The Little Town of Bethlehem

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God 

The Christmas Story centers geographically on a cave/stable in Bethlehem. “Little” Bethlehem was an insignificant town in its day. It was completely overshadowed by Jerusalem, a mere five miles away. And yet God chose it to bring the Messiah into the world. One could argue that it was significant because the Messiah was in the line of David, himself, a Bethlehemite. True. But it seems to me that misses the point of Micah’s prophecy. Bethlehem is little; it is not great just because David was born there. Isn’t that just like our God, though? He chose something little, insignificant, out of the way, and did something so miraculous, it changes history for all eternity!

God has done that throughout history. I think God does it that way so that no one can boast in their own merit or achievements — but only in the marvelous mercy of God. No one can can rightfully say that God favored Bethlehem because of what it had achieved. Since God is not impressed by our bigness, He is free to chose on the basis His mercy. 

Think about it for a moment. Not only did God chose Bethlehem, He also chose a cave. Using the same logic, He did it so that the innkeeper couldn’t advertise, “God chose the comfort of my inn.” So the carpenter couldn’t say, “God chose the craftsmanship of my bed.” No! A hundred times, NO! God chose a cave and Bethlehem so that no one could boast. 

And now, the joy of joys, God chose you! When He did, it wasn’t your prominence, popularity, or prestige. He chose you by His own glorious mercy. Now, we can sing with the angels, “Glory to God in the highest!” Never glory to us. 

We get the joy — God gets the glory!

But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth to Me the One to be Ruler in Israel, whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting. Michael 5.2

It’s Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God 

It’s not long now. In a few short days, people will be “experiencing” Christmas. For some, it’s the shopping thing; others, the baking thing; others the decorating thing. For some, it’s even a religious thing. None of these are bad in and of themselves. But for many people, they are the necessary ingredients to achieve the ultimate Christmas. Unfortunately, when one tries to achieve the ultimate Christmas, it usually produces ultimate exhaustion!

In my mind, the major cause of this holiday’s exhaustion is the need to manufacture the ultimate Christmas. Who doesn’t want the ultimate Christmas — it’s so deceptively good. Here’s my 2¢ of pastoral advice, sidestep the seduction and set your desires in the right direction.

First, Christmas is not about “doing.” We have convinced ourselves that Christmas has a certain look and feel to it, which requires certain things to be done. There was nothing traditional about the first Christmas — the birth of Christ. It was a miracle! So, if doing is important to you, here’s the best thing you can do: point people to what was done for each of us because “there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”

Second, just be grateful. Gratitude is one of the best ways to take our eyes off ourself and return our focus back to Jesus. When gratefulness flows from the heart, competition with the stressors of the season is nearly impossible. 

Christmas can be so much more than exhaustion, mediocrity, and empty promises from TV advertisements. So let’s determine to keep idols that compete for our hearts in check. A manufactured, ultimate Christmas may tempt me to “do,” but the awareness of Jesus in my heart will help keep Christmas in its rightful place.

Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.” Luke 2.8-12

Immanuel

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God 

At Christmas, more than any other time, we talk and sing about the name Immanuel. Long before the first Christmas, about 700 years, the name Immanuel appeared for the first time as part of a prophetic word from Isaiah to King Ahaz of Judah. It was during the time when Israel (the Northern Kingdom) and Syria had formed a coalition to stand against Assyria. Isaiah warned the King not to join the coalition. He counseled him that regardless of what they thought, they would not succeed. 

The coalition was indignant that Judah would not join the uprising and threatened Judah with an invasion. Ahaz thought it would be wise to appeal to Assyria for help against Israel and Syria, but again, Isaiah urged him not to do it. Rather, he insisted that the King trust in the Lord for help. He even invited the King to ask for a sign to confirm the prophetic word. Unfortunately, Ahaz refused because he had already decided to join with Assyria for their national security.

It was then that Isaiah made the now famous proclamation: “Hear now, O house of David! Is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will you weary my God also? Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel [Isaiah 7.13-14].

As you may well imagine, in just a short time, Syria and Israel were soundly defeated, just as Isaiah said they would be. And in just over 100 years, Judah would succumb to mighty Babylon, with many of its people taken captive.

It was Matthew who recalled the prophetic words of Isaiah, applying it to the child born of Mary. She was the “virgin” betrothed to Joseph. The sign given to a rebellious king hundreds of years earlier, now was a sign meant for all of God’s people - God with us. 

The Bible is the story of God’s persistence to dwell with His people. Immanuel - God with us - to rescue, redeem, and restore our fellowship with Him. That is the Christmas story.

So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: “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 1.22-23

Get to Work

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God 

One of my favorite sections of the New Testament is in the book of Hebrews, specifically chapter 11, which deals with faith. I’m inspired by the examples of those in the past that lived full-out for God. I want to be like that, and I think you do too, right?

Each person mentioned in Hebrews 11 made their true faith known by the things they did.  They demonstrated a principle that is consistent throughout Scripture: True faith always produces righteous works. James said it well, “Faith without works is dead” [2.26].

One example we read about is Noah, characterized in Scripture as “a righteous man, blameless in his time… [who] walked with God [Genesis 6.9].

First, I can't imagine living to be 120 years old, much less devoting 120 years to produce something never seen before (a boat the size of a destroyer), to protect me from something never experienced before (a deluge of rain). But Noah could, and did!

