Jesus' Black Sheep

Jesus' Black Sheep

"But when Jesus heard that, He said to them, 'Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick…For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.'"  (Matthew 9:12, 13b)

Jesus loves "bad people."  This is really brought out in the Christmas story.  To whom did God send His angels to first to invite them to come and worship the newborn Savior and Lord?  The shepherds. 

In those days, shepherds were considered crooks and liars, and in many cases, they were.  They couldn't even be witnesses in court because of their notorious reputations.  But God chose shepherds to be His first witnesses of the Savior, and they were so thrilled when they saw Jesus that they glorified God and went out to tell everybody about the Messiah's birth.

God loves the unrighteous, those who know through and through that they're not good, because they're the ones who see their need for a Savior.  Jesus said, "It's not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick." 

You're not going to go to the doctor if you think you're perfectly healthy, and you're not going to go to the Great Physician, Dr. Jesus, if you don't see that you are incomplete, and that you need God's forgiveness and presence in your life.

The fact is, most of us think we're good.  According to a George Barna poll, 83 percent of Americans believe they are basically good—more than four out of five!  The Bible says that God created us very good, and there's still a potential for good, but we fell into sin and rebellion from God.  Without Christ, we're all black sheep in our attitude toward God.  We're not lily white sheep—not one of us—we're not even grey sheep. 

We're black sheep without Jesus, who is "The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" (John 1:29b).  God's perfect sacrificial Lamb was crucified for our sins on the cross, and by receiving the risen, living Lord Jesus Christ, we can be forgiven and restored in love to God.

In front of a church in Germany there stands a stone lamb.  As the story goes, a roofer slipped and fell off the roof of the church to the ground.  It was a long way down, so his fellow roofers knew he would be killed, but when they got to the ground, they found him unhurt.  A lamb had been grazing below and the man had fallen squarely on top of it, crushing the lamb to death.  The man was so grateful that he made a stone memorial of the lamb.

I am so thankful that God provided a lamb for me to fall on.  Our fall into sin has been a long way down, but praise God He has given us a lamb to break the fall. 

Have you fallen squarely on the lamb yet?  Your sins have.  Why not put your full weight on Him and trust Him today?

"As it is written: 'Behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and rock of offense, and whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.'”   (Romans 9:33)

(Sent by permission from Pastor Wayne Taylor; info@calvaryfellowship.org)

Tidings of Great Joy

"Then the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people'…And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men!'" (Luke 2:10, 13, 14)

This time of year it's so wonderful to hear the Christ-filled verses of Joy to the World, O Come All Ye Faithful, O Holy Night, and Hark the Herald Angels Sing filling the malls as we go Christmas shopping. 

Carols about Jesus' birth literally transformed Christmas in seventeenth century England.  The winter holidays had become so raucous with drunkenness and rioting that decent citizens were afraid to leave their houses, so in 1644, the English Parliament passed a law forbidding the celebration of Christmas. 

Gradually, carols about Jesus became popular, and many began rejoicing at Christmas time with worship and praise.  Christmas was proclaimed legal again—another good reason to keep Christ in Christmas!

When the angel sang the very first Christmas carol to the shepherds, he said, “I bring you tidings of great joy which will be to all people.”  Joy is "chara" in Greek—meaning cheerfulness and delight—and is the root for "charis," or God's amazing grace.  In giving us Christ, God gave unspeakable grace, His unmerited love and blessing.  This is the most joyful gift we can receive.

The angels brought the shepherds “tidings of great joy" (Luke 2:10), literally  "mega joy," and when the wise men saw the star, "they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy" (Matthew 2:10).  In other words, the wise men were "vehemently shaking and trembling with joy!"

Today our world is desperately seeking joy.  We want to be lighthearted and carefree because there is so much pressure, stress, and heaviness around us.  Often we think joy comes from having more money, but if that were true Donald Trump would be a model of joy. 

Seneca once gave this advice, "To be happy, add not to your possessions, but subtract from your desires."  Quite possibly our pursuit of riches is the very weed that is choking out a joyful relationship with God.

Jesus told us to rid our hearts of these time-robbing weeds that keep us from Him.  This Christmas, remember that true joy doesn't come from things, it comes from a deep, dear friendship with Jesus. 

