Wednesday, December 25, 2019

Jesus, Light, and Immortality



I was reading the Christmas story this Christmas morning, and these words grabbed my attention. They come from a part of the Christmas story that does not receive as much emphasis. About three months before Jesus was born, John the Baptist was born. And shortly after his birth, the Holy Spirit inspired Zechariah, John’s father, to speak these words:

“to shine on those who live in darkness and the shadow of death” (Luke 1:79).

Here, the father of John the Baptist prophetically spoke not of his own son’s future ministry, but of the future work and ministry of Jesus Christ.

Zechariah foretold that Jesus would give us “knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of sins” (Luke 1:77). He then went on to paint a picture of what this salvation would do for us. It would shine light on us who live in the dark shadow created by death.

When Adam and Eve sinned, God acted to prevent the terrible possibility of people living forever in a fallen state (Genesis 3:22). Ever since then, apart from the gospel, people live their whole lives in the shadow of death. Death might come suddenly, violently, and unexpectedly like it did when Abel was murdered. Or it might come after living a long life like it did for Adam. But death always come. It is relentless. The end of the story of all the Old Testament heroes, patriarchs, and kings (good or bad) is that they die. And until Jesus returns that will be the end of the story for every family member you love, friend you enjoy, and stranger that you pass on the street. We all live in the shadow of death. It is the wages of our sin (Romans 6:23).

But at just the right time, while we were still helpless (Romans 5:6), Jesus came and changed our story. He died for our sins. Through the gospel He shines a bright light revealing that because of Him death no longer has to be the end of our story. When we trust in Christ, we regain what humanity lost: immortality. Our immortality in Christ will be complete when we are resurrected with new bodies that will no longer be subject to decay and death. Our bodies will be transformed to be like His resurrection body. Paul says it better than I ever could. I pray that as you read these words, they will deeply shape the way you think:

He has saved us and called us with a holy calling,
not according to our works,
but according to his own purpose and grace,
which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began.
This has now been made evident
 through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus,
who has abolished death
 and
 has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.
(2 Tim. 1:9-10 CSB17)


Hebrews 13:16 And do not forget to do good and to share with others . . .

Some other material (blog posts and YouTube videos) related to Christmas:









Two more blog posts, one about immortality and one about our resurrection bodies:




Tuesday, December 24, 2019

We Came to Bow



We Came to Bow
by Mark Corbett

We followed the star,
We travelled so far,
Carrying our treasures,
Forsaking home pleasures,
One goal filled each mind,
The Christ we must find,
so that we could bow to Him.

Jerusalem was disturbed
By the news they heard,
Their scribes searched to see,
Where this new King might be,
Herod’s scheming and lying,
In Bethlehem he’d cause crying,
all to avoid bowing to Him.

To Bethlehem we drew near,
The magical star reappeared.
It led us straight to the Child,
to a setting so humble and mild.
Born to save us from sin,
Our hearts He did win,
as we joyfully bowed to Him.

Today you still must choose.
Many still resist and refuse,
To bow to Christ Jesus the Lord,
And submit their will to His Word.
We hope you will choose to kneel,
Then the joy that we felt you will feel,
whenever you bow to Him.

Commentary and thoughts on the poem I wrote:

This poem was inspired by the story of the wise men as recorded in Matthew’s gospel. I pray you will be blessed by rereading Matthew’s wonderful account below. I have marked in red the three times that the issue of worshiping Jesus is mentioned. The Greek word translated “worship” literally means to bow down before someone. The act of bowing could indicate several things. In the case of Jesus, it indicated submission to His authority as King as well as adoration and praise for His goodness, love, and salvation.

CSB17 Matthew 2:1 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of King Herod, wise men from the east arrived in Jerusalem,
 2 saying, "Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star at its rising and have come to worship him."
 3 When King Herod heard this, he was deeply disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.
 4 So he assembled all the chief priests and scribes of the people and asked them where the Christ would be born.
 5 "In Bethlehem of Judea," they told him, "because this is what was written by the prophet:
 6 And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah: Because out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel."
 7 Then Herod secretly summoned the wise men and asked them the exact time the star appeared.
 8 He sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and search carefully for the child. When you find him, report back to me so that I too can go and worship him."
 9 After hearing the king, they went on their way. And there it was-- the star they had seen at its rising. It led them until it came and stopped above the place where the child was.
 10 When they saw the star, they were overwhelmed with joy.
 11 Entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and falling to their knees, they worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
12 And being warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their own country by another route.

Sadly, the evil spirit that was at work in Herod is still active in our world today. Satan has no hope whatsoever now of directly harming Jesus. Jesus is seated at the right hand of God, far above all authority and power (Ephesians 1:21). However, there is another way that Satan still seeks to harm Christ. Whenever any of His sheep suffer, Jesus suffers (Acts 9:4). This morning I read a news article that estimated one thousand Christians were slaughtered in Nigeria this year by Islamic extremists. Around the world, our brothers and sisters in Christ face discrimination, threats, prison, physical harm, loss of  opportunity to work, and even death as a result of being loyal to King Jesus.

Thankfully, Christmas reminds us that the love of God and the joy of knowing Jesus provides the kind of light that no darkness can extinguish. The light shone brightly that first Christmas even though Joseph and Mary were forced to travel by the edict of an occupying force. The lack of room in a more comfortable guest room which required Joseph, Mary, and baby Jesus to share a living space with farm animals did not dim the star at all. Not even an evil King plotting  and attempting to murder their baby could stop God’s plan. His star shone brightly far above all the evil, chaos, and confusion in their world.

I pray that, like the wise men, you will choose to bow to Jesus. I hope you will submit your will to His. May you worship Him with joy because of the great salvation from our sins He provides. I pray that His light will shine on you and through you in this dark world, just as His star gave light to the first Christmas.

Hebrews 13:16 And do not forget to do good and to share with others . . .


Some related blog posts and YouTube videos:
Related to bowing and kneeling:


Related to Christmas:







A few of my many blog posts related to persecution: