The why of Christmas Words:Joy, Peace, Hope, Love

Christmas is almost upon us which makes it time for my yearly note on Christmas. The last couple of years I have talked about why Christmas and the fact of a relationship with Jesus. This year I decided to talk about some of the words associated with Christmas. In most Christmas displays and books on Christmas you see some certain words: Joy, Peace, Hope, Love. 

    Love comes from the fact that God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten-or born-son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. And that God showed His great love toward us while we were yet enemies of God Christ died for us. The Just for the Unjust. God is Love and even though we-each one of us-blew it and became separated from God, He still wants us back and decided to do whatever it took to allow us the choice of forgiveness and a right relationship with Him.

   Hope comes from the fact that God loves each one of us. It matters not what we have done, how many times we have done it, or what was done to us. God is good at wiping away tears and healing our inner hurts and emotional issues. Again it doesn’t matter who we are, what we have done-or not done. God, The Creator, Loves You. He proved it in a simple way everyone can see and understand. And God gives us second chances in our lives. There is a judgement coming for He is the perfect Judge, but He has given us a way to be declared innocent and to skip the judgement. God is Love and will heal and forgive you. 

   Peace. Jesus said that He will gives us a peace that goes beyond understanding. It is there at all times and in all situations. God is there with you and is able to help in any situation. He is powerful, caring, all knowing and able to heal and help. He knows what we need, He knows our hearts and He is with us. That last is part of the Christmas message. God with us. As a people-as humankind, but also He is with us individually. Once we have the forgiveness for our sins He offers, we can know His peace and Know He Is With Us.

   Joy. This comes from a personal relationship with God. Jesus was born on the day we celebrate as Christmas, a very important event worthy of celebration. But He came to live as a perfect Human-He put aside His God powers and walked as a man. He then not only taught us about God and did wonderful things, but He died as an innocent man in our place. Each of our places. This wonderful gift brings Joy unspeakable. I have experienced this Joy and know how much above happiness it is. It is good to be happy, but this is above that. You can have this Joy in any circumstances, even in hurt, and trouble. It comes from Hope which I mentioned already, from knowing God is with us and from Jesus Himself. He promised to give us Joy and He keeps His promises.    

    The promise of Christmas is great and wonderful. Love for the whole world-love for each of us individually makes it fantastic. The promise that God is with us makes live worth living even if we feel the opposite. The promise, that came later, that Jesus would die for us thereby showing His great Love and allowing us forgiveness of sin and right standing with God gives us Hope. For salvation but for a changed live and healing also. Joy and Peace follow those like puppy dogs can follow their master. 

It is easy to believe this even if we think it isn’t. You really are one step away from this forgiveness and right standing with God and a healing relationship with Jesus. Tell God what you want, tell Him of your doubts, of your pain, of your sin. Even of your anger. He is a big God and knows how to deal with that too. 

There are churches, web sites, and individual people who can tell you more. The Bible is good for that too. 

Below are two places online where you can talk to people but there are a huge number of other places. 

Valley Christian Center 

A prayer for salvation

A Christmas message from Billy Graham    

EASTER '15 : The why of it and the Forgiveness, Hope, joy, peace it can bring

    This is my yearly Easter-Resurrection day post. I’ve done one for-I think-three years now. A couple of you may have read the earlier ones, if so you may see something similar in this one.  I do them for two reasons. To get the word out what Easter is really all about-That Jesus really rose from the dead, God’s Mercy and Love-and at the same time to give people hope and to let them know their past can be forgiven; no matter what they have done, not done, or what was done to them or even if they are near perfect. And that Joy, Peace and Love comes along with Salvation.

      Easter, or as some like to call it Resurrection Day, is the time we set aside to celebrate the physical Resurrection of Jesus Christ after a very painful death in our place. That death which we talk about on Good Friday took hours to accomplish. He not only was whipped close to death but he had to hang from a boards that His hands were nailed to. As I understand it after a while his lungs would stop working in that position so he basically suffocated. More happened to Jesus during His death but He went through all of it for you. The Bible and life is clear that no one is perfect-we all have blown it one way or another. Some a whole lot more than others. This imperfection or sin causes many hurts build up in our lives. Some don’t seem all that bad while others are devastating to us personally and to others. Some hurts are caused by the sin of others but they all can be healed. His Resurrection showed his victory over the devil, death the grave and that His sacrifice was accepted. So now “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved”.

