COME WORSHIP CHRIST
(Matthew 2:11)
Finding favour with God ~ S. Lianlalmuan
“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favour rests.” Luke 2:14
The day Christ was born was indeed a scarlet-day and therefore right after an angel of the Lord pronounced about the birth of Christ to the shepherds, a great company of heavenly host appeared suddenly with the angel. What makes it so special about this occasion is that if we look into the Holy Bible, we find that God usually sent one or two angels as His messenger(s), but to bring the news about the birth of Christ to the shepherds, a multitude of angels was sent.
There are two very important things enveloped in the news: firstly, it glorifies God and secondly, it brings peace to the world. So, the purpose of Christ’s birth was first of all, for the glory of God and the second purpose was to bring peace to this world.
Now, if we look carefully into the words, it is clearly specified ‘…peace to those on whom His favour rests’. So if we want peace to prevail among us, we must live according to the will of God and find favour with Him.
How do we find favour with God? To find favour with God, we must:
- make peace with God (Romans 5:1)
Without Christ who came to save the sinners, no one can have peace with God. Once we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour through faith, then only we can have peace with God. - make peace with ourselves
Can a person be not at peace with oneself? When one is feeling depressed and despondent, one ends up with having conflicting thoughts. It is often hard to decide what is right and what is wrong. This is when one is not being at peace with oneself. At this juncture, we must realise that we are already being at peace with God and therefore we must always run to Him and seek for His help. - make peace with others (Ephesians 4:32)
After being at peace with God and with ourselves, it is also important to make peace with others. Whether it may be with our family members, our friends or with someone unknown to us, so long as we live in this world, we are likely to get angry with each other and quarrel among ourselves due to difference in opinions. But as we are already being at peace with God, we must not have hatred for each other. We should rather be kind and compassionate to one another and forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave us.
What Does Christmas Mean to You? (Matthew 2:2; Matthew 2:11) ~ Pastor H. Biakson
The Magi left the place where they belonged to (Persia) and travelled to a far off distance of around 300 miles to Bethlehem just to worship the new born King. They did not travel by plane or vehicles unlike this day’s. They had to go through harsh weather conditions. They had to leave behind their near and dear ones and they also had to leave behind their profession. Their sole purpose was to worship Christ the baby who they were so eager to meet and this made them reach their destination. Likewise, as we are asking ourselves what we yearn for the most this Christmas, what Christmas means to us, let us also ask the same question to few important beings and put ourselves in their shoe and try to give an answer from their perspective.
- God: If you ever had the privilege to ask God, “God, what does Christmas mean to You?” how do you think God would reply? To some, Christmas is a time to make good money while to others it is a season of spending lots of money. To some, Christmas is a time to spend quality time with families while to others it is a time to spend time and enjoy life without even caring for their families. But to God, out of many things which can be said, Christmas is a time of giving up His only begotten Son for the lost and sinners (John 3:16).To God, Christmas is the time of giving. Christmas is the time of Love and it is the time to show that love in reality like God showed it to us.
- Jesus: If you asked Jesus what Christmas means to Him, it is believed that He would reply by saying that it is the time of leaving behind all His glory and honour! (Philippians 2:6-8) If we are so proud and arrogant unlike Jesus who humbled Himself, we might not be able to meet Him and spend Christmas without any meaning.
- Mary: To Mary, Christmas is the time of surrendering to God and obeying the will of God come what may (Luke 1:38). Mary was betrothed to Joseph. She could get bad name and be put to shame by bearing a child while being engaged to someone. On top of that, according to their law, she could be stoned to death. But Mary sacrificed her everything and was ready to obey God’s will no matter what!
- Joseph: Joseph was a good man. He was faithful to the law. Even after Mary was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit, he did not want to expose her to public disgrace. He had in mind to divorce her quietly (Matthew 1:18-19). To Joseph, Christmas is the time of understanding and hoping for the good of the one he loves the most.
- Herod: To King Herod, Christmas has totally a different meaning. To him, Christmas is the time of safeguarding his power and position using every possible means, even if it costs someone else’s life (Matthew 2:16). He did not want to give up his throne at all. Let us also look into our lives this Christmas and see who sits on the throne of our heart! Do we allow Jesus to be the king and ruler of our life?
- The Shepherds: Shepherds were considered outcasts. While others were busy with the registration, the shepherds were busy in the fields keeping watch over their flocks. They ddid not even belong to the society. But an angel of the Lord appeared to them (Luke 2:9) when the rest of the world did not even know they existed. To the shepherds, Christmas is the day they receive the greatest joy. Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 5:3)
- The Magi: To the Magi, Christmas is worshipping Jesus Christ at the cost of willing to pay all the prices. Worship has a demand. The demand of worship is to present your body (Romans 12:1). The Magi left behind the near and dear ones, their home. They were willing to leave behind their profession just to worship the new born Christ. They presented Him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh which were probably their most prized possessions.
On Celebration of Christmas ~ P. Chinliankhup
- Identity: To begin with, we have to ask ourselves, “Who am I? What is my identity as a Christian?” God knows our every thought. He knit us together in our mother’s womb. We are fearfully and wonderfully made by Him (Psalm 139:1-24). Having said this, do we let Him be in the driver’s seat of our heart? Or is it the Devil who is the driver in our everyday life? Like a vehicle which runs towards whichever way the driver drives, let us also allow God to be the driver in our life so that we may be able to live our life according to His will. Further, in our society today, there are many pseudo-believers. We have to ask ourselves, “Am I a Christian or am I like a Christian?” Yet to all who did receive Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God (John 1:12)
- Jesus Christ: So if Jesus Christ gives His life for us, then it is very important that we question ourselves, “Who is He really to me?” Jesus is our Saviour, Lord and King (Luke 2:11; Romans 10:9). He is the one who gives us eternal life (John 3:16). He is our happiness, our fortress, our sanctifier, indeed He is everything to us.
- Worship: Gathering together in the Church to worship Him is a form of worship; gathering together with families at home to worship Him is also a form of worship, and having quiet time and praying and talking to God is also another form of worship. In all these forms of worshipping, we have to question ourselves again, “Are we worshipping God just for the sake of fulfilling the programmes and events or are we worshipping Him wholeheartedly so that He is pleased with the way we worshipped Him?”
(a) Acceptable Worship: When Jesus talked with the Samaritan woman, He said to her, “God is spirit, and His worshippers must worship Him in the Spirit and in truth.” (John 4:23-24). It is also important to offer ourselves, our body when at the time of worshipping (Romans 12:1).
(b) Unacceptable Worship: Honouring God with lips but far away from Him at heart is a vain worship (Matthew 15:8-9).
If our religious festivals and assemblies are hated and despised by God (Amos 5:21) then our gathering has no meaning. Therefore, we must be clear about the reasons why we are gathering together in the Church. As we are celebrating Christmas, we must not attend the event just to fulfil the written programme.
