The malls are crowded with holiday shoppers, the radio stations are playing "Silver Bells" and "Santa Clause is Coming to Town", the stockings are hung by the chimney with care...yes, the Christmas season has officially begun. I love everything about Christmas. My decorations are up almost before Thanksgiving dinner has settled in my stomach, I play Christmas music in my car 24/7 from mid-November on, and the shopping...oh, don't even get me started on how much I love Christmas shopping! (And online shopping SO does NOT count.) There is just something about this time of year that makes my step a little lighter, my heart a little warmer and my pants a little tighter. Yes, I love everything about Christmas.
Now, of course, as a believer I know that Christmas isn't at all about the presents, the lights, the food or even spending time with family and friends. And yet, I am just as guilty as non-believers as allowing my focusing to become skewed this time of year. So how do we then, as believers, keep the focus on Christ during Christmas? How do we enjoy the secular aspects of Christmas without getting lost in them? How can I be sure that what I am truly celebrating is the miracle of Christ's birth and the incomparable grace that came to earth that night so long ago and not Christmas trees and Santa Clause?
As I have thought about this over the last few days, the answer came to me as we were practicing for our Christmas concert this weekend. I must always keep my focus on the Cross. Now, I know that typically during Christmas we focus on the baby in the manger and the shepard's watching their flocks by night. We may even think of angels and wise men, but the cross? Doesn't that come much later in the story? While it may be true that Christmas is the celebration of Christ's birth, it lacks any meaning at all if we don't view His birth through the lens of his death on the cross.
Jesus, who was himself fully God, became a human that night so long ago for one solitary purpose. He came to die. He became that sweet little baby in the manger in order to face death so that we might be saved. Jesus, "who being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, humbled himself and became obedient to death-even death on a cross!" (Phil 2:6-8) And the most beautiful part of the Christmas story is that it does not end with Jesus' death on the cross. No, that is just the beginning for those of us who have trusted in Him as our Savior. Because He rose again and conquered death, we have the promise of eternal life with Him in glory. "Death has been swallowed up in victory. Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."(1 Corinth 15:54-56)
When we stop to look at Christmas from a different perspective, through the lens of the cross, we begin to see the whole picture, the whole story, God's plan from the beginning. The birth of that baby in the manger becomes something more than just a nativity scene on the mantle or the front yard. It becomes more than just a Christmas carol of "Silent Night" or " Away in a Manger". It becomes a symbol of hope. It points us to God's beautiful plan of redemption for His people.
So this Christmas season, when I find myself focusing on what gifts to buy, what treats to indulge in or even what family events to plan, I am going to try to stop myself and remember the cross. There is no amount of gifts we can give or receive, no amount of time spent with loved ones, nor any amount of holiday decorations carefully placed that can offer the true hope and peace that we experience through Jesus Christ. This is the true meaning of Christmas.
I am reminded of one of my favorite Christmas movies, "Charlie Brown Christmas" where Charlie Brown becomes frustrated at all of the secularism of Christmas and longs to know what is the true meaning of Christmas. And Linus, blanket-carrying, simple-minded Linus, reminds him, and all of us, the true meaning of Christmas. " I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you: he is Christ the Lord."(Luke 2:10-11) A Savior has been born. Not a great man or a prophet...a Savior. THE Savior.
One of my all-time favorite songs is in "In Christ Alone" and perhaps these verses from the song best sum it all up. "In Christ alone, who took on flesh, fullness of God in helpless babe. This gift of love and righteousness, scorned by the ones he came to save. Til on that cross as Jesus died the wrath of God was satisfied. For every sin on him was laid . Here in the death of Christ I live. There in the ground His body lay, light of the world by darkness slain. Then bursting forth in glorious day, up from the grave He rose again. And as He stands in victory, sin's curse has lost its grip on me. For I am His and He is mine bought with the precious blood of Christ!"
It is in Christ alone that we find hope. In His birth, in His death and in His resurrection. It is in Christ alone that we find the true meaning of Christmas.
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Thursday, November 3, 2011
The Pain and Purpose of Remembering
As Grace's 10th birthday rapidly approaches, I have been recently flooded with memories of the last 10 years. It is amazing to me how quickly the time has passed, and I am nostalgic when I think back to when she was a little girl and not the "tween" that now stands before me. I love to remember how she adored all things pink, delighted in playing dress-up, and spent hours pretending make believe games with her dolls, Polly-pockets and stuffed animals. These memories bring such joy to my heart, and I am so thankful everyday to have them.
