Christmas 2010

I read in an article recently that this Christmas, President Obama can expect to receive numerous Christmas cards urging him to end the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. A group called CMEP, churches for Middle East Peace is waging a campaign calling thousand of Christians and non Christians across America to send the card to the President.

Many people would like to seek world peace. In fact there is a movement call COEXIST. I am not sure if you have read or seen it, but you can look it up on the internet. The word COEXIST is drawn such that the C is a crescent representing Islam, O is the symbol of peace, the letter e is attached with the symbol of + and -> which shows males & females. Then the letter X is the star of David and the letter I is drawn to represent the pagan symbol. The letter S is cleverly drawn to show the Yin & Yang symbol to represent Taoism and Confucianism and finally the letter T is drawn as a cross to represent Christianity. The movement is advocating the co-existence of all people, males & females, of all races and religions. The problem is that to co-exist, every one is always playing the waiting game of you first. I can co-exist with you but you have to move first to accept me. And so, we have the Palestinians Arabs tell the Jews to respect and follow their belief and the Jews are saying to the Arabs, no you accept my belief first. Since no one is willing to make the first move, COEXIST foundation is only a nice concept, a nice belief.

Christmas is a wonderful and joyful season and indeed many people would like to associate peace with Christmas. Make no mistake about this, we are talking about real peace. This is not a concept but a relationship.

The bible tells us that Jesus Christ is the only begotten son of God. Well, Have you ever wonder how come God has a son? Do you know? I don’t know. I don’t know how and why God has a son but one thing I do know, God’s son is the savior of the world. In Luke 1 we read about the birth of Jesus. The angel told Mary that she will give birth to a Son and she is to call him Jesus, the Son of the most high The child to be born will be called holy, the son of God. (Luke 1:31,35).

Continue reading in Luke 2: 7 “She gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.” And then the angels told the shepherds: But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests." (Luke 2;10-14)

This is in fulfillment of the prophecy by Isaiah written hundred of years before Jesus was born. Isaiah wrote: For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (Isa 9:6).

Isaiah did not say a son is born. But a child is born, and a son is given. The Son is with the Father from the beginning.
The scripture is very clear that a Saviour name Jesus is born. He is among many things, Mighty God, the prince of peace.
Even though the Term "Son of God" occurs 47 times in the King James New Testament. Even though in reference to Jesus, it is a title as the heavenly, eternal Son who is equal to God the Father (John 5:18-24). He possesses all authority in heaven and earth (Matt. 28:18), and Jesus had glory with the Father before the world was made (John 17:5).

During his ministry on the earth for about 3 years, Jesus taught and he preached and he performed many miracles. He walked on water, healed the sick. He calmed the storm and raised the dead. You name it. The teaching of Jesus Christ has been passed down to us until today and if you are to ask anyone, most people likes his teaching and most do not dispute his philosophy of love, forgiveness and justice. You know, love your enemy, turn the other cheek and protect the poor and the under privileged. He was harsh towards the hypocrites, the rich who were uncaring and the leaders who only looked after their own interest. Well who would dispute that? But if you are to mentioned he is the son of God, most would dispute. Many today question the identity of Jesus. This is the problem. If we do not accept the identity of the Prince of peace, can we expect peace in the Middle East? In the Korean peninsula? In Pakistan? In Africa and even in our country Malaysia.


One pastor make it very clear:

There will never be peace in the world until there is peace in nations.
There will never be peace in the nations until there is peace in communities.
There will never be peace in communities until there is peace in families.
There will never be peace in families until there is peace in individuals.
There will never be peace in individuals until we invite the Prince of Peace to reign in our hearts.
Jesus is the Prince of Peace.

So when you have the Prince of Peace reign in your heart, you have peace with God. This peace will bring the peace of God so that you can have peace with each other. It all begins with your relationship with God through His Son.

Ravi Zachariah told of a story that happened recently. With a few evangelical Christians, they were having a dialogues mediating between the Palestine and Israelites, trying to stop the bloodshed that killed so many innocent children and women. . In attendance was Syed Ala,one of the founder of Hamas. This is what Ravi Zachariah told him. “Syed Ala, your son is in prison, You have being in prison. 5000 years ago, Abraham took his son up to the mountain not far away from here. We don’t have to debate if it is Isaac or Ismael since the Muslim believe it was Ismael. But Abraham was about to sacrifice his son. As the axe is about to come down. God spoke to him. Do you know what God said. Sheik shook his head. Ravi continued. God spoke to Abraham “Stop. Do not lay a hand on the boy. For I myself will provide a lamb”. 2000 years ago, God took his son to another mountain, this time the axe didn’t stop. His son, His only son was sacrificed. Until you and I are willing to receive the son that God has provided for us, we will be offering ourselves as the sacrifice for the offering of power and land. Our sons will continue to fight.” You can hear a pin drop in the room in at the moment.

