Tag: Christmas

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A Very Merry Adoption

Day 16

A Countdown to Listening to Jesus in the land of the Bible

And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.

Luke 2:6-7 KJV

nativity-iconIn seven hours from the time of this writing (9AM CST) it will be midnight in Bethlehem. Crowds will fill Manger Square outside the Church of the Nativity which was built over the place of Jesus’ birth; the oldest church in Christendom. And, in 17 days we will be on our way to the Holy Land where we too will worship in the place of Jesus’ birth. I want to invite all my readers to follow our pilgrimage as we post video clips of our time in Israel on my website, bradrileyministries.com.

Today is Christmas Eve, a day when most of the world, for one reason or another, stop to remember the birth of Jesus Christ. Even those who don’t worship Christ as Lord stop to remember the love they share with family and friends by giving gifts and having a special time of fellowship together. By celebrating Christmas, even in a secular way, they are acknowledging the greatest gift ever given.

Can you imagine, the birth of anyone causing the whole world to stop and celebrate? No other person has made that kind of impact – only Jesus has. The birth of Jesus is recognized by all the world because the life of Jesus was greater than any other person who ever lived or will ever live. No other person gave such love or taught his followers to not only love each other, but to love their enemies as well.

Today as you prepare to celebrate with your loved ones, as you bake your goodies and cook your festive dinners, would you pause for a moment to remember those who are alone in this world? For many people Christmas is a reminder of how alone they are. Many are alone because this is the first Christmas since a loved one died. Still others are alone because they are homeless, or have no family near. Perhaps you are one of the lonely? Whatever the reason for yours or their aloneness, I know a family who wants to adopt you into their family this year.

Two thousand years ago, a lonely couple far from home found themselves homeless, in need of shelter and about to give birth to a child. That birth made all the difference for the whole world, and it can make difference for you today if you will open your heart and invite the love of that Holy Family to adopt you today.

To each of you I pray a very Merry Christmas, but more than that a very merry adoption.

Day 16 has begun…

Shalom,

Pastor Brad

image credit: https://ancientanswers.org/tag/birth-of-christ/

http://triggerpit.com/2011/03/28/church-of-nativity-walk-trough-where-jesus-christ-was-born/

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Scoundrels & Saints

Click Here to read this week’s gospel: Matthew 1:1-25

TreeGenealogy

Ever wonder what dark secrets are hiding in your family tree? It seems people are fascinated by genealogy today. Thanks to modern technology you can do computer searches that will rebuild your family history over a thousand years. Imagine how hard that was to keep track of in Bible days – but they did. Why? Because who is in our lineage can be of great value in understanding God’s plan for our lives; it certainly was in Jesus’ life.

When I was young I used to wonder why certain passages of the Bible were filled with genealogies. You know, those long lists of who begat who and so on and so forth. It seemed boring so I would usually skip right over them to get to the part of the story that really mattered. Eventually, as I learned more about the Bible and the importance of those genealogies, I realized God has something very important for us to learn from them.

Nobody’s family tree is perfect. We all come from a long list of scoundrels and saints. Some people love to research their family tree hoping to find some famous person, like some great hero of the Revolutionary War or whoever, as if that somehow makes them more important. The truth is what makes us important is that we are who we are because of everyone down the line; alter just one of them and we wouldn’t be who we are (an amazing fact of reproductive science). That means the scoundrels are just as important as the saints. The fact is everyone matters, including you!

In God’s infinite wisdom He planned Jesus the Messiah to be born not just of the Royal lineage of King David, as we so often hear, but also the scandalous lineage of a prostitute (Rahab) and several idol worshiping Kings of Israel. All of us have some scoundrels in our family tree we would probably rather not be known for, but Jesus’ lineage shows us how important those scoundrels are; they show us everyone matters to God, and God can turn any bad lineage around for good.

The Messiah’s family tree was an ordinary tree full of scoundrels and saints. It’s just one more way God wanted us to see that every life has significance, and no one’s life is beyond His redemption.Yes, even yours and mine matter also.

This Week:

As you gather with family to celebrate the birth of Jesus, spend some time thinking back through your family. In fact, why don’t you comment below and tell me who some of your scoundrel and saint relatives are? Remember the ones who have gone on to the ages before you, the scoundrels and the saints. Thank God for all of them. They all had a part in making you, and that is special – you are special. Have a very Merry and Blessed Christmas wherever you are, and safe travels for wherever you go.

Grace & Peace,

Pastor Brad

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.”

Matthew 5:6