Category: Daily Bread

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Listen To The Bells Ring

17 This was to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah: 18 “Behold, my servant whom I have chosen, my beloved with whom my soul is well pleased. I will put my Spirit upon Him, and He will proclaim justice to the Gentiles. 19 He will not quarrel or cry aloud, nor will anyone hear His voice in the streets; 20 a bruised reed He will not break, and a smoldering wick He will not quench, until He brings justice to victory; 21 and in His name the Gentiles will hope.” ~ Matthew 12:17-21

The Christmas song I find myself playing on repeat this year is I Heard The Bells On Christmas Day. It truly grasps the overwhelming feeling that can sneak up on you this time of year and then builds to the solution “Christ.” The song goes as follows:

And in despair I bowed my head
There is no peace on Earth I said
For hate is strong and mocks the song
Of peace on Earth, good will to men

But the bells are ringing (Peace on Earth)
Like a choir singing (Peace on Earth)
Does anybody hear them?
Peace on Earth, good will to men

Then rang the bells more loud and deep
God is not dead, nor doth He sleep (Peace on Earth, peace on Earth)
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail
With peace on Earth, good will to men

Sometimes the darkness feels too dark. It feels too much to overcome. Too much to even handle, but there’s the subtle whisper of the Holy Spirit reminding you of the hope of Christ coming into the world and bringing salvation to all people.

Yes, the world is dark and getting darker, but we have the Light of Christ dwelling in us and through us. So, no matter how dark the world may seem, the darkness can never overcome the Light.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Listen To The Bells Ring.

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Embrace Our Christian Religion

One of the most well-known Christmas songs of all time is Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas. Every time I hear it, one line really sticks out to me:

Through the years we all will be together
If the fates allow

The original version of this song, according to songwriter Hugh Martin, was actually “If the Lord allows,” but he later changed it to “If the fates allow.” Take a guess why. To remove the religious reference. Apparently, this change was reportedly made to align with the secular tone of the song’s release, although Martin claimed in a 2002 interview that the original version included the religious line and that it was purged for commercial reasons. I really want you to think about this for a second, people are offended by “if the LORD allows” but are perfectly fine with “if the fates allow.” The fates mentioned in these lyrics are the Fates of the ancient Greeks.

So, they have no desire to have religion pushed down their throat while wholeheartedly embracing a religion. See, the Fates of ancient Greece were three sister goddesses (Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos) who literally personified destiny and control the lives of mortals. They were believed to spin, measure, and cut the thread of every mortal’s life thus determining their fate from birth to death.

So, in reality, people have no problem with religion, they have a problem with Jesus. Therefore, they have a problem with Christianity, just as Jesus warned the world would. Christmas is a celebration of the birth of Christ. Without Christ there would be no Christmas, so don’t give into the false statements that religion is offensive. The world doesn’t have a problem with religion. It has a problem with Light because it wants to dwell in darkness. This Christmas embrace the origin of Christmas, the birth of Christ. The birth of our LORD and Savior who came to redeem the whole world.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Embrace Our Christian Religion.

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Give Yourself

4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. ~ Ephesians 2:4-7

I have no gift to bring
That’s fit to give The King
…
I played my drum for Him
I played my best for Him

Little Drummer Boy is one of my favorite Christmas songs of all time. Every time I sing these lines tears fill my eyes. We have nothing fit to give the King of kings and LORD of lords. No gift worthy of Him, yet all He asks for is for us to give our best. To give Him us as He first gave Himself.

This Christmas, as you celebrate with you family and friends, remember the very first Christmas Gift. Remember that Christ came to save us. He left the splendor of all of Heaven for us. And in return all He asks is for us to give ourselves back to Him. Just as a bride will give herself to her groom, we are to give ourselves to Christ.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Give Yourself.

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Let Pain Go

Luke 2:10-11

[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.”

Every year we watch “How The Grinch Stole Christmas” but my nieces prefer the newer animated Grinch, so that has been added to our yearly watch list. One thing I’ve noticed in the movie is a recurring theme, “rejection will consume and destroy you, if you let it.”

See, from childhood the Grinch was rejected and because of that he rejected others first in order to never be rejected again. And because he lived right outside of Whoville, he hated Christmas the most because that is when the whiskey came together as one people and celebrated what he never had, family and loved ones. The community coming together as one brought back all the pain from childhood, because he never let the wound heal.

If we allow pain to consume us, we will remain lonely and in pain. That will be our oppressor. A hard slave master. Christmas should be a time of joy, thanksgiving, and celebration. A time we forgive and let go the pain of the past, be thankful for the present, and look forward to the future.