"...Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls."   )1 Peter 1:8b, 9)

"And He said to them, 'Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.'"  (Luke 12:15)

(Sent by permission from Pastor Wayne Taylor; info@calvaryfellowship.org)

Incredible Peace

"And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men!'"  (Luke 2:13, 14)

The night Jesus was born was a night of incredible peace.  First of all, there was universal political peace in the Roman Empire.  After centuries of ethnic fighting and wars of all kinds, Rome's power and control had grown to the degree that for a short time all was quiet throughout the empire.  It was a very appropriate time for the Prince of Peace to be born.

Jesus' birth was announced to lowly shepherds out in the fields in the stillness of the night.  Maybe this was one reason they were the first ones chosen to receive this glorious announcement.  The shepherds weren't so busy, noisy, and distracted that they couldn't hear.  They were quiet and alert.

A heavenly host of angels spoke to the shepherds with words of peace.  In other words, this peaceful proclamation came from a military troop!  In Greek, the word host literally means "army."  They were God's Angelic Air Force Choir, singing of world peace through Christ, our only hope for true peace.

Do you and I take time to be quiet, yet alert, before the Lord?  Or are we continually caught up in the busyness and noise of this world?  Psalm 46:10a tells us, "Be still and know that I am God."  It's amazing the peace and strength God can give us when we quiet our hearts before Him and reach out in faith to our Lord Jesus Christ.

Where is there real peace on earth?  In the hearts and minds of those who are letting the Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ, rule within.  Jesus wants to bring His blessed peace to our hearts.  By dying for our every sin on the cross, the hostility between us and God has been defused. 

How do you receive the peace of Christ?  By letting His presence come to rest in your life by faith.  Jesus promised, "Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you.  Let not your heart be troubled, neith neither let it be afraid" (John 14:27).

From Pastor Wayne Taylor, Calvary Fellowship, Mountlake Terrace, WA

The Sign of the Manger

 

"And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger."  (Luke 2:12)

When God sent Jesus Christ as a gift to the world, He didn't want anyone to miss it.  So He gave signs to confirm Christ's birth.  One sign was that the baby would be born in a manger.

A manger is literally a feeding trough for beasts.  This was Jesus' first bed, a place where pigs, cows, horses, and sheep were fed.  Jesus didn't have a nice oak crib with a Simmons Beautyrest mattress.  No, He slept in a stone trough, the kind used in Palestine at that time.  His first resting place was a cold, hard, dirty manger.  The angel gave a very specific sign to help the shepherds identify their Messiah.  Not many babies have an animal feeding trough for their first crib!  I don't know of any, besides Jesus.

The manger has spiritual significance because it illustrates Jesus' purpose in coming to earth.  Our hearts can be just like that feeding trough―unclean and oftentimes cold and hard like stone.  Even so, our spiritual hearts hunger to know God.

Human hearts are not only unclean, but often beastly.  We have a fallen and sinful nature, but that's why Jesus came.  God the Son became a man to die for our sins and bring forgiveness and new life with God.  When we repent of our sin and receive Jesus Christ, we discover the greatest Christmas gift of all: God's love.  Oh, how restless and disquieted our hearts can be without Christ!

Augustine said, "Thou hast formed us for Thyself, and our hearts are restless till they find rest in Thee." 

Jesus said, "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28).  Your heart, like that manger, can be a place of rest with Jesus.

(Sent by permission from Pastor Wayne Taylor; info@calvaryfellowship.org)

Daily Christmas Encouragement

(Devotionals by Pastor Wayne Taylor)

Ministry of Sleeping

"Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife, and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son.  And he called His name Jesus." (Matthew 1:24, 25)

Wouldn't it be great to have a ministry of sleeping?  I'd like the Lord to call me to that kind of ministry.  Unfortunately, God doesn't call us to a ministry of sleeping, but He is calling us to a ministry of resting.    

It's so easy in today's world to be burdened with anxieties and insecurities, and to be stressed out with all our busyness and expectations.  Christ the Great Shepherd wants to give you the rest that David found in the Lord when he said, "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.  He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters" (Psalm 23:1, 2). 

There is incredible rest, peace, security, and fulfillment in trusting your life to Jesus Christ.  "For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His" (Hebrews 4:10).  Christ gives His rest to you as a gift when you trust Him. 

