Why Jesus is Not the Reason for the Season

We’ve seen the saying “Jesus is the Reason for the Season” on wallhangings, yard decorations, Christmas cards, and tshirts. It is a well-meaning Christian’s way of trying to remind us that this time of year is not about presents, egg nog, big screen tvs, or Santa Claus. But the fact is, the cliché just isn’t true.

The real reason for the season? You. The first Christmas when baby Jesus lay in the manger, and every Christmas since, has been for you—Even if no one else in the world existed. You are God’s reason. Love is God’s motivation. Jesus was God’s perfect and only means to a glorious end.

Okay, well maybe it is just semantics but hear me out. This may take a few minutes so grab a cup of coffee and get comfortable. You want, you NEED to hear this.

It has been described as the greatest love story ever told. One you’ve heard in bestselling novels, watched on the movie screen, imagined in your daydreams as a teenager.

A boy and girl love each other deeply, but the girl wants to know what is out there, so she ventures out to discover herself, claim her independence, and make a life of her own.  And the boy lets her go but he loves her still, unconditionally, unrelentingly,  waiting for her to notice that his love is what is missing from her perfect or not so perfect new life.   And at the end of the story, at the perfect time, he makes a grand gesture of his love and she realizes that the only life she wants to live is one with him by her side.

The reason this touches our hearts is because somewhere deep inside we know this is our story. We are the girl and God is the boy. Throughout all of history, humankind has sought to discover herself, prove she can make it on her own. And God has let us venture out in the spirit of free will; love is not true love if it is forced.  Every person to ever live has done this including me and including you. But he loves you still, unconditionally, unrelentingly, waiting for you to notice that His love is what is missing from your perfect or not so perfect life.

Rather than running through an airport to stop your flight, rather than standing on a lunch table to serenade you, rather than driving across the country to stop your wedding to Mr. Wrong, God sent Jesus as his grand gesture of His love.

He didn’t come to prove He was the greater than any other god. If no one believed God was glorious, he would be glorious still. God does not need our approval or our praise to be Him. He is. He was. He always will be, in spite of us humans. Instead, he came because he loves you and wants you to know the joy and peace and love that he designed you to feel.

He didn’t come in full strength and stature with an army behind him ready to kill all the bad guys. Instead, he came as a fragile, innocent baby, born to a poor teenage girl in the presence of farm animals.

His life was not easy. Not the life of a king. Not the life of a god. Not the life of one whose birth would alter history’s keeping of time.  He lived in hiding the first part of his life because of King Herod’s decree to murder all the boys his age, in an attempt to stifle the prophecy of a newborn king,

Prior to his 30^th birthday, he was a lowly carpenter without riches, without fame. He bore witness to the pain of those all around him. After three years of ministry, he himself endured heartache, grief, disappointment, loneliness, humiliation, false accusations, betrayal, suffering, torture, and even separation from God, his father as evidenced when he cries out on the cross, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?!” Why did he do all this? Because of His great love for you.

Satan himself bombarded him with the greatest temptation known to man. Yet he stood firm. Why? Because of His great love for you.

Yes, 33 years after that first Christmas morning, he was mutilated and tortured before being killed on the cross. The son of God, who could have called on heaven’s entire army of angels to come down and save him, didn’t. He could have simply ascended into heaven and out of the reach of those who beat him and spit on him and mocked him.  He didn’t. Why? Because of His great love for you.

His love is unlike any we experience on earth. It is unceasing. His unconditional love does not require you to be perfect, sinless, clean, lovely, or beautiful. He knows you. He sees you. He has seen every moment of your entire life and he loves you anyway.

His blood needed to be spilled to atone for our Sin. Your Sin. He gave himself as a sacrifice so that in this life we could be in a relationship with him, and receive his comfort, his encouragement, his wisdom, his joy.  He rose from the dead so that after your inevitable death on earth, you could be raised to a new eternal life in heaven with him.

Whether you have never known the love of God or whether you have lost sight of it, I pray that you will choose to see through the wrapping paper and tinsel this Christmas, to see the real reason for this season. You… and the incredible love that God has for you.