In March later this year, Ravi was in Damascas for the follow up meeting, In the meeting was a leading Cleric name Syed Hussein. In the midst of the discussion and translation, Ravi said that this gentle cleric bend over and spoke to him.. He said “May be it’s time for us Muslim to stop questioning if Jesus died on the cross and to start asking why he died.” Ravi said he never heard this in all his dialogues with other Muslims. He asked the cleric if he can quote him and got the permission that he even wrote an article about it.

Ladies and gentlemen, we are asked to get into the relationship with the son of God. He is Jesus. He came to died for sinners and then he rose from the dead and reign forever.

A story was told about a man in the Louvre looking at the famous painting of Mona Lisa. As he looked and looked, then he shook his head and said something like this painting is nothing special\. It’s not a nice painting. Then guard who was standing near by said to him. “Excuse me, sir. This painting is no longer on trial.” Mona Lisa is already established as a master piece and no one is asking your opinion.

So is Jesus Christ. The Bible has spoken and Jesus Christ has lived and proved He is the Son of God. He is no more on trial. Many today would like to question his identity but the fact is whatever your opinion is, He is still the Son of God, the prince of peace.

Jesus Christ born as a child into this world is not a knee jerk response by God to a tragic world that is plummeting towards destruction. It is not a last patch-job or a stop gap measure. This is a grand scheme of plan. It is a calculated choice. CS Lewis says it well: The Son of God becomes man so that men can become sons of God.

The Iphone is run with many small application programs call Apps. This Apps is very easy to use and can be customized easily. If you don’t like it, you just delete it. If you like it, then you can change the setting and run it the way you like it. We treat God like this Apps. We think we can customize God to fit our liking. We delete the part we do not like and squeeze or bend the part into our liking. But we need just to receive the gift from God, His Son, the prince of peace. Let the prince of peace reign in your heart. We don’t even have to customize it. Just receive him as you are and as He is. Once you have this relationship with Him, you can then have peace with Him.

The news gets so much better when you trust the Lord Jesus Christ with your whole heart. The Scripture promise that he who have the Son have the life, but he who does not have the son, does not have life. And if you are without Christ and have not placed your trust in the Son of God, just follow this simple prayer. Dear Heavenly Father, I acknowledge that I am a sinner and I realize my sin separate me from you. I need your forgiveness and I thank you that Christ died that I may be forgiven. I believe He died for me. I believe He is alive today having been raise from the dead. I take Him as my Saviour and Lord.

If you have make this decision today, congratulation because you have found true peace and I would encourage you to get hold of any of the church members or oversight. Let us help you as you begin your walk with Christ. It will not only transform every Christmas from now on. It will change your life.

People who missed Christmas

It is exam time. Everyone come into the classroom with fear and trepidation. Then come the professor and he starts to distribute the paper. Everyone is wondering what questions are there and if they are going to do well in the exam. The professor said “Do not turn the paper yet. You are not to start the exam until I tell you so.” That adds on to the suspense and everyone is anxious. When he said start, everyone quickly turn the paper. Suddenly they was a long silence and everyone look at each other in puzzle. They realize that the paper is full of answers. The professor had filled up the questions in his own hand writing. Everyone look at each other wondering what is going on. After awhile, the professor announced that the examination is over. All the answers in the script are correct. All of you got an A+. Everyone is in a shock. The professor then went around and asked, “Did your study get you an A+?”. No. “Did all your attendance get you an A+? “No. The reason all of you get an A+ is because the creator of this exam has decided to take it on your behalf.

All of us also have to sit for this exam given by our creator, God. We are all sinner by God’s standard. We would have failed miserably except that more than two thousand years ago, the Creator himself decided to take the exam on our behalf. On that cross Jesus provided all the answers to all the questions and passed with flying colors. Jesus died on that cross to take away our sins. Because of what He did, today all of us are A+ student in God’s eyes. That’s what he has done. Not by the work we have done but by the grace of God. This is the story of Christmas, What a Savior!

But we can only be an A+ student in the eyes of God if we allow God to sit the exam on our behalf. Bible teacher, John MacArthur had preached a wonderful sermon on people who missed Christmas. This morning I want to share with you four of his characters from the bible who missed this opportunity. Let’s see if you can identify with them

Christmas is notably one of the most important occasion in a yearly calendar. It is the most important and wonderful time of the year in many part of the world, including our country, which is pre-dominantly Muslim. And through out the world, especially in the commercial sphere, its importance cannot be undermined because it is the most profitable time. From shopping centers to airline to hotel and to entertainment outlets, this is business opportunities. But even with all these media attention, advertisement and public relation, there are still many people who missed Christmas. Unfortunately the simplicity of the birth of Christ is buried in the sea of business, busyness and paganism. This happened today, but it also happened during the time recorded in the Bible.

Let me read from Luke 2 to tell you about the first Christmas.

