The Light of the World
It’s CHRISTMASTIME!!!
I love driving around looking at Christmas lights with my family. After the time change in the fall, the early darkness always seems a bit dreary — until December! Then the twinkly lights cut through the darkness, brightening the night sky. We’re almost thankful that it gets dark earlier so we can delight in all the brightly lit homes.
What a perfect way to celebrate the birth of Christ! After all, Jesus
describes himself as the light in John 12:46, “I have come into the
world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in
darkness.”
The light of Christ shines in the darkness. It makes a way, gives us direction and is the foundation for our confidence that — no matter what we might hear on the news or see in our news feeds — that darkness will never overcome the light. Never.
Check out John 1:5 in the Message, “Everything was created through him; nothing — not one thing! — came into being without him. What came into existence was Life, and the Life was Light to live by. The Life-Light blazed out of the darkness; the darkness couldn’t put it out.”
When you start feeling the darkness encroaching upon your life,
remember the light defeats the darkness. Every time!
Romans 8:31 & 35 ask the questions, “If God is for us, who can be against us? ... Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?” The triumphant answer comes in verses 37-39, “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
We are truly more than conquerors through the life — and light — of Christ Jesus, our Savior and King.
This season, as you gaze at a well-lit home or Christmas tree, take
some time to ponder on the one true Light of the World, the one
who defeats the darkness and beckons us to sit at his feet in the
warmth and protection of his light.
By Cyndie Claypool de Neve
Senior Creative Director
The Nature of Jesus
Jesus is one person with two natures; 100% human and 100% divine. This accomplishment is wonderous and mysterious. One great thing about Jesus’ humanity is that we know he relates to us. He’s been there and done that. He knows pain. He felt, and continues to feel, rejection from people who should know better. Jesus can honestly sympathize with our hurts, temptations, wants and fears. He knows what our worst hurts feel like, but unlike us, he volunteered to experience them for love’s sake.
One great thing about Jesus divinity is that his sinless life, his sacrificial death, and his resurrection victory became our mercy and power for salvation. The Apostle John proclaims the heavenly nature of Jesus in the poetically succinct introduction to his gospel.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was
with God, and the Word was God. He was with God
in the beginning. Through him all things were made;
without him nothing was made that has been made.
In him was life, and that life was the light of all
mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the
darkness has not overcome it.
Because a proper understanding of Jesus divinity is still debated
by Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormons, some kinds of “Christian”
groups, and our culture, here is a quick reference to Scriptures
that demonstrate Jesus’ divinity:
Jesus claimed to possess what properly belongs to God.
- In Matt 13:41 he “will send out his angels.”
- In Matt 12:28, 19:14, and 21:31, 43 he has authority over and intimate knowledge of the kingdom of God. In Mark 2:8-11 he forgives sins.
- In Matt 25:31-46 Jesus has the power and position to judge all the people of the world.
Jesus has always been with God.
- John 1:1, Jesus – the Word – is with God at the beginning and is God.
- In Genesis 1:26 “God said, ‘Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness”. God refers to himself as “us” and “our” indicating that the relationship between the persons of God existed from the beginning.
Jesus is the creator.
- In John 1:3 Jesus – the Word – is the creator. “All things” were made through him. Then John reiterates; EVERYTHING!
- In Colossians 1:15-20 and Hebrews 1:1-3 Jesus is both creator and sustainer of the world, “in him all things hold together.”
- These are the actions of our Lord, God, and Savior, the person of Jesus. Spend some time thanking God for entering our world and pray that people in your world would know him.
John Riley
Pastor of Junior High Ministries
With Not Without
My first venture into scuba diving was at night in a foreign country. I was with a group of four and my flashlight battery died as we descended about one hundred feet. It didn’t seem like a problem until I took my eyes off everyone else to watch a lobster scurry around, and then I found myself completely alone!!! Alone, afraid, and lost. The feeling of fear made my heart pound out of my chest. My friends thought it would be fun to turn off their lights and hide, but without their light, I was alone and afraid.
Contrast my experience with John 1:2 -- Jesus was with God in the beginning. We can understand that to be the beginning of the world, but there is so much more. Jesus was always with God. Always is a long time; it is forever. The relational aspect of being with or being together is really what we need. We all have this desperate need to be with God and it is John’s simple words that really stand out since Jesus is the way to be with God. Jesus secures us as God’s children, (John 1:12) He allows us to be fully adopted sons and daughters, (Eph. 1:5) and He gives us a new home. (Phil. 3:20) This means just as Jesus and God have always been together, we get to be with them, always.
Being with Jesus is my hope. Because He is with me, I can step confidently into each day in this life. Just as the branch is connected to and sustained by the vine, being with Jesus gives us everything we need. The amazing fact we can hold onto is that Jesus chose to be with us! In John 15:16 Jesus tells us that we did not choose -- He chose us. He chose to lay down his life in love, (John 15:13) just so we could be his friends. (John 15:16) Because Jesus chose me, I am filled with hope for today.
I want you to take a moment to think about what it means to be “with” Jesus each day. Think about how much it meant to Jesus to be “with” God. Will you take time today to write out a few things about why being with Jesus is important to you and then thank Him for choosing you?
Jesus, you chose me, you love me, and you are with me. Thank
you for laying down your life so I can be with you always. Amen.
Jeremy Johnson
Pastor of Men's Ministries
A Word on the Word
For someone like myself who has both a background in Philosophy and Theology, these lines might be some of the most fun lines in all of Scripture. Not only is John intentionally referencing the first words of Genesis 1:1, but he is also referencing one of the most important philosophical concepts of his day: the Logos (or “the Word”).
For centuries, Philosophers had theorized about a principle, a law,
a power that was the reason behind all of reality. They claimed
that this impersonal influence was pervading and animating the
universe. The best word that they could come up for this concept
was the logos (the “word,” “verb,” or “reason”). Heraclitus said
that the logos was what gives value to reality. Plato said that the
logos was what gave reason to the world. Aristotle said that it is
what gives structure to the world. The Stoics said that it provided
divine order. The Neoplatonists called it a regulating force. No
one Philosopher could fully comprehend or grasp all that the
logos was, but they clearly believed that it was foundational to all
of reality. What John says in verse 14 is that all of this... the value,
the reason, the structure, the divine order, the regulating force,
the LOGOS has taken on flesh!! What was known as an
impersonal force is actually a person! The reason behind all of
reality put on skin! The concept that was beyond comprehension
had been born as a baby, grew, walked on two legs and had a
name!
Of course, we know his name. His name is Jesus. And YES he was a man. But he was also so much more than just a man. He was the God-Man. The Word. The Logos. And just like the ancient philosophic concept, Jesus is the influence which is animating the universe. But he also wants to be so much more. He wants wants to animate your life as well. John sums up his book in John 20:31, by telling us that his book was written “so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.”
Join me in trying to live today believing that Jesus is the Logos of
my life.
Josh Rose
Pastor of Adult Ministries
Are We a Grateful Nation?
You will receive this devotional on Black Friday — the biggest shopping day of the year in the U.S. I googled Black Friday and this is what came up: “Black Friday is the name given to the shopping day after Thanksgiving. It was originally called Black Friday because the volume of shoppers created traffic accidents and sometimes even violence ...’’ How very sad that Christmas — the celebration of Jesus’ birthday, would result in a day known for traffic accidents, violence and for many over-spending on gifts, right on the heels of a day of giving thanks for our families, friends, and many blessings.
Yesterday, on Thanksgiving, we were grateful as a nation and individuals. Right? For some of us yes, but many either don’t feel that they have anything to be thankful for, or just take their blessings for granted and don’t acknowledge that our heavenly father gives us everything. (James 1:17) Whether we perceive we have a little or a lot — everything we have, our very life is from God. Often, we take for granted the rain that falls, the sun that comes up every morning, the refreshing winds that blow, and even that we woke up to see another day. But these things and so much more come directly from our loving Creator. We don’t earn them, and we don’t deserve them. (Philippians 4:19) God differentiates between our needs and our wants because He knows that where our treasure is our heart is also. (Matthew 6:21) Gratitude can change your life because it makes you appreciate what you have rather than what you don’t have. Medical research has shown that grateful people have less depression and stress, lower blood pressure, more energy, and greater optimism. Daily gratitude realigns us to the Giver and increases His activity in our lives.
Psalm 100:4 commands us to, Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise; give thanks to Him and praise His name. We thank God not just for the stuff that fills our storage spaces, or even meeting our daily needs, but more importantly we are to be thankful for him and praise him for who he is.
We are blessed to live in this land where we can freely worship
God. Today people will frantically search for the best deals, but
Jesus is the real deal of a lifetime! He paid the ultimate price for
our sins, so that we can live in a close relationship with our heav-
enly father for all eternity.
Heavenly Father, thank you for the free and best gift of all! You!
Amen
Deb Hill
Executive Administrative Assistant
A Sacrifice of Thanksgiving
Happy Thanksgiving!
Today is the one day of the year set aside for being thankful – for
the brave Native Americans and Pilgrims who came together and
enjoyed a fall feast, and for all that God has provided for us. It’s
our festival of remembrance, an opportunity to stop for a
moment and just be thankful.
