Thought:

Wow! The price has been paid. Death, sin and satan have been defeated. The wall that kept us from God has been torn down. We have chosen to follow God and have a relationship with Him. We have been freed from our sinful nature. Now what? The slate has been wiped clean. Like Jesus being born that first Christmas, we to have been born again (1 Peter 1:23). We have a new life, a new beginning. The past is gone and we can start fresh. The sins of your past have been removed and forgotten. Now what? Now we live our new life.

You need to start by trusting in the Lord with all of your heart, and He will show you the way (Proverbs 3:5-6). Spend time reading His word so you can get to know Him better and understand how He wants you to live (Joshua 1:8, Psalm 119:9-11). Spend time with other Christians, learning from them, supporting each other and encouraging each other (Hebrews 10:25). Life as a Christian is not easy; you will go through hard times, but God will not leave you. He will help you through (Psalm 23:4, Isaiah 43:1-3, 1 Corinthians 10:13) and He will not let anything happen to you that you and God can’t get through together. And know that everything that happens is somehow for your good, even it you can’t see it now (Romans 8:28). So now go live for God!

May God bless you all today, and through the new year!

“The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the LORD turn his face toward you and give you peace.”

(Numbers 6:24–26, NIV)

Thought:

Why do we give gifts at Christmas? To remind us of the most precious gift of all; the first Christmas present, love. God loved us so much that He sent His only Son to become one of us to show us the way back to Him so we could have the relationship God always wanted us to have with Him. Christmas isn’t just about the birth of a baby, it is the birth of a renewed and restored relationship with a God who loves us so much that there is nothing He is not willing to do to get us back. God gave His most precious Son for you (John 3:16). What are you giving God this Christmas? Is there a gift from Him under the tree? At Christmas we celebrate Jesus birthday, and yet we often give gifts to everyone but Him. We ask our friends and family want they want for Christmas and because we love them we do our best to give them what they want. Jesus wants you. Will you give Him yourself this Christmas?

Thought:

The lasts of the gifts of the Magi was myrrh (Matthew 2:11). What a sad, but appropriate gift to give Jesus. Myrrh was the spice used to anoint the dead. The Magi were revealing to all who would see that this was the child born to die for their sins. After Jesus had been buried, women came to the tomb to anoint His body with spices (Mark 16:1). The Son of God, who gave up all He had in Heaven to come to earth and show the people how to restore their relationship with God; the baby that was the first Christmas present. Will you receive what He came to give you? Life with God. Jesus was born to die to give you the best Christmas present ever: the gift of life with God for eternity. Will you reject it as so many did then, and still do? Or will you accept the greatest gift ever given the gift of life with God for all time?

Thought:

The Magi also brought frankincense, which is a type of incense (Matthew 2:11). Incense is a symbol in the Bible of the worship praise and prayers of the saints (Revelation 8:4, Psalm 141:2). By giving it to Jesus at His birth, they were saying that He is worthy of worship and praise. Revelation tells us that because of what Jesus did by being willing to die in our place, saving us from our sins and defeating satan, He is worthy of praise and worship. At the end times, those who are with Him will sing praises to Him. (Revelation 5:8-14). Do you see Jesus as worthy of worship and praise? Will you take the time to praise Him this Christmas season for all He has done for you? Will you put Him in His rightful place at your celebrations, or will they be focused on gifts and dinner instead? Will you worship God this Christmas?

Thought:

When the Magi arrived at the house where Jesus was living, they gave Him three gifts (Matthew 2:11): the first was gold. Gold is a gift that, at the time, was given to kings. The Magi were declaring the baby Jesus a king. While the people around them in Bethlehem saw a new baby, the Magi saw the King of Kings. At Jesus’ death, the people saw Him as a criminal, but Pilate placed a sign on the cross saying “King of the Jews” – not just in one language, but in three, so that all who were there could read it (John 19:19-20). The centurion positioned at the cross also cried out at His death “he is the King of the Jews” (Matthew 27:54). Do you accept Him as the King of Kings? Do you accept His authority? Or do you hang on tight to your own? When He asks you to do something that makes no sense to you at the time, will you do it anyway because you trust Him and accept His authority? Do you believe that God has your best interests in mind, and that of others, even when you don’t understand it? God sees the big picture; you see only your small part in it. Will you give up your power and your need to control and trust in His plan? Let Jesus be your King of Kings this Christmas.

Thought:

The Magi saw the star when Jesus was born, and set out to find Him. The journey took around two years, maybe longer, to get to the house that Jesus was then living in. This was no easy trip; it went through some difficult country, but they felt it was worth it to meet the King of Kings; to see Him with their own eyes. At Jesus’ death, people followed Jesus as He carried his cross from Jerusalem to Golgotha where He was crucified. This too was a hard journey. They were confused and hurting as they watched the one they thought had come to saved them be killed for reasons that, at that time, made no sense to them. The journey was hard. The people would have ridiculed them as well as Jesus because they followed Him, and yet they walked. They had to see Jesus no matter the cost

Do you have the courage to follow the light, even if it hurts? Even when it’s hard? When your friends ridicule you for it? When the price seems too high, will you follow? Will you stand with God when the world turns against Him and you, or will you take the easy road and hide in the crowd, and follow them (Matthew 7:13-14)? How is your journey? Are you weary? He will give you rest (Matthew 11:28, Isaiah 40:30-31). Are you unsure where to go next? He will guide you (John 14:6). Do you need protection? He will supply it (Psalm 5:11). Do you need food? It will be given (Matthew 6:25-34). Trust in Him and follow Him. Jesus calls himself the Way (John 14:6); keep your eyes on Him and He will show you the way through, whatever the issues are in your life. He will give you what you need; maybe not the way you want Him to, or in your timing, but He will supply your every need at just the time you really need it (Philippians 4:19). You may not have everything you want this Christmas, but if you focus on Jesus, He will show you the way. Will you trust and follow Him this Christmas?