     Not only is God—thanks to Jesus’ death and Resurrection—willing and able to forgive us completely of Every wrong we have done, but He is more than willing to heal those hurts. He can, He created us. That is the double Hope of Easter.  Being right with God-having a relationship with Jesus our new best friend as my pastor likes to say and that we can be healed. He doesn’t leave us as He finds us. Some of that takes time as He deals with us but it is accomplished no matter what. 

     There is more that could be said. Jesus offers us a Peace that goes beyond understanding, a Joy unspeakable and a Love that goes beyond anything else. He showed His Great love in that we were yet sinners—even if we flipped Him off by our actions—He sent Jesus to die for us.  As a verse a good portion of you may know says.  or “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us”   For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. He didn’t have to send Jesus for that and Jesus didn’t have to go through with it all. Hebrews 12:2 (KJV)

Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.  We are that Joy. No matter what we have done not done or has been done to us, or if we think we are near perfect. 

     

That is why we celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus Christ every year but it shows God’s great Mercy and Love and because of it we can be right with the Creator and have all of our sine forgiven and receive His gifts of Hope, joy, peace at the same time. 

If you would like to know more leave a note, send an E-mail or contact my church-Valley Christian Center- Here

My Easter-Resurrection Day Message 2014

           This is my yearly post on Easter or as a lot of Christians call it Resurrection day. I’ve done three of these I believe, all dealing with the physical resurrection of Jesus Christ. This one will be a bit different, so read on please:

      First a quick lesson on Jewish temple practices. As many of you but not all,  probably know in the Old Testament temple there was a special room called the Holy of Holies. Inside was the ark of the covenant-when they still had it. It was maybe three to four feet long and wide enough for someone to sit on it. It had poles stuck into each side so it could be carried. Angels sat on either side of the center. Once a year the high Priest would go in with a bowl of blood from a sacrificed lamb. He would sprinkle it on what was known as the mercy seat of God. This way the people’s sins would be covered for a year. The priest would wear clothes God designed and he had a rope tired around his middle that trailed behind him. The rope was in case he died--either by a natural cause or if God killed him for judgement--and he would be pulled out of the Holy of Holies with the rope because no one else could go in there and live. 

Today thanks to Jesus’s death we can go in there, without a rope. God’s judgement has been satisfied and those of us who believe it and have received his Mercy and Grace have been cleansed of our sins therefore have nothing to worry about in heaven or in any building here on Earth. Here is a link to a song video that acts out the Priest’s trip into the Holy of Holies and how later on in it the singers are in the Holy of Holies symbolizing that we are free of God’s Judgement. We can step to God the Father and not be rejected or turned away for any reason.

Here the video:

Right here

And here are a some verse dealing with the importance of the Resurrection of Jesus after His death for our sins-in our place.

And I will add that not only do we have right standing with God and complete forgiveness of sins but Joy unspeakable and a Peace that passes understanding and a Love that goes beyond humn knowledge. The inner peace comes from knowing someone as big as God and that our eternity is with Him not the place of judgement. 

All of this is what makes Easter--The Resurrection Day where celebrate Jesus coming back alive wonderful. We see He is the Son of God, that He is our Kinsman redeemer--buying us back from where we sold ourselves, The Joy and Peace Giver, that our sins--rebellion against God-has been totally forgiven, It is a great event to celebrate.

__Romans 1:1-4 

Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God, 2(Which he had promised afore by his prophets in the holy scriptures,) 3Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; 4And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead:__

__1st Corinthians 15: 17-21

And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins. 18Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished. 19If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. 20But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept. 21For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. ___

___Rom 10: 9 King James V.

That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.___

____John 14:26 and 27

26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. 27 Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. ____

___1 Peter 1:8

Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory:___ 

Too more Videos that talk about this Greeat event.

A Good one

One more