Christmas Is Over. Now What?

Well, another Christmas has come and passed. The excitement and the joy of the season is gone. We’ve shopped, we’ve partied, we’ve sung all the songs, and then we all opened our presents. We gathered at the table and shared great meals and good family fellowship. Most of us even went to church at some point in the celebration we call Christmas, even some who only attend at times like these and maybe did so only out of the desire to honor mom or grandma.

 

It’s over now. The question that each of us must answer now is this; What do we do now? How do we ride out the rest of the winter?

 

The Bible tells more than the story of the baby Jesus being born in a manger. Though we often place the story of the wise men visiting Jesus with His actual birth, they really do not arrive until later. Take a look.

 

Matthew 2:1-2
 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him."

 

The magi arrived from the east in Jerusalem after Jesus was born. Their story is an interesting one, for in it, is embedded a question we all must ask ourselves. What were, or maybe even now, what are we looking for when we follow the call to go to Jesus? Matthew tells us that the magi saw His star in the east and they went to worship Him. Can we say the same?

 

When I look back at what led me to Christ, I remember it was desperation. My life had become filled with worries and troubles that I just couldn’t find the answers to. Depression set into my core and led me to the point of hopelessness. It’s not that I no longer wanted to live, I did, I just couldn’t live without hope. We come to saving faith in Christ in many, different ways. Some people are blessed to be raised in church and simply receive Christ at some point in their youth, responding to the preparation of the soils of their hearts, as God used the witness of others. Others fall deeply into sins, sins that often lead to horrible addictions. Some live in perpetual pain or sickness. We all have a story. Mine is one of desperation.

 

Sometimes God does great miracles of deliverance, and people come to faith having been delivered of their sin, be they drugs, alcohol, or any of the other addictions. Some were healed from a sickness that offered no hope. But that just isn’t always the case. God does not always remove the pain of life and give us everything we long for.

 

The truth of the Christmas story is this; God sent Jesus to save us from our sins, so that like the wise men, we would begin a journey that culminates in us fallen before Him and simply worshipping Him.

 

Jesus has come. What will you do now? How will we live out the rest of this winter?

 

I offer that the answer is that we stop looking for things from Him and go on a journey to find Jesus. You don’t have to travel hundreds or thousands of miles. You only need to fall to your knees. You only need to lift your hands. You only need to stop running and simply go to Him in prayer. You simply worship Him.

 

As to your physical, emotional, and spiritual needs? Jesus has those. Worship Him by doing what He says, and He will handle them. I leave you today with His command as to what we are to do the day after Christmas.

 

Matthew 6:33
But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

Finding the One Priority of Life According to Jesus

If anything marks our culture today, it would have to be the fact that we are all busy. Everywhere you go people are rushing around in a hurry. The irony of the age we live in, is that it was predicted that the age of computers would give us more leisure time. That was a lie. Our technology has somehow made us slaves to clocks that never seem to allot us enough time. I’m retired, yet I, too, often feel like I just don’t have enough time to get done the things I need to get done.

I committed myself several years ago to giving a real effort to make God my priority when I wake up in the morning. Though I try to be a man who “prays without ceasing”, I still struggle with the distractions inherent in life. If I give God the first minutes of my day, at least He got some of me. Though I don’t force myself into a legalistic ritual in which I punish myself on the days I miss my morning time with God, I make it a priority to do so most mornings. This morning’s study time was a lesson from Jesus on just how important it is to make Him the priority. It is found in Luke 10:38-42.

In the story, we find Martha busy preparing to serve Jesus, having invited Him into her home. Luke describes her as “distracted with all her preparations.” Meanwhile, her sister Mary, is “seated at the Lord’s feet listening to His word.”

We’ve all been there. While we are doing all the work, our co-worker is playing on their smartphone. While we are carrying in the bags of groceries, our spouse is watching the game or a soap opera on TV. Even in the church we get frustrated with the lack of people helping in the various ministries. It’s long been a church saying that 10% of the people do 90% of the work. Yea Martha, we get it.

