Bethlehem (around 2,000 years ago): Joseph and Mary arrive at the sleepy town in the middle of the night. Mary, already in labor, remains on the donkey while Joseph frantically searches for a room at the local inns. Desperate, he begs one reluctant innkeeper for any place at all to have this baby. The innkeeper finally relents and makes room for them in a tumbledown stable with the cows. There’s just one problem. This isn’t what the Bible teaches.
Read more from Answers in Genesis at the link above.
GotQuestions:What does it mean that baby Jesus was wrapped in swaddling cloths? Swaddling clothes are cloths and bands used in the practice of swaddling, or essentially “wrapping” an infant tightly in cloth. The idea behind swaddling is that it helps the baby transition from the womb (a very snug place) to the outside world. Swaddling clothes are still used today, but with some modifications…
Advent series in scripture photos. We are in the section of my Advent thirty day flow where we examine PROPHECY, ARRIVAL, and EARLY LIFE of Jesus.
‘He will save from sin…’ Do we even know of our sin? Matthew Henry says of the parallel Luke 1:35 verse:
JESUS! the name that refreshes the fainting spirits of humbled sinners; sweet to speak and sweet to hear, Jesus, a Saviour! We know not his riches and our own poverty, therefore we run not to him; we perceive not that we are lost and perishing, therefore a Saviour is a word of little relish. Were we convinced of the huge mass of guilt that lies upon us, and the wrath that hangs over us for it, ready to fall upon us, it would be our continual thought, Is the Saviour mine? And that we might find him so, we should trample on all that hinders our way to him. ~Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
What is sin? “Sin is a riddle, a mystery, a reality that eludes definition and comprehension. Perhaps we most often think of sin as wrongdoing or transgression of God’s law. Sin includes a failure to do what is right. But sin also offends people; it is violence and lovelessness toward other people, and ultimately, rebellion against God. Further, the Bible teaches that sin involves a condition in which the heart is corrupted and inclined toward evil”.
What is the definition of sin? – Got Questions “Sin is described in the Bible as transgression of the law of God (1 John 3:4) and rebellion against God (Deuteronomy 9:7; Joshua 1:18). Sin had its beginning with Lucifer, probably the most beautiful and powerful of the angels. Not content with his position, he desired to be higher than God, and that was his downfall, the beginning of sin (Isaiah 14:12-15). Renamed Satan, he brought sin to the human race in the Garden of Eden, where he tempted Adam and Eve with the same enticement, “you shall be like God.”
Matthew Henry on Matthew 1:18-25 That she had conceived by the power of the Holy Ghost; not by the power of nature. The Holy Spirit, who produced the world, now produced the Saviour of the world, and prepared him a body, as was promised him, when he said, Lo, I come, Heb. 10:5. Hence he is said to be made of a woman (Gal. 4:4), and yet to be that second Adam that is the Lord from heaven, 1 Co. 15:47. He is the Son of God, and yet so far partakes of the substance of his mother as to be called the fruit of her womb, Lu. 1:42. It was requisite that his conception should be otherwise than by ordinary generation, that so, so though he partook of the human nature, yet he might escape the corruption and pollution of it, and not be conceived and shapen in iniquity.
Henry, M. (1994). Matthew Henry’s commentary on the whole Bible: complete and unabridged in one volume (p. 1613). Hendrickson.
We are in the section of my Advent thirty day flow where we examine PROPHECY, ARRIVAL, and EARLY LIFE of Jesus.
In this section I chose verses that reflect the prophecies that predict His coming. Prophecy warns of coming judgment but it also comforts in that it foretells the holy and wonderful resolution of all things for the believer. This resolution didn’t begin with Jesus’ incarnation as a babe in the manger, it began before the foundation of the world when the God-head held an intra-council discussion and Jesus voluntarily chose to become the sacrificial Lamb.
Thirty days of exalting Jesus through selected verses with pictures representing the prophecy, life, death, resurrection, and Second Coming of our Savior.
We are in the flow of verses that prophesied his coming.
History tells us this is exactly what happened, with David’s royal dynasty all but dying out as a result of God’s judgment of His people through Assyria and Babylon. Nevertheless, Isaiah also saw that while the Davidic line would seem to be dead, life would remain within the stump. A shoot—life barely detectable at first—would emerge. But once this shoot went forth, it would become a mighty tree.