Watch this video and listen to a beautiful song about the reason for Christmas:

"How Many Kings?" by DownHere

Things Christians Should Learn from the Phil Robertson Fallout

Things Christians Should Learn from the Phil Robertson fallout:

1.     When truth needs to be said, it needs to be said tactfully. Phil’s comments did point to scripture, but his expanded comments about anatomy appalled even me. It mistakenly assumed that homosexuality is only about the physical and nothing about the emotional. No wonder so many were offended!

If you agree with Phil that homosexuality is a sin, then you should shy away from generalized comments and approach individual cases with sensitivity, God’s truth, and compassion. Many people who live a homosexual lifestyle, evenly openly and proudly, have faced a lot of cruelty, mockery, and guilt. Some have committed suicide because the pain is too much to handle. For those (including many Christians) who have homosexual feelings, face a daily battle and we need more bible-believing Christians to love them, encourage them, and remind them of God’s power, hope, and grace. Looking at either group with disgust will never help anything.

2.     Don’t fall into the trap. Several times a year, a famous person who is outspoken about their Christian faith gets baited with the question about homosexuality or same-sex marriage from a liberal media source.  Why? Because it will enrage someone and sell more magazines. Non-famous Christians get these questions posed to them in an attempt to discredit them or to incite an argument. If the Holy Spirit has led you to give your answer, then answer with God’s truth (and nothing more or less).  All Christians are told to share God’s word with the unbelieving world on a one on one level. Only some Christians (pastors, writers, speakers) are given the proper wisdom and gifts to speak that same truth to a group of strangers. If you have a close friend who is struggling with homosexuality, then God may be trying to use you to share His love, or His grace, or His guidance with them.

3.     Stop comparing homosexuality to other sin. Yes, the bible groups this sin in with others in the passage to which Phil referred. (1 Corinthians 6:8-10; see also 1 Timothy 1:9-11). However, in this passage Paul was speaking to the bible-believing church in Corinth. They already knew the theological concept that all sin is created equal, because it is part of the sin condition that all humans inherited from their ancestors Adam and Eve which causes us to think things and do actions that separate us from God. From an eternal perspective, a glutton, a liar, an alcoholic, a murderer, a lustful man, a disobedient teen and yes, a homosexual are all at risk of not inheriting the kingdom of God (i.e. going to heaven) unless they believe in Jesus’s redeeming death and resurrection and surrender their life to his grace.  However, to someone who doesn’t know this theology or believe this theology, they only see the worldly consequences of these behaviors. Yes, murder is bad. Lies are sometimes bad. Gluttony is part of our culture and only bad when we step on the scale. Disobedience in the teen years is a healthy way of differentiating us from our parents. Lust is an outrageously successful business in the form of Victoria Secret, strip clubs and pornography.  It is horribly wrong to compare homosexuality to murderers or bestiality in the eyes of an unbeliever, so just don’t do it. And if you get backed into a corner, read the passage straight from the bible.

4.     Stop being surprised that people are offended by the bible. Remember that we are witnessing the greatest battle of all time. Satan and God are fighting a fierce fight for the souls of people around us. Many people are unknowingly being used by Satan as pawns for his tactics. Many Christians do really dumb things that actually aid their enemy. Being aware of this fact allows us to see the bigger picture so that we may actually help the Lord to save his people. Any time the word of God is spoken outside of the church, attacks will happen. Any time a celebrity starts speaking out on his faith, attacks will happen. I am guessing that simply by writing this post, I will lose several Facebook friends. There will always be consequences to speaking about God in a world run by unbelievers. Some we must accept. Others we must fight, which leads me to…

5.     Choose your battle.  I do believe that it is wrong that Christians cannot share their opinions without being silenced. When was the last time the ACLU fought for a Christian’s right to do anything? People may bash or mock Jesus Christ or his followers all they like and that is considered freedom of speech. Yet sharing our beliefs is considered hate speech. Now that is intolerance.

