Unto Us...

For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.  Isa 9:6-7

This has been a busy week:  Preparing for the Christmas fellowship at CCW (Dont miss it!  Friday night at 6 pm!), preparing for Sunday, and preparing for a 2 week sabbatical with our family.  Oh, and don’t worry, things are in good hands while I am gone:  Pastor Mel will be teaching both Sundays, my good friends All Lines Parallel will be bringing the worship on Dec 27th, and the talented duo Josh and Tiffany Mitchell will be bringing worship on January 3rd. (If you are thinking “ALP, aren’t they a hard rock Christian band?”  Answer:  Yes.  But they can totally bring it down and worship the Lord.  If you have ever been to a Third Day concert, you know what I mean! Trust me, you will be blessed.)

But, back to Christmas. I am not a “holiday” person, and so every year Christmas seems to sneak up on me.  And then I find myself thinking the same thoughts:  What does Christmas mean?  Is there some “special thing” that I could come up with, one of those “ah ha” moments that will be a new revelation about the birth of Christ.  But I always come back to the same simple truth:  Jesus Christ, the son of God, was presented to the world.  His arrival was heralded as a blessing to mankind, because He was sent with a purpose: To reconcile man to his creator.  Jesus Christ came with a ministry of reconciliation:

All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them.  2 Cor 5:18-19

His coming was promised, and it happened.  Since that time, His arrival has not only changed the world, but literally changed the lives of millions – even billions – of people throughout history.

But the best is yet to come, as His second coming is also promised, and it will happen:

“Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.”

Merry Christmas, and praise be to God for His Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior!

Pastor Clay