Colossians 3:18-4:1 make it very clear how we are to interact with each other within our homes, but also in our workplace. It has instructions for wives, husbands, parents, children, business owners and employees. Though they are challenging, they are Biblical commands and they are God’s design for our lives.

As Christians peace must be the arbitrator of our hearts. While anxiety views life as a test with every decision as another chance to fail, peace views life as a journey with every decision as another adventure and as an opportunity to trust God. Anxiety can be a sign of arrogance, since it can come from a place of self-reliance rather than leaning on God for help. We should instead be peaceful and, therefore, grateful people. Being a person of gratitude is biblical, and it’s the will on God.

Galatians 3:1-14 shows a very clear distinction between what we were, and what we are to be. We were once ruled by our flesh (our earthly desires and sin) but we are now ruled by Christ. So, when we let the flesh win, we are praising the “God of want”, rather than the God we have. Paul’s charge here is to switch our thinking from things that are temporarily important to eternally important. Christ makes us new, it’s time to act like it.

It is way more important as Christ-followers to be known as people of substance rather than people of style. The struggle towards legalism (treating ceremony as morality) is real amongst Christians. But we need to treat the practices that we involve ourselves in as what they are - just a shadow of the real holiness that comes from Jesus. And, most importantly, we have to beware of false teachings as it can end up leading some to worship a false God.

To be dead isn’t a matter of brain activity or blood pumping. True death is to be separated from God. But that death has been interrupted by Christ, the fullness of God in man. Jesus has replaced death with life. And He didn't just conquer death - he made a public spectacle of it and mocked it. Because of this, we are the recipients of a powerful work of God in all of our lives - our record of debt has been cancelled and we are alive!

Christ is the creator of everything we see and everything we can’t see and he is the foremost of all creation. The goal for us is to keep Him at the forefront - ignore idols that would take his place and put Him ahead of all things in life. Christ is our reconciliation - the reason that we have right standing with God. Therefore, we need to stand firm on his teachings.

Jesus had two beginnings and two endings. He was originally the creator of the world and at Christmas He is the light of the world, coming down to earth to dispel the darkness. Why would a Prince leave his Kingdom and be a peasant in a World he helped create and be rejected, despised, spit upon, and crucified? The answer is simple: Love.
This is our traditional Christmas Eve candlelight service - please grab some candles in your home and join us in lighting the way for Jesus at Christmas this year.

In a year filled with despair like we’ve had, it’s easy to lose hope. But we can’t live our lives living in the hurt and the pain, we can’t fail like others have failed. We can’t let what’s happening in the outside world affect what’s going on in our heart. It’s ultimately not about following the rules but following God that leads us to have a healthy relationship with Him. Pursue and encounter Jesus with joy and He will give you hope!

As believers, we must understand that the gospel reaches all people from shepherds to kings. The Wise Men's desire to find and worship the King should cause each of us to consider our own personal worship of the King. Not only does Scripture make it clear that it doesn’t matter what you have to offer God, it also says that it doesn’t matter where you are in your relationship with Him. Ultimately Jesus came for you and he deserves our worship.

Joseph had an immense amount of pressure on him when he found out that his betrothed was pregnant and not by him. He was a man of honor and wanted to divorce her quietly out of his love for Mary. Ultimately, he decided to stay as her husband at great personal cost and sacrifice because the truth of what's really going on is more important than the opinions of others. And, in your life, remember that obeying God is always going to be more important than following your traditions.