Martha has had enough so she goes right to Jesus about this lack of help. Listen to her rebuke of Jesus from Luke 10:40 “…and she came up to Him and said, "Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me."”

But the response she gets is not the one she expected.

Luke 10:41-42
But the Lord answered and said to her, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things: but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her."

This is not an excuse to not serve in the church. Nor is it an excuse to not hold a job or help those in need. This is a lesson on priority.

You see the most important aspect of the Christian life is worship. It is what we will do in Heaven. We simply must take the time each day to sit at the feet of Jesus and listen to His Word. When we do that, we will know how to serve Him. We will know what His will is for our lives. We will understand how to serve Him without these angry, frustrated feelings that we see in Martha. We will learn that making more money is not the most important task in life. We will learn that we do not have to constantly be doing something. We will clear our minds so that we are praying without ceasing.

But more importantly, we will know Jesus. And as we grow closer to him, we will worship Him more and more. Then every command in the scriptures, every instruction from Jesus and the inspired words of the Bible will become our desires and not a burden to enjoying life, as some seem to make them.

Its important to serve God. But not at the expense of sitting at the feet of Jesus and listening to His Word. Are you a Martha? Or are you a Mary? Jesus said Mary did the only necessary thing, which is to listen to Him.

Listen to Him.

Studies in the Psalms - Psalms 149

Psalm 149 is another great lesson on praise.

Psalm 149:1
Praise the LORD! Sing to the LORD a new song, his praise in the assembly of the godly!

Psalm 149:2-4
Let Israel be glad in his Maker; let the children of Zion rejoice in their King!  Let them praise his name with dancing, making melody to him with tambourine and lyre!  For the LORD takes pleasure in his people; he adorns the humble with salvation.

God wants to be in a relationship with His people. We worship Him and we rejoice because He loves us first. He adorns the humble with salvation and in humility, we offer back our praise. We praise Him in song and dance.

Psalm 149:5-9
Let the godly exult in glory; let them sing for joy on their beds.  Let the high praises of God be in their throats and two-edged swords in their hands, to execute vengeance on the nations and punishments on the peoples,  to bind their kings with chains and their nobles with fetters of iron,  to execute on them the judgment written! This is honor for all his godly ones. Praise the LORD!

The Christian life is a life of warfare, but the weapons we yield are not physical. Our battles are spiritual and we fight with praise, with prayer, and with the Word of God as our sword. Those who are in Christ are already the victors, for Jesus has overcome the great enemy of man, death.

This very day we have much to praise and thank God for. Romans 8:37 tells us that “in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.”

So, if you are struggling in your personal battle this very day, if you are having a hard time finding cause to praise God, then stop and remember the truth of the Apostle Paul as written in Romans 8:38-39, “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Nothing can separate us from the love of God in our Lord, Christ Jesus. Nothing. So, right now, Praise the LORD! Sing to the LORD a new song, his praise in the assembly of the godly!

Studies in the Psalms - Psalm 147

Psalm 147 is another psalm of praise.

Psalm 147:1
Praise the LORD! For it is good to sing praises to our God; for it is pleasant, and a song of praise is fitting.

If you woke up this morning wondering why you should praise God, this psalm gives us three reasons.

Psalm 147:2-6
The LORD builds up Jerusalem; he gathers the outcasts of Israel.  He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. He determines the number of the stars; he gives to all of them their names.  Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure.  The LORD lifts up the humble; he casts the wicked to the ground.

We can praise God because we know He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. “Not me”, you proclaim. Yes, He does do this and will heal you as well. The problem does not lie within His ability. If God numbers and names each star, then He certainly knows you and your struggle. The problem lies within us. We say we believe and trust in him and yet, as soon as we face adversity we say God isn’t there. He is. Read the story of the healing at the pool in John, chapter five. Jesus simply tells the man, “Pick up your mat and walk.”, and the man does. The truth is we are not living in obedience to Jesus. We are not walking in faith. The Lord lifts up the humble.