He comes forth out of the stem, or stump, of Jesse. When the royal family, that had been as a cedar, was cut down, and only the stump of it left, almost levelled with the ground and lost in the grass of the field (Dan. 4:15), yet it shall sprout again (Job 14:7); nay, it shall grow out of his roots, which are quite buried in the earth, and, like the roots of flowers in the winter, have no stem appearing above ground. The house of David was reduced and brought very low at the time of Christ’s birth, witness the obscurity and poverty of Joseph and Mary. The Messiah was thus to begin his estate of humiliation.
Jesse [Jĕs’se]—jehovah exists or firm. The son of Obed and father of David, and grandson of Boaz and Ruth, and an ancestor of Christ (Ruth 4:17, 22). Jesse had eight sons and two daughters by different wives (1 Sam. 17:12-14, 25). Isaiah speaks of “the stock of Jesse,” a phrase indicating that it was from Jesse the Messiah would come. The humble descent of the Messiah is contrasted with the glorious kingdom He is to have (Isa 11:1).
Thirty days of exalting Jesus through selected verses with pictures representing the prophecy, life, death, resurrection, and Second Coming of our Savior.
Charles Spurgeon on the prophecy of the virgin birth: “And, first, we see here, in speaking of this birth of Christ, a miraculous conception. The text says expressly, “Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a Son.” This expression is unparalleled even in Sacred Writ! Of no other woman could it be said beside the Virgin Mary, and of no other man could it be written that his mother was a virgin.“
“There is the finite and the Infinite, there is the mortal and the Immortal, corruption and Incorruption, the manhood and the Godhead, time married to eternity! There is God linked with a creature, the Infinity of the august Maker come to tabernacle on this speck of earth—the vast unbounded One whom earth could not hold and the heavens cannot contain—lying in His mother’s arms! He who fastened the pillars of the universe and riveted the nails of creation, hanging on a mortal breast, depending on a creature for nourishment! Oh, marvelous birth! Oh, miraculous conception! We stand and gaze and admire. Verily, angels may wish to look into a subject too dark for us to speak of! There we leave it, a virgin has conceived and borne a Son“. A sermon, The Birth of Christ
Charles Spurgeon on Christmas: “Though creation may be a majestic organ of praise, it cannot reach the compass of the golden canticle—Incarnation! There is more in that than in creation, more melody in Jesus in the manger, than there is in worlds on worlds rolling their grandeur round the throne of the Most High.” Sermon “The First Christmas Carol“, A sermon by Charles Spurgeon, Dec 20, 1857
We should think of the Savior, all the year, every day. (Philippians 4:8). But the Christmas season is a special time when we think more pointedly about His incarnation, life, death, burial, ascension, and return. Who is this Jesus? He was born, lived, died, rose again, and promised to return, to bring eternal life to those who believe and eternal death to those who reject. He tore the veil of human history, and changed everything.
I use my photographs of God’s beautiful creation and overlay a verse on them to publish every day. For Advent, the theme is Thirty Days of Jesus. Thirty verses, thirty photos of God’s creation that reflect His life and ministry.
Of course, “And there are also many other things which Jesus did, which if they were written one after the other, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written,” says John 21:25. So I broke the series up into mini-themes, in order to present highlights.
I chose three mini-themes for this month’s scripture Advent photos that I believe will create a satisfactory narrative of Jesus’ life.
PROPHECY, ARRIVAL, and EARLY LIFE, 15 verses.
In this section I chose verses that reflect the prophecies that predict His coming the first time.
Then the beautiful verses that announce His arrival on the blessed morn.
Then a section are verses that mention Jesus as a child and boy, before He began His ministry.
PREEMINENCE OF THE SON, HIS WORKS & MINISTRY, 15 verses
The Son 5 verses over 5 days
Beginning with verses that declare the Son, are verses that focus Him as the Second Person of the Trinity. His sonship is integral to His earthly ministry as the subordinate Person to God the Father. These verses reflect that reality.
