Category: Encouragement For The Downcast

¹³ Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy Him.” ¹⁴ And he rose and took the child and His mother by night and departed to Egypt and remained there until the death of Herod. ¹⁵ This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, “Out of Egypt I called my son.” ~ Matthew 2:13-15

Herod tried to stop the coming of Christ, the Messiah of all the world. He tried to stop the hand of God from moving forward, but He couldn’t. No one can stop the hand of God. No one can keep His promises from being fulfilled. No matter how high up they are, no matter if they are a king, president, ruler, or prince, no one can keep the promises of God from being fulfilled.

God made us numerous promises throughout Scripture. Hold tight to them. Don’t let the Devil stop them. This Christmas Season, remember that nothing can stop God’s promises from coming to fruition. Hold on tightly to the hope of Christ Jesus. Encourage yourself in the Word of God.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Don’t Let Go of His Promises.

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²⁵ Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. ²⁶ And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. ~ Luke 2:25-26

Simeon was devout to the LORD, and being a righteous man, God honored him. He gave him the gift of holding the Messiah in his arms. Imagine waiting all of your life for the Messiah that had been prophesied about 4,000 years in advance and then finally getting to hold that Messiah in your arms. It could’ve been very easy for Simeon to become tired of waiting and allow all that he didn’t see to keep him from believing. But he didn’t let doubt and the lack of seeing keep him from believing and having faith that God would fulfill His promise.

This Christmas season, don’t let doubt overcome you. Have faith that God will fulfill His promises. It may not happen today or tomorrow, but if you have faith, it will come to fruition. Don’t be discouraged this Christmas, for Christmas is the season of hope. It’s the season of fulfilled promises, for, at the fullness of time, God sent His one and only Son that we might live. Don’t give up this Christmas season; find the light in the darkness and hold on to it.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Find the Light.

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⁵ But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days. ~ Micah 5:2

The Scripture says to the Little town of Bethlehem, you who are too little to be numbered among the clans of Judah… God does not choose the greatest or the largest. Neither does He choose the richest or the swift. It doesn’t depend on who you are, and neither is your past held against you.

Bethlehem was the smallest because the Benjamites had done an outrageous thing in Israel in Judges chapter 19. When the men of Gibeon wanted to rape the man from the hill country of Ephraim, he sent his concubine out to them, and they rapped her all night long.

In the morning, the man found her dead, her hand still clutching the threshold. A civil war broke out, and the men of the tribe of Benjamin were almost wiped out. Yet, God did not hold their past against them. But because of His servant David, the littlest town in all of Judea was chosen.

If God chose Bethlehem, because of His servant King David, in spite of their ancestors, how much more will He choose us in spite of our failures because of His Son Jesus Christ. He chooses those who are willing. All we have to do is come. For many are called, but few are chosen because few come in obedience.

Come in obedience. Come in faith, and the LORD Jesus will receive you this Christmas.

Heavenly Father, thank you for choosing us and loving us even though we were unlovable. Help us to live for You in obedience so that we might be pleasing to You. In Jesus Name, amen.

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¹⁰ And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. ¹¹ For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. ¹² And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” ~ Luke 2:10-12

God gave us the most precious gift of all that very first Christmas. He gave us Jesus Christ. In Him, there is salvation and everlasting life. There is freedom and rest. There is hope and joy. And the free gift that is Jesus is free for anyone who wants Him. And if we want Him and accept Him, He will not be taken away from us.

Now, don’t misunderstand me. I did not say we couldn’t give it up. I said it will not be taken from us.

They might ban Bibles in schools. They may outlaw prayer in government buildings. They may try to lockdown churches. They may try to prohibit praise and worship in our services, but they cannot take the free gift of salvation from us. No man can pluck us out of His hand.

This is a gift like none other. Don’t keep it to yourselves. Don’t keep the name of Jesus quiet and hidden from others. This is the time of hope and rejoicing, for Christ has come down to us and has not left us as orphans. This is the time we remember His birth, His first sacrifice. He left all He had, His throne, crown, and Godliness. He set everything aside for us. Don’t keep that to yourself. Tell everyone who will listen to the good news of Christ.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Go Tell It On The Mountain.