Don’t be like the Grinch bottling up all the pain and closing yourself off to the world. Instead, open yourself up to hope. The hope of salvation that isn’t possible without the birth of Christ, the reason for the season.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Let Pain Go.

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Celebrate The Only Perfect Conception

Romans 3:21-26 ESV

[21] But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— [22] the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: [23] for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, [24] and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, [25] whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. [26] It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

Every Christmas season Churches will mention the Immaculate Conception and connect it to the birth of Christ not realizing it’s not about His conception or birth at all. It’s about Mary. The Feast of Immaculate Conception is celebrated every December 8th in honor of the immaculate connection of Mary, the Mother of Jesus.

See, Catholics believe Mary was conceived sinless and perfect. It is one of four Marian dogma of the Catholic Church, established in the 7th century. The other three being the perpetual virginity, the mother of God, and her ascension. So often, Christians use words and terms that sound like they should be Christian, when in actuality, they are indeed not. See, all have fallen astray. All have sinned. All have made mistakes, that is the reason Christ had to come. That is the reason for the virgin birth.

Mary needed Jesus just as much as the rest of us. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,” This is true for ALL of mankind. Jesus isn’t the exception to the rule. He is the rule. Jesus came to be our perfect sacrifice in order that all of mankind, including Mary, might be saved.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Celebrate The Only Perfect Conception.

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A Forgotten History

6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge; because you have rejected knowledge, I reject you from being a priest to me. And since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children. ~ Hosea 4:6

Every year I see multiple posts, videos, comments, opinions, etc. about why Christians should not celebrate Christmas. It always goes back to one reason, “Christmas is originally a Pagan celebration.” I honestly believe this is a very good lie from the enemy. Why? Because Christmas (and Easter another holiday being attacked) is a season or time that can bridge the gap between non-believers and believers. How? Because even non-believers celebrate Christmas. It’s a big holiday throughout the world. It’s a time when those who never go to Church attend on Christmas Sunday morning. It’s the perfect time to share the greatest story ever told. The story of the very first Christmas gift.

Now, what about it being Pagan? It never was. See, the claim that Christmas started from gods like Saturn, Tammuz, Osiris, Horus, Mithras, and Sol Invictus. Sol Invictus is first mentioned over 300 years AFTER the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The celebration of Jesus’ birth is first recorded (that we have today) by Hippolytus of Rome (c. 180-235 AD). So, Christmas predates Sol Invictus by over a century.

Now, Mithras. Mithras’ birth wasn’t celebrated. In fact, the culture of Mithras didn’t have public festivals and he was never born. In Mithraism, Mithras emerged from a rock as an young adult man. No virgin birth. No celebration. No connection to December 25th.

Now, Osiris. Osiris was exclusively born of Geb and Nut. There was no virgin birth. Instead he is always born of the union between Geb and Nut throughout ancient Egypt. In fact, his birth was celebrated in September. September 6th-10th. Same with Horus. There is no virgin birth. Horus was born of Isis and Osiris after Isis brought Osiris back from the dead. Again, no connection to a virgin birth or December 25th, instead he was born during the same time period as his father, Osiris. Osiris was born during the 6th and Horus the 7th. They were celebrated back-to-back.

From the times of Hosea, the people of God were led astray for their lack of knowledge. Today is no different. We, the Church, are constantly being led astray for the lack of knowledge. We are constantly being confused because we don’t check for ourselves. As Christians, we should celebrate the birth of LORD and Savior, just as the Wisemen did. Just as the early Church did. Why? Because without His birth, there would be no death and resurrection. There would be no salvation. We would have no hope.

So, this Christmas remember the birth of Christ. Remember the celebration of our LORD. Remember that without His birth we would have no hope.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Learn Our Forgotten History. 

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Think Before You Celebrate

 

We have early Church writings from the second century of how Christians celebrated the birth of Jesus on December 25th. So many people love to claim that Christmas was originally a pagan holiday. They’ll use days like Sol Invictus or Saturnalia, but in actuality, these claims are far from the truth.

See, from the early Church long before Sol Invictus even existed they were celebrating the birth of Christ. Saturnalia was never celebrated on December 25th. In the Church today, we take the word of others without fact checking them.

Today think about the importance of Christmas. Think about the reason for the season. Think about Christ, the only God to take human form and die for His people.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Think Before You Celebrate.

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No Better Sacrifice

1 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem 2 and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw His star when it rose and have come to worship Him.” ~ Matthew 2:1-2NIV

As the beloved Christmas Carol says, “Long lay the world in sin and error pining until He appeared and the soul felt its worth.” For thousands of years before Jesus was born in Bethlehem, mankind was lost without hope and without redemption. We lay, as it were, in our sins, hoping for and needing a Savior. Then the good news rang out: a Savior, the King of the Jews, is born, and immediately, wisemen from the east traveled a great distance to worship Him.