Today is the Fourth Sunday of Advent and we will be lighting the fourth candle to remind us that We Can Choose – Born to Live

Was it enough that Jesus died for our sin? Now that it is done, is sin gone? Is our relationship restored? I’m sorry to say that there is one more step. We have to choose to accept the gift. We have to believe that Jesus died for our sins and that they are now gone. We have to admit that we have sinned, and accept Him as our Lord and Saviour (1 John 1:9). Once we have accepted the gift, we will become children of God, and our relationship will be restored (John 1:12). We will have crossed over from death to life (John 5:24).

Is this really the only way? Yes. It is impossible for us to earn our salvation. It can only be received as a gift of grace from God (Ephesians 2:8-9, Titus 3:5). Then, and only then, is our sin gone. Then, and only then, is our relationship restored. Like all relationships, though, this one too requires work. You now have a relationship, but how strong it is depends on the effort you make in talking to him, reading his word and serving Him

So the question is: what will you choose? Will you choose death, or life? Will you choose to accept God’s gift and life in relationship with Him, or will you live your own way? If you choose God, you can pray a simple prayer such as:

“God, I am sorry for the things I have done that hurt You and broke our relationship. Please forgive me. I love you, and I accept Your gift of Jesus dying in my place, and I choose You as my Lord and Saviour. Amen”

For this Fourth Sunday of Advent, please light the fourth candle as we remember: We Can Choose – born to live.

Thought:

The Star shone in the night, and although only the Magi recognized what it meant, everyone saw its light. Darkness had come on the world not only physically, but also spiritually. Jesus came to bring light back into the world (John 8:12). The world had been living in darkness, in evil, but things were about to change. The Light of God had arrived and the way out of darkness was here (Isaiah 60:1-2). With Jesus’ death and resurrection, the darkness has been defeated. Isn’t it amazing that one tiny star or one small lit candle can defeat darkness? You can’t see anything, and then the small candle is lit, and the things around you start to become clear. Jesus’ birth was like that; a glimmer of light, a glimmer of hope in a dark world. We start seeing God, believing in His plan. As a man, He taught us about who He was, about God’s plan, about who we are according to God, and how we are to live, and the light got brighter. We started seeing what we are doing wrong and start living better. When we are living for God, living God’s way, peace enters our lives (John 14:27). Darkness faded a little more as more people started to believe and follow Him. Then Jesus died and rose again and darkness, satan, and sin were defeated and the light burned bright. Darkness, the war, satan, and evil had lost. With the coming of the light, lost its hold. There is still darkness in those who don’t believe, and between good and evil, the war is on, but the light is shining and the shadows fading, and we know God has won the battle. Soon, Jesus will return to take us from this world (John 14:1-3) to a new world where Jesus’ light fills every corner, and nothing is hidden ever again (Revelation 21:23, Revelation 22:5). Evil and satan will be gone taking darkness and death with them, never to return. Praise God, Jesus, the Light of the World has come (John 1:9).

Thought:

The Magi were lead to Jesus by a star (Mathew 2:1-2). It is believed, but not known for sure, that the star was actually Mars, Jupiter and Saturn getting very close together in the constellation Pisces. This grouping would have been considered a star at that time. This would mean to The Magi, who were astronomers, that a great king was to be born in Israel. If it had been one star, everyone would have seen it, not just the Magi, and the Magi would not have had to ask where to find the baby (as described here).

There was a light to show the Magi the way to Jesus at His birth and Jesus calls Himself the Light of the World (John 8:12) showing people the way (John 14:6). He lights up our life path so we know what we need to do and the direction we need to go. Are you confused about where to go from here, or what to do next? Ask Jesus to light the path that He wants you to use, and He will. Wait and watch in prayer and He will show you the way. Are you trying to find God? Are you looking for a closer relationship with Him? The only way to do that is to follow Jesus. To accept Him as your Lord and Saviour and learn how He lived by reading the Bible, then asking Him to show you the way.

Thought:

Herod was afraid that He would lose His kingdom to this new king, whom the Magi said would be born. He feared losing everything and would do anything to protect what He had at any cost. He was willing to fight against God to keep it. So He decided to kill all the baby boys under the age of two to stop it from happening. No one would take away His power; not even a little child. But God warned Joseph in a dream to take Mary and Jesus and go to Egypt so Herod couldn’t find Him (Matthew 2:1-18).

Jesus was crucified; died and buried. He was dead; there was no rescue this time It was over. Or was it? There was an earthquake; the stone rolled away from the tomb and Jesus was alive again (Matthew 28:1-6). Death was defeated for the second time in His life. This time, He defeated it for all of us. We no longer have to fear death. If we have accepted Jesus as our Lord and Saviour, our Body will die but our spirit never will. Thank you, Lord.