1 00:00:04,719 --> 00:00:09,759 Greetings. This is Pastor David Bass at New Geneva Orthodox Presbyterian Church with a 2 00:00:09,759 --> 00:00:14,779 moment of truth, where we challenge you to think through an important issue of life and faith. 3 00:00:15,539 --> 00:00:23,100 Today, I want to share with you my annual random reflections on Christmas. This is one of those 4 00:00:23,100 --> 00:00:30,559 times of year when people are open, as at no other time, to an explanation as to who 5 00:00:30,559 --> 00:00:37,579 and what Jesus was and what he did. Is this true with you? I hope so. Do you find yourself more open 6 00:00:37,579 --> 00:00:45,140 to hearing about Jesus and his life? I know I am. I love my Lord. I love my Savior. And I love hearing 7 00:00:45,140 --> 00:00:51,679 about his life and his mission and his labors on my behalf. There's something about this man's life 8 00:00:51,679 --> 00:00:56,899 and death that attracts people like no other. The Apostle Paul put it succinctly. He says, 9 00:00:56,899 --> 00:01:04,400 But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 10 00:01:04,700 --> 00:01:10,640 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. Unquote. 11 00:01:11,420 --> 00:01:19,439 And at Christmas, God sent forth his Son, Jesus. This vulnerable, needy babe was born of a simple 12 00:01:19,439 --> 00:01:27,420 Jewish maiden, Mary, born of woman. This Son of Grace was also born under the law. That is, he was born 13 00:01:27,420 --> 00:01:34,680 under the old covenant of works, that covenant that we could never perfectly obey and complete. 14 00:01:35,280 --> 00:01:41,180 And he was born under it in order that he might redeem those who were under the law. That is, he might 15 00:01:41,180 --> 00:01:48,620 bring back to God we who found ourselves contained and condemned under that law. Christ, in his life 16 00:01:48,620 --> 00:01:54,640 and death on this earth, perfectly obeyed the law. Consider this. The Gospels give eloquent testimony to 17 00:01:54,640 --> 00:02:00,680 this. He perfectly obeyed the law in every circumstance in which he found himself in life, 18 00:02:00,739 --> 00:02:09,520 unlike any of us. And Christ, this man Jesus, thereby obeyed for us because he was our federal head. That 19 00:02:09,520 --> 00:02:16,080 is, he was the one who acted in our place. This is what Paul meant when he said to redeem those who 20 00:02:16,080 --> 00:02:22,180 were under the law. This is one of those deep theological issues with which we deal when we think 21 00:02:22,180 --> 00:02:28,240 about Christmas. In addition to the simpler things like shepherds and wise men and angels, there are many 22 00:02:28,240 --> 00:02:34,599 simple as well as complex components of Christmas, many of which are concerning. We lack information. For 23 00:02:34,599 --> 00:02:42,439 example, where do we derive the title Christmas? The word Christmas is actually a contraction of two 24 00:02:42,439 --> 00:02:49,879 words, Christ's Mass. Christ's Mass. And thus we get Christmas. The church has long celebrated the 25 00:02:49,879 --> 00:02:57,219 lives of the saints in 365 feasts, one for every day of the year. For example, St. Francis of Assisi is 26 00:02:57,219 --> 00:03:04,680 assigned October 4, October 4, excuse me, upon which a meal, prayer, and mass are said for the saint. And 27 00:03:04,680 --> 00:03:10,659 likewise, the feast day for Mary, Mother of God, is celebrated on January 1st of every year, in which a 28 00:03:10,659 --> 00:03:17,900 mass is said in the Roman Catholic Church in her name. So one might then ask, when is a mass said 29 00:03:17,900 --> 00:03:24,219 for the Savior, Jesus Christ? Well, the answer is quite simple. Upon Christmas Day, Christ's Mass Day, 30 00:03:24,639 --> 00:03:30,800 December 25. This is his feast day when a mass is said for him, that is Christ's Mass, contracted to 31 00:03:30,800 --> 00:03:37,219 Christmas. Do you see how nothing comes to us in a vacuum, dear listener? Christ's Mass, of whatever 32 00:03:37,219 --> 00:03:42,840 denomination you are, whatever religious persuasion you are, this is what it means. Christ's Mass, 33 00:03:42,939 --> 00:03:47,900 December 25, is a feast day upon which presents are exchanged, feasts are eaten, and religious 34 00:03:47,900 --> 00:03:54,060 services are observed. So elevated has this feast day become that it is observed not only by the Roman 35 00:03:54,060 --> 00:04:03,919 Catholic Church, but by all Christians everywhere. Why do you think that 12 to 25, right? Why do you think 36 00:04:03,919 --> 00:04:09,560 December 25th was chosen for Christ's Mass? Well, there are two competing theories, only one of which 37 00:04:09,560 --> 00:04:17,259 holds up under scrutiny. First of all, December 25 was chosen in order to correspond to the pagan 38 00:04:17,259 --> 00:04:23,100 celebration of Saturnalia, the pagan feast for the god Saturn. That's one option many historians have 39 00:04:23,100 --> 00:04:29,899 chosen. In the Roman panoply of gods, the majestic regal personage of Saturn occupied this place in the 40 00:04:29,899 --> 00:04:34,920 calendar of gods to be recognized and celebrated. It was one of winter's great breaks when firewood 41 00:04:34,920 --> 00:04:39,480 could be burned, animals slaughtered and consumed for protein. Daily labor ceased for at least 12 hours 42 00:04:39,480 --> 00:04:44,959 or so on a holiday. In fact, we have a letter from Pope Gregory the Great to a missionary to Britain 43 00:04:44,959 --> 00:04:51,379 that pagan temples and festivals to be converted into Christian churches and Christian festivals then 44 00:04:51,379 --> 00:04:58,180 in order to facilitate the transition of pagans to Christians. December 25, the day of Christ's Mass, 45 00:04:58,180 --> 00:05:05,939 was one of those days. A second competing theory, which I prefer and which makes a lot of sense 46 00:05:05,939 --> 00:05:12,319 and has historical evidence, is that December 25th was chosen because it was figured to be precisely 47 00:05:12,319 --> 00:05:18,899 nine months after the church calculated Jesus' birth from his conception, a calculation from the 48 00:05:18,899 --> 00:05:25,120 conception to the birth. Church fathers like Tertullian reasoned that the Bible indicates that Jesus was 49 00:05:25,120 --> 00:05:32,000 conceived on the same day on which he was later to die, that is the day he was crucified, March 25 or 14 Nisan 50 00:05:32,000 --> 00:05:41,379 in the Jewish calendar. This places his birth on December 25. The great theologian St. Augustine notes as well, 51 00:05:41,639 --> 00:05:47,379 for he, that is Jesus, is believed to have been conceived on the 25th of March upon which day also he suffered. 52 00:05:47,379 --> 00:05:53,620 So, the womb of the virgin in which he was conceived, where no one of mortals was begotten, corresponds to 53 00:05:53,620 --> 00:05:59,019 the new grave in which he was buried, wherein was never man laid, neither before him nor since, 54 00:05:59,180 --> 00:06:08,000 but he was born according to tradition upon December 25th." Unquote. So, here's another random fact for you, 55 00:06:08,199 --> 00:06:13,839 of which you might not be aware concerning Christmas. Did you know that rank pagan unbelievers 56 00:06:13,839 --> 00:06:20,879 were far more conscious of Jesus' birth than his own people? Oh, yes. Pagans, pagan unbelievers were 57 00:06:20,879 --> 00:06:26,639 far more conscious of Jesus' birth than his own people were. This is the thrust of the account of 58 00:06:26,639 --> 00:06:33,560 the visit of the Magi, the wise men from the east. In 586 BC, the Chaldeans, the pagan magicians of 59 00:06:33,560 --> 00:06:39,839 Babylon in service to King Nebuchadnezzar, overran and conquered Judah, just as her prophets had predicted. 