Psalm 147:7-11
 Sing to the LORD with thanksgiving; make melody to our God on the lyre!  He covers the heavens with clouds; he prepares rain for the earth; he makes grass grow on the hills.  He gives to the beasts their food, and to the young ravens that cry.  His delight is not in the strength of the horse, nor his pleasure in the legs of a man, but the LORD takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his steadfast love.

Rather than focusing on our pain and our difficulties, we should sing to the Lord every day, declaring to Him our faith and reverence for Him. When we look at the creation, we see that God provides. He feeds the land with rain and the beasts with food. Yet, we put our trust in everything but Him. The Lord takes pleasure in those who fear Him, in those who hope in His steadfast love.

Psalm 147:12-20
Praise the LORD, O Jerusalem! Praise your God, O Zion!  For he strengthens the bars of your gates; he blesses your children within you.  He makes peace in your borders; he fills you with the finest of the wheat.  He sends out his command to the earth; his word runs swiftly.  He gives snow like wool; he scatters frost like ashes.  He hurls down his crystals of ice like crumbs; who can stand before his cold?  He sends out his word, and melts them; he makes his wind blow and the waters flow.  He declares his word to Jacob, his statutes and rules to Israel.  He has not dealt thus with any other nation; they do not know his rules. Praise the LORD!

God sends out His Word and through His Word, even the weather obeys. This is the reason I try not to complain about the weather. If we have snow and frost, it is a result of God commanding it. If we have wind, (my personal least favorite), it is because God made it blow. If it rains? Yes, it is God’s doing. Who are we to complain? And just as God’s Word commands the weather, His Word comes to us. Israel was chosen by God to preserve God’s Word so that we could be saved by it. Yet, the world does not know His laws and judgments. Do we?

This morning if you are struggling, the best thing you could do is fall before Almighty God in humility. Offer up your praise and worship. Yes, you can go to Him in your pain and pray for healing. But you must open up His Word and read the promises. You must open up the Word and read the commands. You must believe that when the God of the universe speaks, it is the truth and you can know that what He says will be. Do this and you will see the power of God in action. You will know Jesus has come to heal us. This is faith. Then you can pick up your mat and walk.

This morning start here: Praise the LORD! For it is good to sing praises to our God; for it is pleasant, and a song of praise is fitting.

Studies in the Psalms - Psalm 146

Psalm 146 is one of the final five psalms which are titled as “Hallelujah” psalms, psalms which simply praise God. Unlike many psalms that are prayers, some even imprecatory in nature, the theme in these final psalms is simply praise to our God. We need to understand, as good as God is to us, we were not created so that we could have nice things and an easy, fun life. We were created to glorify God.

Psalm 146:1-2
Praise the LORD! Praise the LORD, O my soul!  I will praise the LORD as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.

As Christians, have we grown closer to a life dedicated to praise and worship? Or are we still more concerned with God giving us what we want?

Psalm 146:3-4
Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation.  When his breath departs, he returns to the earth; on that very day his plans perish.

The answer to all our problems will not be found in ourselves. Our government is not going to solve the issues that plague our society. The issues that break our hearts and our drive our souls into despair, cannot be solved by psychologists or by medications. Our mighty armies cannot bring peace to this earth. The only place to turn is Jesus.

Psalm 146:5-9
Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD his God, who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, who keeps faith forever;  who executes justice for the oppressed, who gives food to the hungry. The LORD sets the prisoners free;  the LORD opens the eyes of the blind. The LORD lifts up those who are bowed down; the LORD loves the righteous.  The LORD watches over the sojourners; he upholds the widow and the fatherless, but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.

When we see the truth of who God is as this psalm declares, then we know that God, and God alone is worthy of our praise.

Psalm 146:10
The LORD will reign forever, your God, O Zion, to all generations. Praise the LORD!

Amen. Praise the LORD!