A Christmas Bridge

The Christmas season is upon us. I love everything Christmas – I am like a little kid. My favorite movie is It’s a Wonderful Life. I love Charlie Brown’s Christmas, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer, and almost every version of Christmas Carol (even the musical version). I love Christmas trees, Christmas music, Christmas cards, Christmas dinners, exchanging gifts, manger scenes and red and green decorations.

There is no doubt that many of our Christmas customs were based upon pagan influence and that Christmas in America has become commercialized. I have asked myself, “How should we as Christians celebrate Christmas in this pluralistic post-Christian society?” Christmas has become an integral part of American culture.

Some Christians say that we should not celebrate Christmas because of its worldly attachments.  The Bible does not tell us to or how to celebrate the birth of Christ. There are some who get angry at department store clerks who wish them Happy Holidays. Some feel that we should have no tolerance for anything that appears worldly and we should withdraw from society to protect ourselves from spiritual defilement.

Christ saves and converts people within their own culture. We are called to bring revival, restoration and reformation to our society. We are called to make a difference in our communities, jobs, families and culture. We are called to be the salt of the earth, the light of the world and to be ambassadors to our culture of the Kingdom of God. We are not called to separate ourselves into monastic clubs with our own language, culture, literature and events.

Many of us speak about our need for credibility and relevance in our culture. I began to wonder how we can apply this to the Christmas season. One secular radio station started playing Christmas music in early November. Christmas advertisements are coming earlier each year. Our culture is talking about Christmas for at least two months each year. How can we use this as a bridge rather than as a barrier?

Some things cannot be separated: God’s greatness and his goodness (Ps 62:11-12), faith and works (James 2:14-17), grace and truth (John 1:14), love and holiness. James 1:27 says that we must do two things at the same time: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. Because of God’s love for us, he became flesh and walked in our midst (John 1:14). God entered into our culture to live and share the message of the gospel. He was able to do this and remain holy. He was called a friend of “sinners.” Philippians 2:6-7 in referring to Christ Jesus reads, “Who being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.”

I have often wondered why there were so many angels at the birth of Christ (Luke 2:13) and only a couple at his resurrection (Matthew 28:2). I have speculated a reason. This is in no way to minimize the importance of the resurrection; the Resurrection is our hope (Titus 2:13) and without it we are still in our sins (1 Corinthians 15:17). To the angels, the raising of Christ from the dead was expected and foretold clearly by Jesus. There was no way that Jesus would not have been raised from the dead. But I think that they were utterly amazed that the Word that was God, was with God and had been from the beginning had become a little baby (John 1:1, 14). How could the fullness of Deity live in bodily form in Christ (Colossians 2:9)?

As Linus of Charlie Brown fame quotes Luke 2:14, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.” The sovereign, transcendent, holy, all-knowing, eternal God of the universe had entered into our time, space and culture in order to redeem us and his creation. They were awestruck as are we.

One of my favorite verses on evangelism is 1 Thessalonians 2:8. It reads, “We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us.” In order to bring others to Christ, we must be willing to share our lives with others who do not know him. This involves risk, walking in transparency, speaking in their language and within their culture. We have a ready-made bridge to walk over with the Christmas season.

How do we make this practical – Talk to people at work, in your neighborhood, at the supermarket, at Christmas parties, as you serve in the community, through Angel Tree and other caring programs and everywhere we go. Let us be people sharing the message of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:18-20).

Start up conversations about Christmas. Talk about Charlie Brown, Scrooge, the Grinch, It’s a Wonderful Life, Christmas carols, some of your Christmas memories, some of your Christmas traditions, and listen to some of other people’s traditions and ways of celebrating the birth of our Lord. Remember, listening is an important part of conversations and relationships. Listen to the hearts of others around you; share your life with them and how knowing Jesus has added to your understanding of Christmas.

I am reminded of the last line of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol – “And it was always said of him (Scrooge), that he knew how to keep Christmas well, if any man alive possessed the knowledge." May that be truly said of us, and all of us! And so, as Tiny Tim observed, "God bless Us, Every One!”

