough bread, but I perish here with hunger!” (Luke 15:17). 

The scales had finally fallen off; the thrill of his sensual, debauched living had worn off. This young man was awakened to the desperate reality of his situation and the hopelessness of it. His bitter thoughts then turned to the comforts of home, to the goodness of his father, even to the hired servants.  

It is compassionate and wise to pray that those who have wandered away would also “come to their senses and escape from the trap of the devil, who has taken them captive to do his will” (2 Timothy 2:26, NIV). 

We pray that they repent from deconversion, and we celebrate when they do. 

Realization of their fallen state often leads to their repentance, as it did for the prodigal:  

“I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.” (Luke 15:18-19). 

It is a wondrous thing when a prodigal sees their sin and acknowledges it, for it is a sure sign that God’s kindness and mercy are at work in their heart and that they will return to the fold. And we know, and rejoice, that God, who is faithful and just, will forgive them and cleanse them “from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). Just as we will forgive them. 

And, like the father, we also will celebrate their repentance and return from deconversion:  

“And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.” (Luke 15:23-24). 

We Wait 

After watching his selfish son saunter off to an unknown kind of life, the father then took up the mantle of waiting. How long he waited, we don’t know. Scripture is silent on this, and maybe rightly so. For there is no time-constraint on waiting.  

But wait the father did. And he waited expectantly, patiently, and hopefully, scanning the horizon every day. And his wait was rewarded when he finally saw this sorry son come slouching home. 

Waiting for a wanderer’s return can take months, years, even decades. In fact, we may never see their return in our own lifetime. But we can trust in God’s sovereignty and timing. In the meantime, we wait, with expectancy, holding them close in our hurting hearts.  

We Hope 

As long as a wanderer has breath in their bodies, hope is still available. We should never give up on the restoration of a wanderer, for we know that “with God all things are possible” (Matthew 19:26). After all, God does not wish “that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance” (2 Peter 3:9).  

Let us cling to this promise—and many, many others—for our own wanderers and prodigals. And when we grow weary and in danger of losing hope—which we do—we know that God does not. And we know that when we do grow faint with waiting, He will renew our strength and our hope (Isaiah 40:31). 

We take comfort, as well, in that even though our wanderers have left God for a time, God won’t leave them. Ever! His love is far-reaching, his grace and forgiveness never-ending, extending to the lost and the wanderer, alike. 

For further encouragement, I recommend Jim Putman’s book, “Hope for the Prodigal: Bringing the Lost, Wandering, and Rebellious Home.” 

[The author adapted this article from her 2016 Desiring God article titled, “Six Ways to Love a Wayward Child“][Photo Credit: Unsplash]

Parenting is a Marathon, Not a Sprint

I’m in awe of people who run 26.2 miles and live to tell about it. My husband, Dan, used to run marathons. He tells me that training for a marathon involves running a lot, eating right, and getting plenty of rest. Physically running for that long may not be in my makeup, but as the parent of adult children, I see parenting as a marathon of a different sort.  

The Old and New Testament both stress the importance of parents raising up their children in obedience to the Lord:  

Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; … Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up….  (Deuteronomy 11:18-21) 

Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right… Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. (Ephesians 6:1-4) 

And obedience is not a one-time act; it’s a marathon of a project. In order to be a Christ-honoring parent, you need to “run many miles,” “eat right,” and “get plenty of rest:” 

Run Many Miles 

When I was raising three young children, there were days that I felt like I had run 20 miles. Chasing a two-year-old around the park or walking an 8-year-old to a friend’s house or supervising the crafts of a 6-year-old, while making dinner, will wear anyone out. There was inevitably a steady stream of talk, questions, and goofiness. I distinctly remember thinking, I cannot answer one more question! But, I did. Then came years of shuttling children, and their friends, to events and practices of all kinds.  

Those moments were opportunities to teach my children as we “walked along the road.” I didn’t always recognize that, but occasionally I made the most of them. My sprint mentality to parenting was to make sure my children had a wonderful and problem-free childhood, which I now know is unrealistic and foolish. A marathon perspective would have been to treat their problems as possibilities for new confidence, growing maturity, and increased faith in the Lord and knowledge of themselves.     

Run many miles and take advantage of teachable moments as you are running. 

Eat Right 

The night before Dan ran the Chicago Marathon, I made him spaghetti, and he ate quite a bit. Runners need carbs to fuel their race. 

Parents of young children need to fuel their bodies for sure, but feeding their souls is even more important. Prayer, time in the Word of God, and a community of Christians who will support you are the nutrition most necessary for a parent’s work. It can be difficult to find time for these things because the schedule of a parent of small children is full. Spiritual food is still essential. 

Parents are often consumed with the daily needs of their children, like lunch, homework, piano lessons, and basketball practice. Time in prayer and God’s Word will lift their view to the long race, the marathon, the bigger picture, which will renew them to take the next step. 

The Bible was my constant companion during my hands-on parenting years, and I don’t regret one second of the time I spent in the Word of God. The Bible that I used in those days is now falling apart, marked with blue, red, purple and black ink, and I’ll never throw it away, for it holds a record of passages that I memorized, answered prayers, and my own spiritual transformation. 

How sweet are your words to my taste,
    sweeter than honey to my mouth!
Through your precepts I get understanding;
    therefore I hate every false way. (Psalm 119:103-104)

Rest 

After eating his fill of spaghetti the night before the marathon, Dan should have gone home to ensure he could get a good amount of rest. I asked repeatedly, “Don’t you need to get some sleep?”  

The day of the marathon that year was unusually hot, and it was rough running. Dan finished, but he hadn’t run in the time he had hoped. 

Parents want to run the race well, and the way to do that is to rest in Christ’s accomplishments. In sprint mode, I regularly worried about the next hurdle that my children would have to clear. Spiritually, I was unsettled. One day, taking a walk and praying, I finally realized that God loved my children even more than I did, that he had a good plan for their lives, and that it may not be the same plan that I had imagined for them.  

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him (Ephesians 1:3-4).

When we learn to rest in what has Jesus has already done, the marathon of parenting doesn’t seem quite so daunting. He has made salvation possible for us, and in so doing he has also prepared us for everything we will be asked to do in this life. Parenting is no exception. 

Run the Marathon Well 

One of the most difficult aspects of parenting is handing over control of our children’s lives. When they are very young, there’s no question. The parent makes all the decisions. But, as they grow, the wise parent lets them begin to make decisions themselves and sometimes bear the consequences of their unwise choices. In my experience, that was stressful. 

Jesus gave us an example of handing over the reins when he was about two years into his ministry, and he sent his disciples out on their own to:

“…proclaim as you go, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. You received without paying; give without pay.” (Matthew 10:7-8) 

The disciples had been watching Jesus doing those very things. But now Jesus called them to go and teach, heal, raise the dead, and cast out demons. Parenting involves a similar experience: Children watch their parents live while they are toddlers, in school, and from a distance. Finally, they must become adults themselves and live their own lives.  

No parent lives perfectly or teaches their children flawlessly, but the long view of a parent’s life is powerful.  

Parenting is a long-term project, a marathon, not a sprint, and we need to run the race well, to fuel ourselves with prayer, Bible study and a community of believers, and most importantly, remember to rest in what God has already done for us through Jesus Christ. 

[Photo Credit: Unplash]