The ultimate meaning of Christmas

When we think of the Christmas holiday, we think of family. This is appropriate because God, first and foremost, is a Father who has a Son He has loved from eternity. Moreover, His eternal purpose was to have many sons and daughters who have free access to Him as He has put all things in heaven and earth under Christ (Eph.1:4-10; 3:11-12). Therefore, the real significance of Christ’s birth is our adoption into the family life of God.

God is building His Temple

God is building His temple. But it’s not a human-made temple; it’s made of humans. And this is the ultimate message of Christmas: God became incarnated so that we could incarnate Him. The implications of this just boggles the mind. This is why Jesus’ birth is just as important as His death and resurrection. Which is also why, if we only see the significance of His sacrifice for our sins, we miss the whole point.

Heavenly wisdom IS practical wisdom

It’s popular to say that someone is too heavenly minded to be any earthly good. While I understand the point, nothing could be further from the truth. It’s usually only people who are almost never heavenly-minded that would say such a thing. It’s more accurate to say you’re no earthly good until you’re heavenly minded.

What you should know about ‘O Holy Night’

‘O Holy Night’ has always been my favorite Christmas carol. It moves me every time I hear it. I saw the following video on wzippler’s blog (Smart Christian.net). The story was so inspiring I needed to share it here. Pastor Reza Zadeh and Chaz Miles show us why ‘O Holy Night is not only one of the most influential songs of all time, but how only God could’ve brought it about.

Not what you know but WHO you know

Eternal life is not about a place, it’s about a Person. It’s not about what you know but Who you know. It’s not based on believing the right things, although believing them is important, it’s about experientially knowing God as our Father and Jesus Christ. It’s participating in God’s very own life (2 Pet.1:4).

Light and the Darkness

As I’ve been reading the gospel of John, I’ve noticed how much he talks about light (16 times in his gospel; 5 times in his first epistle), and this started me on a journey into the significance of light in Scripture. As I mentioned last time, he uses this word metaphorically, to speak of the unveiling of true reality as it actually exists. We only see it dimly, as Paul said.

Being Thankful leads to our Transformation

Thankfulness is a virtue that transforms our lives and helps us walk in all the fullness that God has intended for us. It’s a very effective way to walk in the light as He is in the light (1 John 1:7). There’s power in being thankful because it helps us to see and walk in the light instead of darkness, for we are always either traveling on a trajectory toward light, or toward darkness.