Several years ago there was an advertisement that said, Got Milk? I remember taking that ad and using it on the sign in front of the church. I didn’t use “milk” but “Got Grace?”

In life, we cannot get to heaven without God’s grace. It is Salvation by Grace. Our need for salvation arises from the plight of sin. We often think that we can work our way out of sin, but we are not able for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Some don’t know, or refuse to know, they are sinking deep in sin and before they realize it they die in their sin and are forever separated from God. Some recognize their sinking in sin and call out for God to save them. And He will.

Now, more than ever, we need to reclaim what has been lost to tradition of men, a shift in culture, and the lack of knowing God!

This time of year is marked, or should be marked, by the message of God with us, the fulfillment of the prophecies of the Old Testament, and salvation has come to all who believe!

We want to take a little time this morning to remember and review the events and people of this time over 2000 years ago.

There are many prophecies concerning God’s promise of the coming of Messiah. In Genesis 3:15, God told the serpent, “I will put enmity between you and the woman, between your seed and her seed; he shall bruise you on the head and you shall bruise him on the heel.” And in Genesis 12:1-3, God tells Abraham that in him all the families of the earth will be blessed. And again, in Isaiah 7:14, God speaks through Isaiah saying that “Behold a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.” The promise of the coming of Messiah was a passion of the LORD God in His plan and purpose to redeem mankind from sin. His zeal, which is passion with intensity, will cause it to happen. There is nothing that can keep it from happening since there is no one greater than God. It is because of the zeal of the LORD that we celebrate Christmas, the birth day of the King! We want to see in this passage this morning the wonderful zeal of God.

Before the days of celebration of the birth of Jesus there was the promise of the coming King. When He came He was declared King. As God’s people, let us remember that our celebration each year is to remember that He is the King and thus requires our devotion. When God established Israel as a nation of His people, there was a promise of the coming of Jesus. Jacob gathered his sons together and told them what would befall them in the days to come. When he got to Judah, the fourth born son, he spoke about the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. This was to be the coming of Messiah or Christ that was anointed by God to rule and reign. From the line of Judah, Jesus was appointed to come. Your festival celebration this year is to worship the King! Give Him honor and service that is due Him! It is not about a person who brings gifts and toys through a chimney, it is not even receiving and giving of gifts. It is to look in awe at the One who came to save us from sin, death, and hell. As we hear the message this morning, let it serve as the first of a couple of reminders this year.

We find ourselves today living in a post Christian nation. Our response has been to indulge in the offerings of the society, seeking pleasure, money, things, instead of seeking God. We have bought into the deception. Our nation was founded on Biblical principles, and we have even seen evidence of this in the historical records kept. As much as we have seen, we still are not willing to do what is necessary to change the course. If no one else is going to change, then I am not either seems to be our motto. So, we find ourselves in the mire of godlessness and a society that even hates those who would claim the name of Jesus for the life and practice. For many reasons like these we find ourselves like Daniel. Even though not of his doing he finds himself in a post God environment. Lets see if we can glean some lessons from Daniel about being a Christian in a godless world.

Thanksgiving is upon us. This year things are a little different. Some people will be gathering with family or friends to celebrate this national holiday. Others will be by themselves. This day has its roots in the first thanksgiving when the pilgrims shared a meal together with the native people of the land. They gathered to give thanks to God for a bountiful harvest! Thanksgiving is about God's bountiful provisions for us, not traditional food, or football games. Although neither is a bad thing, be sure it does not sway you from giving thanks to God! A Psalm of Thanksgiving is recorded for us in 1 Chronicles 16. It was a time of acknowledging what Almighty God has done. Maybe we can glean a few things for us to have a God centered thanksgiving this year, no matter what the current course of events have given us! So, we want to see how much more we can focus on this thanksgiving!

We know that when we have a physical problem, we tell the doctor what the symptoms are so that they can diagnosis the underlying problem. Today we are seeing God’s people becoming more distressed with each passing day. The symptoms indicate a disease that grows worse every day. God’s word tells us it is caused by God’s people, believers, disregarding the truth and are being caught up in the things of the world. So how can we stop this disease and change the course? The remedy is to change our direction, toward God. The passage we want to look at this morning gives us an example and principles on how to do this.

In our day, if you want the word of the day you turn on the television, computer, or radio and listen to man’s opinion. Man’s opinion on the electronic media is not the word of the day we should seek. Some people sit down with a devotional to get the word of the day. My wife and her sister-in-law have a hymn of the day that they share, which has been great. The word of the day that comes from God is the best of all because His word is true and accomplishes what we need. As people wallow in the current circumstances, let us examine what God says about the Word of the Day!

In a couple of days, there is going to be a national meltdown. Many people will believe that God has not listened to their prayers about this situation while others will think that God has answered theirs. In times like these we need to keep our attention on the LORD! It reminds me of when the disciples were out on the sea of Galilee and a storm came up and they were afraid. Jesus came walking on the water!

Jesus said to them, "Take courage, I AM, do not be afraid" With that statement, Peter ask Jesus if he could come to Him in the storm. Peter walked on water above the storm when he was looking at the Savior, but he began to sink when he looked at the storm! Whether it is a personal storm or a national storm, the victory comes when we keep our eyes on Jesus!

People encounter Jesus every day. Each one has a decision to make. Some choose eternal life, while others reject Him and walk away. Eternal life is offered to all; John 3:16, For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believe in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. Why do some take it and others do not?

The scripture gives us answers to this paradox. In it we can examine how we have responded to an encounter with Jesus.