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⁶ For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: And the government shall be upon His shoulder: And His name shall be called Wonderful, Counseller, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. ⁷ Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end, Upon the throne of David, and upon His kingdom, To order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice From henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this. ~ Isaiah 9:6–7

Therefore, Christmas is all about Giving, for a child was born, but a Son was given. God gave us an eternal Christmas present that very first Christmas. This is indeed the gift that keeps on giving because no matter when you are born, no matter where you are born, you still have the free opportunity to accept that eternal Christmas present. Christ was given, not just to the Jews, but to all of mankind. To everyone that will accept Him.

Why? Because we are living in a time that God has poured out His Spirit on all flesh. Not some. Not most. But all. Therefore, anyone who calls on the name of the LORD. No matter their bloodline. No matter their sin. No matter their past. ANYONE who calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Accept The First Christmas Gift.

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³⁷ No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. ~ Romans 8:37

We have been set free from the yoke of slavery of sin and have been granted the status of sons and daughters of God Almighty. So, we no longer have to give in to sin; but instead, we can overcome sin through Christ Jesus, for we overcome through the Blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony according to Revelation 12:10-11. We are not overcome, but we overcome through Christ Jesus, for we are more than conquerors. We are sons and daughters of God Most High.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Be More Than Conquerors.

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¹ Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God-this is your true and proper worship. ² Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is-His good, pleasing and perfect will. ~ Romans 12:1-2

You were once a part of the world. You were once filled with sin. You were once a drunk. You were once an adulterer. You were once a liar. You were once a thief. You were once a homosexual. You were once a sinner. But that’s not who you are anymore.

The world will try to tell you that your past is your identity. Your own mind will try to tell you that your past is your identity, but it’s not once you accept Jesus. Once you accept that free gift of salvation, then you will see your true identity. The identity God intended you to have. I’m not saying that from that moment on, you will never be tempted again by these sins, and you will be perfectly happy. I’m not saying that.

I’m saying that it’s gonna take some work. Why? Because Paul tells us, we have to renew our minds. We have to change the way we think. There is no sin known to man that does not start with an idea or a thought. There’s a choice in everything, whether we see it or not. We have to allow the Holy Spirit to open our spiritual eyes that we may see our escape route.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Seek Your Escape Route.

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⁵⁰ And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up His spirit. ⁵¹ And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split. ~ Matthew 27:50-51

The New Covenant is based on better promises through God –Jesus Christ– Himself. Since the Old Covenant brought death, the new one brought life. God said He would write His new law not on tablets of stone like the Old Covenant but rather on hearts and minds. Therefore, Jesus had to die physically, thus breaking through the veil, which is His body, to let us into the very presence of God. Now we can gaze upon His beauty with unveiled faces to behold the glory of the LORD.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Look Beyond the Veil.

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⁸ The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. ⁹ He will not always chide, nor will He keep His anger forever. ¹⁰ He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. ¹¹ For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His steadfast love toward those who fear Him; ¹² as far as the east is from the west, so far does He remove our transgressions from us. ¹³ As a father shows compassion to His children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear Him. ~ Psalms 103:8-13

A lot of us carry around the shame of our past, but we don’t have to do that. We don’t have to allow the past to keep us from our future. David said in the Psalms how amazing the love of God was; keep in mind this is pre-grace, so imagine how much more this is true today, during the time of grace. This was written during the time of The Law, but we are now under grace. Under faith. The Law of Liberty. So how much more true is this in today’s world?

Never let the world define your identity because they only want to focus on your past and your current struggles. But our identity isn’t found in those things. Our identity is found in our God. Why? Because our identity is Child of God. Not our sin that we struggled with. Not the sin that we struggle with now. But instead, we are Children of God Most High. We are confident Sons and Daughters of God Almighty.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Live Your True Identity.

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