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Merry Christmas
Christmas is a wonderful time of year, celebrating a wonderful story, wise men following a star, gifts from afar, and a virgin giving birth in a cattle stall. A Holy child conceived by the Holy Ghost. His name was “God with us”. God became a man! ….But it was not enough!
If the story had ended there, or even if it had ended with the child growing up to be a great teacher and doing mighty works for God on behalf of the less fortunate, it would just be another story of a great and good man. But it did not end there.
This man came not only to live a perfect life but to die as a perfect sacrifice, a substitute for every man, fully satisfying
God the Father’s just demands. Tens of thousands of volumes have been written about his death on the cross. ……But it was not enough.
If the story had ended there, it would have been a great story, unique among all the stories of men ever told. God had come in flesh and paid for the transgressions of men every where and now God the Father could freely forgive men their sins and not compromise his holiness and justice. ……But it was not enough.
This innocent God-man had committed no crime but was executed on a Roman cross. He was buried in a borrowed tomb. And on the third day, just as he had predicted, He arose from the dead. He was alive! He had been glorified! His body was now fit not only for planet earth but heaven as well. Sin had been defeated. The devil and hell had been openly laid bare and also defeated. And, even death, the greatest enemy of mankind had itself died. Death, hell, and the grave would no longer be victors over those who know the Life.
Solely because of Christ’s life and work, both in living and dying and rising again, God could now forgive the sins of anyone who would trust the Christ of God and walk with Him. …But it was not enough!
Not enough you ask? Yes, to forgive sins was not enough. Because God cold wipe the slate clean, forgiving all your past sins, but there is a problem. You will sin again. Yes, just as every man since Adam, all of us sin. Even the best, most sincere Christian, still lives in a sin tainted body
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a body that desires what God does not approve. And each of us has an ego that wants to be polished and protected every day. So if forgiveness is not enough what could God possibly do more?
God, the righteous judge of the universe, would declare wicked sinners “righteous” based on Jesus Christ’s life, death, and resurrection. ….That is quite enough!
The great Apostle Paul gave some reasons why he was not ashamed of the good news about Jesus. He said it is the dynamite of God unto salvation for everyone and that in that powerful story “the righteousness of God is revealed”. What is this “righteousness of God”? It is the person, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Because of the babe of Bethlehem, God takes away sin from wicked sinners and puts it to the credit of Jesus. But He doesn’t stop there. He also takes the righteousness of Jesus and credits it to the account of the sinner. So every man, woman, and boy and girl who puts their trust in the claims of the good news about Jesus and obeys it’s demands is made righteous.
Only perfect people are fit for living in the very presence of God in heaven or in the new earth. Only the completely pure can abide in His holy presence. God seeks after wicked sinners and based solely upon Christ he chooses them to be His own, He draws them to Himself by the work of the Holy Spirit. He convinces, convicts, and converts them by making them righteous as He is righteous, holy as he is holy, and finally, immortal as He is immortal.
This is what Christmas is all about. The beauty of that night long ago is only understood by the beatings Jesus took for you and me. The expensive gifts given to the holy child are only appreciated when we understand what the greatest gift is, the blood of Christ.
The babe, the body, the blood, the bounty, the beauty of holiness, freely given to all, and for all, who will turn from their own way and follow Jesus in simple child like trust.
Religion…is not enough. Acts of kindness…is not enough. Being a committed member of a church…is not enough. Only Jesus Christ himself is enough. He is the only hope, He is righteousness, He is life, is He yours?
See what God has given! Merry Christmas!
A look at history in black and white
Today I took a few hour journey back to the mountains of North Carolina, the place of my birth, and the place where generations of Ogle’s, Fox’s, Thomas’s, and Blevins’s were born, lived, and died. I could feel the cool wind coming across the hill scattering rust colored leaves, turning up the corners of collars, and being greeted with squinted eyes and rosy cheeks. I appreciated the warmth of the noonday sun which can only penetrate those deep hollers a few hours on clear days. I sat on rough cut wooden steps, looking down the road by the creek where you must look sharply up to see the sky in any direction. It is a time and a place where the richness of the black dirt is only surpassed by the lives of it’s citizens who carved out a meager living with calloused hands, strong wills, and faith in the Creator.
My people were common folks, few if any graduated from any school of any kind, but they raised children by the dozens who became “salt of the earth” kind of citizens who drove better cars, lived in houses with indoor plumbing, were better educated, but were cut from the same cloth as generations before them. They were carpenters, mechanics, home makers, and gospel preachers. But for a few sad exceptions they only saw the outside of a jail. As recently as two generations ago, one of my uncles, Bill Wheeler, never owned a car, never worked on a public job, had never lived in a house without an outhouse, but built a reputation as one of the best men in his county. Uncle Bill was a man of God, a fact no person who knew him questioned, but he never claimed to be anything but “saved by grace” and in love with his Lord. He had two brothers who were preachers like him, although Bill would never admit to being a preacher.
Grandpa “Papa” Fox, my maternal grandfather, married my grandma who had a house full of small children, was living in a wilderness area of Avery County, N.C., and had been deserted by a philandering hypocrite husband. Papa and Grandma Fox added three more children, my mom being the first from their union. Papa walked several miles to hitch a ride to work on the Blue Ridge Parkway, leaving at about 4:30 a.m. and returning after dark. He raised most of what was eaten including pigs and chickens and vegetables. There was no electricity, no water in the house, no insulation in the walls, but they joyfully survived, playing the cards dealt them without grumbling and complaining.
Grandpa and Grandma Ogle, my paternal grandparents, lived a few miles West in the same county, living off the land, scratching out a living and managing to raise twelve children, burying another boy when he was an infant. Digging May Apple roots and ginseng, gathering ferns for florists, working in saw mills, and killing wild game and catching fish, fed the Ogle clan except for the coldest part of winter when at least some of the kids would be sent to relatives for a while ‘til “Spring broke” and the garden started to produce food.
I come from good stock. I’m proud of my heritage, my mountain home, and my people. I like to think that in my physical and spiritual DNA there is some of the stuff that makes men strong and faithful to their families and their God. From birth there was a Good Samaritan some place in me, a kind word, a hug, a helping hand, and a seed of faith that is still alive and well. My grandparents, my parents, and almost all of my many, many aunts and uncles, and countless cousins, claimed Jesus and live, or lived, in His grace.
This morning I went to an old roll top desk that I had as a child and took out a cookie box, and a Christmas card box, both full of pictures, obituaries from the news paper, report cards, high school play programs, and letters, and I revisited history in black and white. This time there was no sadness, no tears, only warm memories and renewed appreciation for my place in the world and for the land and the people who made it possible. I have more relatives in heaven now than on earth, and that is not a bad thing, it’s very good. At 63, I too will graduate soon and I sort of look forward to the home coming.
What wonderful people! What a wonderfully blessed life! What a wonderful God!
It is time to be thankful.
A son of the hills and the One who made them,
Royce
Is Truth absolute? And, can I present it effectively?
Every person who is serious about their personal faith in God, and sharing that faith with others will be blessed by seeing this video. It addresses many questions facing the church today in clear, logical, objective language that will help us have our feet on solid ground as we present truth to others.
I hope you are blessed as I have been by this excellent presentation. Follow this link: GodTube
Comments?
His Peace,
Royce
Grace Digest 