He was born to die for all mankind, and because of this, it’s almost impossible to separate the birth from the crucifixion — God’s most perfect and best Sacrifice.

As we learned some interesting history about the Mayan civilization this week, while on vacation, it got me thinking. Apparently, they (the Mayans) played a sport that was a combination of soccer and basketball, but with vastly different results. The goal was to get a rubber ball into a hoop without using their hands. This game was played by the entire Mayan civilization.

The winners were sacrificed to their pagan gods, because only the best was offered. Jesus, the Redeemer of the world, came to be that Sacrifice for us—the righteous for the unrighteous, the holy for the unholy. There is no better sacrifice. And that is what Christmas is really about, the good news, that the dearest and best Sacrifice has come, and because of Jesus, mankind will live forever, at least those who have accepted Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. So, as we enjoy our Christmas celebrations, let us never forget that the dearest and the best has come, and now we can have everlasting life in Him because there is no better sacrifice.

Father in heaven, we adore You, LORD Jesus, we lift Your Name in all the earth. We will sing of all You’ve done, and tell of all Your wondrous works, in Jesus’ Name I pray, amen.

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He Will Save His People From Their Sins

20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save His people from their sins.” ~ Matthew 1:20-21

We visited the site of an ancient Mayan ruins today. The tour guide explained that the high priests were buried with a mask made out of jade. The reason was that it was used to purchase their way into paradise. The other Mayans were also buried with pieces of jade for the same reason, to purchase entrance into paradise. But here is what an angel of the LORD who appeared to Joseph in a dream after he considered divorcing Mary when he found out that she was pregnant said.

He told Joseph to name the baby Jesus because He would save His people from their sins. Where the Mayans depended on the green semi-precious stone known as jade to purchase entrance into paradise, Christians depend on the shed blood of Jesus to enter paradise. As the angel said, He will save His people from their sins.

No amount of gold, silver, diamonds, or even jade can purchase our way into paradise because it’s by faith in the Name of Jesus that we are saved. There is no other Name, and there is no other way, but by Jesus, the Son of God, because He will save His people from their sins.

Father, thank You for the hope that we have in Jesus. Thank You, LORD Jesus, for shedding Your blood that I might have an entrance into paradise, Amen.

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A Wonderful Savior

14 Therefore the LORD Himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call His Name Immanuel. 15 He shall eat curds and honey when He knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good ~ Isaiah 7:14-15

That is a pretty bold statement by Isaiah: “The virgin shall conceive and bear a son.” First, a virgin cannot conceive. Second, we can only hope, but we cannot predict with any kind of accuracy at all what sex a child will be, whether male or female, and especially more than 700 years in advance. Therefore, that is quite a startling statement/prediction to say the least. So startling that many doubt the validity of the interpretation fueled by the presupposed Jewish understanding of Isaiah 7:14 and say that the word translated as “Virgin”… in the Bible… more naturally means “young woman.” And to be sure, it does. But it is not just any young woman that this word refers to. It refers to a young unmarried woman who is believed and expected to be a virgin since she is unmarried.

The Bible would never presuppose that this young, unmarried woman would have been sexually active. You must agree with that! Therefore, it was not just any young woman, because a young woman could be a married woman with children, and while she is indeed young, this word does not refer to her, since she is married with children and is no longer a virgin. So, because of that, it is true to its definition to translate the word “a virgin,” as the young woman is expected and believed to be a virgin due to her unmarried status.

So, in light of that, to say that Isaiah 7:14 is referring to a specific contemporary event and woman, possibly Isaiah’s wife, rather than a future miraculous birth by the virgin Mary, is ridiculous and misleading, a false diversion to throw confusion on the virgin birth of the Messiah and distract from the truth. So, don’t be afraid to embrace what you have been taught about the virgin birth of Jesus. Jesus had an earthly mother, as He was fully human, but He had no earthly father, as He was also fully God. He was there in the beginning, and He will be here in the end. All things were made through Him, and by Him, and without Him, nothing was made that was made. He is Creator God.

The long-awaited promise has finally come. Jesus is the true and only Redeemer of the world, because in Him was and is the life, and no one can come to the Father except through Him, and that is what He came for, to save His people from their sins. Yes, it was long in coming, but it came: Joy to the world, the LORD is come…

Father, thank You for the wonderful Christmas gift called Jesus. Jesus, thank You for the wonderful Easter gift of life. In Jesus’ Name, amen.

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