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“What to Give the One who Has Everything”

The magi or wise men are a beautiful part of the Christmas story even though they probably didn’t visit Jesus until a couple of years after his birth. We usually include them in the celebration of Jesus’ birth because it is one of the few times early in his life, that he was recognized and honored for who he was, not only to the people of Israel but to the whole world. The gifts these men brought, the effort of their trip, and the deference they gave to Jesus were worthy of a great king. Their role points not only to a Christmas theme but one that is a pillar of Christianity itself – submission. 
 
Submission is a dirty word in our culture and typically considered a sign of weakness. It’s something we typically push back on as none of us want to give up our control. As Americans, we take pride in fighting for our rights and our freedoms. Some of our common idioms reflect this – “You’re not the boss of me!” “Nobody’s going to tell me what to do!” “I did it my way.” But this sentiment isn’t isolated to current day America. 
 
When the magi approached King Herod for directions, he was shocked at the threat to his throne and went to terrible lengths to protect it, having all the boys in the area under two years of age slaughtered. That tableau usually doesn’t make it onto Christmas cards. 
 
The challenge to authority is as old as our greatest enemy, Lucifer, whose desire to rule caused his downfall. Consequently, convincing us that we’d be better off running our own lives is one of his most effective ploys in tempting us to destruction. 
 
As crazy as it seems, submission is one of the most powerful tools for true success in our lives. Christ used it as one of the defining characters of a disciple (Luke 9:23). It is based on the recognition that God is sovereign and we are not. Submission, surrendering to the authority of another is difficult, it’s unnatural to our fallen condition, and it takes true humility. But it is grease to the gears of the church, the family, the government, and every area of our lives. 
 
Look at the following passages that represent areas in which we are to submit:  
 
To God – “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” James 4:7 
 
To Scripture – “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” Joshua 1:8
 
To Church Leaders – “We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work.” 1 Thessalonians 5:12-13 (see also Hebrews 13:17)
 
Wives to husbands – “Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord.” Ephesians 5:22
 
Children to parents – “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.” “Honor your father and mother” (this is the first commandment with a promise).” Ephesians 6:1-2 
 
Servants to masters – “Bondservants, obey in everything those who are your earthly masters, not by way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord. Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men,” Colossians 3:22-23 
 
To Government Officials – “Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good.” 1 Peter 2:13-14
 
Despite our arguments as to the worthiness of those in authority over us, our submission is ultimately to God. Submission to Him through our obedience is one of the best gifts we can give Him this Christmas season, a gift worthy of a King. 
  • From these examples, which is the hardest for you to submit to? 
  • Take some time to pray through the area of submission and surrender. 
Jon Price, Associate Pastor
 

 

 

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“Clean”

1 John 1:9 “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Years ago, as I was being a good husband and washing dishes, there came a thought to me. We had some toddler cups that were too deep and narrow for my hands to reach with a dishcloth. To my disgust, the bottom of the cup was still dirty. Well, I found the greatest invention since the remote. It was a sponge that was attached to a long handle – perfect to reach where my hands could not. I thought of the passage above which informs us that God will cleanse us from “ALL” sin. There are a couple of points to this illumination.
  1. God gets where we cannot. We need to confess to God and we need the cleansing power of Christ.  We need it, because we cannot clean ourselves. The wounds are too deep. Jesus can reach where we cannot.
  2. God gets all that we cannot. God is faithful. He is reliable to get the job done. There is no doubt that Jesus Christ will reach the worst and get all the dirt.
Confession is good for the soul.  If you have something that needs to be washed, Jesus can get “ALL” the dirt. You will feel much better when you are clean.

Stephen Williams

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“A Goal to Restore” – Galatians 6:1-2

Galatians 6:1-2

“Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.”

It’s been said that the church is the only army that shoots its own wounded. There’s something about catching someone else in sin that takes the focus off of our own failures. We can be tempted to make a spectacle of calling them on the carpet or making them feel like they should be made an example of. Is it any wonder that believers can be hesitant to confess their weaknesses to others in the church? It’s common practice to pretend that we have it all together, even when we’re falling apart. I had a religion professor that warned his young students, “the people in your church want you to be yourself – until you are.” Admittedly that was a bit jaded, but not without many actual cases to support it. 
 
As we consider Paul’s ground rules for dealing with the spiritually fallen, there are three major things to remember: 
 
We should have humility. Many are familiar with the proverb, “pride goes before a fall.” In a survey done by Leadership magazine, the two common denominators of pastors who had fallen to sin were a lack of personal devotion time, and the thought, “that could never happen to me.” All of us have sinned and fall short, so we should come to our brother with this fresh on our mind, knowing that it could just have easily been us. 
 
We should be tender. The word ‘restore’ here in the greek is used to describe resetting a dislocated limb to its proper place. We should be aware of the pain that their decision has caused them and those around them. Most of us know people who are no longer in the church because their sin was dealt with in a ham-fisted manner. They left wounded and many times still entrenched in their sin.  
 
Our aim should be restoration. When we are tempted to pile on to the fallen, Paul encourages just the opposite. We are to lift each other’s burdens, to help carry the weight of one another’s struggles. He says that in doing this we fulfill the law of Christ. What is the law of Christ? It is restoration. Christ came to restore humanity into a right relationship with God the Father. And as his disciples, our mission is to help bring others into restoration as well. So when we talk about living and loving like Jesus, one picture of that is restoration. 
 
An example from the gospels paints this beautifully. A woman caught in adultery was brought to Jesus by religious leaders ready to stone her. He called them to humility with the words, “you who are without sin, cast the first stone.” As they walked away one by one, he spoke gently to the woman, asking “where are your accusers?” Jesus lifted her burden with the assurance that just as the others no longer stood against her, either would he. His final admonition was to “go and leave your life of sin.” It’s interesting to note that Jesus, the last man left in the conversation, was in fact, the only one qualified to cast the first stone. Yet, he chose to restore.  
 
While using the HEAR method (see below) consider the following questions:  
  • Have you seen an example where Christians used Paul’s counsel to restore a fallen brother or sister? Think back to how it was handled and the following results. Have you ever seen such a scenario mishandled? What was the result there?  
  • Who is someone that you can help by carrying their burdens? What might that entail?    

Highlight – what words or phrases jump out at you? 

Explain – what does the passage mean? 
Apply – how does the passage intersect with your life today? 
Respond – how is God leading you to respond?
Jon Price
 
Photo by Owen Beard on Unsplash

 

 

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“Straight from the Source” – Galatians 1:11-12

Galatians 1:11-12

“For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man’s gospel. For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ.” 

One of the old standards in youth ministry is the game ‘telephone.’ The idea is to line students up and whisper a sentence into the ear of the person at one end of the line and have them whisper it to the person next to them and so on. As the message makes its way to the other end, it gets misheard and misspoken at various points until it’s usually unrecognizable when finally revealed out loud. 

Paul was assuring the Galatians that among the competing ‘gospels’ they were hearing, his message was unadulterated. It hadn’t been passed down the line to him in a whisper. In fact, it had been loud and clear enough to knock him off his feet. There were no additives or missing ingredients. He had the authentic and original version – straight from Christ himself. 

While using the HEAR method (see below) consider the following questions:

  • When you share the gospel, what elements are crucial to presenting a clear and concise message

  • Why is it important to go straight to the source instead of relying on what you’ve heard? 

Highlight – what words or phrases jump out at you? 
Explain – what does the passage mean? 
Apply – how does the passage intersect with your life today? 
Respond – how is God leading you to respond? 

Today’s post is by Jon Price, Associate Pastor

 

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