Merry Christmas

Since I don't have any more meetings this year I thought I would just take a moment to say Merry Christmas to everyone. This has been an absolutely wonderful year. There have been more blessings than I have time or space to share with you. God is so good.

I am reminded of the verse in Isaiah 9:6 which says: "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulders. And his name shall be called; wonderful, counselor, the mighty God, the everlasting Father, the prince of peace." How adaquate of who God is, not only at this time of year, but all year long.

He is Wonderful: This takes care of the dullness of life. We are surrounded by the miracles of modern science yet nothing compares to the wonder of God. True wonder has depth and value. It possesses the whole person. Jesus is called wonderful because His life was wonderful, his name is wonderful and his death is wonderful. He came to die so that we might live. Add to that the wonder of His love, resurrection & ascension, the wonder of salvation, grace & forgiveness. What a wonder He is!

He is Counsellor: This takes care of the decisions of life. We all need counsel - Jesus is the counsellor. He counsels us in our decisions and direction. Giving counsel to His children is one of God's most gracious works. What makes Him such a wise counsellor is that He is God, but He was also man. As our counsellor he loves us, encourages us, is patient, knows our heart and prays for us.

He is the Mighty God: This takes care of the demands of life. We need spiritual power; we get that from the mighty God. Think of that - a baby in a manger is called mighty. Yet he was. His birth affected the heavens and the stars. It affected the Magi. It shooks King Herod and his court. What a mighty God! The greatest act of power that He performed involved His death & resurrection.

He is the Everlasting Father: This takes care of the dimensions of life. Being the everlasting Father means that he is the originator of eternity. You and I cannot grasp eternity as we have a beginning and an end, but He has no beginning and no end. He fathered eternity. When we accept the gift of salvation He fathers eternity in our lives. We become a part of eternity. In sending His son to earth, God cause eternity to invade time. Jesus lives now to give eternat purpose and quality to our lives.

He is the Prince of Peace: This takes care of the disturbances of life. Peace, which is the word we use from the Hebrew word 'shalom' means "the possession of adequate resources." When you think of Jesus as the Prince of Peace immediately you think of his character. You cannot separate peace and character. What we do depends a great deal on what we are. The secret of Jesus' peace was the Father. He lived as you and I must live; He loved the Father, trusted the Father and this gave him peace. Being the Prince of Peace involves not only his character, but also His cross. It took God's Son, coming to earth, to strike the final deathblow at sin. At Calvary, He was made sin. The cross is the great meeting place. It took the blood of the cross to make peace between sinners and God. He now reigns as Prince of Peace. Jesus give us peace not to keep but to share.

"For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulders. And his name shall be called; wonderful, counselor, the mighty God, the everlasting Father, the prince of peace."

MERRY CHISTMAS!