The sheer magnitude and timespan of his task made Noah’s faith unique. It’s doubtful that God would ask anyone in our time to do something similar. But it does beg the question, if Noah could stay the course and see his assignment through to completion, can't we do the same?

Let’s pursue our ministries as faithfully and persistently as Noah did his. True faith works.

By faith Noah, being warned by God about things not yet seen, in reverence prepared an ark for the salvation of his household, by which he condemned the world, and became an heir of the righteousness which is according to faith. Hebrews 11.7

Thankful

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God 

Not long ago I stopped at a store to pick up a few things, and when the transaction was complete, I expected the typical, “Thank you for shopping at …” or “Have a great day.” But instead, I got a life lesson. The young clerk looked me square in the eye and said, “Have a grateful day.”

The Lord knew I needed to hear that word of instruction for my heart’s sake. I think we all need to be reminded to “Have a grateful day.” Why? Because we tend to focus on negative things even when our lives have been richly blessed by God. Often, instead of gratitude, gripes and complaints spew from our lips, perhaps fueled with hearts gripped by self-pity.  

After hearing it, I remember praying, “Yes! Lord help me to have grateful days. Strengthen my resolve to have a grateful heart!”

When I think of a grateful heart, I remember the instruction of Scripture:

In everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5.18.

Oh give thanks to the Lord! Call upon His name; make know His deeds among the peoples! 1 Chronicles 16.8

To the end that my glory may sing praise to You and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever. Psalm 30.12

Tomorrow, on Thanksgiving Day, and every day for that matter, I’m going to take the advice of that person God brought across my path by a divine encounter and “Have a grateful day.” Gratitude can turn a grueling day into a great one.

We give thanks to You, O God, we give thanks! For Your wondrous works declare that Your name is near. Psalm 75.1

Thankful

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God 

A Spirit-filled heart is a thankful heart. Paul made that very clear in his letter to the Ephesian Christ followers. “Don’t be filled with wine,” he commanded, “be filled with the Spirit” [Ephesians 5.18}. Thankfully, that was not the end of his teaching. He went on to describe what the Spirit-filled life looks like. 

Grammatically, it’s done by a series of participles. (We don’t have the same structure in English. Our participles modify nouns, but the Greek language has participles that modify verbs.) Here is the list of them from Ephesians 5.18-21:

SPEAKING

SINGING & MAKING MELODY

GIVING THANKS

SUBMITTING

“Speaking to one another in psalms, hymns, spiritual songs…” I call this a righteous, God-talking heart. Spirit-filled people will have God on their lips and find ways to tell of His greatness.

“Singing and making melody…”  I call this a joyful heart. A Spirit-filled life is characterized by a joyful attitude. He or she finds a way to “…consider it all joy…” [James 1.2], even in the most difficult of times.

“Giving thanks for everything…”  I call this a thankful heart. Back to this in a second.

“Submitting to one another…” I call this a submissive heart. A Spirit-filled heart doesn’t always have to have his or her own way. 

The third evidence of the Spirit-filled life in today’s passage, is an attitude of perpetual thanksgiving directed to God. That kind of attitude is so different from the world. One of Paul’s descriptions of unregenerate man is that they are unthankful [see Romans 1.21]. But when God transforms a life by filling it with the Holy Spirit, a transformation takes place. We are changed from ingrates into profoundly grateful people.

Spirit-filled people, unlike those in the world, are content with God’s provision; thankful for everything — even the smallest of joys. It must be that we understand that we really deserve nothing from God except His wrath against sin, so we are thankful for every act of grace we receive!

I’m not saying it’s easy to be perpetually thankful. It’s very difficult at times, but not impossible. Daniel “prayed and gave thanks” [Daniel 6.10], knowing that his life was in mortal danger. Jonah cried out “with a voice of thanksgiving” [Jonah 2.9] from the inside of a fish submarine! Add to that God’s promise to work all things together for our good and His glory [Romans 8.28] — These three things alone can inspire us to be thankful in all things.

”…giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Ephesians 5.20

Thankful

eDevotion

Encouragement for your daily walk with God 

By now, you’ve probably gotten into the habit of saying, “Thank you,” when you are given something. It may not always have been the case. How many times did you hear, “What do you say?” from your Mom or Dad after receiving a gift? If my Dad were alive, he’d probably say, “If I heard it twice, I’ve heard it once!” In my case, I’d say I heard it a million times or more!

It’s kind of like that in the Bible too. Over and over God reminded us to be thankful — “always” and “in everything.” 

There are many ways to express thankfulness. Here are a few of them:

Give thanks with your voice. Say it. Say it a lot. “THANK YOU.” Say it privately in prayers. Say it publicly. Express your gratitude vocally. If you want, you can sing your thanks too. Like Jonah who said, “But I, with a song of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. Salvation comes from the Lord” [2.9]. 

God delights in heartfelt gratitude.

Give thanks with your life. A thankful response to God’s goodness and faithfulness is a life of obedience Here’s how the Apostle Paul said it, “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God — this is your spiritual act of worship” [Romans 12:1].

Give thanks through generosity. It’s easy to be ensnared in the “possessive trap.” Thankful people don’t have a vice-like grip on God’s blessings. Whether it’s money, time, or other resources, thankful people see these things as a gift from God to share with others. And they do it joyfully to boot!

It’s thanksgiving time. Think of the countless blessings in your life. Then find a variety of ways to say, “Thanks!” 

[Give] thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Ephesians 5.20