“I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or death” (Philippians 1:20).

Christmas is a magnifier.

If life is good, Christmas only magnifies how good life is. Marriage is good. The kids are good. The extended family is good. The company is good. So the family gatherings and Christmas company parties only remind you how good your life really is.

Christmas is a magnifier.

If life is painful, if you are depressed, sad, angry, hurt, disappointed. Christmas only magnifies how bad your life is. Every gathering reminds you of your loneliness, depression, loneliness, hurt.

Christmas is a magnifier.

Paul wrote the verse of the day from prison. He wasn’t sure if he would live or die. Yet, Paul writes the most joyful letter from prison. The NIV translates the word “megalynthesetai” as “exalted.” The literal translation of the Greek word is “magnify.”

Paul was saying, life is going to magnify whatever is going on in my life. If that’s the case, I choose to magnify Christ whether I live or die. I choose to magnify Christ.

Friends, during this season I want to encourage you to be gentle with yourselves. Some of you are hurting. Some of you are in seasons of depression. And this season only magnifies what you are already feeling. Be gentle with yourselves. God knows your hurts and disappointments. Turn to him.

Finally, since seasons of life magnify what’s already there, why not choose to magnify Christ. Like Paul, in life and death choose to magnify Christ.

God loves you. Your church does too. Magnify Christ.

Blessed Advent to you.

In the season of Advent we acknowledge the coming of Christ in Bethlehem AND the church remembers that she is a people waiting for the Second Coming of the Christ as King.

The following is from an Advent Devotional Called “Once a Day: 25 Days of Advent.”

Jesus’ greatness now reaches to the ends of the earth. And those who know him recognize him as faithful and true, one who has not taken his position by force (like so many earthly kings have), but who was chosen from before the beginning of time. And starting that day in Israel, the king first came as a baby, born into the line of Jewish nobility (because it was from among the Israelites that God had decreed a king would come), and yet from a long line of sinful people so he could identify with us and so that we would choose him too. This was the first time he came, not with force, but with the gentleness of an infant.

But the second time will be different. The second time, it will be sudden, and no one will miss it. Almighty God will open the gate of heaven, and Jesus will burst forth as a king, riding triumphant on a white stallion (not a donkey this time), with the armies of heaven following. Our great conquering king will destroy his enemies once and for all, waging and winning a holy war and ruling over all his people. Then he will reveal to a world that has rejected him that he truly is KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS. He will be absolutely sovereign over all people — the lost and the saved — and every knee will bow, and every tongue will confess that he is who we accept and claim that he is — Jesus, Christ, Lord.

“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).

Not everyone who dies goes to heaven.
Not everyone who dies goes to a better place.
And no one who dies becomes an angel.

None of these are true. None of these are biblical. Only those who have been saved by Jesus go to heaven. Only those who have received Jesus as Lord and Savior go to a better place. The rest receive judgment and damnation. Hebrews 9:27-28 tells us, “Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.”

Everyone will die. And, everyone will face judgment. But for those who have received Jesus as Lord and Savior, we will be saved from judgment and damnation because Christ paid the debt of sin on our behalf.

Now, some people may say that this is harsh, that this is so exclusive. I am not sure about the harsh part. It is merely the truth. But as far as the exclusive part goes, I know without a shadow of doubt that that is a false statement. There is nothing more inclusive than the invitation to receive Jesus as Lord and Savior. This invitation to receive eternal life and salvation is open to ALL. How much more inclusive can you get than that?

As far as uncle John who is up in heaven looking down on us as one of God’s angels. That’s totally false. Angels are created beings. They were there with God even before creation. Human beings DO NOT become angels. We remain human, just the way God created us, even after death.

God loves sinners. God could not imagine a world without you and me in it. So he died to transform sinners into children of God. But the way we become God’s sons and daughters is to receive God’s plan for salvation through his Son, Jesus Christ.

Got it?