60 00:06:39,839 --> 00:06:46,639 And the Lord said, in 2 Kings 23, "...and the Lord said, I will remove Judah also out of my sight, 61 00:06:46,680 --> 00:06:52,120 as I have removed Israel, and I will cast off the city that I have chosen, Jerusalem, and the house 62 00:06:52,120 --> 00:06:57,259 of which I said, my name shall be there. And the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook 63 00:06:57,259 --> 00:07:03,220 him in the plains of Jericho, and all his army was scattered from him." Unquote. Kings and Chronicles 64 00:07:03,220 --> 00:07:09,980 record that they carried away everything of value, Nebuchadnezzar and the Chaldeans did. They carried 65 00:07:09,980 --> 00:07:15,339 away everything of value they found in Jerusalem, including the sacred scriptures they found, that is 66 00:07:15,339 --> 00:07:23,959 the Bible of the Jews. And the thing about these Chaldean pagan scholars is they read the material 67 00:07:23,959 --> 00:07:29,060 they captured and stole. Yes, they made homework of it. This happens with every great empire. 68 00:07:29,060 --> 00:07:35,339 Those bookish souls who love to pour over pages and documents and scrolls, they exist everywhere. 69 00:07:36,019 --> 00:07:41,759 And I could be included among them, too. I love doing those things. But these scholars assiduously 70 00:07:41,759 --> 00:07:47,639 studied and understood what they read, too. And so they studied the prophecies concerning a Savior. 71 00:07:47,959 --> 00:07:50,399 For example, in Numbers 24, we read, 72 00:07:50,399 --> 00:07:58,540 I see him, but not now. I behold him, but not near. A star shall come out of Jacob, and a scepter shall 73 00:07:58,540 --> 00:08:08,920 rise out of Israel. Aha! When the Magi in Babylon then saw a phenomenon in the sky, a phenomenon in the 74 00:08:08,920 --> 00:08:15,079 sky, that is, they saw a star that normally did not shine in the western sky. They reasoned that this 75 00:08:15,079 --> 00:08:20,199 prophecy of the Jews was about to be fulfilled. A star was about to come out of Jacob. A king, 76 00:08:20,379 --> 00:08:26,279 that is, a scepter, was about to rise out of Israel. What to do? Well, these scholars, packed up, 77 00:08:26,980 --> 00:08:32,840 took a 747 to Jerusalem, didn't they? Well, actually, it took a little longer as they 78 00:08:32,840 --> 00:08:41,200 took a caravan, a camel caravan there. Be the first to greet and pay homage to this king who would rule 79 00:08:41,200 --> 00:08:47,139 the whole world, they were. This is the background when you read in Matthew chapter 2. 80 00:08:47,500 --> 00:08:52,259 Now, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea and the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men 81 00:08:52,259 --> 00:08:57,600 from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his 82 00:08:57,600 --> 00:09:03,940 star when it rose, and have come to worship him. They were more informed than the sleepy-headed scribes 83 00:09:03,940 --> 00:09:10,039 and Pharisees of Israel, right? Who ostensibly studied the text and knew it inside out. This is one of the 84 00:09:10,039 --> 00:09:15,480 points Matthew intends to make. Even Gentiles were more receptive to the Messiah than his own 85 00:09:15,480 --> 00:09:22,440 people. Another favorite random reflection of mine on Christmas is the 12 days of Christmas. As a 86 00:09:22,440 --> 00:09:28,559 family, we used to celebrate the 12 days of Christmas with our children. What a rich heritage we have in 87 00:09:28,559 --> 00:09:35,320 this blessed tradition. What comes to mind for you when you hear the 12 days of Christmas? Probably the 88 00:09:35,320 --> 00:09:41,240 song that begins on the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me, right? This is all we in the 89 00:09:41,240 --> 00:09:47,279 West usually get concerning the 12 days of Christmas. We experience