Actually!!??

So this week at work we were talking about some things that we all take for granted in the Nativity story, but, well to be frank, they aren't really in the bible.

Now I don't want to ruin Christmas for anyone, so if you're sensitive about these sorts of things, I suggest you skip the next paragraph and your sacred cows will remain unscathed for this year.

I'm not going to write about these things in great details, as well, actually they aren't the point, but the truth is that the donkey, the innkeeper and the stable (most likely) are non-existent in the gospels and the 3 Kings (who weren't kings at all) visiting Jesus as a baby didn't happen until much later.  it's not even noted that the angels were singing, it just says they were praising God.  That's just a few of the things that you're likely to see on Cards, or in Nativity plays or sing in carols!  (We won't even start with whatever i-o, i-o-i-o has got to do with anything!

Now all that is not to suggest that we ought to re-write the traditional nativity scenes that delight parents of rambunctious children as they declare with passion the birth of Jesus.  (We even knew of one child who wanted to come to church dressed as a Jedi for the Christmas play! I think light sabres would have definitely added to the stable scene).

But, it is to say this; how often do we accept something as truth, entirely convinced that it is in the bible?  In John it says "And ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free."  (John 8:32)
If you are not experiencing freedom in an area in your life, the problem could be that you don't know the truth!  Maybe you have no idea, or maybe you think you know, but today I want to challenge you to go back to basics: reading the Word and seeing what it ACTUALLY has to say, not about the donkey or the 3 Kings, but about the really important stuff.

I know I talk a lot about the Word, but really, it's the foundation for all that we are as believers!

As I won't get any more blogs out before the festivities begin, I just want to take the opportunity to wish you all a very Merry Christmas.  I trust that the truth of God's love and grace will fill your homes and hearts as we celebrate the coming of our Immanuel.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Teabags and Popcorn!

Image
So, I was eating popcorn yesterday and drinking a fruit tea and I started wondering what makes a popcorn pop! (As you do). With a little help from Google, I found out that inside the kernel, the hard shell, there is a little bit of moisture and when it heats up inside, it turns to steam and as you keep heating it up, the pressure from the steam builds and builds until it cracks open the hard exterior and makes a yummy snack. And then I thought about my teabag (I do promise there will be a spiritual application to this, not just information on my food and drink habits).  The label had come off the teabag, so I didn't know exactly what flavour it was, until I poured on the boiling water and tasted it! As promised... the spiritual bit!  We are like teabags and popcorn!  This is a deep spiritual truth!  Really it is!  Read on and I'll explain why! Firstly we are like popcorn because when heated up, whatever we stir up inside us will burst out.  We're also like teabags too.  We
Read more

Looking back

Image
This week I was listening to a message and I was reading the verse in Luke 17:32 which simply says " Remember Lot's wife ."   This is a really interesting statement. When Jesus tells us to consider something or remember something we should pay attention. So what do we know about Lot's wife?  Not a lot really.  But what we do know is that an angel of the Lord took her by the hand to lead her out of the city before God destroyed it.  She was told to run for her life and not look back.  According to Genesis 19, she ran but she turned and look back and as a result, turned to a pillar of salt.  This short verse really spoke to me for a number of reasons.    The Apostle Paul tells us " I don’t depend on my own strength to accomplish this; however I do have one compelling focus: I forget all of the past as I fasten my heart to the future instead. "  (Phil 3:13 TPT) Since 2020, it's like we have a new category in history BC now stands for BEFORE COVID! People a
Read more

See for yourself!

Image
The New Year is often a point in time where we consider new beginnings. We make new year's resolutions and wipe the slate clean and start over, and while goal-setting and change isn't bad, in spiritual terms, will-power alone isn't enough to effect change.   Real and lasting change begins on the inside of us. It begins with seeing on the inside with the eyes of faith before we ever see something with our natural eyes on the outside.  What do I mean by that?  Well, think about Joseph.   Joseph had a dream that he would one day see his family bowing before him.  He had to walk through rejection from his family, slavery, false accusations and prison before he saw that with his physical eyes!  He had a dream and I believe he held on to that dream every single day. If Joseph had seen himself to be helpless, forsaken and lost he would have had the opportunity to fall into despair and do nothing.  The chances are, that would have kept him a slave or a prisoner until he died.  What
Read more