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Luke 2:1-14 - Lectionary for Christmas Midnight

12/17/2020

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12/17/20
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the historic one-year lectionary.

Some people are very interested in genealogy. I don't happen to be one of those people. One of my family members, though, has been able to trace some of the lineage of my family back about four centuries. It was an impressive bit of research that she did! 

This question summarizes my apparent lack of interest in my lineage. What needs to be remembered? Truly, what have my ancestors done that is worthy of note? Sure, some have doubtless been notable characters, some positive and some negative. Some of them have been good leaders in their families and communities. Some have not. Some made fortunes, others lost fortunes. Most stayed somewhere in between. The memories and the direct relevance become weaker generation by generation. 

The Christian must remember, though, that God remembers all of the particulars about our family. In their own way, they are all important. But this doesn't mean we will necessarily be thinking about them.

In our Gospel reading from Luke 2:1-14, Joseph and Mary, his pregnant fiancee, went to Nazareth in order to participate in the census. They were  commanded to appear due to the imperial order that a census should be completed. We know relatively little about this little family, but here are a few important pieces of information that we know.

Mary is pregnant. I already said that, and it's a very solid part of the traditional Christmas narrative. A Christmas play with a non-pregnant Mary wouldn't make any sense at all. She's going to have a baby when they are on the road. We don't know how quickly the baby comes after they arrive in Nazareth, but you don't get the idea they were there terribly long before Jesus' birth. They still seem to be in very temporary quarters.

That's another thing we know. This little family didn't seem to have the means to buy luxury. They weren't thundering around in carriages. They didn't stay with rich and powerful people who always kept a guest room for them. No doubt there was some question, at least at times, where they would end up staying.

It probably rarely crossed the mind of either Joseph or Mary that they each had a line of direct descent from King David. They would have known it, because Israel was very concerned with lineage. But really, David's kingdom was a thousand years ago. What their parents, grandparents, and great grandparents did was probably much more significant to them. David's a distant figure.

God brings the promises to David to pass through Jesus, born of Mary. He doesn't bring Jesus' birth in a place of wealth and influence. God the Son joins with our sinful humanity in a humble place. He is unassuming. But he is God with us. He is the one who will redeem sinful humanity from the curse of sin. God takes what is distant and may often be forgotten, and he makes it the present reality. His purpose in this is to break the curse of sin, once and for all. He is able to do even that, in the humble place, a seemingly obscure town, where it is His pleasure to bring peace to earth.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

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Titus 2:11-14 - Lectionary for Christmas Midnight

12/16/2020

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12/16/20
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the historic one-year lectionary.

Salvation is by grace through faith, period. We can never add to God's salvific grace by our good works. For that matter, we also need to remember that we can never take away from God's salvific grace by our bad works. Forgiveness is of God's initiative. Reconciliation comes from God, who, in Christ, has broken down the wall of separation that our sins built between us and God. This is God's grace.

With that in mind, we read Titus 2:11-14 and recognize that God's grace trains us to walk away from ungodliness. It teaches us to live a godly life RIGHT NOW, not just in some heavenly future. We are compelled to do what is good as we live a life of purity. And we are compelled to this as we look at the coming glory of God in Christ. His coming is called "our blessed hope" (v. 13). And that hope leads us directly into a life of good works.

Whatever we have done, whatever we have not done, whatever we are now doing, whatever we are now not doing, all of it is to be understood in the context of Jesus' redemption. He moves us out of what is evil into what is good.

As we look to the blessed hope, Jesus, we recognize that there's a reason this Scripture passage is often associated with the beginning of the Christmas season. Especially as we celebrate the coming of our Lord, we take opportunity to dedicate ourselves to the kind of good that he does. We try to live like the reconciled people we are, like Jesus, who reconciles us to Himself. He has saved us for a purpose. We get to live in the good works he has prepared.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

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Psalm 96 - Lectionary for Christmas Midnight

12/15/2020

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12/15/20
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the historic one-year lectionary.

Psalm 96 speaks of how the whole earth should sing before the Lord and give him glory. He is not like the "worthless idols" (v. 5, ESV). 

If we think of the way different religions have viewed their deities over many generations, we see that the Bible, both in the Old Testament and the New Testament, sets the true God apart from what everyone else believes. When the Psalmist says that the gods of the peoples are worthless idols, we can easily look at examples of these idols. Some are made of wood, some pottery, some carved stone, some metal work. They depict people or animals with some exaggerated characteristics. The most common that we have are gods of fertility or of grain, though there are plenty of others. The more gods, the better. You want to have as many of them around as you can, and try to appease their anger. Otherwise you might be childless, have crop failures, not get enough rain, suffer from earthquakes, fires, and floods, or any number of other possible troubles. The people who maintain these deities admit that they have made them, or that they bought them somewhere. 

The God of the Bible is the real thing. He has communicated with His people. He existed before anything was created. He is ot represented by any images because he cannot be captured in an image. He provides for his people, all out of his mercy rather than due to the worthy activities of his worshipers. He wants to care for his people.

This is very different. It's such a striking vision of God that the pagans wouldn't know what to do with it. He is the living God.

This could be frightening. Actually, it should be frightening. But what does the Psalmist observe? God actually wants to be the cause of rejoicing. He provokes it by judging the earth with correct justice and in righteousness. Rather than making any sort of self-centered judgment, he does what is good and right.

This stands apart from the other deities as well. At best, they are indifferent. At worst, they are vindictive. The God of the Bible acts in mercy and love.

Give praise to the Lord, all the earth! He is the great one.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

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Isaiah 9:2-7 - Lectionary for Christmas Midnight

12/14/2020

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12/14/20
Many churches throughout the world use a Bible reading schedule called a "lectionary." It's just a fancy word meaning "selected readings." Posts like this reflect on the readings for an upcoming Sunday or other Church holiday, as found in the historic one-year lectionary.

We've all seen the advertisements which introduce products a little at a time, gradually showing the claim that you will get far more than you bargained for and that it will cost less than it might, a true value. Our passage from Isaiah 9:2-7 may look like that kind of advertisement, at least at times. We read about light shining in the darkness. We learn that the light in the darkness includes our nation and others being multiplied, especially multiplied in joy. We read about several different types of joy, all having to do with a greater reward than we would have expected. We see that it has something to do with being rescued from the enemies who would oppress us and force us into servitude. 

How many of our social activists would stop right there, at the end of verse five, then tell us to get busy about doing just those things we thought valuable? Be light. Learn to have joy. Break free from oppression. Break oppression for others. Go and do it.

That's a fine thing to do. I would like to think that I could find joy and bring joy to others. I'd like to stop oppression, especially when it has influence over me, and also when it troubles others. I'd like to enlighten people. That's all find and good.

There's just one problem, and it's a serious one. In myself I am unable to accomplish the task. I can understand some of it, and pursue some of it. I can shine what light I have. But I can't do the whole thing, and neither can you.

Perhaps we will grasp the problem best if we continue through verses six and seven, seeing the context. What did Isaiah think God was telling the people? 

In these verses there is a child to be born, one who will rule, and who will be the great, mighty, fair, and charitable ruler. His reign will increase. He will be the righteous ruler, who can actually complete the goal of light, joy, and freedom. 

Christians understand this child who is king to be Christ, God the Son, very God and very man, born to save us and rescue us from the oppression of sin and death. 

As we begin the season of Christmas, then, let us look to the Christ who will rule the world in righteousness. He is our hope. He is our light. He is our salvation.

If this brief meditation was helpful to you, I hope you will check out the other materials on our website at www.WittenbergCoMo.com and consider supporting us.

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