Works & Ministry, 10 verses
This section, published over ten days, will present verses that detail His attributes while He was on earth; Jesus as servant, teacher, shepherd, healer, and so on. Of course, not completely. He has so many attributes. He has ALL the attributes, but in total holiness!
RESURRECTION, ASCENSION, & RETURN
This last section Christ is unique in that He is the firstfruit of resurrection. He is unique in that He descended from heaven and ascended to heaven. Of the John 3:13 verse, says that only He is qualified to speak of heaven, being the only One who has been intimately involved with all its doings, and only he has seen the Father and come down from there and returned.
Jesus was raised to life and brought back to heaven, and several verses in this section will illustrate what He is doing while we wait the long centuries for the fulfillment of the end of all things, His glorious final return. The last verses will present Jesus in His glory, as He is in heaven now.
The flow mirrors the Revelation 1:8 verse, where it is declared,
“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”
Let’s enjoy the season. I pray that it does not become a hectic, shopping slog, frantic with focus on gifts and cleaning houses and to-do lists, though given family obligations and work colleague expectations, some of that is always inevitable. But don’t let it encroach more than it has to. Jesus is the reason for this season. If you’re a believer, this season is a gateway to a new year filled with many reasons each day to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.
All the nations you have made shall come and worship before you, O Lord, and shall glorify your name. (Psalm 86:9)
Your people shall all be righteous; they shall possess the land forever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I might be glorified. (Isaiah 60:21).
For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen. (Romans 11:36)
or you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body. (1 Corinthians 6:20).
“Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.” (Revelation 4:11).
If you do not know about the marvelous ministry of Mt. Zion Bible Church, you’re in for a treat. If you do know, then you know how wonderful it is.
Chapel Library is a ministry of Mount Zion Bible Church, a Christ-centered church in Pensacola, Florida. You can read their history here. Volunteers from the church handle global requests for hard copy printed matter to be mailed, audio tapes and MP3’s, manage a correspondence school, send free material to train chaplains in prison ministries, are entrusted with SpurgeonGems.org, a complete collection of Charles Spurgeon’s (1834-1892) sermons and other resources, and more.
Their material is from ‘the old, dead guys’, (my term) such as John Bunyan, John Owen, Lloyd-Jones, etc, and a few solid theologians still alive (Beeke, MacArthur, Voddie). The material available in their library can be sent to you via USPS for free, downloaded digitally, or read online.
They also print and distribute a periodical booklet called Free Grace Broadcaster. This month’s edition- Winter 2024 #270- is titled The Wonderful Love of Jesus. Inside are essays and excerpts of essays from these theologians of the past on the topic. I was deeply moved by the essays in this edition, so much so, it got me ready for Advent in a powerful way. Your mileage may vary, but these essays surely spoke to my heart and mind.
The 2 particular essays that got me right in the heart were Christ’s Love as Mediator by John Owen (1616-1683); and To Know the Love of Christ by Arthur W. Pink (1886-1952).
Owen muses on the hypostatic union in Christ- the dual natures. Jesus was divine and also human. Here, Owen discusses Jesus’ human love:
But He was to have another nature in which He was to undergo the difficulties of this work of salvation. He was required to pity us until He had none to pity Him when He most needed it. He was to tread the way of salvation until His soul was heavy and sorrowful unto death. He was to save us from the wrath and justice of a righteous God by suffering that wrath and justice Himself. But far from deterring Him, these proposals only heightened His love for us and increased His delight in the work of our salvation. Indeed, His love, like a mighty river, swept over those ominous proposals, for He says, “Lo, I come…to do thy will, O God” (Heb 10:5-7; see also Isa 50:5-7).
So, driven by His eternal love to undertake the office of mediator and the work of our redemption, a body was prepared for Him. In this body or human nature, which He made His own, He was to accomplish our salvation. His human nature was filled with immeasurable grace and fervent love to mankind. And by this His human nature was made fit to work out the purpose of eternal love.
From this, it is clear that Christ’s glorious love was not only divine but also human. The love of the Father, revealed in His eternal purpose to communicate grace and glory to all the elect, was a divine love only. But Christ’s love was also human. And in none of those eternal acts of love could the human nature of Christ have any claim or concern. Yet it is the love of the man Christ Jesus that Scripture celebrates. … It was because of that inexpressible love that the Son of God assumed our nature (Heb 2:14-17).
