A Few Child Questions

Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it. Luke 18:17 and Mark 10:15

How much do you suppose this child can pay for the kingdom of God? How many good works will this child do to enter the kingdom of God? What sort of valuable service will the child be able to perform for entry into the kingdom? So, why are we trying so hard to earn, buy or deserve our way into the kingdom of God? We receive it unearned, unmerited, and purchased by the Lord Jesus alone.

Let us rejoice in the Lord always!

Bucky

A Child Is Born

For unto us a Child is born,
​​Unto us a Son is given;
​​And the government will be upon His shoulder.
​​And His name will be called
​​Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,
​​Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
  -- Isaiah 9:6

So, one day I wrote about the humanness of Jesus in a down to earth way, but then I feel that guilt it brings and must bring out the divine. After all, how does that baby poop fit with the Prince of Peace? We get both in Jesus of course, and my little mind struggles to encompass them together in one little child. Would the Magi have bowed down to the Child if they had to change His soiled swaddling cloths? They had better! And so must we. Jesus is both the human son of Mary, and the glorious Son of God. Yes, my earthly mind threatens to rebel over that. The problem is not then who Jesus is, but with the earth-born mind. It is no wonder then that we must be reborn in the Spirit of God. When even the thought of the Christ Child as both God and little human baby sets up such a clash for us, we need God's Spirit in us to help us.

We may never figure it out, but we will know He is!

Bucky

Changing The Divine Diapers

And the Child grew and became strong in spirit, filled with wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him.  Luke 2:40

Early on a cool morning in Bethlehem, Joseph the carpenter awakened and sniffed the air. 

"Holy... gag! Mary, I think the Son of the Most High needs to be changed again!"

"No way, it's your turn," Mary said, "And I told you that street vendor's meat looked sketchy, but you fed it to Him anyway." 

The divine child giggled from his new crib and made another stinky deposit in the holy swaddling cloths. 

Like our verse for today, we may be tempted to summarize the infancy of the Christ child and move on to the parables and miracles. Mary and Joseph had to be there, and like many new parents, they may have occasionally fed the newborn Son of God something a bit spoiled by mistake. But wait, the newly-reborn Christian might say, didn't God make some provision for that? Maybe we aren't comfortable thinking of the Christ as a human child with all the usual stinks and messes. But human He was and human He died on the cross to save us. 

I hope that you had a wonderful Christmas!

Bucky

The King Asks

But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
Are not the least among the rulers of Judah;
For out of you shall come a Ruler
Who will shepherd My people Israel.
  --Matthew 2:6

If you turn back to Micah 5:2, you will find as I did that this quote is not exact. We can give the priests and scribes a break though since they did pretty well. When the king asks, it can be tough to quote a verse exactly verbatim right on the spot. But they did say 'shepherd' in there, didn't they? Could this have anything to do with a group of shepherds around Bethlehem who saw a great thing one night? Knowing the scriptures and having quotes ready for the situation may help us and others. However, it comes down to what testimony we bear, and the shepherds bore it well by just telling their story. Marvelous and miraculous things happened to the shepherds, and then there were these folks following a star. Testimonies will pile up about Jesus, because in these latter days there are yours and mine too. If a king asks, we must tell him our story.

Have a merry Christmas week! 

Bucky

That's Nothing!

For unto us a Child is born,
Unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His name will be called
Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
  -- Isaiah 9:6

Last night the football game moved along quickly enough that I was still up at the end of the first half. There, I got to see a play that the announcers said happens (or is successful) only about once every half century. As I was pondering that privilege, I could almost hear all the friends of Jesus saying, "That's nothing! Every year we celebrate a thing that only occurred once in all of history." Yes, and what a celebration it is! But speaking of turnarounds, both teams I rooted for last night had the lead when I retired to my reading, only to both lose the games by morning when I got up. This Child is gone from us again, but what do you suppose the 'morning' will bring? Those prophecies in this verse for today do not seem to be all completed just yet.

Have a merry Christmas season in our hope for His return!

Bucky

Came To Pass It Did!