Advent, where we anticipate 90 00:09:47,279 --> 00:09:54,200 Christ's birth 28 days prior to Christ's Mass, but then it abruptly ends. We celebrate a secular 91 00:09:54,200 --> 00:09:59,320 New Year's Day a week later, and then it's back to the daily grind, right? Well, not so in the 92 00:09:59,320 --> 00:10:06,799 Eastern Orthodox churches. No, no, no. Unlike we in the West, the East makes a sacred celebration of 93 00:10:06,799 --> 00:10:14,879 Christ from his birth on December 25 to the Epiphany 12 days later on January 6, ostensibly the day when 94 00:10:14,879 --> 00:10:19,879 the Magi appeared to worship this newborn king. That's when Christmas ends in the East, at least 95 00:10:19,879 --> 00:10:27,740 January 6. A lot more fun, sounds like to me. But in between, there are 12 feast days when a whole 96 00:10:27,740 --> 00:10:34,200 spectrum of spiritual moments are celebrated, not just earthly feasts, but spiritual moments. 97 00:10:35,279 --> 00:10:41,600 How much is revealed about Christ in these 12 feast days? Well, for example, December 26 is the Feast of 98 00:10:41,600 --> 00:10:46,960 St. Stephen, which is a traditional day for giving from the abundance of Christmas to the poor. 99 00:10:46,960 --> 00:10:53,419 If you know the hymn, good King Wenceslas, you know the entire point of the hymn is that the king 100 00:10:53,419 --> 00:11:00,320 on the feast of Stephen spies a poor man come in sight gathering winter fuel, and then this king 101 00:11:00,320 --> 00:11:06,440 orders his page, bring me flesh and bring me wine, bring me pine logs hither, thou and I will see him 102 00:11:06,440 --> 00:11:13,000 dine when we hear bear him hither. So it was a feast day for St. Stephen, the first deacon of the 103 00:11:13,000 --> 00:11:18,019 church in Acts, and deacons traditionally make provision for the poor. They do it out of the 104 00:11:18,019 --> 00:11:25,399 treasury of the church, and so this day is set aside to lavish a king's abundance upon those less 105 00:11:25,399 --> 00:11:32,120 fortunate. Good tradition. Do this, dear Christian. Go to the soup kitchen, bring steaks, go to the city 106 00:11:32,120 --> 00:11:38,220 of refuge, replenish their store of turkeys and beef. See that those less fortunate than you enjoy a king's 107 00:11:38,220 --> 00:11:44,179 banquet, even as good King Wenceslas provided for that poor man and his family. Well, another 108 00:11:44,179 --> 00:11:52,240 tradition then in the 12 days of Christmas is December 27. It's a feast day for St. John, the 109 00:11:52,240 --> 00:11:58,279 only one of the 12 disciples who did not die a martyr's death, but he died a natural death. And a 110 00:11:58,279 --> 00:12:03,019 mass is set for him, the disciple who wrote of the incarnation of Jesus. The word became flesh 111 00:12:03,019 --> 00:12:10,360 and dwelt among us. Then December 28 is the feast day of the Holy Innocents, when a mass is said for 112 00:12:10,360 --> 00:12:16,159 the children murdered by Herod, that monster king who tried to sweep up the newborn baby Jesus in his 113 00:12:16,159 --> 00:12:23,980 dragnet of Holocaust. They were not martyrs like Stephen, who died a heroically, a martyr's death 114 00:12:23,980 --> 00:12:29,820 in a vision of the glorified Christ. No, they were not heroes like the apostles who died consciously 115 00:12:29,820 --> 00:12:35,820 witnessing to the risen Christ. Rather, the church asserts that these died, the children, for Christ 116 00:12:35,820 --> 00:12:42,179 nevertheless, because they died unjustly before they had a chance to know or to will of their own. 117 00:12:43,019 --> 00:12:48,120 So in celebrating the Holy Innocents, we remember the victims of other kinds of innocence, like 118 00:12:48,120 --> 00:12:54,840 children of abortion, or children of war, or children who die of parental abuse, all these kinds of 119 00:12:54,840 --> 00:13:02,720 