It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas around here! Many of you are probably feeling like you’re well into the Christmas season as well.
Our December began – well, with a heartbreaking loss by Canada at the World Cup… just after Mexico was eliminated. *sigh*
But on the bright side, it also began with a visit from our friends Greg and Shelli! A rare pleasure indeed. 🙂
We also started listening to some devotions for Advent as a family – it’s not too late to start, if you’d like to join us! The book is called The Dawn of Redeeming Grace: Daily Devotions for Advent, and we’re listening to the audiobook version. We’ve already had some great times to learn about and meditate on the coming of our Saviour this year.
If you’re praying for the ministry here, there are some neat things coming up!
This coming Sunday driving about an hour or so out of town to a water park, where we’ll be having a baptism service. One or two people will be baptized, as far as I know. Please pray for them, their families, and for the church, during this special time together.
The following Sunday I’ll be preaching a Christmas sermon, from a fascinating section of Jesus’ family tree. So I would appreciate prayer as I prepare for that. And after that we have more special services in December, fellowshipping with our brothers and sisters.
As we enter into the holiday season, it’s a wonderful time for believers here. But it’s also a challenge, as so many spend time with unbelieving family and friends. Please pray for our witness during these days.
Nathanael has a lot of heavy schoolwork right now, so you can pray for him as well, as he tries to get done in order to have some time off.
And, as many of you know, we’re looking forward to having Hannah here for a few days over the holidays! So a very special Christmas indeed. They’re all special, of course. 🙂
There are about a million other things going on, but I’ll leave it at that for now! Thanks for your prayers.
May Christ be glorified this month, and into 2023!
War, disease, poverty, hatred, tyranny. With just a quick look at the world today, we see that we live in a desperate and decaying era. Oh, that it would come to an end.
Over 2000 years ago, the power of sin was broken, in time, when the Messiah finally came to earth. God the Son took on human flesh, suffered, and died, bringing us forgiveness and redemption.
And someday, Satan’s borrowed tyrannical rule will end. And finally, even the presence of sin in this world will be a thing of the past. Because the Messiah is coming back.
As Christians, we long for that day, as believers in Old Testament times longed for His first coming. And you may notice that I naturally began expressing that longing with a single word – you might say a single sound – Oh!
I borrowed the title of this post from my Dad, who would describe this carol as the song which began as a single word – and that word was “O”. The tradition began – well, we’re not sure when, but it was in place by the 8th century. The tradition was to express the longing for the coming of Christ by singing a drawn-out “O”. Today, that practice has continued in some liturgical traditions, as “the Great O of Advent”, or the O Antiphons ( a song or chant sung in a liturgy) of Advent. A long “O” was sung before and after the reading of Mary’s Magnificat (Luke 1:46-55).
Over time, words were added – we’ll talk more about that another week. But finally, a whole song evolved. Originally appearing in English as “Draw Nigh, Draw Nigh, Emmanuel”, it is now better known as O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.
O come, O come, Emmanuel, And ransom captive Israel, That mourns in lonely exile here Until the Son of God appear. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
O come, Thou Wisdom from on high, Who orderest all things mightily; To us the path of knowledge show, And teach us in her ways to go. Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to thee, O Israel.
You can see immediately that the song is talking about Jesus’ first coming, and yet it has for us a double meaning as we await His return.
“Emmanuel” (or Immanuel) means “God with us”. (Or, more literally, “With us God” – you might recognize the Hebrew word for God at the end – “El”.) The most familiar verse, quoted in Matthew 1:23, is in Isaiah:
Therefore the LORD himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
Matthew places this prophecy at the beginning of his book, ending with confirmation of its fulfillment:
And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Matthew 28:18-20 (emphasis mine)
Jesus was quite literally God with us – God among humankind. And He remains with His people.
