Celebrate

Christ is our message! We preach to awaken hearts and bring every person into the full understanding of truth. It has become my inspiration and passion in ministry to labor with a tireless intensity, with His power flowing through me, to present to every believer the revelation of being His perfect one in Jesus Christ. Living within you is the Christ who floods you with the expectation of glory! This mystery of Christ, embedded within us, becomes a heavenly treasure chest of hope filled with the riches of glory for His people, and God wants everyone to know it!  Colossians 1:27-29 TPT

YES! Isn't it bewildering to learn from Holy Spirit that the good news reveals Jesus Christ lives within humanity and enables us to experience the magnitude of God’s presence!

Christ who pours over us, He is the hope of glory! 

O Holy Night, the stars are brightly shining!

We celebrate His birth each and every Christmas Day!  Hallelujah!

Matthew 2:10-12 TPT And when they saw the star, they were so ecstatic that they shouted and celebrated with unrestrained joy. When they came into the house and saw the young child with Mary, His mother, they were overcome. Falling to the ground at His feet they worshiped Him. Then they opened their treasure boxes full of gifts and presented Him with gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Afterward they returned to their own country by another route because God had warned them in a dream not to go back to Herod.

Let’s not miss this. Talk about a powerful lesson for us! as they bowed down to worship Jesus, they laid what was valuable to them at His feet. And after doing so did not go back the way they came! Really how could they have.... nothing was ever going to be the same! Not with Jesus as their king. When we get to know Jesus Christ, we are changed forever and cannot go back to our old life.

And my friends, this verse is a reminder too that There is only one proper place for our gifts, talents, and treasures: at the feet of Jesus Christ. 

When our abilities are laid at His feet, they’re at His disposal to use however He sees fit. A posture of worship recognizes God as the One who filled us with the ability in the first place. He receives the praise. He receives the glory.

These wise men, though they’d had great worldly success, didn’t try to keep glory for themselves. They weren’t too prideful to bow before  God.

Success did not change them.

But that’s often not the story. It’s all too easy to get wrapped up in the whirlwind ride of earthly success. Before we know it, we’re patting ourselves on the back, rather than bowing at His feet.

How do we make sure our hearts stays aligned with His? 

In the same way the wise men did: We prioritize living a life of seeking Jesus, praising Him for all He does, worship Jesus with courage, truth, and humility. 

Lets be intentional and praise Him for all that He does not do as well, which saves us from ourselves. 

Psalms 150:3 TPT Praise Him with the trumpets blasting! Praise Him with piano and guitar!

Worship is a continuous, daily decision to live in a way that brings more glory to God than blessings for us. 

Lets take an honest look at our lives. Examine our actions, thoughts, and motives. 

Are you more consumed with living for the things of this life and what’s in it for you right now, or are you focused on living for the eternal?

They were wise men, after all. Let’s make the wise choice, too.

For all that we don’t know about the mysterious magi, we do know one thing: they were courageous. They left their own country and traveled what was probably a great distance. They entered the home of a stranger. They worshipped and offered extravagant gifts to Jesus, risking their lives and defying the wicked leadership of Herod.  

The Three Kings, the three wise men, are mentioned only in the Book of Matthew. Even though few details are given to us about them in the Bible, (Scripture does not say how many wise men there were, but it is generally assumed there were three since they brought three gifts: gold, Frankenscence, Myrrh. These gifts were both real and symbolic. 

As real men, the three kings confirmed ancient prophecies about Jesus being the Messiah, and as symbols, they showed that He came to save all people, rich and poor, learned or unschooled, from anywhere in the world. 

These wealthy travellers were on the opposite end of the social and economic scale as the shepherds  who would visit Jesus right after His birth.  They were also among the wisest men of their time. Discovering that the Messiah was to be born, they organized an expedition to find Him, following a star that led them to Jesus, to Bethlehem. Despite their culture and religion in a foreign land, they accepted Jesus as their Saviour!

There is a message in the title "Wise Men” too, wise people acknowledge their need for a Savior and seek to find Him. Foolish people, like Herod the Great, reject Jesus and even seek to destroy Him.

The three Kings recognized Jesus Christ as the Messiah while He was still a child, and traveled thousands of miles to worship Him. Matthew says only that these visitors came from "the east."

They doggedly followed a star that led them to Jesus. By the time they met Jesus, He was in a house and was a child, no longer an infant, implying they arrived a year or more after His birth. 

Can you imagine?! They must have been relentless in their seeking of the Saviour!

Are we just as relentless in our pursuit of Jesus? Walking with Him to our salvation?

When God speaks to us and shows us His will, do we follow Him? Do we believe His promise, like Mary? Stepping forth boldly even though we might not see the path ahead clearly?

Galatians 1:3-5 TPT I pray over you a release of the blessings of God’s undeserved kindness and total well-being that flows from our Father-God and from the Lord Jesus. He’s the Anointed Messiah who offered Himself as the sacrifice for our sins! He has taken us out of this evil world system and set us free through our salvation, just as God desired.

All the glory will go to God alone, throughout time and eternity. Amen!

When we seek God with sincere determination, we will find Him. He is not hiding from us but wants to have a close relationship with each of us.

The wise men sought Jesus before He was born, and they continued journeying to Him after His birth. I think their fortitude is a testament of their faith. These Magi paid Jesus the kind of respect only God deserves, seeking Him, bowing before Him, loving Him and worshiping Him. 

Funny what strikes you at times. 

The Christmas Season is Advent, Christmas Day is about Jesus Christ, where is our focus? Where is our peace? 

Holy Spirit provides an answer that seems so simple, “sit with Me” He invites, “surrender your choices to Me” He offers, wow, Jesus Chris is the way.  

Here we are waiting for a cure for a new disease.  Adhering to laws, abiding by rules and desperate for real healing.

As we focus on Jesus Christ, our humanity is in full swing. We are susceptible. Succumbing to stress, fear, worry. We have never been healthy on earth. It is not pur forever home. Even during our best workouts, we’ve been sick in spirit. Amid our fittest days, we’ve been vulnerable. We have never been immune to illness. 

We’ve seldom gone days without pain or anxiety. Our pride kills us and our bones break. And now, we are one stray droplet of Coronavirus away from a new disease. 

I know, some of us may not feel its symptoms but may only be carriers. Others of us find our loved ones in emergency rooms. 

Some of us believe we need to let it run its course to allow our immune systems to knock it out, while others of us won’t leave our homes. It’s a mess. The whole thing is a mess. Famine. Pandemic. Pride. Hatred. Rebellion. Laws being written. New rules being made. 

To think, that’s how it was 2,000 years ago.

Oh guys, how we need that silent night. Right? Imagine hearing the sounds of Mary and Joseph making room for the baby. The baby. Crickets chirp, animals eat, shepherds guard and the newborn cry of Jesus speaks for us all. The cure was here. The cure IS here. 

His birth meant the end to laws and regulations. Freedom to live and move and have our being. Masks off. Deep breaths. Smiles and hugs and food and laughter and joy. The antidotes, grace and truth, in one name. Jesus. His birth meant our lives. 

I suppose I could go on and on with the metaphors and parallels.  Amid pain, illness, suffering, and loss. Among the hurt, worry, uncertainty and agony, we just wish you Jesus.

Look above the masks. Today when you’re in the supermarket, or in the gym or in line outside the store, look above the masks. 

We need a silent night. We need the star. We need our Saviour.  You can see it in their eyes. 

It’s Advent. We are ready.