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The Bible Says
“For we are the circumcision who worship God in the Spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh, though I also might have confidence in the flesh. If anyone else thinks he may have confidence in the flesh, I more so: circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews; concerning the law, a Pharisee; concerning zeal, persecuting the church; concerning the righteousness which is of the law, blameless. “But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found of Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith” (Philippians 3:3-9 NKJB).
Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be Upon His shoulder, And His name will be called Wonderful . . .” (Isa. 9:6 NJJB). Everything about Christ is remarkable. Of Him it was said, (“He”) has done nothing amiss” (Luke 23:4), “I find no fault in (Him)” (John 7:46), and “Certainly this was a righteous man” (Luke 23:47). God Himself declared from Heaven, “This is my beloved Son; hear him.” (Mark 9:7). Yes, Jesus is unique and amazing, because He is the only One who is both truly divine and sinlessly human. An unknown author exclaims with wonder and adoration: “Christ came from the bosom of the Father to the bosom of a woman. He put on humanity that we might put on divinity. He became a man that we might become the sons of God. In infancy He startled a king; In boyhood He puzzled the doctors; in manhood He ruled the course of nature. He walked upon the billows, hushed the sea to sleep, and healed the multitudes without medicine. He never wrote a book; yet the libraries of the world are filled with volumes that have been written about Him. He never penned a musical note; yet He is the theme of more lyrics than any other subject in the world. Great men have come and gone: yet He lives on. Herod could not kill him. Satan could not seduce Him, death could not destroy Him, the grave could not hold Him. All others have failed in some way, but not Jesus! This perfect One is altogether lovely. ‘” Not only is Christ matchless in His person and accomplishments, He is absolutely thrilling to know as Savior and Friend. With Isaiah and millions of redeemed souls, I can testify that Jesus is truly WONDERFUL!
--H.J.B., Our Daily Bread This year we received more Christmas mail than ever before. I was able to send out more than 80 Christmas greetings, but still didn’t cover all the names I wanted to write to. Every Card and letter we received exalted and praised our wonderful Lord! One Card includes the following prayer:
Loving Father, help us to remember the birth of Jesus, that we may share in the song of the angels, The gladness of the shepherds and the wisdom of the wise men, close the door of hate and open the door of love all over the world. Let kindness come with every gift and good desires with every greeting. Deliver us from evil by the blessing which Christ brings, and teach us to be merry with clean hearts. May the Christmas morning make us happy to be Thy children, and the Christmas evening bring us to our beds with grateful thoughts, forgiving and forgiven, for Jesus sake.
ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON (1850-1894) If our greatest need had been information, God would have sent us an educator. If our greatest need had been technology, God would have sent us a scientist. If our greatest need had been money, God would have sent us an economist. If our greatest need had been pleasure, God would send us an entertainer. But our greatest need was forgiveness, so God sent us a Savior. For the
-- The Speaker’s Sourcebook (Zondervan Publishing House) p. 53 |