But after the prophecy itself in Isaiah, things progressed to judgement. The exile of Israel from the land. And a return that, although wonderful, left many longing for the glory days of the past (Ezra 3:12). Oh for the time when God Himself would appear in His temple, and lead His people (Exodus 40:34-38; 2 Chronicles 7:1-3)! Emmanuel!
(Incidentally, the different spellings are the same word – one comes from the Hebrew (Immanuel), the other from the Greek. Which is, itself, a translation of the Hebrew!)
God’s presence, God’s guidance. It is the answer to Moses’ prayers in Exodus 33 – “Show me your glory” and “Show me your ways”. Powerful prayers.
The second verse develops the idea of guidance, calling Jesus the Wisdom from on high. We long for wisdom – a term that includes intelligence and ability to act. Wisdom is an attribute of God, shown to us in His amazing creative work:
The LORD possessed me [Wisdom] at the beginning of his work, the first of his acts of old. … when he marked out the foundations of the earth, then I was beside him, like a master workman, and I was daily his delight, rejoicing before him always…
From Proverbs 8:22-31
Jesus Himself is called Wisdom in the New Testament:
And because of [God] you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”
1 Corinthians 1:30-31
This idea is repeated again in Colossians, after Paul says that all things were created by means of God’s beloved Son:
…in [Christ] are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
Colossians 2:3
All three of these passages speak of the pursuit of wisdom by human beings. A pursuit of that wisdom that created the world itself. Proverbs 8 exclaims, “whoever finds me finds life and obtains favour from the LORD!” (Proverbs 8:35). 1 Corinthians encourages us to boast in what we have received in Christ – wisdom, among other things. And Colossians echoes Proverbs by praying:
… that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him…
Colossians 1:9-10
Wisdom in Christ, like Christ Himself, is something that we have – and yet something that we pursue, long for, and wait for.
Although Jesus fulfills His promise to be with us always, through His Spirit, we long for His physical presence on earth, visible to all. For “every eye will see him” (Revelation 1:7).
So in this song, we will spend the next four weeks giving thanks for the riches of the Messiah, but also longing for the complete fulfillment of our salvation. Glory, Guidance, and Wisdom – O, how we long for Him!
For four years now, this being the 5th, I have done a deep dive into a Christmas carol, over a series of posts. And I’m here to keep up the tradition one more time!
The first two were candidates for the greatest Christmas song of all time:
It all began with my disgust at hearing lists of “the greatest” Christmas songs that ignored the great songs based on the birth of the Christ Himself.
Tomorrow we’ll get into another carol – a familiar one, and another one of my favourites. But with origins that are very unusual. It started as a single word – progressed into a hidden code – well, we’ll talk about that when the time comes.
Let’s take the time to apply some of what we’ve learned about justice and partiality. Now, we recognize that justice is applied in different ways in our personal lives, at work, in the family, in the church, in the community, or in government.
But as we look through the Bible, let’s try to pull out some of the most common principles that can apply to all, and especially to our personal lives.
First, what if we experience partiality against ourselves? Someone is against you. Racism, or any kind of partiality. Against you because your a Christian. Whatever the case may be.
Well, maybe we could start by admitting this – yes, I am a bad person. Apart from Christ. I’m a sinner. I’m worse than you think. We start with humility.
(A) I admit my sinfulness. (Psalm 51:3-5; Luke 17:7-10; Romans 2:1)
Now listen – the world will call your good “evil”. Unjust? Yes. But in spite of that, we can admit that we are all sinners in need of a Saviour.
And then we say, I’m not going to “hate you back”. I’m not going to devalue you, because you did it to me. You were created in the image of God. I will be an example.
(B) I aim to conquer evil with good. (Matthew 5:44-46; Romans 12:21; 1 Peter 2:12)
And I aim to live a just and merciful life, and will encourage others to do the same.
(C) I aim to live a life of justice. (Micah 6:8; Matthew 5:15-16; Matthew 23:23)
I am responsible to promote justice and fight against partiality in my family, my church, and my community.