things. Well, each feast day in the 12 days of Christmas has its own aspect of Christmas that 120 00:13:02,720 --> 00:13:08,100 highlights a singular feature for Christians to remember, not just gifts given by my true love, 121 00:13:08,200 --> 00:13:14,980 like maids and milking, golden rings, or partridges in a pear tree. No. Even Epiphany celebrates not only 122 00:13:14,980 --> 00:13:22,019 the day on which the wise men appeared and arrived to worship the newly born king, but also the day on which 123 00:13:22,019 --> 00:13:29,039 the gospel is begun to be proclaimed. Christ's manifestation to the nations, symbolized in 124 00:13:29,039 --> 00:13:36,379 these pagan Gentile kings who now have their Savior revealed to them. And so, thus, the 12 days of 125 00:13:36,379 --> 00:13:45,980 Christmas, they are much more than a Christmas carol about exotic gifts given me by my true love. No, 126 00:13:46,059 --> 00:13:51,399 it is more about the good gifts of God to his people through his Son, Jesus Christ. Well, 127 00:13:51,399 --> 00:13:58,419 another random reflection I like to think about on Christmas that I find surprises many people 128 00:13:58,419 --> 00:14:05,980 is that the genealogy in Matthew is an integral part of the Christmas story. Ah, yes, that boring old 129 00:14:05,980 --> 00:14:12,980 list of names is truly a part of the Christmas story. What, you may say? Come on, pastor, an old boring 130 00:14:12,980 --> 00:14:18,620 list of names could be a part of the wondrous story of Christ's nativity, can it? Well, name me one 131 00:14:18,620 --> 00:14:23,299 Christmas carol about it, huh? I've seen plenty of dramatizations about the holy family who found 132 00:14:23,299 --> 00:14:27,740 no room at the inn, retired to a manger, or shepherds who tended their flocks by night, 133 00:14:28,139 --> 00:14:33,799 visited by singing angels, and even Herod killing the infants of Bethlehem. But I have never seen a 134 00:14:33,799 --> 00:14:39,759 Cecil B. DeMille or Steven Spielberg dramatization of Jesus' genealogy. That would be an oxymoron, 135 00:14:39,759 --> 00:14:47,519 right? Dramatic genealogy? Well, but any self-respecting Jew of the first century would 136 00:14:47,519 --> 00:14:52,580 shake his head in disbelief at this kind of attitude. And he would ask why you could, on the 137 00:14:52,580 --> 00:14:57,440 one hand, say you relied on the Bible for truth, while on the other hand, dismissing genealogies. 138 00:14:58,259 --> 00:15:04,759 They were utterly necessary to the life of a young babe in Israel, and that for several reasons. 139 00:15:04,759 --> 00:15:12,799 Number one, a child's genealogy established his chosen status. Are you a Jew or a Gentile? Even 140 00:15:12,799 --> 00:15:18,179 today, a Jew is not a Jew unless he can establish his lineage via his parents. And secondly, the 141 00:15:18,179 --> 00:15:24,679 promised Messiah would descend from Abraham and David. The covenants which God cut with Abraham 142 00:15:24,679 --> 00:15:30,639 and David both promised that a savior of mankind would descend from their line. To Abraham, he said, 143 00:15:30,639 --> 00:15:34,840 in you, all the families of the earth will be blessed. And to David, he promised, when your 144 00:15:34,840 --> 00:15:40,659 days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring, your seed 145 00:15:40,659 --> 00:15:46,019 after you who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house 146 00:15:46,019 --> 00:15:52,960 for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. Therefore, when the Messiah 147 00:15:52,960 --> 00:16:00,379 appeared, he would have to establish his lineage right out of the gate. It was be his bona fides, 148 00:16:00,639 --> 00:16:06,179 no Jew worth his salt would expect anything less, especially those responsible for authenticating 149 00:16:06,179 --> 00:16:11,940 these things. So, dear listener, it is difficult for us Gentiles on this side of Christmas to 150 00:16:11,940 --> 00:16:19,240 comprehend the primacy of Christ's genealogy to first century Jews, but it was there. And 151 00:16:19,240 --> 00:16:25,120 consequently, can you understand the importance of Jesus' birth narrative beginning with these 152 00:16:25,120 --> 00:16:31,440 words, the book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham, unquote. 