Christmas, Culture, & the State

Christmas with its celebration of the Incarnation doesn't depend on any local, state, or federal government approval, participation, or recognition. I don't expect non-Christians or a predominantly materialistic secular culture to celebrate Christmas in the same way I do. Let's say the US, government decrees Christmas is no longer a national holiday. That doesn't make it any less of a traditional holy day of celebration for the Church and for Christian believers.

The Empty Manger

Yes once there was a baby in a manger, but the baby did not stay in the manger. He grew to be a man. Though the manger is important, the manger is now empty. .

Yes, the baby that was in that manger grew to be a man, and one day they took him and put him to death by crucifixion on a cross, but he did not remain on that cross as his dead body was taken down and placed in a tomb. Though the cross is important, the cross is now empty.

Yes, the body of this man who was once that baby in a manger and as a man died on that cross was laid in a tomb, but the tomb is now empty for death could not contain him. He is risen from the dead and hold the keys of death and hades in his hand. Though the tomb is important, the tomb is now empty.

Yes, the man who was once a baby in that manger, and grew up only to be put to death by crucifixion on that cross, and was buried in that tomb that is now empty, has ascended into heaven and now sits on the right hand of God the Father. From that throne he will one day come again in judgement and make all things new.

The manger, the cross and the tomb are now empty.

Jesus Christ is Lord.

The Christmas Story in the Apocolypse

And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth. And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven diadems. His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it. She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne, and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, in which she is to be nourished for 1,260 days.

Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death. Therefore, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short!”

And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she might fly from the serpent into the wilderness, to the place where she is to be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time. The serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with a flood. But the earth came to the help of the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed the river that the dragon had poured from his mouth. Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. And he stood on the sand of the sea.

~ Revelation 12 (ESV)

Understanding “Immanuel” in Isaiah 7

“Again the LORD spoke to Ahaz, “Ask a sign of the LORD your God; let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven.” But Ahaz said, “I will not ask, and I will not put the LORD to the test.” And he said, “Hear then, O house of David! Is it too little for you to weary men, that you weary my God also? Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. He shall eat curds and honey when he knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good. For before the boy knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land whose two kings you dread will be deserted. The LORD will bring upon you and upon your people and upon your father's house such days as have not come since the day that Ephraim departed from Judah—the king of Assyria.” (Isaiah 7:10-17)

Observations:

Ahaz was asked to request a sign, but in his unbelief refuses to do so. Isaiah in his rebuke of Ahaz announces the Lord will “give you (in context referring to Ahaz) a sign.” A time frame is given which is a critical part of the sign to Ahaz. A child will be born, and by the time the child attains a certain age of discernment Syria and Israel will be no more. Commentators debate what that age is, but none will say it is more than the age of 12. Both the child and the child’s age are critical components of the sign to Ahaz. The name Immanuel (God with us) was a sign to Ahaz that God had not abandoned His people. God’s purposes for His people would be accomplished in spite of Ahaz’s unbelief.

As Leupold observes, “The major difficulty happens to be that a contemporary person is almost demanded by the very situation involved… At the same time a contemporary child seems to be inexorably demanded by the passage.” (Exposition of Isaiah, H.C. Leupold)

Then we come to the Gospel of Matthew where this prophecy of Immanuel is cited:

“Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us). When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus.” (Matthew 1:18-25)

Leupold holds the view that the fulfillment of the Isaiah 7 prophecy was delayed until the time Matthew speaks of. I find that explanation unsatisfactory and problematic. For the matter prophesied to be a sign to Ahaz, there had to be some kind of fulfillment in Ahaz’s lifetime. The birth of Isaiah's child, Maher-shalal-baz, in the immediate succeeding context of Isaiah 8:1-3 seems the best understanding of the immediate fulfillment of the sign prophecy to Ahaz in chapter 7.

How then are we to understand Matthew’s use of the Isaiah 7 prophecy of Immanuel?