(D) I wait for God to defend me, and bring true and complete justice. (Deuteronomy 32:35-36; Psalm 37; Psalm 73; Romans 12:19)
God will vindicate you. God will defend you. The truth will be known.
Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him, and he will act. He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday. … For the LORD loves justice; he will not forsake his saints. They are preserved forever, but the children of the wicked shall be cut off.
Psalm 37:5-6,28
In C and D, we see a contentment that acts. That is, we do not have a contentment, a peace, that is weak and passive. We have complete peace and contentment in God, and at the same time we fight the good fight of the Faith. A contentment armed with the sword of the Lord.
Now, let’s make a list of some of the ways in which God wants us to promote justice. And I encourage you to meditate on some of the extra verses I’m including, because the Spirit has a lot to teach us.
Don’t show partiality. Remember that everyone has value; they were created in the image of God. (Leviticus 19:15; Deuteronomy 1:17; 1 Timothy 5:21; James 2:1)
Be honest. Be careful with your words. Don’t gossip. Don’t slander. Look – this can be hard in times of conflict, because we want to find every excuse we can to fight against someone who may truly be evil. But we must always be careful to speak the truth. (Exodus 20:16; 2 Corinthians 12:20; Ephesians 4:25)
Remember that we are all responsible for our own actions. We’re neither innocent nor guilty because of our race, culture, or history. We’re not sin-free because we belong to a certain group. We are all personally responsible before God. (Ezekiel 18; Romans 2:1-4)
Be kind, merciful, and generous to the vulnerable. Those who have no family, or no family nearby. The poor. Those without influence and resources. (Exodus 22:21-27; Daniel 4:27; 2 Corinthians 8:1-5; James 1:27)
Never accept a bribe. (Exodus 23:8; Deuteronomy 16:19; Isaiah 33:14-16)
Study God’s Word, and obey with humility. (Psalm 19:7-11; Ezra 7:10; Micah 6:8; 1 John 2:4-6)
Be sure that the God of the Bible is your God, and worship Him only. Once again, this is contentment with a sword. We imitate what we worship, right?
The Rock, his work is perfect, for all his ways are justice. A God of faithfulness and without iniquity, just and upright is he.
Deuteronomy 32:4
And one more thing. I mentioned Jon Harris earlier. He is someone who has studied these things quite a bit. This is some wise counsel that he has given.
I’ve pointed out already that it’s very easy to give the impression that you’re promoting justice. It’s easy to post something on social media. It’s easy to complain about another group of people. Or say something against someone.
The world wants us to “love” in a very abstract way. There are oppressed people, and some of them are us, and so we join a protest, or we mock someone on social media.
But as believers, we should look around us and love real people directly, personally, and with generosity.
Start with your family, and with your local church. How often do you even smile at your family members? Once in a while, I hope. How often do you help someone else before they ask? How often do you simply surprise someone with your generosity? And look, I’m not just talking dollars here, although that’s important. Be generous with treasure, time and talent. Be sure to love with actions, not just words.
And after your family and church, try being friendly with that neighbour or classmate or coworker that you don’t like. Pray for someone specific. Show mercy and love to real, specific people that you know physically. Hey – give actual money to someone in need.
Live like the Lord Jesus.
A prayer to Yahweh:
My soul yearns for you in the night; my spirit within me earnestly seeks you. For when your judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness.
Isaiah 26:9
Yahweh is exalted, for he dwells on high; he will fill Zion with justice and righteousness, and he will be the stability of your times, abundance of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge; the fear of Yahweh is Zion’s treasure.
Isaiah 33:5-6
Amen to that.
Additional Resources…
We’ve spent a long time talking about justice and partiality! Here are some additional resources to check out on both topics.
And by the way, I’ll be taking a break from the Biblical Anthropology series until after Christmas. We’re still going to talk about creativity (art) and communication, and also the environment. After that, we’ll try to pull everything together in a review. So we’ll get to that, Lord willing, in 2023.