And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This census first took place while Quirinius was governing Syria. So all went to be registered, everyone to his own city.  Luke 2:1-3

A decree goes out from the governing authority. Sometimes it may be just interesting, other times completely dull, but once in a while a decree affects everyone and everything. This one from the Caesar was one of those everyone decrees. Joseph and Mary might appreciate the convenience of an online form, had they known about it, at least until all their data was stolen. In their case with the Internet some years in the future, it meant a journey of some distance from their hometown of Nazareth to the little town of Bethlehem. Of course from the scriptures and angelic messages, they probably knew the trip to Bethlehem was a thing going to happen. The decree just helped Joseph move it along, since men sometimes need a little push in the direction they should be going already. 

And in Bethlehem that wonderful birth came to pass and our Savior was born. 

Bucky

Great To Have A Guide

When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.  Matthew 2:9-10

You are almost to a place, but in an unfamiliar land; GPS doesn't exist yet and maps will come in a few years or so. Someone has kindly pointed out the road to Bethlehem, but that is all you have to go on to find one child who was born sometime in the past couple of years. (Give us a break, it took the party that long to arrive after seeing the sign watched for over centuries.) Well imagine your relief and joy to have that sign you saw back home turn out to be more than you thought it was and you now have a sure guide pointing to the house you want to find! Well, one of these days we all want to find a place called Heaven, and maps or GPS will not help us. But what we saw in Christ when we believed will turn out to be that sure Guide who will return to lead us home, His home and ours. 

Praise God for His Son! 

Bucky

Where Will Ya Be Born?

And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:  Matthew 2:4-5

Had you been around in 1564 you might have asked me where I would be born, and... Of course we know that is nonsense. However, in the case of Jesus it was told by the prophet Micah hundreds of years before His birth where the Christ would be born. And that, my friends, just leaves me kind of flabbergasted. What does one say to that and many more prophecies of Messiah that all came to pass on that one night in Bethlehem? Let it be and praise to God for the birth of His Son, Jesus!

Bucky

A Troubling Christmas Tale

Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.” Matthew 2:1-2

Things in Jerusalem have been mostly calm for a while, and then one day these men from the East come to town with their question. They seem to have expected Jerusalem to be celebrating this birth. The current king, Herod, stands there thinking, "Wait, what?" It would be a comical scene if they hadn't reacted in a murderous way.

The message of the wise men prompted a troubling of the mind in Jerusalem. The people in power liked things the way they were. Suddenly here come these guys with their talk of a special star and a new king. Troubled minds soon thought up a troubling solution and a young family had to make a midnight journey to Egypt to escape the child-murdering soldiers of Herod.

Not the most charming part of the Christmas story!

Bucky

And Suddenly

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: Luke 2:13

As if the appearance of the angel on a dark night in Judea along with the glory of God shining all around them were not enough of a scare, the multitude of the heavenly host gives those shepherds an 'and suddenly' to go with their fright. Take that you shepherds abiding in the fields by night! Both the angel and the host had wonderful messages of great joy for them, but both were quite startling in their arrival. Those shepherds were going to believe, they never stood a chance to do otherwise. And suddenly their testimony was spreading throughout the region.

Rejoice in the shepherd's story,

Bucky

Naming The Boys

And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins.  Matthew 1:21 Two sons, two people told to not be afraid, and both given names to apply that their parents might not otherwise have chosen. The names for these two boys were chosen by God and sent by His special messenger. Names can be, and probably are, much more important than we realize in this age. John, with no name like that among his relatives, would go on to prepare the way for the One coming whose sandal strap he was not worthy to loose. Jesus would do as the angel said and save His people from their sins. These two boys were linked from an early age, before both were born in fact. One boy not worthy, and one boy found worthy in time to open the seven-sealed scroll as the Lion of the tribe of Judah. And if I may say it this fine morning,

Great is the name of our Lord!