The best understanding of Matthew’s reference is that the woman who at the time of the prophecy was an unmarried virgin and then became Isaiah’s wife and bore him the son spoken of in chapter 8, is a type or foreshadowing of the Virgin Mary. Likewise the child of Isaiah 8:1-3 was a type of or foreshadowing of the Messiah Jesus. This is in essence, the view of the following commentators:

"Language is selected such as, while partially applicable to the immediate event, receives its fullest, most appropriate, and exhaustive accomplishment in Messianic events. The New Testament application of such prophecies is not a strained “accommodation”; rather the temporary fulfilment of an adaptation of the far-reaching prophecy to the present passing event, which foreshadows typically the great central end of prophecy, Jesus Christ (Rev 19:10). Evidently the wording is such as to apply more fully to Jesus Christ than to the prophet’s son; “virgin” applies, in its simplest sense, to the Virgin Mary, rather than to the prophetess who ceased to be a virgin when she “conceived”; “Immanuel,” God with us (Jn 1:14; Rev 21:3), cannot in a strict sense apply to Isaiah’s son, but only to Him who is presently called expressly (Is 9:6), “the Child, the Son, Wonderful (compare Is 8:18), the mighty God.” Local and temporary features (as in Is 7:15, 16) are added in every type; otherwise it would be no type, but the thing itself. There are resemblances to the great Antitype sufficient to be recognized by those who seek them; dissimilarities enough to confound those who do not desire to discover them." (Jamieson, Fausset, & Brown, “Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible”)

“A virgin shall conceive. The word for virgin here is carefully chosen. Etymologically ‘almậ does not necessarily signify a virgo intacta (an untouched maiden). In actual usage in the Hebrew Scriptures, however, it refers only to a maiden chaste and unmarried (so far as the context shows). This well fits the prospective mother alluded to in this situation. Judging from 8:1-4, the typical mother was the prophetess who became Isaiah’s wife within a short time after this prophecy was spoken. Therefore she was a virgin at the time this promise was given. She serves as a type of the Virgin Mary, who remained a virgin even after her miraculous conception by the Holy Spirit. The son of this prophetess, correspondingly, is a type of the Messianic Immanuel as shortly will be explained.” (Wycliffe Bible Commentary, Isaiah contribution by Gleason L. Archer Jr.)

This view of type and fulfillment best satisfies the demand for an immediate fulfillment in the time of Isaiah and Ahaz, and allowing for an understanding of Jesus Christ being the fullness of what is meant by the name Immanuel per Matthew’s citation. This is what is pointed to by the more direct prophecy in Isaiah 9:6-7:

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this.”

Immanuel

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14)

Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet:

“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and they shall call his name Immanuel”

(which means, God with us). When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus.

(Matthew 1:18-25)

Immanuel means God did not abandon us. He did not leave us to ourselves.

Immanuel points to that mystery of God becoming man and dwelling among us, feeling our human wants, griefs, and pains.

Immanuel points to that future consummation when in the new heavens and earth, God's dwelling place comes down to that new earth and God and man dwell together forever.

Immanuel means we can live with hope, having the forgivness of our sins, and having peace with God.

Imanuel; the proof of God's love and intent to save a lost and fallen humanity...

Immanuel! All praise and honor and glory to God and God alone!

That's Christmas

Of The Father's Love Begotten

Of the Father’s love begotten, ere the worlds began to be,
He is Alpha and Omega, He the source, the ending He,
Of the things that are, that have been,
And that future years shall see, evermore and evermore!

At His Word the worlds were framèd; He commanded; it was done:
Heaven and earth and depths of ocean in their threefold order one;
All that grows beneath the shining
Of the moon and burning sun, evermore and evermore!

He is found in human fashion, death and sorrow here to know,
That the race of Adam’s children doomed by law to endless woe,
May not henceforth die and perish
In the dreadful gulf below, evermore and evermore!