153 00:16:32,419 --> 00:16:40,279 Few people realize that the nativity actually begins with a genealogy. Turn to Matthew chapter 154 00:16:40,279 --> 00:16:44,879 one. You will find that the birth narrative of Jesus begins not with angels or shepherds, 155 00:16:45,440 --> 00:16:51,919 Joseph or Mary, but with a dry, boring, and trivial, to us at least, genealogy. But it would not have 156 00:16:51,919 --> 00:16:56,759 been thus for its first audience, that is, Jews, who expected the Messiah's credentials to be 157 00:16:56,759 --> 00:17:03,700 authenticated before anything else was said about him. The genealogy in Matthew does precisely this. 158 00:17:04,380 --> 00:17:12,160 It is entirely fitting to begin the birth narratives with Jesus' genealogy. And thirdly, then Christ's 159 00:17:12,160 --> 00:17:20,380 genealogy also gathers up all of fallen humanity, too. Yes, what a beautiful narrative it is of the 160 00:17:20,380 --> 00:17:26,839 gathering up of all of fallen humanity. That's Christ's genealogy. There are actually some very 161 00:17:26,839 --> 00:17:32,259 poignant moments of drama in the genealogy. If you know your Old Testament, how many of you know that 162 00:17:32,259 --> 00:17:41,220 Jesus is a descendant of incest and prostitution by way of Judah and Tamar? Go over this story in 163 00:17:41,220 --> 00:17:47,720 Genesis. Jesus stands in the line of Perez, son of Tamar, who connived and controlled her father-in-law, 164 00:17:47,720 --> 00:17:56,180 Judah, to bear her son by posing as a prostitute. Jesus is also descended from Rahab, the harlot of 165 00:17:56,180 --> 00:18:02,460 Jericho. And what is more, Solomon, the son of David's adulterous relationship with Bathsheba. 166 00:18:03,279 --> 00:18:09,700 So, if you read the genealogy of our Savior carefully, you notice that there's a lot of saving 167 00:18:09,700 --> 00:18:16,539 to do in these spicy stories, right? So, the next time you pick up Matthew and begin to read, 168 00:18:16,839 --> 00:18:22,579 do not skip over the genealogy with which he begins his narrative. It is integral to his story 169 00:18:22,579 --> 00:18:31,240 of salvation by grace. And finally, we would be remiss to neglect the history of Santa Claus, 170 00:18:31,579 --> 00:18:36,640 wouldn't we? The history of Santa Claus, who was born during the third century in the village of 171 00:18:36,640 --> 00:18:46,380 Patara. At the time, the area was Greek and is now on the southern coast of Turkey, Patara, 172 00:18:46,660 --> 00:18:54,900 the birthplace of Saint Nicholas. At the time, his wealthy parents, who raised him to be a devout 173 00:18:54,900 --> 00:19:04,519 Christian, died in an epidemic while Nicholas was still young. Obeying Jesus' words to sell what you 174 00:19:04,519 --> 00:19:11,039 own and give the money to the poor, Nicholas used his whole inheritance to assist the needy, the sick, 175 00:19:11,400 --> 00:19:19,140 and the suffering. He dedicated his life to serving God and was made bishop of Myra while still a young 176 00:19:19,140 --> 00:19:27,119 man. Bishop Nicholas, excuse me, Bishop Nicholas became known throughout the land for his generosity 177 00:19:27,119 --> 00:19:33,319 to those in need. His love for children and his concern for sailors and ships too, parenthetically. 