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Family Ministry Moments - December 2024

It is that time of the year when Christmas dominates our lives.  Each year it seems like the stores put out decorations earlier and earlier.  It also seems like people put out decorations in their homes earlier.  I know some that put up their trees as soon as Halloween is over.  I was always someone who liked to wait until after Thanksgiving.  This year my wife talked me into putting the tree up in the middle of November since Thanksgiving came so late in the month.  Now, don’t get me wrong, I love Christmas, I am not a Grinch.  This year my heart has grown three sizes, and I have enjoyed having the decorations up earlier.  Christmas does bring a certain joy to life so who knows you might find me putting my tree up on November 1st next year. 

Christmas is special not just because of the decorations. The decorations physically mark the change in seasons, but Christmas is special because of Christ.  C.S. Lewis said in Mere Christianity, “The Son of God became a man to enable men to become sons of God."  He was pointing out that the union of God and man established in Christ was unique.  I would argue that, more than anything, this is what makes Christmas special.

This union of man and God in Christ is referred to as the hypostatic union. Hypostasis is the Greek work for subsistence. This is important because it helps define the person of Christ.  This is best outlined in the definition that came out of the Council of Chalcedon in AD 451, which says in part, “...our Lord Jesus Christ. This same one is perfect in deity, and the same one is perfect in humanity; the same one is true God and true man, comprising a rational soul and a body. He is of the same essence as the Father according to his deity, and the same one is of the same essence with us according to his humanity, like us in all things except sin.”

You might be surprised to learn that the identity of Jesus was a hotly debated topic until it was settled in AD 451.  The view in the Chalcedonian Definition was one held by the apostles and early church fathers but as heretics infiltrated the church false doctrines were spread among the believers.  False teachers stated that Jesus was created by the Father and thus less than God the Father and not truly equal.  Others said Jesus had a human body but not a human mind, thus separating him into two parts. Still, others said that Jesus had two natures stuffed into one body.  These were just some of the heretical views about the identity of Jesus.

Now you might be reading this saying what is the big deal?  It seems like we are splitting hairs.  The problem with the heretical views is when they are played out in the person of Jesus it makes it impossible for Him to be our savior.  For Jesus to accomplish the work of salvation He had to be fully God and fully man.  Thus, the two natures of Jesus occur as one person or one subsistence.  This view supported by Scripture is the only way He could be the one to pay the penalty for sin. Jesus is unique in this way.  There is only one Lord and Savior of the universe.

This is what makes Christmas so special! Jesus didn’t just come as a cute little baby; He came as the fulfillment of all of God’s promises and the only hope of the world.  As Wayne Grudem says, “This is by far the most amazing miracle of the entire Bible- far more amazing than the resurrection and more amazing even than the creation of the universe.  The fact that the Infinite, omnipotent, eternal Son of God could become man and join himself to a human nature forever, so that infinite God becomes one person with finite man, will remain for eternity the most profound miracle and the most profound mystery in all the universe.”

So this Christmas don’t just celebrate the birth of Jesus, celebrate the amazing miracle that is the birth of Jesus! Our salvation, our hope, our everything depends on this amazing miracle.  Let’s remember to worship God this Christmas as the great miracle worker who saved us in this extraordinary way! Merry Christmas!

For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:21

Worship Ministry - December 2024

Be True

12 But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your “yes” be yes and your “no” be no, so that you may not fall under
condemnation.

We recently introduced a new song called “Leaning.” A bit of a new take on the classic hymn “Leaning on the Everlasting Arms”, and verse one comes right from James 5:12.

Let my yes be yes
To you, oh, Lord
Let my no be no
To things of this world

If I rise or fall
If I stand at all
I am leaning on Your everlasting arms

This struck me hard and I think it's particularly hard for all of us to live a life that displays a life of truth. We have so much pressure to present our best selves to others at all times. On social media, we have to be “perfect” and that “perfect self” isn’t a real person. It is especially true when it comes to what we say and how we say it. When we are online it is easy to say things we would never say in person or to someone's face. We forget that what we say matters, and as a Christ follower this carries a bit more weight.

I remind my 5-year-old son of this a lot when he says something he knows he shouldn’t or uses a tone that is disrespectful. I asked him if he would like to try saying it again or in a different way. You and I need to ask ourselves that same question when we are talking to others. Is what we are saying honoring the Lord? Is how we are saying it building up others around us? As we live in the world, we must live in a way that sets us apart and a big part of that is making sure what we say is consistent, true, and glorifying to the Lord.

There is a quote that has been attributed to Aristotle but there is some debate on whether it might be a historian named Will Durant. Nevertheless, the quote goes “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” I think the first part of that quote really applies to what we say. If we let our flesh control our tongues, we are going to as James 3:6 says, “set a forest ablaze.” 6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell.

The writer doesn’t mince words! He says that our tongues or words can be so destructive that it’s like starting a wildfire that burns everything down in its path. That’s a hard standard for us to keep when we live in our flesh! We want to say what we want when and how we want! We will even defend it as Americans with the First Amendment freedom of speech! However, if we let our flesh or the world control what we say, we will cause great destruction. We will push people away from the truth of God’s Word. But, if we let the word of God and the spirit of the Lord guide our tongue, we will speak what is true and what is glorifying to the Lord. We will point people to him with encouragement, wisdom, and love. We won’t be full of contradiction but a voice of truth that those in our lives can rely on.

So I encourage you, as we live in the world for the Lord, to “be true” to God and His church. What we say matters for the spreading of the gospel! So live for him! God is worthy of our lives, so let's seek Him. Let’s seek Him as we tarry here on earth, waiting for His return.

Love you and mean it!