6.     A last warning. We are 6 days away from celebrating the birth of our savior who makes so much of the junk we face personally and socially irrelevant. This is the one time a year where even unbelievers can look at our Lord with reverence. The one time when you hear things like “God bless you” without dirty looks. The one time you hear Christian songs played on secular radio. Do not let a controversy such as this overshadow Christmas! Who needs to hear the story of Christmas in your life today?

Advent Readings, Activities and Crafts

It is December 1st and we are beginning our Advent celebration in our house. My children love when we do activities that teach about the bible. Unfortunately, it is rare that I have time to plan them and then do them with the kids. At Christmastime, there are so many ready made crafts and activities that it makes it easy. Let me share with you our favorite place for kids activities so they remember the reason we celebrate. Truth in the Tinsel has an ebook, a website, and a Facebook page that gives 24 activities the kids will love! For women, Good Morning Girls has an advent study that you can follow on their blog and Facebook page. Please share how you and yours plan to prepare for the coming of the Lord!

When You Don't Feel Like Giving Thanks

Thanksgiving of 2003 was difficult for me. Having recently moved to Toledo, Ohio I had not yet made any friends. I was enrolled in a Graduate School program on the verge of collapse. We lived in an apartment in which there was a smell as if someone had died with pickles in his pockets and was left to decay, pickles and all. My 18 month old marriage was struggling. And worst of all, every night I cried myself to sleep, mourning the miscarriage of our first baby 13 weeks into the pregnancy. 

I didn’t feel like giving thanks. Especially to the Lord. I’m not sure this is theologically correct but I personally use the name “the Lord” for God whenever I am referring to his sovereignty over my life, my circumstances, my world. I was well aware that God was Lord over my circumstances. He alone was in that Emergency Room with me as I endured a horribly painful miscarriage and even more excruciating heartbreak. I pleaded and I literally was crying out to him to save my baby, until the moment the ultrasound showed that my baby's heart (that I had seen beating strong on an ultrasound earlier that day) was beating no more. He had allowed it to happen, just like all the other pain in my life. My God of miracles chose not to perform any miracles, at least not any that I had recognized. My God who answers the prayers of the faithful, upon hearing my plea to save my baby, said no.

Looking back I can see that there were many things in my life for which I could have given thanks. But the misery of my situation blinded me to such blessings.

Some of you might be feeling the same things this Thanksgiving. While others are on Facebook counting off 30 days of blessings, or writing blogs dedicated to the goodness of God, you can only think of that illness you have, the person you lost, the spouse you despise, the money you don’t have, the future you fear, the child you can’t reach, the job you can’t find, the loneliness you feel.

I wish I had the wisdom to help you. I wish I could find a meme to share that speaks encouragement. But no words I’ve formed or picture of a kitten on a string with the slogan “Hang in There” will help.

Rather, I would like to share my favorite story of finding purpose and thanksgiving even in the most dire of circumstances.

In her book, The Hiding Place, devout Christian Corrie ten Boom chronicles her horrendous experience in a Nazi death camp. Corrie and her sister Betsie used their time to share the gospel and minister to their fellow prisoners.  At one point in the horrendous, overcrowded, disease filled barracks, they are reading their forbidden bible together.  

In the feeble light I turned the pages. “Here it is: ‘Comfort the frightened, help the weak, be patient with everyone. See that none of you repays evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to all…’ “ It seemed written expressly to Ravensbruck.

                       “Go on,” said Betsie. “That wasn’t all.”

                       “Oh yes: ‘…to one another and to all. Rejoice always, pray constantly, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus---“

                       “That’s it, Corrie! That’s His answer. ‘Give thanks in all circumstances!’ That’s what we can do. We can start right now to thank God for every single thing about this new barracks!”

                       I stared at her, then around me at the dark, foul-aired room.

                       “Such as?” I said.

                       “Such as being assigned here together.”

                       I bit my lip. “Oh yes, Lord Jesus!”

                       “Such as what you’re holding in your hands.”

                       I looked down at the Bible.  “Yes! Thank You, dear Lord, that there was no inspection when we entered here!  Thank you for all the women, here in this room, who will meet You in these pages.”