178 00:19:34,140 --> 00:19:39,799 Well, under the Roman emperor Diocletian, who ruthlessly persecuted Christians, Bishop Nicholas 179 00:19:39,799 --> 00:19:45,859 suffered for his faith. He was exiled and he was imprisoned. And after his release, Nicholas attended 180 00:19:45,859 --> 00:19:55,240 the Council of Nicaea in A.D. 325. And he died December 6, A.D. 343 in Myra. And he was buried in his 181 00:19:55,240 --> 00:20:04,359 cathedral church. One anecdote of his life tells of a poor man with three daughters. In those days, 182 00:20:04,420 --> 00:20:09,299 a young woman's father had to offer prospective husbands something of a value, that is a dowry. 183 00:20:09,700 --> 00:20:14,119 And the larger the dowry, the better the chance that a young woman would find a good husband. 184 00:20:14,539 --> 00:20:20,420 But without a dowry, a woman was unlikely to marry. This poor man's daughters without dowries were 185 00:20:20,420 --> 00:20:25,599 therefore destined to be sold into slavery. Mysteriously on three different occasions, however, 186 00:20:25,599 --> 00:20:33,740 a bag of gold appeared in their home, providing the needed dowries. The bags of gold tossed through an 187 00:20:33,740 --> 00:20:41,619 open window are said to have landed in stockings or shoes left before the fire to dry. This, of course, 188 00:20:41,660 --> 00:20:47,759 led to the custom of children hanging stockings or putting out shoes, eagerly awaiting gifts from 189 00:20:47,759 --> 00:20:52,920 St. Nicholas. And sometimes the story is told with gold balls instead of bags of gold. That's why 190 00:20:52,920 --> 00:21:00,140 three gold balls sometimes represented as oranges are one of the symbols for St. Nicholas. And so 191 00:21:00,140 --> 00:21:09,119 St. Nicholas is the gift giver. So, dear listener, banish the notion of the cartoon character of Santa 192 00:21:09,119 --> 00:21:15,279 Claus that has come to take the place of the real St. Nicholas. He would weep if he saw today what has 193 00:21:15,279 --> 00:21:20,380 been made of him. St. Nicholas is not a clown character dressed in a red suit with a fluffy white 194 00:21:20,380 --> 00:21:26,259 beard and black boots. No. Bishop Nicholas indeed loved children deeply, cared for them in an age 195 00:21:26,259 --> 00:21:32,599 when infant mortality hovered around 20 percent. Disease, poverty characterized childhood all over 196 00:21:32,599 --> 00:21:38,480 Europe and Asia. So St. Nicholas did anonymously leave food and clothing and gifts for children 197 00:21:38,480 --> 00:21:43,920 and their families. He didn't slide down chimneys and leave a room full of toys for kids. No. The good 198 00:21:43,920 --> 00:21:51,059 bishop ministered to children in a disciplined fashion all year round. He did not work a year 199 00:21:51,059 --> 00:21:55,920 round at the North Pole with an army of elves in order to disgorge an avalanche of toys in one night 200 00:21:55,920 --> 00:22:04,799 Christmas Eve in an orgy of consumerism. St. Nicholas followed the example of Jesus Christ and he did all 201 00:22:04,799 --> 00:22:13,500 in Jesus' name. He was not the secular godless cardboard cutout that our society makes him out to be. So 202 00:22:13,500 --> 00:22:21,880 remember this. Inculcate this, dear listener. Teach this example to your children. Follow the lead of the 203 00:22:21,880 --> 00:22:31,420 good Bishop Nicholas, not St. Claus. Well, finally, my last random reflection on Christmas. I hope it's 204 00:22:31,420 --> 00:22:40,359 edifying to you. My final reflection is why is this season anticipating Christmas called Advent? 