It seems no time since last Christmas and I haven't a clue what
to get for Auntie Ruth.'
Gillian's got her heart set on a new bike and we just don't have the money!'
'What shall we do for Christmas dinner? We're bound to offend someone.'
'I wish it was all over!'
Yes, here we are again... it's Christmas!
A time for PEACE
Christmas is such a busy time... and there seems to be so much to be done. How we long for some proper rest and peace. But to know the real, lasting peace OF God, we must first find peace WITH God... and this is possible only through entering into a personal relationship with His Son, Christ Jesus, who says...
'I am the way and the truth and the life. No-one comes to the
Father except through me.'
John 14:6
A time for REFLECTION
The commercialisation and materialism that we see today suggest that the true meaning of Christmas has been lost. It's not really as it ought to be. But in looking honestly at our own lives, we'll realise that the same can be said of us... and with serious consequences...
'...all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.'
Romans 3:23
'...man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment.'
Hebrews 9:27
But despite our rebellion towards God - how we live for ourselves and reject His right to order our daily lives - Christmas means we never need to doubt God's love for us.
A time for GIVING and RECEIVING
Many gifts will be given this Christmas, but none could compare with the gift of God's Son... because the baby of Bethlehem was the only 'gift' that could meet our greatest need... to be 'put right' with God the Father... 33 years later through the Cross of Calvary...
'For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous,
to bring you to God.'
1 Peter 3:18
Yet we only prove the value of a gift through receiving it... and it's the same when we ask the risen Christ Jesus into our lives to become our Saviour and Lord...
'...to all who received him, to those who believed in His name,
he gave the right to become children of God...'
John 1:12
A time for COUNTING the COST
Christmas is a costly time for us all, and perhaps especially this year. But although Christ Jesus must be received as a free gift, there is a cost involved... genuine repentance...
'If anyone would come after me he must deny himself and
take up his cross daily and follow me.'
Luke 9:23
A time for DECIDING
Christmas is a time for decisions... which cards to send... what presents to buy... but the most important decision of all is what to do about 'the Reason for the Season'...
'For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.'
John 3:16
And if you reach out to Him today you'll find that He's already reaching out to you... in love.
