What’s in your wallet? Have you heard this commercial lately? If not, you are obviously not watching any TV! Which isn’t a bad thing. But, this phrase was made popular by Alec Baldwin as the spokesman for Capitol One credit card. Now, Samuel L. Jackson is the pitchman. But, in each commercial the final question is, “What’s in your wallet?”
Well, at Christmas time, after all the buying is over, maybe we would conclude that not much is left in our wallets! But, if we pull the Capitol One credit card, there just might be a big balance on our bill come January 1.
Today I want to pose a different question. I’m not as concerned about what’s in your wallet as I am about what’s in your heart. As you navigate through this Christmas season have you even thought much about God’s love for you or your love for God? Do you stop to recognize the motivation behind the coming of Jesus to Earth was His love for the Father and sinners? He was obedient to His Father’s will to be humbled to such a low estate. Please read Philippians 2:5-11 to see how the Apostle Paul presents this humbling.
But, we also must ask ourselves how much do I love God; what is in my heart? Nearly every person associated with the Christmas story demonstrates an unflinching love for God. Zacharias, Elizabeth, Joseph, Mary, the Magi, and the shepherds, all showed their love for God by their obedience. They gave themselves first to God and then to others.
On Sunday we will hear a beautiful rendition of the Christmas story via music. Come to worship the Lord with us.
It sure was. A few lonely shepherds on a lonely hill just doing their job. Not expecting anything more special on that night than on any other night. But, things were about to change!
Stars and the sky seem to take a prominent place in the Christmas accounts. Beginning in Numbers 24:17 the subject of stars and lights take center stage in the expectations of the coming Messiah. By the time of the birth of Jesus darkness had gripped the world. Without warning the skies lit up to proclaim the birth of Messiah. To forgotten shepherds and to to scholarly Magi, the skies trumpeted a message for all the world to hear.
On Sunday we will have the joy of our Adult choir singing music that points us to the stars and the birth of Jesus. A live orchestra will accompany our choir to proclaim the joy of the birth of Jesus. I trust you will make plans to be here at 10:30 am for this wonderful message in song.
A part of the Christmas celebration in Los Gatos is the Fantasy of Lights display in Vasona Park. Though it doesn’t present the real meaning of Christmas, it is still quite spectacular. This year we have a a few passes which entitle the holder to enter the display for FREE! If you are one of the first THREE to call the office at 408-395-6144 you can have one of these coupons. Remember, first come, first served! Call NOW.
Do you see the words above? Read through the list to see what they are? No, I mean read them NOW! Did you see it? Each of these words are used so often in our modern speech that they have lost their impact. When nearly everything is “amazing” or “wonderful” what sets anything apart as truly amazing?
When you read the Christmas story for the first time you are amazed at it. You cannot grasp how God became man and came as a little Baby in “the little town of Bethlehem.” You are astonished by the love of God that He would send His Son to be the Redeemer of a lost, sinful human race. You wonder about it.
Christmas 1933 saw the introduction of a “new” Christmas carol. I put new in quotation marks because the song wasn’t new. It was a folk song well known in the hills of the Appalachia Mountains. A songwriter b y the name of John Jacob Niles was traveling in the Appalachia mountains when he heard a little girl sing a few lines of this song. He went home and put the words to a haunting melody and the song became an instant classic. Here are the words to the first verse.
I wonder as I wander out under the sky
How Jesus the Saviour did come for to die
For poor on’ry people like you and like I;
I wonder as I wander out under the sky
Do you still wonder about Christmas? Or, has it become just “old hat”? This Sunday we will look at how some of the characters in the account of Christmas reacted to the news of the birth of the Baby Jesus.
Let’s add wonder back to Christmas and again be amazed at the story.
How many have you asked this question? Maybe most of you reading this post have known the real meaning of Christmas all your lives. Or, maybe it’s been many, many, years for others. But, we all know that many people will pass through another Christmas season wondering why we do it. Some will question the purpose of the gift giving, the strands of lights and the singing of obscure carols. They will wonder, what does it all mean?
You and I have the answer to their question. More than the trappings the world puts on Christmas, we know it points to the birth of the Saviour of the world. The gifts are to remind us of the first gifts brought to Jesus. The lights are to remind us of the one great light that announced His birth to the Magi. And, the carols are to remind us of the song of joy the angels sang on that night. For those who are informed, all of the “trappings” of Christmas make sense.
But, what about those who are uninformed? How can they know? Well, in December, 1965 Charles Shultz gave the world a cute, but pretty correct, view of the real meaning of Christmas. He battled the CBS tv executives to not remove Linus reciting the Christmas story. Without Luke’s account in the production the show would not have gone on! So, for 48 non-stop years Linus recounts the story of Christmas. Now, two generations of children have at least hear the story from the lips of Linus.
Below is the clip from “A Charlie Brown Christmas.” Watch it one more time and see if it will remind you again of why we go through the Christmas holidays.
How many of you have ever tried to fool a person on their birthday with “never blow out” candles? You know the kind, the ones that can be blown out, but, soon reignite! No matter how many times they blow them out, the candle comes right back on. It is a fun trick to play on the unsuspecting.
Sunday we will look at the fact that we are light. The text says we not only walk in light, but that we ARE light. Now, we are not light in ourselves. We are simply a reflector of light. But, we are light and no longer darkness.
Remember the children’s song maybe you sang or taught to your children, “This little light of mine”? One verse says, “Don’t let Satan blow it out..” We are built like the “never blow out candle” in that Satan can look like he blew out our light. But, soon, it will reignite. As we stay close to the real Light our light can never permanently go out.
Sunday come to study with us the concept of us as light-bearers.
Today begins a new adventure for me. I will be writing some short thoughts about the messages coming on Sundays and to get you and I to think about how to live out our Christian lives.
We are talking about “walking” from Ephesians 5:1-17. Sunday we will be looking at “walking in the light.” The first question you must ask yourself is, “Am I in the light?” Then, you must ask, “Am I still in the light?”
Be reading Ephesians 5:1-17 to become familiar with what happens when we walk in the light.
Fell free to ask questions or make comments. Let’s make this as interactive as possible.
Did you see it? Each of these words are used so often in our modern speech that they have lost their impact. When nearly everything is “amazing” or “wonderful” what sets anything apart as truly amazing?