Eating at the King's Table

Do you know the Old Testament story of Mephibosheth? You can read much of it in Second Samuel chapter nine. Mephibosheth was the son of Jonathan and the grandson of King Saul. He was lame in both feet. He was crippled by an accident at age five (2 Samuel 4:4). His father and grandfather were dead, as was much of his extended family. David was now the King of Israel.

You may remember that David and Jonathan were very good friends. David had promised to show kindness to Jonathan’s family and his descendents (1 Samuel 20:14-17, 42). After David became King, he sought out anyone from Jonathan’s family that he might show kindness to them. David was told of Mephibosheth and he was brought to him. Mephibosheth appeared to be afraid, possibly thinking that David would want to kill any remaining relatives of the former king.

David said to him, “Don’t be afraid, for I will surely show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan. I will restore to you all the land that belonged to your grandfather Saul, and you will always eat at my table” (2 Sam 9:7). Mephibosheth’s response was, “What is your servant, that you should notice a dead dog like me?” David went on to say, “Mephibosheth will always eat at my table.” This was a matter of great honor to eat at the King’s table.

Because he was crippled in both feet, he was disqualified from contesting David’s position as King, but he still grew up in fear of consequences of his family name. Mephibosheth means “from the mouth of the shameful thing.” His first reaction to David wanting to show him kindness was to refer to himself as a dead dog, an expression of deep self-abasement.

How many of us react to the kindness of our King this way. The Scriptures are full of the many blessings that we have received because of our new relationship to Christ. God has and desires to continue to bless us because of who we are “in Christ.”

• I am God's child. John 1:12
• I have been bought with a price and I belong to God. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20
• I have been redeemed and forgiven of all my sins. Colossians 1:13-14
• I am complete in Christ. Colossians 2:9-10
• I have direct access to the throne of grace through Jesus Christ. Hebrews 4:14-16
• I am free from condemnation. Romans 8:1-2
• I am assured that God works for my good in all circumstances. Romans 8:28
• I am free from any condemnation brought against me and I cannot be separated from the love of God. Romans 8:31-39
• I am confident that God will complete the good work He started in me. Philippians 1:6
• I have not been given a spirit of fear but of power, love and a sound mind. 2 Timothy 1:7
• I am a minister of reconciliation for God. 2 Corinthians 5:17-21
• I am seated with Jesus Christ in the heavenly realm. Ephesians 2:6
• I am God's workmanship. Ephesians 2:10
• I may approach God with freedom and confidence. Ephesians 3:12
• I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me. Philippians 4:13
• I am a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come. 2 Corinthians 5:17

These and so many others are true about me and you – We have been invited to sit at the King’s Table. Yet so often, I react to this good news by saying, “I am a dirty dog. I have come from a life of shame. I don’t deserve your blessings.”

If any of you know me at all, you know that this is an area in which I fight almost every day of my life. I was conceived out of wedlock – my mother was fifteen and my father was eighteen – in a small town in Indiana. My parents married, my father dropped out of college, joined the Air Force and was gone most of the first four years of my life. I lived with my mother (who dropped out of high school), her parents and her three siblings for those early years.

Much of those early years established my self-identity. My parents eventually separated three times, divorced each other, remarried each other and divorced each other again. I attended fifteen different schools (kindergarten through high school). These years further supported my feelings of shame, isolation, insecurity and a desire to stay hidden.

When I came to Christ at the age of sixteen, I embraced our Lord’s forgiveness, love, mercy and grace as a dry sponge absorbs any moisture it can. Our King has invited me to sit at his table because of what Christ has done. Because I have put my faith in Christ’s death, burial and resurrection I am no longer a child of shame, I am a child of God’s love. “He has delivered us from the dominion of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” (Colossians 1:13-14).

I struggle with my old self-view every day. I say, “I don’t deserve to sit at the king’s table. I was conceived in shame. I am crippled by life.” and other lies that I tell myself. If you are like me and struggle with receiving what God has given and desires to continue to give us, let’s rise up and sit at the King’s table. I may not deserve it in my own ability, but I am a child of Jonathan; I am a child of God; I am in Christ. “It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God – that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: ‘Let him who boasts boast in the Lord’” (1 Corinthians 1:30-31). God invites us to draw near and to experience his love and grace.