When Jesus died on the cross, "He said, 'It is finished!'  And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit" (John 19:30b).  "Bowing" is the Greek word used for resting your head on a pillow.  Jesus was resting in the finished work He accomplished.  Thanks to Jesus' great work on the cross for our sins, God is fully satisfied.  You can rest in Him today.

"Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."   (Matthew 11:28) 

(Sent by permission from Pastor Wayne Taylor; info@calvaryfellowship.org)

Immanuel ~ God with Us

Daily Christmas Encouragement

(Devotionals by Pastor Wayne Taylor)

Immanuel ~ God with Us

"And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins…'Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,' which is translated, 'God with us.'"  (Matthew 1:21, 23)

At Christmas we celebrate the miraculous birth of God the Son in the form of a man.  Think of it, God became a man!  The name "Jesus" is the Greek translation of the Hebrew name "Yeshua" or "Joshua."  Jesus' name is actually a contraction of two words―Jehovah and Shua―meaning "the Lord is our Savior."  Immanuel literally means "with us is God."  At the Incarnation, God came to be with us in the person of Christ, who is the perfect, eternal sacrifice for all our sins.

In creation, we see God above us as transcendent.  In the moral law, we see God against us as judge.  But in the Gospels, we see God with us as Immanuel―our Savior, friend, and King. As Immanuel, God joins Himself with His people.

I love the story of the grandfather who sees his grandson jumping up and down in a playpen, crying at the top of his lungs.  When Johnnie sees his grandfather, he reaches up with chubby little hands and says, "Out, Grandpa, out!" 

It is only natural for the grandfather to reach down and lift Johnnie out, but as he does, the child's mother says, "No, Johnnie.  You are being punished, so you must stay in the playpen."  The grandfather is at a loss and doesn't know what to do.  His heart is deeply moved by the child's tears.  But the mother's firmness in correcting her son cannot be taken lightly.  Yet, love finds a way.  The grandfather cannot take his grandson out of the playpen, so he climbs in with him.

That is what our Lord Jesus did for us at Christmas.  In leaving heaven and coming to earth, He climbed in with us.

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth." (John 1:1, 14)

Sent by permission from Pastor Wayne Taylor; info@calvaryfellowship.org)

Daily Christmas Encouragement

 

Don't Dismiss Jesus

"Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows:  After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit.  Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly" (Matthew 1:18, 19).

Wilbur and Orville Wright made their historic flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.  For several years, they had tried to fly a heavier-than-air craft and had failed, but on December 17, 1903, they actually flew!  Filled with elation, they wired their sister Katherine, "We have flown 120 feet!  By the way, we plan to be home for Christmas.  Love, Orville and Wilber."

When Katherine received the telegram she was ecstatic and immediately ran down to the Dayton Gazette newspaper editor with the scoop of the century.  The editor carefully read the telegram, smiled, and said, "Well, well, how nice the boys will be home for Christmas."

By not even acknowledging the Wright brothers' incredible flight, that newspaper editor missed the significance and impact of one of the greatest events in history.

That's exactly what happens with many people as we celebrate the Christmas season.  They are missing out on the real significance and impact of what Christmas is all about.  Joseph also almost missed out on Jesus' coming when he planned to dismiss Mary.

The angel Gabriel had appeared to Mary, but evidently Joseph didn't believe her when she tried to explain it to him.  Perhaps Mary's version of her pregnancy was too miraculous and farfetched even for Joseph to believe.  Instead, he was willing to put Mary away by divorcing her quietly, without anyone knowing, because he was a righteous man.  This may seem very admirable of Joseph, but there was no reason for Mary to be put away because she hadn't committed adultery.  She was with child by the Holy Spirit, and God convinced Joseph of that later. 

Often it's hard to convince righteous people about spiritual things.  They don't think they need salvation because they are good, ethical, and moral.  In many cases, these people dismiss Jesus quietly.  They like what Jesus stands for—His love and Christian ethic—but they put Him off as a personal Savior.

You will quietly dismiss Jesus if you misunderstand who He is.  Jesus was and is God incarnate, the perfect and sinless God-man who came to reconcile sinful, unholy man to a sinless, holy God.  We honor Jesus only when we fully realize who He is, and how much we are in need of Him.

"For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich"  (2 Corinthians 8:9)

"Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:12).

From Wayne Taylor, Pastor of Mountlake Terrace, WA Calvary Fellowship