                       “Yes,” said Betsie, “Thank You for the very crowding here. Since we’re packed so close, that many more will hear!” She looked at me expectantly. “Corrie!” she prodded.

                       “Oh, all right. Thank You for the jammed, crammed, stuffed, packed, suffocating crowds.”

                       “Thank You,” Betsie went on serenely, “for the fleas and for---“

                       The fleas! This was too much.  “Betsie, there’s no way even God can make me grateful for a flea.”

                       “ ‘Give thanks in all circumstances,’ “ she quoted. “It doesn’t say, ‘in pleasant circumstances, ‘ Fleas are part of this place where God has put us.”

                       And so we stood between piers of bunks and gave thanks for fleas. But this time I was sure Betsie was wrong.

Corrie and Betsie continued to share the gospel, witness miracles, and inspire hope every night in their flea-laden barracks. They never understood how they were able to share so unhindered, as other barracks at the camp had near constant patrolling from guards who would surely confiscate any bible and put to death any prisoner who dared to bring the hope of the Gospel to the prisoners.

Some time later, Betsie recounts a conversation to Corrie.

“You know how we’ve never understood why we had so much freedom in the big room,” she said.  “well---I’ve found out.”

That afternoon, she said, there’d been confusion in her knitting group about sock sizes and they’d asked the supervisor to come and settle it.

                       “But she wouldn’t. She wouldn’t step through the door and neither would the guards. And you know why?”

                       Betsie could not keep the triumph from her voice: “Because of the fleas! That’s what she said, ‘That place is crawling with fleas!’ “

                       My mind rushed back to our first hour in this place. I remembered Betsie’s bowed head, remembered her thanks to God for creatures I could see no use for.

There are many circumstances that come our way for which we can see no use. Time and wisdom might bring understanding for some of them. Others will never make sense to us, yet we are to be thankful anyway.  It is not easy to give thanks for something that only causes us pain or stress or sadness or hate.  But if we continue to trust God, the Lord of all, the Sovereign King, we can be thankful for

·      His faithfulness to us

·      His love for us

·      His willingness to send his Son to die on a cross to pay for our sin

·      His ability to resurrect his Son so that our souls might also be resurrected after death to the presence of God where there is no pain or suffering

Eventually, we might even be able to thank Him for our “fleas”—those things in our life, because we will truly believe that God loves us and he can use all circumstances, all situations, all pain, all suffering for good in our lives and the lives of those around us.

Corrie ten Boom

Grace Upon Grace

In Numbers 21: 4-9, we read a story of how God sheds His grace on His people even when they have scorned His grace. The Israelites had been wandering in the desert for near 40 years now. The path from Egypt to the Promised Land should only have taken a few weeks, but instead took 40 years because of the Israelites disobedience and faithlessness. God had, in GRACE, saved them from Egypt, yet they cursed him. So God told them that no one over the age of 20 should enter the Promised Land, but by GRACE, their children would. The Israelites complained about not having water. By GRACE, God gave them water. They complained of no food. By GRACE, God have them food in the form of manna. Time and time again, the Israelites feared for their safety and by GRACE, God saved them from their enemies. By GRACE God even told them how to build the Ark of the Tabernacle so that He could dwell right there with them!

“But the people grew impatient on the way; they spoke against God and against Moses, and said, ‘Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the desert? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!” (Numbers 21: 4b-5).

This is not the first time that the Israelites had rejected God’s grace and certainly not the last, as only God knew at the time. If you read Jesus’ words in John 6:32-59, you will see that Jesus calls himself the Bread of Life come down from heaven. God’s biggest act of GRACE involved sending His only son down to pay our penalty for sin so we may live with God in heaven—the true, eternal Promised Land. Yet people would reject Jesus, the Bread of Life, and still reject Jesus, the Bread of Life. So how should God respond to this blasphemous complaining?

“Then the Lord sent venomous snakes among them: they bit the people and many Israelites died” (Numbers 21:6). 

This seems a bit harsh when we read it. Really, God? Do you really think that is going to make the Israelites love you more? We ask.

I see this differently. I see the snakes as a strange form of GRACE.