Did you know our thanksgivings can be a sacrificial offering to the
Lord as it says in Psalm 107:22? Sometimes, when the chaos of
life swirls around us, it can be difficult to look up and be thankful.
Yet, that’s exactly what 1 Thessalonians 5:18 tells us to do: give
thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ
Jesus for you. At times this sacrifice of thanksgiving, of
remembering what God has done in the past and trusting him for
the future, can be a struggle.
I love the honesty and wisdom in Psalm 77, where the Psalmist
pours out his aching heart to the Lord.
1 I cried out to God for help;
I cried out to God to hear me.
2 When I was in distress, I sought the Lord;
at night I stretched out untiring hands,
and I would not be comforted.
Have you felt like that before? Or maybe you feel like that now,
overwhelmed with life, family, the holidays? The Psalmist is in
anguish questioning the almighty God. And then he transforms
his thinking by intentionally remembering who God is,
purposefully moving his focus from his heartache to that of
remembrance and thanksgiving.
8 Has his unfailing love vanished forever?
Has his promise failed for all time?
9 Has God forgotten to be merciful?
Has he in anger withheld his compassion?”
10 Then I thought, “To this I will appeal:
the years when the Most High stretched out his right hand.
11 I will remember the deeds of the Lord;
yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago.
12 I will consider all your works
and meditate on all your mighty deeds.”
13 Your ways, God, are holy.
What god is as great as our God?
14 You are the God who performs miracles;
you display your power among the peoples.
This Thanksgiving, take a moment to offer a sacrifice of
thanksgiving, remembering what God has done in the past and
thanking him – and trusting him – for what he’ll do in the future.
Cyndie Claypool de Neve
Senior Creative Director
The Grateful Brain
I was driving my boys to school one day and out of the blue, my
youngest son said, “People who are fearful live shorter lives.” His
words were so profound that they caught me off guard. Did God
just fill this twelve-year old with wisdom beyond his years or was
he manipulating me to allow him to do something that I might
deem dangerous? Either way, his words gave way to conversation
with God and study on what Scripture says regarding fear.
Depending on the translation, the Bible says, “fear not” or “do
not be afraid” around 150 times. One of the more well know
passages on anxiety and fear is Philippians 4:6-7. The Message
says it this way: Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let
petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God
know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s
wholeness, and everything coming together for good, will come
and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ
displaces worry at the center of your life.”
So how exactly does this happen? In Your Teenager is Not Crazy, authors Jeramy and Jerusha Clark state, Brain research clearly shows that anxiety and gratitude are mutually exclusive neural pathways. Physiologically, you cannot be anxious and grateful at the same time. In his book, What Happy People Know, Dr. Dan Baker writes, During active appreciation, the threatening messages from your amygdala (fear center of the brain) and the anxious instincts of your brainstem are cut off, suddenly and surely, from access to your brain’s neocortex, where they can fester, replicate themselves, and turn your stream of thoughts into a cold river of dread. It is a fact of neurology that the brain cannot be in a state of appreciation and a state of fear at the same time. The two states may alternate but are mutually exclusive.
In July of 2019, studies at UCSD reported that focusing on the
positive and feeling grateful can improve your sleep quality and
reduce feelings of anxiety and depression. Furthermore, levels of
gratitude correlate to better moods and less fatigue and
inflammation, reducing the risk of heart failure, even for those who
are susceptible.
Modern science has figured out what the Bible has been saying for centuries! Gratitude and fear physiologically cannot co-exist. Gratitude may not guarantee the quality or length of our lives, but we do know that it brings an incomprehensible peace, that will guard our hearts and our minds in Christ Jesus. What an amazing promise!
What anxieties keep you awake at night? You may not be ready to
thank God for whatever trials you are facing but you can thank
him for his creation and his love. God doesn’t promise to take
every trial away, but he does promise to give you his peace right
in the middle of the storm.
Lynette Fuson
Director of Women's Ministries
The Danger of Forgetting
My grandfather was a brilliant aerospace engineer, but for the last 3 years of his life he was debilitated by Alzheimer’s. It was devastating to see a man once so capable get to the point where he was unable to care for himself. Eventually, we had to get him professional assistance because he was a danger to himself. Having no memory is a dangerous state of being.
What’s true for us in our physical body is also true for us
spiritually. It’s dangerous to forget. That may be the reason
scriptures continually call people of faith to be people of memory.
The author of Deuteronomy recorded, Remember, how the Lord
your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years.
(Deut. 8:2) While it is hard to imagine forgetting the Lord
faithfully led an entire nation through the desert for 40 years, God
knew that it could happen and that it would be destructive if it
did.