However, not all of my memories are as pleasant as those that involve my children. In fact, there are some points in my life that I would much rather forget. In my Bible study, we are learning about Moses' final warnings to the people before they enter into the Promise Land. One thing that he continually tells them is remember to remember. Moses wants the people to remember what God has done for them and how God has faithfully cared for them, often in spite of their disobedience. Moses knows that if the people forget to remember that it is from the Lord that they have received blessing, then they will be less likely to follow the commands of God in their new home.
Now, we often like to give the Israelites a hard time. I mean, it just seems so foolish to us that they could witness such miraculous displays of God's power, love and mercy and then choose to forget all that he has done for them and disobey. But I confess that I often see eerily shameful similarities between myself and them. Maybe they, like me, would rather not look back on their past years spent in bondage and slavery. Maybe they are ashamed of the mistakes they made in the wilderness and would just rather forget the whole thing and move on. We, or I, am guilty at times of having this very same mindset. At times it seems easier to just forget about our "wilderness years", so to speak, and just live comfortably in the place of blessing that the Lord has brought us to.
There are so many times that I wish I could say that my testimony is one of spending most of my life walking closely with the Lord and following His plan for my life, but unfortunately, that's just not the case. Like the Israelites, I also spent many years (thankfully not 40!) wandering in the wasteland as a result of my sin and disobedience to God. And also like them, I have been delivered from my years of bondage and slavery and brought into a place of God's blessing purely as a result of His grace and mercy. How like the Israelites I am when I forget to remember that it is only by the Lord's hand that I am no longer captive to my sin.
As Moses entreats the people to remember, I am reminded that I also must remember. As painful as it is to recall the sin and my shame of my youth, it reminds me of the Lord's great love and faithfulness to me in delivering me from those things. It humbles me to think back on how He saved me...not because I deserved it, but because He loved me. Moses knows that as the people remember God's love for them, they will, out of their gratitude and love, choose to obey Him. He knows that obedience to God is a result of love for God. What could prompt greater love than remembering the faithfulness and goodness of the merciful God we serve?
So, while at times remembering produces pain, there is great purpose in it. The purpose is that as we remember the amazing grace of God towards us and our sin, we fall more deeply in love with our Savior. We will choose to obey His commands because we remember that He alone is capable of knowing what is best for us. We will "Know therefore that the Lord your God is God; He is the faithful God, keeping His covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love Him and keep His commands." (Deut 7:9) I'd say that in itself is the worth the pain of remembering.
However, not all of my memories are as pleasant as those that involve my children. In fact, there are some points in my life that I would much rather forget. In my Bible study, we are learning about Moses' final warnings to the people before they enter into the Promise Land. One thing that he continually tells them is remember to remember. Moses wants the people to remember what God has done for them and how God has faithfully cared for them, often in spite of their disobedience. Moses knows that if the people forget to remember that it is from the Lord that they have received blessing, then they will be less likely to follow the commands of God in their new home.
Now, we often like to give the Israelites a hard time. I mean, it just seems so foolish to us that they could witness such miraculous displays of God's power, love and mercy and then choose to forget all that he has done for them and disobey. But I confess that I often see eerily shameful similarities between myself and them. Maybe they, like me, would rather not look back on their past years spent in bondage and slavery. Maybe they are ashamed of the mistakes they made in the wilderness and would just rather forget the whole thing and move on. We, or I, am guilty at times of having this very same mindset. At times it seems easier to just forget about our "wilderness years", so to speak, and just live comfortably in the place of blessing that the Lord has brought us to.
There are so many times that I wish I could say that my testimony is one of spending most of my life walking closely with the Lord and following His plan for my life, but unfortunately, that's just not the case. Like the Israelites, I also spent many years (thankfully not 40!) wandering in the wasteland as a result of my sin and disobedience to God. And also like them, I have been delivered from my years of bondage and slavery and brought into a place of God's blessing purely as a result of His grace and mercy. How like the Israelites I am when I forget to remember that it is only by the Lord's hand that I am no longer captive to my sin.
As Moses entreats the people to remember, I am reminded that I also must remember. As painful as it is to recall the sin and my shame of my youth, it reminds me of the Lord's great love and faithfulness to me in delivering me from those things. It humbles me to think back on how He saved me...not because I deserved it, but because He loved me. Moses knows that as the people remember God's love for them, they will, out of their gratitude and love, choose to obey Him. He knows that obedience to God is a result of love for God. What could prompt greater love than remembering the faithfulness and goodness of the merciful God we serve?
So, while at times remembering produces pain, there is great purpose in it. The purpose is that as we remember the amazing grace of God towards us and our sin, we fall more deeply in love with our Savior. We will choose to obey His commands because we remember that He alone is capable of knowing what is best for us. We will "Know therefore that the Lord your God is God; He is the faithful God, keeping His covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love Him and keep His commands." (Deut 7:9) I'd say that in itself is the worth the pain of remembering.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)