First, the curse mentioned in Numbers 14:28-34 stated that Israel would not enter the Promised Land until after everyone over the age of 20 at the initial disobedience had died. Perhaps this was a way for God to speed up the process, so that the children of the Israelites could sooner experience the Land of Milk and Honey rather than the Land of Detestable Manna. As a mother of 4, I can see how this forced sacrifice of myself would be worth it, so my children could be blessed sooner.

Second, God is giving the Israelites what they were begging for. They were tired of wandering, tired of eating Manna, tired of the suffering. God provided a quick resolution to this, by sending snakes to end it for them. This is an example of God respecting Man’s Free Will. Much like when people decide that they do not want a relationship with God, He, after an entire lifetime of chasing the person, will grant them their wish. Rather than force them to live an eternity with Him in heaven, He allows them to go to a place where nothing of God exists. This place is Hell and it is a place of torment and anguish, because that is what a place devoid of God and full of sin would be.

Third, it is a reminder. When Satan led Adam and Eve to commit the Original Sin, he took the form of a serpent. Ever since, Satan has been lurking in every person’s life, waiting to sink his venomous teeth into them, knowing that some would reject the anti-venom that is Jesus’ death on the cross. This threat remains. Just as snakes lay in hiding, waiting for an unsuspecting foot to step too close, so does Satan and his demons. People always talk about angels being everywhere. We forget that there are also demons around us. God could have sent a pack of lions, a plague of scorpions, or a disease, but he chose snakes/serpents. I doubt this is a coincidence.

Fourth, it is a warning. Do not reject the bread God has sent. In the Israelites’ time, the rejected bread was the manna and it led to physical death. In the time of Christ, the rejected Bread was and continues to be Jesus and it leads to spiritual death for eternity.  God knew that the story would be shared generation to generation and it would encourage the Israelites to accept the free gift that Jesus offers.

Again, this may not seem like GRACE until you consider the consequences of the Israelites not learning from the experience. God is relentless and will do anything in his power to show us His love for us.

The story doesn’t end there.

“The people came to Moses and said, ‘We sinned when we spoke against the LORD and against you. Pray that the LORD will take the snakes away from us.” So Moses prayed for the people.

“The LORD said to Moses, ‘Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.’ So Moses make a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, he lived” (vv. 7-9).

The people repented, and God showed GRACE. Notice he didn’t answer their prayer exactly. The text doesn’t say that He removed the snakes from the camp. They were still there, causing trouble, biting people, nesting in their possessions, etc. God simply provided a way out. Once bitten, they need only to look at the bronze snake Moses had made and God would save them. Much the same, God does not always remove Sin and temptation from our surroundings, but instead of a statue on a pole, he put his Son on a cross for all to see. We need only to look to Jesus and we will live, for all eternity.

I encourage you to look for examples of God’s GRACE upon GRACE in your life. Perhaps God gave you a great childhood yet you chose a life of drugs, alcohol, sex, etc. but God has redeemed your life so that you may give your children a great childhood. GRACE. Perhaps God once put a life inside your womb but you chose abortion and now God has given you the blessing of another child. GRACE. Perhaps God gave you a spouse but you divorced long ago, and now God has given you a great second marriage. GRACE. Perhaps God gave you a way to provide for your family but you quit your job and now God has given you a great job. GRACE. Perhaps God placed someone in your life but sin destroyed the friendship and now has restored it. GRACE.

I know someone needs to hear this part. There is someone out there who had a relationship with God at some point in their life. They met Him at a Young Life camp in high school. Or they first heard about Him in their dorm room at college. Or their parents sang them Jesus Loves Me every night before bed as a toddler. Yet they have turned away from Him. I urge you once again to read John 6.  In vv. 37-39, Jesus affirms that those who are given to him, he will not drive away but will raise them up to him at the last day. When we turned to Jesus we grab his hand but we forget that Jesus will never let go of our grasp. He is jealous for us and will not leave us, no matter how hard we try to leave him. Turn and look at Him. He is right there.

“Grace be with you all.” Hebrews 13:25

Listen now to one of my favorite songs: 

There's Only Grace by Matthew West