205 00:22:41,779 --> 00:22:50,539 Advent means coming or arrival. Advent looks forward to the first arrival of Jesus Christ into the world 206 00:22:50,539 --> 00:22:57,819 that he made. But savvy Christians also know that Christmas anticipates its second Advent when he returns 207 00:22:57,819 --> 00:23:06,900 to redeem his own, renew a fallen creation, and judge the wicked. The Lutheran Church has long recognized 208 00:23:06,900 --> 00:23:14,079 this facet of Christmas. And on the third Sunday in Advent, they pray this. Almighty God, you once called 209 00:23:14,079 --> 00:23:19,960 John the Baptist to give witness to the coming of your Son and to prepare his way. Grant us, your people, 210 00:23:20,359 --> 00:23:26,220 the wisdom to see your purpose today and the openness to hear your will that we may witness to 211 00:23:26,220 --> 00:23:33,160 Christ's coming. And so prepare his way through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and 212 00:23:33,160 --> 00:23:42,119 the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. From the Lutheran Book of Worship. So know this, at every 213 00:23:42,119 --> 00:23:50,980 Christmas, dear listener, Christ's first Advent is only half the story. Use as well this Christmas season to 214 00:23:50,980 --> 00:23:59,279 anticipate his second Advent. And in that regard, knowing that he will come again, put your faith in 215 00:23:59,279 --> 00:24:06,819 him now for all of the work of salvation that he accomplished at his first Advent. And he will then 216 00:24:06,819 --> 00:24:14,619 complete that salvation as he promised at his second Advent. The Apostle Paul puts it this way, 217 00:24:14,619 --> 00:24:23,279 for the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the 218 00:24:23,279 --> 00:24:30,440 sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be 219 00:24:30,440 --> 00:24:36,799 caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will always be with the Lord. 220 00:24:37,200 --> 00:24:43,000 Unquote from the Apostle Paul. These are some of my random thoughts indeed on Christmas. 221 00:24:43,000 --> 00:24:49,440 And I hope that you've been edified by them and enjoy them. We certainly do appreciate those of you 222 00:24:49,440 --> 00:24:54,599 who listen to our program. And we have brainstormed and thought about this a little bit. We've met 223 00:24:54,599 --> 00:25:00,140 many of you and talked with you sometimes on the phone. But what New Geneva Orthodox Presbyterian 224 00:25:00,140 --> 00:25:08,599 Church would like to do in the coming new year is sponsor a dinner every month, a spaghetti fellowship 225 00:25:08,599 --> 00:25:15,680 dinner. When we invite you who listen to our radio program, you may be members of other churches, you may not 226 00:25:15,680 --> 00:25:21,440 be members of any church, but we invite you to come and visit us to meet me, Pastor David Bass, and some of our 227 00:25:21,440 --> 00:25:27,859 members at New Geneva, five o'clock on the last Wednesday of every month. It's going to begin then in 228 00:25:27,859 --> 00:25:38,220 January, January 25. It will be 5 p.m. Wednesday at our church in our fellowship hall. And we will serve 229 00:25:38,220 --> 00:25:44,559 you a spaghetti dinner. We can sit and talk and chat about some of the radio spots perhaps or any issue 230 00:25:44,559 --> 00:25:50,559 under the sun. So we would just invite you to join us. In the meantime, until January 25, that's the 231 00:25:50,559 --> 00:25:56,359 Wednesday night. We pray that you would join us for worship too. New Geneva Meets for Holy Worship 232 00:25:56,359 --> 00:26:02,900 Sunday at 10 a.m. at 101 4th Street on the corner of 4th and Boulevard. And you can call us for more 233 00:26:02,900 --> 00:26:11,680 information and to reserve a spot at those dinners at 523-0196. And we also invite you to our website. 234 00:26:11,680 --> 00:26:20,359 Our church website is newgenevaopc.org. And then we have a second website in which we have cataloged 235 00:26:20,359 --> 00:26:25,380 our messages from the last year and a half, the radio messages. You can sample those too. 236 00:26:26,140 --> 00:26:39,720 And that website is omnispotestas.org. Let me spell that for you. O-M-N-I-S-P-O-T-E-S-T-A-S.org. 237 00:26:39,720 --> 00:26:49,799 Omnisprotestas.org. O-M-N-I-S-P-O-T-E-S-T-A-S.org.