Monday, December 08, 2008

A Failure to Recognize? - December 8, 2008

Good Monday morning! Snow in the forecast, hope you are ready! :-) I am glad that we are all here today. Let a song of Christmas sing in your heart today. I pray that the Christmas season has filled you with an eager anticipation of Christ's second coming! I like to celebrate the blessed event that happened in Bethlehem so long ago with a hope and prayer for the next time the Messiah will arrive. The return of our Lord fills the enemy with dread, but that great event fills our hearts with a great joy and expectation. Around 2,000 years ago a great light shone on the world from a small town in Judea. In a land under occupation by a conquering nation, a savior came and a king was born.

The people at that time expected a king that fit their own image of a king. Jesus came in His own image of a king and most of the people failed to recognize Messiah though he stood right in front of them. We do not have the opportunity to see Jesus in the flesh in our time, at least not so far, but perhaps it is better that way. At least we cannot make the same mistake the people made back then. Many of our fellow persons in this day do make the mistake of not recognizing the Good News of Jesus' resurrection and grace. What could be worse? Some people do recognize Jesus in the Good News and choose to reject Him. That frightens me for their sake more than anything else. That someone could see Jesus for what He is and still choose to turn away seems so...so much like something that any of us might have done at some point. Yes, any of us may have done that in our lives at some time in the past. The world of sin is very seductive and we must pray for those still caught up in its dread grip. You and I turned to Jesus; we should never give up praying, witnessing, and hoping for those still in the world.

Today I resolved to have a great Christmas once more. Not only that, a Christmas joy that does not depend upon giving expensive gifts or receiving anything but what God has given me already. Peace and contentment to all in this wonderful Christmas season!

Bucky

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