Unfortunately, the nation of Israel didn’t heed this warning and
they forgot it. Judges 2:10-11 records this dramatic turn for the
worse, After that whole generation had been gathered to their
ancestors, another generation grew up who knew neither the
Lord nor what he had done for Israel. Then the Israelites did evil in
the eyes of the Lord and served the Baals. The same downward
spiral is seen in Romans 1:21 where Paul wrote, For although they
knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to
him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were
darkened.” Lack of intentional remembering is directly tied to a
refusal to worship. And as we see, refusal to worship God leads us
down a path that promises pleasure, but always delivers pain.
Maybe the act of recognizing and remembering God is far more significant than we often realize. Remembering God’s presence and his faithfulness is one of the greatest things you can do to fuel worship; and worship is the very thing that positions us to walk intimately with God. So today, take a few moments and remember. Remember God’s goodness to you. Take a deep breath and appreciate the fact that you’re alive. Remember God’s grace to us through Jesus. Remember and give thanks.
Ryan Paulson
Lead Pastor
Stopping to See
I love beautiful sunsets. I never get tired of them, or of taking
pictures of them. Some days, when the colors are particularly
spectacular, a sunset can stop me in my tracks. Everything that is
going on around me just seems to fade while I pause to see and
soak for a bit in the glory of God’s creative power on display. I am
always struck with awe and have to say, “Wow, thank you, God!
You are SO good!” And then I usually take a few more pictures. I
can’t help it.
Several months ago, I headed out to enjoy the peacefulness of
our covered porch with a few good books and some tea. Before
long I was engrossed in my reading and lost track of time.
Suddenly I realized it was getting too dark to read, and I looked
up and saw it! The sun was just about to set, and I knew from
what remained in the sky, it must have been a good one. Later
that evening my Instagram feed was filled with pictures of the
most amazing sunset. It was so beautiful; everyone was talking
about it!
That night, my eyes were focused on other things and I didn’t see the beauty of God’s work right in front of me. While I know there will be other sunsets, it was a reminder to me of my need to see and acknowledge God’s lovingkindness. He pours it out and puts it on spectacular display day after day. I am not always quick to see his displays of lovingkindness, but every brilliant sunset is a reminder to pay closer attention -- to see and to say, “thank you.”
In Psalm 136 the writer tells of seeing God’s lovingkindness, or his “faithful love” (Hebrew: hesed) on display in his creation, in rescuing the Israelites from slavery, and then leading them through the desert for 40 years, in his protection from their enemies and in remembering them in their weakness. The psalmist sees and acknowledges each of these things and can only stop and say, “Wow, thank you, God! You are so good.
Pray with me this week to have eyes to see the many evidences of God’s lovingkindness on display in our lives. Pray that our awareness will stop us in our tracks so that we will take the time to see and name each of the ways that we have seen his “faithful love.”
Nicole Jiles
Director of Children's Ministries
Surely, We Can Be Sure.
We live in an age that is increasingly critical of, well, everything. There are few things that are not questioned these days, and many of them for good reason. We can’t be sure about the inter- net, our news sources, our social media, and apparently even our government. And the more that we know about all that could possibly go wrong in the world, the more we become unsure of the future. I’m not trying to make you depressed, but the fact of the matter is that we have very little that we can be sure of. Then we hear the words of Psalm 23:6 ...
“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me ...”
Surely? How can David know this? How can he be so sure? And
more importantly, can we be sure of this as well?
We absolutely can! Especially when we realize exactly what David’s source of assurance is. The word that David uses for “mercy” (or “love” in the NIV, or “lovingkindness” in the NASB) is one of the most important words in the Hebrew scriptures. It is the word, hesed (the h is pronounced with a hard ch sound, so it is also fun to say). Hesed is God’s gracious commitment to love us as if we were worthy of love, even when we are not. This is God’s never-stopping, never giving up, unbreaking, always and forever love! And the key is that this love is not based on anything that we do. It is based fully and 100% on Who God is. In fact, when God proclaims his name to Moses in Exodus 34:6-7, this is the only word that is used twice: “And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, ‘The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love (hesed) and faithfulness, maintaining love (hesed) to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin.’” What this means is that hesed is a part of God’s nature. This is the reason that John can proclaim, “God is love” (1 John 4:8, 16).
Since God is and has always been hesed, we can have full assur-
ance that God will continue to be hesed towards us. So, the
reason that David was so sure of God’s hesed is because it is a
part of God’s never changing nature. And while we can’t always
be sure of everything, we have great reason to be sure of this. In
fact, even if this is the only thing that we can be sure of in this
world, it is enough.
By Josh Rose
Pastor of Adult Ministries