O that birth forever blessèd, when the virgin, full of grace,
By the Holy Ghost conceiving, bare the Savior of our race;
And the Babe, the world’s Redeemer,
First revealed His sacred face, evermore and evermore!

This is He Whom seers in old time chanted of with one accord;
Whom the voices of the prophets promised in their faithful word;
Now He shines, the long expected,
Let creation praise its Lord, evermore and evermore!

O ye heights of heaven adore Him; angel hosts, His praises sing;
Powers, dominions, bow before Him, and extol our God and King!
Let no tongue on earth be silent,
Every voice in concert sing, evermore and evermore!

Righteous judge of souls departed, righteous King of them that live,
On the Father’s throne exalted none in might with Thee may strive;
Who at last in vengeance coming
Sinners from Thy face shalt drive, evermore and evermore!

Thee let old men, thee let young men, thee let boys in chorus sing;
Matrons, virgins, little maidens, with glad voices answering:
Let their guileless songs re-echo,
And the heart its music bring, evermore and evermore!

Christ, to Thee with God the Father, and, O Holy Ghost, to Thee,
Hymn and chant with high thanksgiving, and unwearied praises be:
Honor, glory, and dominion,
And eternal victory, evermore and evermore!

Au­rel­i­us Pru­den­ti­us, 5th Cen­tu­ry (Corde na­tus ex pa­ren­tis); trans­lat­ed from La­tin to Eng­lish by John M. Neale, 1854, and Hen­ry W. Bak­er, 1859.

Advent

It’s really very simple: Christmas is the feast of the incarnation and the season following that event. Advent is the recognition that we need a savior and the longing for that savior to come, according to God’s promises.

Christmas is joyous, but the joy comes after weeks of waiting, watching, lamenting and calling upon God. Advent is that season of waiting; of looking for the signs and promises of the savior in the scriptures and in the world.

That distinction should save us. We think we can manufacture our own salvation by going shopping. Advent says we cannot save ourselves, that only God can save us and that in his own time and in his own way.

Michael Spencer

Who is This Baby in the Manger?

This baby in the manger was the One who lived, talked, and walked among men in Judea and Galilee.

The One who lived, talked, and walked among men in Judea and Galilee, is the One who healed the sick, made the lame to walk, the blind to see, raised the dead, and gave hope to the weary and downtrodden.

The One who healed the sick, made the lame to walk, the blind to see, raised the dead, and gave hope to the weary and downtrodden is the One who was betrayed, condemned and crucified, suffering death upon the cross, and buried in a tomb.

The One who was betrayed, condemned and crucified, suffering death upon the cross, and buried in a tomb is the One who rose from the dead on the third day, conquering death, hell, and all the works of the devil.

The One who rose from the dead on the third day, conquering death, hell, and the works of the devil is the One who ascended up into heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father.

The One who ascended up into heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father is the One who will some day come again as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords before whom every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is LORD to the glory of God the Father.

This is who the baby in the manger is; Emmanuel, God with us.

Come and worship...

A Few Odds & Ends

• My sister Joy passed away in early June. This is the first holiday season when she will not be with us. There is, as it were, "an empty chair at the table". I know other families are also experiencing the "empty chair" at this time of the year. Death is a part of life in a fallen and not yet fully redeemed world. Past generations lived much closer to death then the current secular Western generation I am a part of. Unless the Lord comes first, we will all eventually come face to face with death. That is where the Advent time of year is an encouragement. It not just the babe in the manger, but the whole life He lived, as well as His death, and the overcoming of death through His resurrection that gives us hope beyond death; the hope of eternal life. That is what makes Christmas special.
  
  
• I am compiling on this blog a list of books I have read. The results can be seen at "The Billy Goat Reader" link on the left side of this page.
  
  
• My alma mater, Michigan State University ended up with a share of the Big 10 title in football. Michigan State is in the top ten in the BCS rankings. It's been a good year to be a Spartan fan. In the meantime the Detroit Lions... Well, what can you say...
  
