Saturday, December 19, 2015
Celebrate Extravagantly
It was more fantastic
than time travel, more touching than the most stirring romance and more
successful than any intervention in history.
On the first Christmas, God stepped into time, for the purpose of giving
His life as a ransom, so you and I could lay hold of eternal life. Traditionally Americans have celebrated His
entrance into our world with carols, lights and gifts. My hope is that we continue
to celebrate - extravagantly - and to ponder the wonder of it all.
Mankind was hopelessly
lost until God broke some barriers on their behalf. The infinite God broke the time barrier when
He humbled Himself and took up residence in the womb of Mary. He broke the flesh barrier when He lived,
sinlessly, in a human body. He broke the
silence barrier, since it had been 400 years since God had spoken to mankind. Ultimately, He broke the sin barrier, by
allowing politically correct religious zealots to unjustly crucify Him. Now, those who are willing to believe this
story (a story infinitely more magical than that of Santa) can break barriers
in their own lives.
How did He do it? He started
from the weakest and most vulnerable place possible - as a baby, in a feeding
bin, in a cave. Apparent weakness and
great grace have always been, and still are, telltale signs of the Almighty at
work. Jesus was God in flesh,
demonstrating that love, humility, and even poverty have the power to break the
barriers such as hatred, tyranny and evil. And, even as He was breaking
barriers, unbelievers were blind to it all; God's ways were foolishness to
their thinking. In fact, Jesus' human
enemies very likely went to their graves clueless at to their defeat, but
defeated they were.
Jesus still has enemies:
people who don't think there should be prayer in the marketplace... people who
fear the celebration of Christmas... people who scoff at the ideas of love,
forgiveness and eternal life. Christ-followers
only have one option -- from places of apparent weakness and foolishness, we
must continue to break barriers using love, humility and grace. Some will not understand. Others will
consider it foolishness. But we will
savor... we will make history... we will continue to break barriers... and we
will celebrate.
Jesus turned everything
right side up. He demonstrated that the
poor, the minority, and the bullied can live lives of dignity and purpose. He showed us how to break the barriers
imposed by peer pressure, controlling entities and corruption. He was a
pathfinder and has promised to come live in the hearts of anyone who wants His
help in walking the same path.
That is why we sing carols, give gifts, put on pageants, and wish one another a "Merry Christmas." To some it may seem naive or silly. Others may think these days are too dark to be merry. But we do not celebrate because the world has treated well; we celebrate because He has given us life. With His help millions of believers worldwide are still breaking barriers and finding the abundant life He promised to those who would follow Him.
If you feel weak,
forgotten, passed by, poor, or misunderstood, you are in the same situation God
chose to put Himself in when He put on flesh and lived among us. With a lot of forgiveness and the empowerment
of His Spirit, you too can break the barriers in your life. You can learn the beauty of forgiveness,
humility, and selflessness. Then you,
too, will want to Celebrate Extravagantly!
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