Christmas Day – 2024

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And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying,

Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men,

and He will dwell with them,

and they shall be His people,

and God Himself shall be with them,

and He will be their God.

And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes;

and there shall be no more death,

neither sorrow, nor crying,

neither shall there be any more pain:

for the former things are passed away.

And He that sat upon the throne said,

Behold,

I make all things new.

And He said to me,

Write: For these words are true and faithful.

Revelation 21:3-5

On this Christmas morning

we light the center white candle,

The Christ Candle,

signifying that Christ has come

– The Light Of The World–

We light this candle as a symbol of God’s mercy and grace,

reminding us that God sent His Son into the world as a tiny infant,

that the people would be saved from their sin.

But also to remind us that Jesus promised

that He would come again as King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

The candles on my Advent Wreath will be lit every morning throughout the Christmas Season

as I begin my day with Jesus, reminding me to keep looking up for His return.

I long for that day

when I see Jesus coming on the clouds

or when He calls me home!

PEACE

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For unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given:

And the government shall be upon His shoulder:

And His name shall be called

Wonderful,

Counsellor,

The Mighty God,

The Everlasting Father,

The Prince of Peace.

Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end,

upon the throne of David,

and upon His kingdom,

to order it,

and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever.

The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.

Isaiah 9:6-7

On this fourth Sunday of Advent we light the candle of Peace.

We light this candle as a symbol of the Prince of Peace.

May the visitation of Your Holy Spirit,

O God,

make us ready for the coming of Jesus,

our hope and joy.

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel!

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote the poem “Christmas Bells” after his son was wounded in battle during the Civil War. He wrote of the contrast of the Christmas bells ringing out “Peace on earth, good-will to men” while the United States was facing a civil war with its citizens fighting each other. The version we find in most Christmas music omits the third and fourth stanzas, which refer to the canon fire on the battlefield.

I heard the bells on Christmas day
Their old familiar carols play,
    And wild and sweet
    The words repeat
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

I thought how, as the day had come,
The belfries of all Christendom
    Had rolled along the unbroken song
    Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

Then from each black, accursed mouth
The cannon thundered in the South,
    And with the sound
    The carols drowned
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

It was as if an earthquake rent
The hearth-stones of a continent,
    And made forlorn
    The households born
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

And in despair I bowed my head
“There is no peace on earth, I said”
    “For hate is strong, and mocks the song
    Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
“God is not dead: nor doth He sleep;
    The wrong shall fail, the right prevail,
   Of peace on earth, good-will to men

Till, ringing, singing on its way,
The world revolved from night to day,
    A voice, a chime, a chant sublime,
   Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

Sadly, the world still does not enjoy peace on earth as we enter this Christmas season. There are struggles in various locations all around the world, most notably in the middle east and in Ukraine. However, Christians are not without hope, for God has promised that evil will not triumph in the end.

The first time Jesus came to earth He came as a baby. When He returns at His second coming He will come in power and glory to set up His kingdom on earth where He will reign for a thousand years.

And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold of the dragon, the old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, and cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season. Revelation 20:1-3

After the thousand years Satan will be loosed out of his incarceration and will prepare for the final battle. God will deal with Satan and those who deny Christ for a final time.

This is what Christmas really means. God set in motion His plan to redeem a fallen world.

Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and He will dwell with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then He said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true,”

He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life. Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children. But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars – they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.            Revelation 21:1-8

Where are you this Christmas Eve?

Are you looking with great expectation for Christ’s second coming

or are you denying God’s plan for your salvation?

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:

“God is not dead: nor doth He sleep;

The wrong shall fail, the right prevail,

With peace on earth, good-will to men.”

THE CANDLE OF HOPE

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Today we light the candle of HOPE.

O LORD,

as I light this first candle of the Advent season

– the candle of HOPE –

I am reminded of the hope that I have in You.

My Advent wreath holds small jar candles.

The flame is small but steady, giving light in the darkness.

The darkness cannot overcome the light that it gives.

We live in a world that threatens to overwhelm us with the darkness of evil.

There are wars,

Russia attacking Ukraine, Hamas terrorists attacking Israel;

and civil wars

in the Central African Republic, Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Libya, Mali, Myanmar, Somalia, Syria, and Yemen.

There are countries experiencing terrorist insurgencies and ethnic violence.

 There are drug wars in South America.

There are natural disasters

volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, hurricanes, forest fires,

flooding in some areas with severe drought in others.

There are fears of another pandemic,

supply chain issues,

financial concerns,

and a lack of trust in our own government.

And the list goes on.

All of this leads to a sense of despair,

a lack of hope.

But I am reminded when I see the small flame of my Advent candle,

the darkness cannot overcome the light.

LORD,

You know the state of this world.

For God so loved the world,

that He gave His only begotten Son,

that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish,

but have everlasting life.

For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world;

but that the world through Him might be saved.

He that believeth on Him is not condemned:

but he that believeth not is condemned already,

because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

And this is the condemnation,

that LIGHT is come into the world,

and men loved darkness rather than LIGHT,

because their deeds were evil.

John 3:16-19

LORD,

You had a plan from the beginning.

In the beginning was the WORD,

and the WORD was with GOD,

and the WORD was GOD.

The same was in the beginning with GOD.

All things were made by HIM:

and without HIM

was not anything made that was made.

In HIM was life;

and the life was the LIGHT of men.

And the LIGHT shineth in the darkness;

and the darkness comprehended it not.

John 1:1-5

LORD,

You are our HOPE!

These things I have spoken unto you,

that in Me ye might have peace.

In the world ye shall have tribulation:

but be of good cheer;

I have overcome the world.

John 16:33

And so on this the First Sunday of Advent

I thank You for the birth of a tiny babe so long ago,

Jesus Christ,

Emmanuel,

God with us.

And I thank You for the promise,

Let not your heart be troubled:

ye believe in God,

believe also in Me.

In my Father’s house are many mansions:

if it were not so,

I would have told you.

I go to prepare a place for you,

I will come again,

and receive you unto myself;

that where I am,

there ye may be also.

John 14:1-2

LORD,

As we await Your coming,

we live in a world where hope is scarce.

But for those who know YOU,

for those who trust in YOU,

we have this hope.

As You have cared for us in past days,

so we trust You to care for us this day,

and in the days to come.

As we await the day of Your return,

show us how to live in this world

in such a way as to bring

honor, glory and praise

to Your Holy Name.

AMEN