1In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. 2(This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3And everyone went to his own town to register. 4So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

Hotel overbooked is nothing new to me. Years after years, in Kota Kinabalu, in particular, it is difficult to get rooms in the hotel. While it is unpleasant to deal with this problem, I remind myself that this problem is not new. Now, Who do you think missed the first Christmas? The first person who missed Christmas was the innkeeper. It was right in front of him but he missed it. He had to deal with Joseph and Mary and he had no room for them.

The innkeeper missed Christmas because to him, it was just another birth. Not only that, he was indifferent in that he didn’t even call for help because verse 7 said that it was a lonely birth. You see, the innkeeper was pre-occupied because the city was bursting with people. He was busy caring for his business. He was not hostile or uncaring. For him, it was all about business. He was just real busy.

A lot of people are like that. All they care about is filling their empty soul with stuff that really does not matter and so they missed the Christ of God. Look at your own life, did you spend more time shopping then you did adoring Christ? Did you spend more money on stuff then you invest in His kingdom? Then may be you are trapped like the innkeeper too.

Let’s meet another man who missed the first Christmas. This man really missed it. He was not like the innkeeper who was ignorant. In fact, he was very well informed. He was Herod. Turn to Matthew chapter 2:1. 1After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem 2and asked, "Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him." 3When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.

7Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. 8He sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and make a careful search for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him."

Did Herod really want to worship the child Jesus? Verse 1 and verse 3 address Herod as king and why would him be disturbed as we read in verse 3. That’s because verse 2 says there is another king coming. Herod felt threatened and insecure. He was afraid of another king. Go on and read verse 16.

16When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi.

When Herod realized that the wise men did not get back to him, he was furious and he gave order to get rid of all children who were two years old and under in order to wipe out the child who is going to be the king of the Jews. Herod missed Christmas because of fear and jealousy. There are many people who missed Christmas because of the same basic kind of fear that Herod had. Herod fear was that somebody else would take his throne. A lot of people are like that. Herod was not going to let this little child interfere with his career, with his position, with his power, with his ambition, with his plan and with his life style. He was not about to let someone else be the king. Are you like Herod who missed Christmas because you don’t want Jesus to occupy the throne in your life? You want to be the Lord of your own life, master of your fate and afraid to crown Him Lord. That’s tragic because his kingdom is so much more glorious.


There is a third group of people who missed Christmas.
Matt 2:4When he had called together all the people's chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Christ was to be born. 5"In Bethlehem in Judea," they replied, "for this is what the prophet has written: 6" 'But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of my people Israel.

The Chief priests and the teachers of the laws knew about the coming of Christ. But nowhere do we read about them flocking and responding to him. They are the knowledgeable one. They are the theologians, the brainy one. They are the Sanhedrin who ruled the Jewish courts. They can even quote scripture, ie. Micah where the Messiah will be born. Yet they did not even bother to go find out about the birth of the Messiah. They were in Jerusalem, only 2 miles north of Bethlehem. Why did they missed Christmas? They are indifference and they are complacent. They are so proud in their position that they did not even realize the state that they are in. There are many people in the world today ignore Christ because they don’t know they are sinful. They don’t care about the saviour because they don’t know they have to be saved.

The innkeeper missed Christmas because of ignorant preoccupation. Herod missed Christmas because of jealous fear. The chief priests and Sanhedrin missed Christmas because of indifferent pride. But there is another group of people who missed Christmas.

Turn with me to Luke 4.
14Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread through the whole countryside. 15He taught in their synagogues, and everyone praised him.
16He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. And he stood up to read. 17The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written: 18"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, 19to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." 20Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him, 21and he began by saying to them, "Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."
22All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his lips. "Isn't this Joseph's son?" they asked.
24"I tell you the truth," he continued, "no prophet is accepted in his hometown.

28All the people in the synagogue were furious when they heard this. 29They got up, drove him out of the town, and took him to the brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw him down the cliff. 30But he walked right through the crowd and went on his way.

This is probably the saddest part of all. Nazareth Missed Christmas. Jesus was their own son and they rejected Him. They even wanted to killed him as we read in verse 29. Why do you think Nazareth missed Christmas. Familiarity. They know Jesus so well that He was not special to them. Are you one of them? The getting used to attending church, raise in a Christian home. You know Him so well that you took Him for granted. You have heard so many Christmas stories, heard so many sermons, attended so many Sunday school and bible lessons that your convictions waned. As John MacArthur said, Familiarity breeds contempt and the deadly familiarity with Christmas truth breed a stony heart. You better respond while your heart is still soft or your heart will become hard and you will not have the opportunity to respond.

There are many reasons why people miss Christmas. They miss it because of ignorant preoccupation, they miss it because of jealous fear, they miss it because of prideful indifference, and they even miss it because of being so familiar with it. But behind all these reasons is one reason: unbelief. They will not believe. They refuse to believe. What ever the excuse, whatever the reasons you have been missing Christmas, if you receive Christ and believe in Him, Christmas will become a reality in your life. It can happen today. That’s between you and God. So Let Christ sit for you for the exam and be an A+ student in the eyes of God.