Union Grove Baptist Church

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

This passage is in the middle of Jesus teaching that He is the good shepherd. Shepherds in that day would build makeshift pens for the sheep to sleep in. If a thief wanted to try to steal sheep, they would have to scale the boundaries that the shepherd built. To keep this from happening, good shepherds would sleep in the doorway of the pen, ever alert to danger. The boundaries that Jesus sets up are not to make our lives dull and meaningless, but to repel the attacks of those who want to steal, kill and destroy. Jesus offers us life, and life to the fullest.

The king said to me, “What is it you want?” Then I prayed to the God of heaven,

Nehemiah has been praying and preparing to ask the king for supplies and military protection to rebuild Jerusalem. Now comes the great moment. Notice that when the king presents the opportunity that Nehemiah has been waiting for, Nehemiah does not rush headlong forward-he says a silent prayer just before his answer. These prayers don’t have to be out loud or long, but the art of the internal prayer to God can keep us on track when opportunity opens itself to us.

Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. For John came to you to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe him.

One of the things that we have to glean from this passage is that the Kingdom of God will probably not be a socially sanitized place. Heaven will be filled with people that are considered undesirable on this earth. Jesus was making this point to religious leaders; for religious adherence creates blindness to the reality that we are all sinners in the eyes of God, and in need of a Savior.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Perseverance is steadfastly, patiently, holding fast to our faith in Christ through the life course God set for us. As our gaze is fixed on Jesus’ plan, we move forward at a pace that allows us to stay within Christ’s reach, sustaining us to our finish line. Even through our struggles that may cause us to hit the wall, His strength pushes us through tough times. Relying on God’s strength, we cast aside sins and keep running the race. That is the perseverance that will get us to the only finish line that really matters.

You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you.

Notice that peace comes from God, and not our mind. Peace is the response of God to those who seek Him, for God’s presence places all of our circumstances in a different perspective. Our minds are prone to project the worst that can happen, but a mind that is steadfast upon God is confronted with the fact that God is in control. Renewing our minds with this reality causes trust, and that trust opens our hearts to peace.

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”

 

The Magi add a fascinating twist to the Christmas story. They were ancient astrologers who were regarded as the wise men of their time. They were not Jewish and this is the only time that they are mentioned in the Scripture. Their appearance and departure is mysterious and full of imagination. Notice the two groups who knew of the Christ: poor shepherds and respected wise men. Jews and Gentiles. God wanted to make it clear that the gospel was meant for rich and poor alike. It was meant for the smart and the uneducated. In other words, the gospel has been sent to the entire world.

“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.”

We find a pattern with the Scriptures: Abraham was called out of his established place in his father’s household to become a nomad. Once he was outside known territory, God could use him. Moses was required to live in the desert for 40 years before he could lead the Jewish people out of Egypt. It seems that God loves to take mighty things and make them smaller in order to confound the world and its wisdom. Bethlehem was a border town with the Gentiles. It was considered unclean and totally out of touch with the rest of the Jewish realm. Yet it was Bethlehem that God chose to birth the Savior of mankind, Jesus Christ. Do you feel that God is whittling you down? Rejoice, he’s getting ready to use you in a great way! Do you see yourself on the margins and insignificant? Congratulations! You’re positioned to do great things for God. He has a record of taking weak and foolish things to confound the strong and wise.

Zechariah was speaking to his newly born son who would become John the Baptist. Notice what he prophetically speaks to John and ultimately to us: We come to the knowledge of salvation when we understand our sin and the need for forgiveness. We can talk of Jesus being our Savior, but do we realize that means we are not able to change ourselves and need to be rescued? The good news becomes good when we truly realize the state of our souls before God. The birth of John the Baptist reminds us that we are more flawed than we want to admit, but more loved than we could dream. This exposes our fallen nature while embracing the love of God. This empowers us with salvation.