  

• "If evangelical Christianity is about anything, it ought to be about the gospel—that’s the meaning of the term evangelical itself. If so, we must recognize that our mission is to be found in what makes the good news good. We don’t have to be left to our own striving and clawing. And we don’t have to try to be emperor of our own lives, or of those around us. We point instead to a kingdom that overshadows—and knocks down—every rival rule, including our own." ~ Russell Moore as quoted by Kevin DeYoung.

  
  
• On December 1, we got snow and enough that it accumulated on the ground, but not enough that made it hard to clear the roads.
  
  
• Here is one of my all time favorite Christmas songs.
  

Peace,

~ The Billy Goat ~

Christus Apollo (Excerpt)

In some far universal Deep
Did He tred Space
And visit worlds beyond our blood-warm dreaming?
Did He come down on lonely shore by sea
Not unlike Galilee
And are there Mangers on far worlds that know His light?
And Virgins?
Sweet pronouncements?
Annumciations? Visitations from angelic hosts?
nd, shivring vast light among ten billion lights,
Was there some Star much like the star at Bethlehem
That struck the sight with awe and revelation
Upon a cold and most strange morn?

On worlds gone wandering and lost from this
Did Wise Men gather in the dawn
In cloudy steams of Beast
Within a place of straw now quickened to a Shrine
To look upon a stranger Child than ours?

How many stars of Bethlehem burnt bright
Beyond Orion or Centauri's arc?
How many miracles of birth all innocent
Have blessed those worlds?

Excerpt from "Christus Apollo", I Sing The Body Electric by Ray Bradbury (1969)

Ramblings

A few short days and it will be Christmas. One more day of work and I get some time off. Work has been a little hectic lately.

I am finishing Chesterton's Orthodoxy. It was written a hundred years ago, but reads like it was written just last year. I highly recommend it. Yes, I know Chesterton was Roman Catholic. Just read it anyways, and have the audacity to appreciate it.

The so called "Health care Bill: There is nothing healthy or caring about it. The real goal is not health, but power and control. We are being betrayed in the name of "health care" and "compassion" and all the other baloney that politicians use to disguise their true intentions.

We have some really neat young people in our church. You can not help but love them. You can not help but pray for them. I am well aware they are not "perfect", but many of them have their heart in the right place, and that is such an encouragement to see.

How do you pray for a fellow Christian believer who in some shape, fashion, or form, is going through some rough waters? Lately I find myself thinking that if I really love you, I want what God wants for you in your current stress. As such, I find myself being more careful not to pray that the trial be taken away, but that you would be given grace to go through the trial, and come out on the other side more conformed to the image of Christ. If we really love one another, that is what we want for each other; to be conformed to the image of Christ.

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.

Of the increase of his government and peace
  there will be no end.
  He will reign on David's throne
  and over his kingdom,
  establishing and upholding it
  with justice and righteousness
  from that time on and forever.
  The zeal of the LORD Almighty
  will accomplish this.

(Isaiah 9:6-7)

Peace....

~ The Billy Goat ~

A Cosmic Perspective of Christmas

"Now a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a garland of twelve stars. Then being with child, she cried out in labor and in pain to give birth.

And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great, fiery red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and seven diadems on his heads. His tail drew a third of the stars of heaven and threw them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was ready to give birth, to devour her Child as soon as it was born. She bore a male Child who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron. And her Child was caught up to God and His throne. Then the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, that they should feed her there one thousand two hundred and sixty days.

And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, “Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time.”

Now when the dragon saw that he had been cast to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male Child. But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness to her place, where she is nourished for a time and times and half a time, from the presence of the serpent. So the serpent spewed water out of his mouth like a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away by the flood. But the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed up the flood which the dragon had spewed out of his mouth. And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ."

(Revelation 12)

What Christmas Means to Jesus

"Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.

Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name,that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

(Philippians 2:3-11)

John MacArthur: The Ugliness of Christmas



As MacArthur points out, the beauty of Christmas can only be beautiful when set in contrast to the ugliness of Christmas. Without understanding that ugliness, the beauty of Christmas becomes meaningless.

