My favourite Christmas text!

It was on Sunday that I was privileged to bring the message at the Christmas worship service of the French fellowship in which my wife and I are in membership. I want to share a slightly edited version, here on my blog, over three posts. This is the first part!

My favourite Christmas text doesn't have anything to do with shepherds, angels, or magi. However, it does have the true reason for the season! Let's unpick this well-known verse: "… God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life." (John 3:16).

The first thing that we may notice is

1   the Fact

“… God so loved the world …” This is the fact that is behind the whole plan of salvation – God loves the world. And that means that He loves me, and He loves you! He doesn’t just love the good people, but the world – the unlovable, and the unlovely; those who are loved by no-one else; those who never even give Him a single thought. I don’t care! I don’t care if your skin colour is black or white; brown or yellow; green with purple polka-dots. I don’t care!  I don’t care if you are tall or short; fat or thin; healthy or unhealthy. I don’t care! I don’t care if you speak French, English, Dutch, Malagasy, Romanian, Belgian, Portuguese, or The Doric. I don’t care! I don’t care if you are rich or poor; a public figure, or completely unknown; highly intelligent, or intellectually challenged. I don’t care! I don’t care if you live in a large mansion surrounded by servants, or sleep in a shop doorway because you are homeless. I don’t care! I don’t care if you are the most sincere disciple of Jesus since the apostle Paul, or if you are a blaspheming atheist. I don’t care! I don’t care who, or what, you are. God loves you! Let that wonderful fact sink into your heart this morning.

He knows all about you – your failures and successes; your doubts and fears; your hopes and aspirations. He knows you better than you know yourself. And still, He loves you! Does that not warm your heart as you read? It certainly warms mine – and I trust that it does warm yours as well.

Love is the very mainspring of the Being of God. So John assures us in his first letter: “God is love” (I Jn.4:8, 16).

And even the tense used shows that God’s love, reaching back in eternity, and coming to fruition in Bethlehem and at Calvary, is viewed as one great central fact. It is His infinite and unique love that is the motivating force behind the Incarnation; and it is that same love that is the motivating force behind the Passion of the Lord Jesus, His crucifixion, and His resurrection.

“… God so loved the world …” – the greatest fact in all of history, and the one with the most far-reaching results. And part of the wonder of it is that it is a fact. It’s not a scientific theory; it’s not a legal speculation; it’s not merely some popular idea. It’s a fact! God loved the world – you and me – so very much. And it's the basic message behind Christmas.

More tomorrow!

The answer is in the book!

Antony is a delightful young Portuguese boy who regularly visits the elderly couple who live opposite us at our static caravan in France.  If we are around, he usually comes over to us for a chat - in order to improve his English language skills!

Yesterday, as we were chatting, in both English and French (we like to improve our own language skills as well!), a word cropped up that was causing all three of us difficulty.  At last, my wife disappeared - only to return a few minutes later.  "Let's check the book", she said.  "The answer is always in the book."  The book to which she was referring was one of our French/English dictionaries and, indeed, we found the solution to our little linguistic problem.

However, my mind went off at a tangent.  "The answer is always in the book."  I thought of the problems in the world; in our society and culture; in my own family circumstances.   "The answer is always in the book." 

Perhaps the Lord is telling me something!   On Monday, I ended up writing about the Maker's Manual.  Tonight, I'm writing about the Book.  In each case, I am thinking about the written Word of God - the Bible.  It does, indeed, have the answers to all of life's basic problems.  Indeed, it has the answer to life's basic problem (singular!) which is sin.  That's not a word that is considered to be acceptable in our politically correct culture.  However, that does not alter its reality.  Each of us is aware of it, even if we don't accept, or acknowledge, it. 

So what is sin?  Well, there's a full chapter on the subject in Great Words of the Faith (see above!), but it has been put, succinctly, by the authors of the Shorter Catechism: "Sin is any want of conformity to, or transgression of, the law of God".  In other words, sin is not just breaking the law of the land; sin is not just something that is sad, or unfortunate; sin is not just something that upsets me.  Sin is failing to do what God expects from me (sins of omission), or doing what God says I ought not to do (sins of commission).

The Bible has the answer.  It teaches that, although I offend Almighty God, His love for me is such that He has already paid the penalty, and borne the punishment, for my sin.  In the Persona (not a typo - see the chapter on the Trinity in Great Words) of the Son, He hung on a cross, dying the death that I deserve to die.  I am totally unable to satisfy the demands of God's law; I can only come, in repentance (yes, there's a chapter on that subject as well!), and faith, and accept the salvation that He offers, in Christ.

Concerned about your sin?  So you should be!  But remember, the answer's in the Book.  Why don't you read it and find out more. 

If I can be of any assistance, please feel free to contact me at author@minister.com   I would not recommend the comment facility on the blog as, since Disqus took it over, I appear to have lost the ability to not display!