horizons

The Longest Christmas Journey – Part 2

/ pastorpete51 / 1 Comment

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. John 3:16 NKJV

After the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, the wise men went home to their country, the shepherds to their fields and Mary and Joseph after a time of hiding in Egypt returned to Nazareth. But when their travels were over, the journey of Jesus had just begun. The first leg of His trip had brought Him to our world, but for the next thirty-three years Jesus walked the second leg of His journey on His way to find us. Yes, God allowed Himself to be born as a fragile baby boy, but Bethlehem’s story is only half told if we all we do is walk away from the manger scene with warm fuzzy feelings.

In reality, the path from Bethlehem’s stable to Golgotha’s hill was even farther than the one from heaven to earth. After three years of healing the sick, comforting the outcasts and showing what God’s love was really all about, Jesus was left alone. On the cross He had no one to comfort Him and no one to understand, except His Father in heaven. Then with His final breath He surrendered His life for ours. There, at the cross Jesus finished His journey as He paid for our sins with His blood. In thankful astonishment let’s trust Him with our hearts, so that our journey that began with Christmas will lead us all the way to Heaven’s door!

The Longest Christmas Journey – Part One

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But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law         Galatians 4:4 ESV

As Christmas approaches, we think of the journeys that ended on the night when Jesus was born in Bethlehem. Shepherds walked down from the hills where they had been watching their flocks. Joseph and Mary had wearily journeyed ninety miles on foot from Nazareth to Bethlehem. We often suppose that the ones who came the farthest were the wise men who had traveled over a thousand miles. But of all who were in Bethlehem that night, no one had come further than the newborn baby they had come to worship.

The shepherds came when they heard the angels. The wise men journeyed because they saw His star appear. Mary and Joseph arrived when the time was right for the birth of the child. Today’s verse tells us that Jesus also was sent on a journey, but He left from farther than the farthest star, to come to Bethlehem. What could it have been like for Jesus to close His eyes while in the presence of angels and open them nine months later in a stable where mice rustled in the hay? When God had decided that it was the perfect day for Jesus to come, He couldn’t wait even one minute longer. Yet when Jesus was born and opened His eyes His journey had only just begun!

God’s Point of View

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And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus. Ephesians 2:6

I learned a few valuable lessons during my time as a tree surgeon that has helped me in my climb of faith. Tree climbing can be dangerous but our perception of that danger depends on whether we are standing at the bottom or the top of the tree. God is in the business of changing our point of view!  KIMG1816

The first thing we learn is to not look up. In fact the first thing to do is to simply assemble your gear. While I collected my rope, saddle, long pole and ladder I didn’t have time to worry about how much of the tree stood above me. In the same way our walk of faith begins each day by asking for mercy and grace. When we do that; then God comes and fastens His forgiveness around our waist and He pulls us up by His rope of love. We cannot make progress if we worry that His love and mercies will fail. But as we trust God’s equipping then He slowly but surely helps us to climb up towards Him. Secondly we need a ladder to help us get off the ground.  That is what God does when He sends His Holy Spirit. His Spirit comes in and lifts us up daily towards Jesus.  We can’t figure it out or work it out; we just have to keep climbing by faith. Last of all when a climber gets to the highest point in the tree he ties in, sits back and then looks out.

KIMG1845That is God’s promise. He will raise us up so that we can look out and see all of His amazing plan and know that our entire climb has been by grace. We will finally understand that because He has loved us He has brought us up to heaven and seated us right next to Jesus Christ!

 

 

KIMG1860