The beginning of an illustrious career? I don’t know, but on this day ten years ago, Nathanael and Shari were playing a game created by Nathanael himself. I have no idea how to play – maybe he remembers?
We’re continuing our Biblical Anthropology series with the topic of partiality, which is really part 2 of the justice topic.
And now we’re going to a fairly familiar passage in the New Testament, from the book of James. Some challenging words from the half-brother of our Lord.
My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory.
James 2:1
Sorry – this isn’t “someone else’s problem”. It’s a problem in our own hearts, and even in the local church. I can’t judge your heart, and you can’t judge mine, but I can ask God to search my heart for the sin of partiality.
For if a man wearing a gold ring and fine clothing comes into your assembly, and a poor man in shabby clothing also comes in, and if you pay attention to the one who wears the fine clothing and say, “You sit here in a good place,” while you say to the poor man, “You stand over there,” or, “Sit down at my feet,” have you not then made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?
James 2:2-4
Imagine – that rich and powerful and well-known person from your town or city comes to your church! Wow. Praise the Lord! Just think of the testimony that that person could have. Think about the resources that they could use for the kingdom. Everyone wants to shake their hand. Welcome them. Fine.
Oh, but someone from the street just wandered in. They’re sitting way in the back. Actually, I think they’ve been drinking, and I’m not talking about Coca-Cola. We should be careful. It’s a good thing that they’re not up here sitting with the rest of us.
Now, of course, there are valid questions of security, especially with someone we don’t know, who’s showing signs that they may not be in full control of themselves. But which person has more value? Imago Dei. Which person can God use for His own glory? Both!
That prostitute who has spent many years on the street, addicted to drugs for the past few years, but now redeemed by God – that person will be more incredible, more beautiful, more pure in eternity than the movie star who rejected God. Imagine – every person that you see – if they were redeemed by Christ and glorified – if you could see them as they will be – you would probably be tempted to bow and worship them! And still, we are tempted to show partiality. And it might just be because we want something from that person. Ouch.
If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well. But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors.
James 2:8-9
The world wants to cause divisions in the church. Let’s not help them.
The world wants us to first think about our nationalities, the colour of our skin, our lifestyle, our political preferences, and the world wants to divide us into little groups. Oppressed, oppressor. Without hope and without forgiveness.
Christ wants to unite us. Here in the church, we need to learn to be honest, to be just. To be the family of God. And this next text that we’ll go to is really the remedy for partiality, something that the world needs to learn.
Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all. Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.
Colossians 3:9-15
We are one body – the Body of Christ. Slaves and owners, Jew and Gentile. Paul doesn’t take the time to explain who are oppressed, and why the oppressor should put more in the offering plate.
Something very interesting in this text is the mention of the Scythians. Who were they? The Scythians were from an ancient nation, we could say a tribe or a race. They lived to the north of Israel, and in Paul’s day they were known as ferocious, cruel warriors.
In fact, we have some evidence that they had been in direct conflict with Israel, even fighting against Jerusalem itself.
So there’s history here. Wicked warriors, oppressors, a history of oppression. And then here we have the Jews – the oppressed. This is the perfect opportunity for Paul to say, “Listen, we’re going to have a special service for the Scythians, and another for the Jews. We’ll keep them separate for now, so that the Jews have time to heal from this history of generational oppression. And because of their privilege, the Scythians will donate extra to the Jewish congregation.”
But that’s not where Paul goes here. Why? Because as Christians, we’re new people. We have been clothed with our new selves, in Christ. And “Christ is all, and in all”. In fact, we must be “forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive”.
And so when Christians get together from different countries or backgrounds, they are one in the Spirit. In one sense, they may have a closer bond with people who do not even speak their language than with the unbeliever who lives next door.
The answer is not social justice. It’s the gospel of Jesus Christ. Real forgiveness, mercy, and love.
So how should we respond to all of this? What should we actually do? Next time we’ll go through a few ideas.