Wow. Did you ever ponder the love of Jesus outflowing from His human nature? When I think of how frail and sinful my love is and how pure His was as a human, it boggles my mind.
AW Pink’s essay was so good, too.
Consider Jehovah’s condescending to take upon Him a nature that was inferior to the angelic, so that when the Word became flesh His divine glory was almost completely eclipsed. Contemplate the unspeakable humiliation into which the Son of God descended, a humiliation which can only be gauged as we measure the distance between the throne of heaven and the manger of Bethlehem.
Yes…that immeasurable distance between the throne of heaven and the lowly manger in the straw. I highly recommend the material at Chapel Library. Their earnest desire to exalt Jesus and connect Christians with material that elevates our sight of Jesus to glorious heights. Browse and see what you can find. This edition of the Free Grace Broadcaster is here.
Now, to housekeeping. Tomorrow, December 1, I begin my annual “Thirty Days of Jesus” advent series. I created this a few years ago to help me gain an appreciation for all the aspects of His coming. It’s a visual series, with a photo representing an aspect of the flow of His coming- from prophecies announcing its future occurrence, to the nativity, growth as a boy, adult ministry through healing, teaching, etc, His death, ascendance, and future return. I match the photo or illustration with verses I’ve chosen that in my view represent that aspect of Jesus’ Advent, life, death, and resurrection, and ascension.
Since it is mainly a visual series I won’t be podcasting it. But I will take the time to record other essays I published during the pause in the podcast I took since last May.
It’s the end of the year already? The months and years fly by. I can’t believe I’ll be saying ‘happy 2025’ soon. The mania around the 1999 change of century seems like yesterday. But we are already into a quarter of this new century!
Merry Christmas, friends, and enjoy your advent season.
Do you decorate your home for Christmas? If you have children, it’s one of the best memory-makers. My mother was a master decorator. She had an eye. She could go into the backyard (or more likely, send us teenagers out there) to pick some twigs, branches, leaves, anything, and she’d fashion it into something gorgeous.
We enjoyed seeing the same Christmas tree decorations year after year, and talk about events related to them.
In my thirties, my husband and I traveled to warmer climates for the winter, usually bugging out by December 1, so it didn’t make sense to decorate.
By then we had a cat, and she was a psycho cat to boot, so it provided another reason not to decorate. After that when I lived on my own, I still had a cat or two, so decorating was out of the question. One year, I tried putting up one of those block cubes with lights in them wrapped in a ribbon with a pinecone and some ornaments on top. My cat ate the pinecone and the ornaments. After that he didn’t seem too interested in the ribbon and avoided the glass so I kept using that for my decoration. Notice, the singular aspect of that word.
Then I moved to this place where I’ve been for a couple of years. No cats. New place and it was larger than my old place. I had fun scouring vintage stores for decorations. Hunting for them was fun. Like this one which is one of absolute favorites. It’s a 1950s-style elongated ornament. It’s heavy ceramic, and hand painted. Each of the 9 I got has a bird on it, and one has a birdhouse. I have never been able to find the origin, I believe they are vintage but I haven’t found the artist or anything similar to this piece.
This is how I displayed them, on a wrought iron thingie.
But there comes a time when perhaps the drive to decorate for Christmas wanes. There could be a lot of reasons. Maybe you travel. Maybe you’re living in a smaller space, or a space that doesn’t allow a lot of decorations. Maybe you live alone and just don’t want to. Or don’t have the energy or strength to drag the bins and boxes down from the closet or up from the basement. Maybe you’re grieving. Or a spouse is in the hospital and you’re spending all your time there. Could be a lot of reasons you don’t decorate for Christmas.
AND THAT IS OK.
I eventually decided this year not to go the full monty like I have the last 2 years. I put out a nativity and a white twig wreath outside on the stoop. Inside, I pulled out my other nativity sets and some candles. That’s it.
I love my nativity sets.