No Comparison

We have just come through a major award season – Oscars, Grammy, Razzies, SAG awards and Golden Globes. Many of the “reality shows” involve competition to determine the best singer, best dancer, survivor, best model, best chef, etc.

Our culture has shifted to a global economy, a national media, 24-hour news programs, international markets, mega-churches and a world wide web. We are no longer in competition with just the guy down the street; we are now in competition with the best person in the world. I was thinking recently about how many choices we have in so many areas. As a kid, I basically chose between Corn Flakes, Rice Krispies and Cheerios for breakfast. Years ago, I my daughters asked me, “Dad, what was on TV Land and Nickelodeon when you were a kid?” I replied, “We had it rough when I was a kid. We only had three channels and we had to walk to the TV to change channels.”

We now compare ourselves regarding everything. We feel insecure or prideful regarding how we match up. We are in debt so we can match up financially and have the same stuff as everyone. We are crazed about body image to make this bigger, that smaller, this smoother, that a different color or that a better shape to match up physically. Our movies our usually judged by opening weekend box office rather than cultural significance. Our culture teaches us to be discontent with who we are and what we have, so that we will buy what they are selling.

Is all comparison and competition bad? Of course not. It can show us where we need to grow, build good team work, and help us to set and meet appropriate goals that God has called us to fulfill (1 Cor 9:24-27; Heb 12:1-2; Phil 3:12-14). But, it can also make us self-centered, short-cited, divisive, insecure and arrogant.

In the scriptures, one of the major issues that Paul deals with in the church in Corinth is divisiveness and comparison. They were divided about many things: their leaders, moral rules, lawsuits, religious freedom, communion, spiritual gifts, the role of women in the church, and styles of worship to name a few.

“We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise.” (2 Corinthians 10:12)

In 1 Corinthians chapter 12, Paul stresses the need for both unity and diversity by comparing the church to a human body. In every church, small group and organization there will be many different kinds of people with different gifts, callings, abilities, passions and strengths. We must encourage unity and not uniformity, diversity and not chaos, acceptance and not exclusion.

In verses 15 to 16, one type of person looks at others and says, “Because I am not like you, I do not belong.” In verses 21, another type of person looks at others and says, “Because you are not like me, I don’t need you.” Neither of these are correct responses to the body of Christ. We need each other and should honor the diversity in one another. Verse 25 of the same chapter says that there should be no division in the body and that we should have equal concern for each other. “Unity plus diversity equals University and that is a place where we learn.”

• When I look at myself, I am depressed
• When I look at others, I am oppressed
• When I look at who I am in Christ, I am at rest

Earlier in the chapter (verses 22 through 24), Paul says that the seemingly weaker parts of the body are indispensable and they should be treated with special honor. As I think of the human body, the indispensable parts are the ones we usually think of less like the internal organs. We tend to think of the outward parts of the body more and give them special honor. Who are the internal parts of the local church, people who serve behind the scenes? Let’s honor and encourage them, rather than always honoring those who get much of the outward attention.

I love 1 Peter 2:5 - It says that we are living stones, being built into a spiritual house. Notice that it says stones and not bricks. Bricks tend to be the same – the same shape, size, color, texture, age and makeup. We in the body of Christ are not all the same – we are different from each other. God uses us all in different ways to reach different kinds of people. Ephesians 3:10 speaks about the church making known the manifold (many-sided) wisdom of God. We together glorify God. Individually, you and I are called to speak the gospel of God to different age groups, genders, ethnic groups, language groups, work places, neighborhoods, and cultures. Be where God has called you to be.

               

Speaking on the same subject in Ephesians 4:16, Paul says, “From him (Christ) the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.”

• You are healthy when your nose smells and your feet run
• You are unhealthy when you nose runs and your feet smell

                                                         

Many years ago, there was a cartoon called Tooter Turtle. There have been some recent references to it. In the movie, The Matrix, Neo cries out, “Help me, Mr. Wizard.” That is a quote from Tooter Turtle. Mr. Wizard would send Tooter back in time to learn a lesson. Tooter would get in trouble and call out for help. Mr. Wizard would say, “Drizzle, drazzle, druzzle, drome; time for this one to come home.” Mr. Wizard would then say, “Be what you is and not what you is not! Folks that that do this are the happiest lot.” Be who God has called you to be.