|
Dec 2/09
Wise Men
Tradition tells us that there were three wise men, the Bible however, is silent on how many. It does tell us that they brought three gifts, gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Matthew 2:2 relates to us the words of these wise men. “Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.” (KJV) Since they were coming to worship this ‘King’, I doubt they brought a few gold coins and small vials of frankincense, and myrrh.
It only makes sense that if they were coming to worship a king, they would bring bags of gold and as much frankincense, and myrrh as they could carry. It probably wasn’t only three wise men, but many wise men and an entourage. They would have had many servants and come riding on many camels. Remember, they came from a far away land and would have travelled for a long time. This was an important trip to pay homage to an important new king. This would demand many important and expensive gifts.
We often see Jesus represented as poor. He was born poor, born to couple who could only find room in a stable. After the wise men left His family was wealthy. The Son of God was not destined to live a poor man’s life.
Dec 12/09
Why?
Have you ever wondered why Jesus had to born as a man? God left His heavenly abode, came to earth and took on the form of a man and lived a perfect life, but why did He have to do it? Could there not have been another way for Him to get the desired result without living on the earth as a man?
Every person that has walked this earth has sinned. All the people in the future will also sin. Because of this, we are all condemned to eternal separation from God. This is explained in Romans 5:12, “So then, just as sin entered the world through one man and death through sin, and so death spread to all people because all sinned”.
Jesus, however, lived a full life on earth as a man and never sinned. It was His sinless nature that allowed Him to go to the cross and die for my sins and for your sins. If He had committed any sin, this would not have been possible. He did many great and marvelous things during His life, but the only one that makes a difference in eternity, is His sinless life and carrying my sins to the cross. That is the reason for which He came to earth and was born as a man, to redeem me, and you from our sins.
Dec 15/09
The Present
I
have celebrated many Christmases with the exchanging of presents. I can
remember the faces of my children when they opened many of the presents. They
are now grown and have their own families and most of those presents are no
longer. They may have memories, but the actual present is no longer. I can
even remember back to when I was I child and many of the present I received.
Again, many memories, but I do not have a single one of those presents any
more. For the most part they probably just wore out or I outgrew them. I’m
sure in a closet somewhere, one of them may be hiding, but I certainly don’t
know where.
Think about all the present you have received. How
many of them do you still have? I’m sure if we go back more than four or five
Christmases we will find we have very few of them.
This year, as you open presents, try to think about
the one present that was given that will last for an eternity. When Jesus was
born, He brought with Him the gift of eternal salvation, the opportunity to live
in the presence of God forever. When He died on the cross He presented that
gift to us. But as with any gift, it is up to us to receive it. The acceptance
is easy. “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt
believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be
saved.” (Romans 10:9, KJV)
Dec 29/09
Normal
I
once saw a sign in an office. It read, ‘There are two things in this world that
scare me. First, things may never get back to normal. Second, this is
normal.’ Have you ever had times like that, when you wonder if the world will
ever return to normal? Now that all the Christmas rush is over, many people are
hoping for a life that will return to normal.
The question I would like to ask is, ‘which
normal?’ Do you want normal according the world, or normal according to God?
The world says it is normal for about 10% of the population to get the flu in
any given flu season. God’s normal says I can live in divine health and not
have to worry about getting the flu.
The world tells us that many people are born into
certain lifestyles or living conditions and are unable to improve themselves and
get up in the world. God tells us that it is normal, with His help, to overcome
any situation.
In this coming year I am going to strive to live a
life that is normal, not normal according to the world, but normal according to
the Word of God. For which normal are you striving?
|
|