~ The Billy Goat ~

Some Christmas Themes in the Old Testament

Introduction:

The essence of Christmas is not found in all our traditions and decorations as such. For the Christian believer the essence of Christmas is found in the words of Matthew 1:18-25

1. Jesus: “…for He will save His people from their sins.”
   
   
2. Immanuel: “…which means, God with us.”
   

God has come into human history by taking on the form of humanity. His purpose in doing so was to bring redemption to a fallen world. This did not happen all of a sudden, just out of the blue. It was anticipated early in the Story of the history of redemption.

• 1. The seed
  
  
  
  • Genesis 3: 15 – The retribution of the woman’s seed…
    
    
  • Genesis 5:29 - The naming of Noah “Rest”- bringing comfort from the curse…
  
  
  
• Genesis 22:18 – The promise: Abraham’s seed to be a blessing to all humanity.
  
  
• 1 Chronicles 17:11-14 – The promise to David
  

2. Messiah as Immanuel

• Isaiah 7:11. The name of the virgin’s child, Immanuel – God with us.
  
  
• Isaiah 9:4-7
  
  
  
  • Humanity: A child is born
    
    
  • Deity:
    
    
    1. Wonderful Counselor
       
    2. Mighty God
       
    3. Everlasting Father (Picture of the King as being a father to his people.)
       
    4. Prince of Peace
    
    
    
  • Verse 7 - This child is the one who will fulfill the promise made to David.

God has been and is working in time and space; (history). We have not been left to ourselves. The God/Man whose name is Immanuel is indeed with His people; all who have trusted and placed their faith in Him. The Christmas story is a critical chapter in that larger Story whose final chapter is yet to be realized.

{These notes are from a recent Adult Sunday School class I taught.
~ The Billy Goat ~}

From My Christmas Stocking

...being an account of some of the things I got for Christmas this year...

Luther The DVD. With Joseph Fieness as Martin Luther and Sir Peter Ustinov as Sir Frederick.

Heaven by Randy Alcorn. After reading Alcorn's novel Deadline, and hearing he had written a more theological work on Heaven, this was added to my Christmas list, and consequently found in my "stocking". Will it be that once and for all a faulty Neo-Platonism will be exorcised from the Christian view of heaven? There is a C.S. Lewis influence in Alcorn's writings. Yes Dorothy, we can expect to see Toto in the New Heavens and the New Earth. Even with Pseudo-Puritan Neo-Platonism to the contrary.

The Five People You Meet in Heaven. Now I have my own copy. Make sure you read Mitch Albom's dedication of this book to his Uncle Edward before preceding with the story.

The Gift of Asher Lev by Chaim Potok. The sequel to My Name is Asher Lev... See previous posts regarding Chaim Potok.

Admiral Hornblower In The West Indies the 11th in chronological order of the eleven book Horatio Hornblower series by C. S. Forester. Now I have the whole set; Midshipman to Admiral. Though the Forester series is fiction, it gives a very realistic portrayl of life in the British Navy. If you enjoyed Master and Commander, you will probably enjoy the Hornblower series.

Money... to spend on more books and at least one more DVD, The Passion of the Christ. We already got the extended version of The Return of the King as a family Christmas present to ourselves.

But of all the Christmas gifts from over all the years, there is the one best gift I have ever received... Jesus Himself... (John 3:16)

Sola Christo,

~ The Billy Goat ~

Christmas is Coming

Immanuel, God with us...

Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins...

"A light of revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of Thy people Israel"
(Luke 2:32)

"..Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace."
(Isaiah 9:6)

"...the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!"
(John 1:29)



Merry Christmas to all....

~ The Billy Goat ~

"Be still and know that I am God" Psalm 46:10

It is Christmas Day. I am getting some much needed time off of work. Things at work have been very hectic this past month, and the pace will not let up soon. It is a time to be quiet and just listen, to listen for that still small voice, to let thoughts and ideas sort themselves out, to ponder the meaning of the events and happenings of this past year.

