I must confess that
oftentimes I am overcritical and judgmental. We went to church this morning and
I saw a woman with one of those cheesy red Christmas shirts that have some dumb
saying on it. Now I’m not so legalistic that I think you must wear a suit and
tie to church. I didn’t even get dressed up this morning, I attended church in
blue jeans and a shirt Jane gave me for Christmas that probably fits more in a
cowboy church than a traditional service. But I do believe in reverence of God.
I have been critical of the kind of things like wearing your hat and drinking
coffee during the service. I wrestle with these things because I know that what
we wear on the outside doesn’t matter, it’s having a true heart of worship that
matters. But still I think there should be SOME limit to how we appear
when worshipping, shouldn’t there?
This woman had on, as
I said, a really cheesy Christmas shirt that said in bold letters, “The Naughty
List Is Underrated”. Now I get it; it’s just a joke. But wear it to church? On Christmas
day?
But you know the Holy
Spirit has an amazing way of waking a person up and revealing the truth. You
see, in light of the birth of Christ, being on the naughty list is exactly why
Jesus was born. In truth; all of us are on that list. Obviously, the naughty
list refers to Santa and the object of a little kid is to be good all year so
that they can make the good list and get presents on Christmas morning. Failure
to be good and the subsequent result of finding your name on the naughty list
will cause a kid to get only a lump of coal in lieu of good stuff like toys and
sweets. But as much as I love the Santa fantasy of Christmas, it is just that;
childhood fantasy.
As I pondered all
this the Holy Spirit reminded me of why Christmas is so special. You see Jesus
did not come down from glory to be born in a manger because someone was good and
deserved to be loved by Him. No, He came to save sinners. He came into this
world to reach out His hand of grace and mercy to those on the naughty list. He
said it Himself in Luke
5:32 saying “I
have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.”
The Gospel is good news for
those of us humble enough to admit which list we are on. Why? Because Romans 5:6 tells us that “while
we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.” He died
for me and He died for you. Romans 5:8 reminds
us that “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were
yet sinners, Christ died for us.” Jesus didn’t wait for us to be promoted from
the naughty list to the good one to come.
No, our goal should not be to
make the naughty list each year. While Jesus did say that He didn’t come to
call the righteous but to call sinners, do not let the end of that verse escape
you. He called us to repentance. He calls us to be holy and through the Holy
Spirit He empowers us to start a new journey on the path to that holy life. But
it is a journey. That journey began in a manger and then went through a cross
where Jesus would die to be sure we would receive the gift of salvation. And
now because He is the Great Emmanuel, He dwells within those who call Him Lord
and Savior. The greatest gift of all time is the gift of Jesus.
So if you’re like me, you
probably missed out on the Santa good list this year. But Santa isn’t God. Thanks
to Jesus I did not receive a lump of coal. Instead I received the joy of knowing
Jesus and knowing His Father who now dwells within my heart through the Holy
Spirit. It was not a gift I deserved nor a gift I earned. It was a gift; a gift
given in the fullness of a love so deep and so wide that it transcends any gift
ever given. What more could a man want or need? And Jesus wants you to have this
gift this very day. Take hold of it. Cherish it. Share it.
-->
Merry Christmas.
No comments:
Post a Comment