The Venue

The word "covenant" basically means a "promise." In the Bible, God has covenanted with his people two times; the Old Covenant and the New Covenant. In each of these covenants God made promises to His people, first to Israel, and then to Gentiles, or in other words, the Church. It is crucial to note that in both the Old and New Covenants, it was God who initiated the promise. Our God is a God of covenant, of promise. Just look back and look around. God's covenant is everywhere, and in everything; but only through the eyes of faith is it visible.

When we read the creation narrative of Genesis 1 and 2, we hear over and over again the declaration, "and it was good." This means that everything God made was according to His divine design and fulfilled His divine purpose. God's greatest provision for man was the provision of Himself. God is what man needed most, as man's ultimate source of life and fulfillment. This is why God told man that to disobey his command would result in death. The man and woman did not physically die when they disobeyed God's command. However, they became cut off from their source of life, God Himself, which resulted in spiritual death. Losing the beauty and bounty of the Garden was the least of their loss. They lost the fellowship with the God who had made it, and them.

As we read through the Bible this year, it is important for us to remember that the beginning of the story starts with God Himself. God has no origin. He always has been. There has never been a time when He was not. God has a plan, one He has revealed progressively since He created the world. He works it out according to His will and by His mighty power. He is the central actor in this grand narrative. He is the one who will continue to work until the culmination of His great plan.

As a New Year draws near, I am reminded that we are one year closer to the day of our death, or the day the Lord returns. So, let me use this opportunity to suggest some resolutions for the coming year. Resolve to draw near to Christ by daily reading his word. Resolve to be diligent in prayer, telling God what you need and thanking him for all he has done. Resolve to become closer to your Sugar Land Methodist Church family. Join a Sunday school class or small group. Resolve to get to know more people who don't know Christ. Meet your neighbors or co-workers, build meaningful relationships in which opportunities are created to share the Good News. These resolutions may sound simplistic; but if implemented, they will go a long way to bless your life and bring glory to God. Happy New Year!

Jesus lived a life of self-denial. What he did, he did for others. What he said, he said for the benefit of others. Where he went, he went to help others. And when it came to the end, he didn't fight back and try to save his own life. Rather, he subjected himself to the cruelest form of persecution and suffering and death in order to redeem us from sin. To share the mind of Christ is to let go of your self-interest and put others first. It's to seek what's best for all concerned in every situation. It's to lose yourself in pursuit of God's kingdom and so, experience the fullness of God's peace, joy and love.

Friends, I cannot tell you how the immortal God, the one through and for whom the Father made the universe, the only Son of God, could lay all that aside and become like one of us, even dying! But he did; he did it willingly. Father and Son together reached down, lifted us up, and gave us a new life, a fresh start. What did Jesus have that he didn't give up for us? What did Jesus have that he kept for himself? Nothing! In willing obedience, he left himself with nothing, so that we might have everything. That is the wonder of the cross; that is what true giving looks like.

Philippians 2:7-8 (ESV)

Footnotes:

Philippians 2:7 Or slave (for the contextual rendering of the Greek word doulos, see Preface)

Philippians 2:5-6 (ESV)

Footnotes:

Philippians 2:5 Or which was also in Christ Jesus

Philippians 2:6 Or a thing to be held on to for advantage

Christmas is not about Santa Claus, elves and reindeer. It is not about giving and receiving gifts. It is not even about the romanticized scene of a baby in a manger surrounded by his mom and dad, the animals, shepherds and wise men. Christmas is about the humility of God becoming a man in order to save you and me. Jesus humbled Himself beyond our comprehension and became the tiny, helpless baby in the manger. He suffered the curse of our sin so that we might become his righteousness. He rose in triumph from the grave and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He is the exalted Christ who is King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Shouldn't this knowledge challenge the ways in which we celebrate Christmas in both action and attitude?