Let's bless Christ this Christmas
Oswald Chambers wrote in My Utmost for His Highest for Dec. 25:
“‘Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name “Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.”’” (Matthew 1:23, KJV)
“His birth in history. ‘That Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God’ (Luke 1:35). Jesus Christ was born into this world, not from it. He did not emerge out of history; He came into history from the outside.
“Jesus Christ is not the best human being the human race can boast of—He is a Being for whom the human race can take no credit at all. He is not man becoming God, but God Incarnate—God coming into human flesh from outside it. His life is the highest and the holiest entering through the most humble of doors. Our Lord’s birth was an advent—the appearance of God in human form.
“His birth in me. ‘My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you …’ (Galatians 4:19). Just as our Lord came into human history from outside it, He must also come into me from outside. Have I allowed my personal human life to become a ‘Bethlehem’ for the Son of God? I cannot enter the realm of the kingdom of God unless I am born again from above by a birth totally unlike physical birth.
“‘You must be born again’ (John 3:7). This is not a command, but a fact based on the authority of God. The evidence of the new birth is that I yield myself so completely to God that ‘Christ is formed’ in me. And once ‘Christ is formed’ in me, His nature immediately begins to work through me.
“God evident in the flesh. This is what is made so profoundly possible for you and for me through the redemption of man by Jesus Christ.”
Oswald Chambers also wrote:
“The most important aspect of Christianity is not the work we do, but the relationship we maintain and the surrounding influence and qualities produced by that relationship. That is all God asks us to give our attention to, and it is the one thing that is continually under attack.
“Let’s bless Jesus Christ this Christmas and in the coming year by surrendering our lives fully to Him and acknowledging that the most important time of every day is the time we spend with Him.”
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Exciting times
We are living in the most exciting time in history—very possibly the generation that will see Jesus Christ’s return to Jerusalem.
We watch and read about the events daily and know in our very being that Jesus Christ is coming very soon. We won’t know the day or the hour, but we will know the season as we continue to watch Bible prophecy rapidly being fulfilled right before our eyes.
Throughout the Scriptures, Christ’s second coming is prophesied with great excitement and significance. Let’s get ready for that glorious day and continue to pray for and share the truth of Jesus Christ with our family and those the Lord brings to us each day. Let’s also continue to pray for our Christian brothers and sisters in the Middle East, northern Africa and around the world being persecuted, beaten and killed for their faith in Jesus.
And let’s pray for the peace of Jerusalem (Psalm 122:6).