The glass figure nativity, I just put out the three main people- Joseph, Mary, and Jesus. The wooden one in the middle is made with popsicle sticks! Its simplicity and roughness appealed to me. The lit one is a favorite I got last year. The crystals are Swarovski and the lighting is just perfect. The alabaster white one I put outside because it’s hardy and can withstand wind and rain. The three wise men ornament swings to become three-dimensional.
I know the Wise Men didn’t arrive on the blessed day of Jesus’ birth, but I like that scene depicting them far away and arriving later. But they were still an important part of the early years of Jesus because of their monumental effort to look for Him, travel a great distance to Him, and to worship Him abundantly.
I kept out my battery operated candlesticks and I’ll put those in the window. So some nativities and a few candles will do it for me this year. The kids at school begged for some decorations so I’ll bring a small tree and some twinkle lights I got for cheap.
How is your decorating going this year?
Below are pics of last year’s Christmas decorating:
Justin is a traveling evangelist known for his discernment seminar called Clouds Without Water, a biblical critique of the Word-Faith/New Apostolic Reformation/Prosperity gospel. He also preaches, “communicating biblical truth through expository preaching and teaching resources designed to deepen the believer’s knowledge of God and, in turn, his love for God” as his About statement reads. He and his wife are members of a church outside of Billings, Montana.
Mr Peters sends out a monthly newsletter bringing his followers up to date on his ministry activity. This month, November 2024, I read the following:
As of this writing, I’ve had two international trips, Brazil and the Philippines. Each was special in its own way, but something quite memorable happened in the latter. At my first preaching venue, there were about 1,100 in attendance. One of my presentations, delivered on a Friday, was on the history of the charismatic movement during which I made a brief point on the biblical truth that only men can serve as pastors and quoted 1 Timothy 3 as support. It was not a major part of this message, and I did not think much about it – until a few days later.
One of the Filipino brothers who organized the conference came up to me and said, “Justin, remember what you said on Friday about how women cannot serve as pastors?” “Yes,” I replied. “Well, you did not know this but towards the back of the room there was a group of female pastors who attended the conference. One of them was convicted by what you said and resigned as pastor of her church the next day.”
“Really?!” I replied. I was floored. But isn’t that amazing? She was a pastor on Friday, was convicted by the truth of God’s Word, resigned as pastor on Saturday and did not even preach in her own home church on Sunday! Praise the Lord! It’s not often that we get to see such a dramatic and immediate change in people – especially one that comes at a great personal cost. God’s Word indeed will not return to Him void without it accomplishing what pleases Him (Isaiah 55:11).
It might seem strange to post an excerpt of a ministry newsletter update on Thanksgiving, but isn’t that what a Christian’s Thanksgiving is all about? Praising the Lord for His work in hearts? The blessing of the Holy Spirit’s piercing of bone and marrow to bring conviction, then light, to minds?
Happy Thanksgiving to my friends. The Lord God above, for whom we are all thankful, is working today on this holiday and every day.
But He answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working.” (John 5:17). As we gather today on a day of not working, but a day to praise and thank, we are grateful for the Lord’s work in us humble and frail humans. As Mr Peters’ Philosophy of Ministry quotes Charles Spurgeon,
We are nothings and nobodies, but that we do not think so is very evident, for as soon as we are put on the shelf we begin anxiously to enquire, ‘How will the work go on without me?’ As well might the fly on the coach wheel enquire, ‘How will the mails be carried without me?’
And yet the Lord chooses to use us for His glory. For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be glory forever. Amen.Romans 11:36
Tomorrow is Thanksgiving, a time when we traditionally celebrate the blessings we enjoy in life. Many families have a tradition of sitting around their table and each guest or family member saying what they are thankful for.
I’m thankful for my salvation. For that to be possible I am thankful for the Holy Spirit drawing me to Jesus. For that to be possible I am thankful to Jesus for obeying the Father and dying on the cross. For that to be possible I am thankful for God who created all the world and who is so Holy that His Son obeyed Him and took all the wrath that was destined for me on that cross. I am thankful He revealed Himself to us in His word, and that we have the privilege of prayer, the Bible, the gifts, the fruits, and eternal life. I am thankful for the promises of prospering us in the regenerative process of growing in Christlikeness, for treasures and rewards in heaven, for the promise of rest and peace.
the-end-time.org 