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The Name of Jesus

Name of Jesus
January 1st
Philippians 2:5-11

At the name of Jesus every knee will bow and every tongue confess. This is terrifying. Sometimes we forget that all judgement has been handed over to the Son (John 5:22). Your sweet Jesus is also the one who condemns. On the last day the question will not be whether or not you will bow before the Lord. The only question will be whether you will bow in terror or in comfort. All will bow. We should make this very clear: God is terrifying. We should shrink when we hear his Name. Continue reading “The Name of Jesus”

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Circumcised to Set Us Free

Circumcision of Our Lord
December 31st 2018
Luke 2:21

The first drop of blood shed for your salvation was on the eighth day of the incarnation. Jesus, son of Jewish parents, was circumcised according to the Law of Moses. God put himself under the knife to fulfill a law he himself wrote. Even as an infant, he was living for you. He would grow in stature and wisdom fulfilling law for you. Turning the other cheek, showing generosity, and speaking kind words. Honoring his parents, obeying the government, and going to temple. Continue reading “Circumcised to Set Us Free”

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Dressed, Named, Worn

Isaiah 61:10-62:3

Did you unwrap all your presents? Did you get what you wanted? What was your favorite present? Did you get the one from the LORD? Yes, you did. In fact, you’re wearing it today. It looks good on you. It definitely looks better than what you had on before. He must be planning something big, to want you to wear something so fantastic. Isaiah writes, “I delight greatly in the LORD; my soul rejoices in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.” Continue reading “Dressed, Named, Worn”

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An Ugly Baby?

Hebrews 1:1-4

What I’m going to say may shock, maybe even scandalize you: There is such a thing as an ugly baby. Trust me, I’ve seen one. Whose baby was it? I’ll tell you; It was…. no, I am just kidding, none of you have had ugly babies; of course, I am talking about other people who read different blogs. But there are ugly babies. Fortunately, it is not just a baby’s appearance that makes it beautiful in a family’s eyes. It is also who that baby is, where it came from, and how it is related to them. Today, we set the most beautiful baby in the entire world before our eyes. I do not know that His appearance was particularly beautiful, in fact, Isaiah says there was nothing too attractive about His appearance, but I do know that who He is, where He came from, and how He is related to us makes Him the most beautiful baby of all. Continue reading “An Ugly Baby?”

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Holy Innocents and the Innocent One

Holy Innocents
December 28th
Matthew 2:13-18

There are plenty of sad portions of Scripture to pick from, but this might be one of the saddest of them all. In a fit of jealous rage, King Herod ordered all baby boys in Bethlehem, two years and younger, slaughtered. Herod was deemed “King of the Jews” by Rome years earlier. Not Prefect, not Governor, but King. So when wise men from the east came looking for the King of the Jews, Herod was insulted. He was the King of the Jews. So he plotted. He gave directions to the oriental sages and instructed them to come back to Jerusalem and tell him the exact location of the newborn King of the Jews. The Magi were warned of Herod’s plot, so they slipped out of Palestine without reporting to Herod. This is when Herod ordered the murder of all the boys of Bethlehem. Just to make sure his title “King” would be secure he enacted infanticide. Thus the slaughter of the Holy Innocents, an event the church forces herself to remember in the middle of the twelve days of Christmas on December 28th. Continue reading “Holy Innocents and the Innocent One”

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More than God

Why is this Child who was born so important? Why gather to celebrate His coming? Is it because He is God? Is that what makes this Child so important? I hardly think that is it, for God is most surely important for the simple reason that He is God. God, by definition and necessity, is important, or else He is not God. So why is this Child so important? Why gather? Why sing? Why dress our sanctuary in white? Why? We will have benefited little from our celebrations without that answer. Continue reading “More than God”

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A Christmas Inheritance

Galatians 4:4-7

What’s your inheritance? What does that question make you think of? Maybe what you’ll receive when a relative dies. Maybe what you’ll leave behind to your relatives when you die: a house, car, jewelry, furniture, heirlooms, etc. Inheritances are important things. Even at a young age we may already scope out some of the things we will get. Maybe we even feel guilty for looking forward to inheriting them. I know when my Grandpa passed away, I was excited to inherit all I had asked to inherit: his Bible. I was even more excited to find it worn, tattered, and marked up. Continue reading “A Christmas Inheritance”