As part of our church's Christmas Cantata, we sang a song that included the tune and words to an old, and perhaps for many, a forgotten chorus based on the words "Be still and know that I am God." There is a time to be still, a time to listen. How often we are so busy we don't take time to be still and just listen.

We're so busy with the everyday details of life. We think we have to have all the answers instead of humbly admitting we don't. How often the reason we don't have the answer is because we do not stop and listen, but rush headlong down the path of our own agenda instead of waiting to hear what God's agenda is.

Thank you Lord for giving us this time of the year when we can pause, catch our breath, and take time to just listen, not to men's words about You, but Your words to each of us individually as we seek that unique path You have for us personally. Thank You for the baby Jesus, that He grew to be a man, that He pictured You and Your love to us, and died for us that in Him we might live, that He arose from the grave and is now seated at Your right hand and will one day return in glory. We praise and worship You this day with heart's of gratitude and joy. In the precious name of Jesus we pray. Amen.

~ The Billy Goat ~

Christmas, Children, & Church

His students were really put out. Their teacher was a busy man with a full schedule of ministry; preaching engagements, church conferences, counseling sessions, church planting, and the all important seminary teaching he was giving to a select group to prepare them for ministry also. The days were long and full as the teacher's reputation continued to grow, and great crowds would come to see him. Things were so hectic that there were times when the teacher had no time even to eat a decent meal.

Now in the midst of all of that hectic activity, some parents had the audacity to bring their young children to the teacher, requesting that he would take valuable time out of an already filled schedule, and pray for those children and bless them!

That was the last straw! Don't these parents know there is important Kingdom work to be done, and that the teachers time was valuable, and there were much more important things for him to be doing then spending time with some little kids? Where was their sense of Kingdom priority? How could these parents be so selfish and petty?

"... Some children were brought to Him so that He might lay His hands on them and pray; and the disciples rebuked them. But Jesus said, "Let the children alone, and do not hinder them from coming to Me; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." And after laying His hands on them, He departed... " (Matthew 19:13-15)

At church tonight we had the Children's Christmas program. It was a nice time, cute little children, enthusiastic singing, and all the rest. From the mouth of babes as it were, praise was given to our Lord Jesus Christ. The gospel was presented, and perhaps for a few who would not normally go to a regular church service, they heard that gospel message for the first time. I rejoice that we attend a church that loves children and clearly demonstrates that love to them.

As I sat there listening, I thought back to a conversation I had a few years ago with one of the pastors of our former church. He told me children were not part of the church family until they joined the church, (which they were not allowed to do until the latter teen years). In that church there was no vision of children being a part of a wider local church family extending beyond the actual membership. There was no active church outreach to children and young people. Any outreach there was, was done by parents, but was not a "church" outreach. It was as if children were to be seen and not heard. (Now you know one of the reasons we no longer attend that church.)

Children as young as 3 or 4 years old were expected to learn to sit through the 1 1/2 hour worship service listening to preaching way over their heads and by men whose preaching would regularly include angry yelling, scolding, and berating. (Yes, I have specific examples in mind, but will spare you.) God only knows how many of those children grew up dreading Sunday mornings. One mark in many of the families that left and are now attending other churches is that the children now look forward to going to church instead of dreading it.

Of all the children that have grown up in that former church, less then 5% of those remain in that church or in a similar sister church in another place. The grown children that left did not all defect to the world. A good majority of them are active members in other evangelical churches, but will have little or nothing to do with the church they grew up in or the movement with which it is associated.

If Jesus willingly made it a priority to minister specifically to children, and He did, how much more should His bride, the church, reflect that love and ministry to those children within the wider scope of the church community as well as outside that community. In that light, flimsy excuses based on a scholastic overbearing application of a miss-applied regulative principle seem shallow and self-serving indeed.

~ The Billy Goat ~