Bucky

Those Shepherds

Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Luke 2:8

Snoopy might write, "It was a dark and clear night." But for us it was a picture of people going about their job in the hours of darkness we call night. A normal night, not one to expect anything world-changing to suddenly happen as you were just about to fall asleep. What was it about those shepherds that would bring out the hosts of heaven to celebrate? One thing those shepherds likely had was storytelling. Here was a group who would first pay attention and then tell the story. Plus, these shepherds would come and see the Christ child in Bethlehem. We don't know how far out of town they were that night but they did go, and then they praised God when they had seen. Their testimony was simple and their obedience immediate. But what was it about those shepherds? They probably had nothing special in terms of pretty faces, strong bodies, or brilliant intellect, but they were available when the time was right. Plus they obviously were not worried about what people might think when they told their story.

Have a shepherd-like day, and watch out! We might be just going about our usual business this week when...

Bucky

Put Her Away?!

Then Joseph, her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. Matthew 1:19

In our age the combination of those words sounds a bit extreme, put her away secretly?! Mary received a visitor from God, one Gabriel, messenger of God by trade, angel to us. Joseph was before his dream apparently told of the impending arrival by Mary. And that brought about a conundrum - what was he to do about his unfaithful wife-to-be? That there was a procedure in place for this under the law or tradition means that it had happened before. Joseph not wanting to make a public example, that is shaming, of Mary is admirable, but in this case it was not enough. And thus Joseph gets the first of several dream messages from angels of the Lord. Mary, unfaithful by appearance, was not at all unfaithful to the Lord her God. It is interesting that the message does not command Joseph to take Mary and complete the marriage, it tells him to not be afraid to do it.

But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins.” Matthew 1:20-21

Without fear, Joseph was able to do the right thing.

Bucky

With Child

Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit.  Matthew 1:18

Foretold in Isaiah 7:14, each year we have a new opportunity to believe in the virgin birth, the prophecy of Immanuel. And there is also the chance to doubt it. The prophecy and the action both sit on a small peak. Believe and stand there with it in awe of God, or walk away down the slopes of doubt. For the anthropologist, amateur or professional, the doubt could come from observation of  human marriage. Arranged marriages leave out the boy next door, it is more likely that the neighbor's rooster was allowed into the henhouse one night, to use a barnyard metaphor. For the biologist it might be parthenogenesis, the development of an ovum from an unfertilized egg, which does not happen in humans that causes the doubt. There are a host of other reasons to doubt. Even Mary did not understand how it could work without her betrothed and the whole marriage thing. However, for those who will believe, we know that God is not worried over our likely or unlikely, possible or impossible, but works His own way in the way that He told us through His prophets. 

And His way is often astounding and awesome. 

Bucky

Tough Consequence

When someone told me, saying, "Look, Saul is dead," thinking to have brought good news, I arrested him and had him executed in Ziklag—the one who thought I would give him a reward for his news. King David speaking in 2 Samuel 4:10

That is a tough consequence in our verse for today. Consequences such as that one bring us reason to cherish our constitutional rights, the speech one in particular. The verse also gives us a lesson in not trying to glory in the death of another. What reward should any of us get for bringing the news of death?

Well now I'm down and depressed, gotta fix that right quick!

Praise to God our Father that we did receive some good news, and it is about life, love, and the joy of a Savior! Thank You, dear God for the joy of the glad tidings brought to us in Jesus the Christ!

Bucky

Telling Of His Son

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying:
​
 ​​“Glory to God in the highest,
​​And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!"
  -- Luke 2:13,14

Thanksgiving has passed, December is here, and BF-Cyber Monday email ads are still pouring in... oh well, anyway it is Christmas time!

A proud father wants to tell of his son. We call it the New Testament. The news of this Papa's coming Son was so great that He told of it for centuries before the birth by way of prophets. We call that the Old Testament. A testament is also a covenant, and the elder could not be kept, while the newer is one we dare not refuse. This Son fulfilled the elder agreement for us, while by the newer agreement He made eternal life with our God possible. The birth of God's Son was such an event that the hosts of heaven made an appearance to rejoice before the shepherds in the fields.

As we begin this Christmas season, remember the joy of God's goodwill and peace,

Bucky