A Christmas Eve Miracle.

 

Christmas Eve I was at my daughter’s house with many members of my family. They started talking about a couple with two children. They were my son-in-law’s relatives. They had just been to visit them and were happy to see how that couple were relating to each other. “They were smiling at each other, holding hands and whispering in each other’s ears,” they said. I asked how the children were doing and they said they seemed happy.

For me, this was a miracle, because I had begun praying for them a few weeks before Christmas. I knew the children were troubled and I was worried about them. I asked God to be in their home and to help them. I saw this transformation as an evidence of God’s work. He always makes life better if people are open to him.

Last year, I started praying for two people who hosted the podcast, “Pivot.” The woman on the podcast said she didn’t understand it, but she had started having feelings about going to church. I was elated and thanked God for sending the Holy Spirit to encourage her to do this.

God has worked in many miraculous ways in my life and my family’s lives, but it is lovely when you see him work in people’s lives whom you don’t even know and live thousands of miles away.

Prayer is powerful because God is powerful. He is the King of the Universe yet left heaven and became a human baby in order to save us. He wants us in his family. He loves family, he created it.

Pointing the Finger.

 

Christians Pointing the Finger.

I’ve often been disheartened by Christians in the news media pointing their fingers at those they deem, “Sinners.” Of course, it’s never about greedy people or those who are oppressing the poor, no it’s usually  sexual sins they are worried about.

But what did Jesus say about that? Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you.  For John came to you in a righteous way and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and prostitutes did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe him. Matthew 21:31,32

I once heard someone say, “Some Christians would criticize the Lord Himself if they went to heaven.” I believe that because Jesus was criticized constantly when he was here on earth. I’m going to give examples of the finger-pointing towards Jesus. I will also record his replies.

As Jesus reclined at table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and were reclining with Jesus and his disciples. And when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” But when he heard it, he said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”  Matthew 9:10-13

Going on from that place, he went into their synagogue,  and a man with a shriveled hand was there. Looking for a reason to bring charges against Jesus, they asked him, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?”

 He said to them, “If any of you has a sheep and it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will you not take hold of it and lift it out?  How much more valuable is a person than a sheep! Therefore, it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.”

 Then he said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” So, he stretched it out and it was completely restored, just as sound as the other.  But the Pharisees went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus.

At a different time:

But the synagogue leader was indignant that Jesus had healed on the Sabbath. “There are six days for work,” he told the crowd. “So come and be healed on those days and not on the Sabbath.”

 “You hypocrites!” the Lord replied. “Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or donkey from the stall and lead it to water? Then, should not this daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for eighteen long years, be released from her bondage on the Sabbath day?”

When Jesus said this, all His adversaries were humiliated. And the whole crowd rejoiced at all the glorious things He was doing.  Luke 13:14-17

Then some Pharisees and teachers of the Law came from Jerusalem to Jesus and asked him, “Why is it that your disciples disobey the teaching handed down by our ancestors? They don't wash their hands in the proper way before they eat!” Jesus answered, “And why do you disobey God's command and follow your own teaching? For God said, ‘Respect your father and your mother,’ and ‘Whoever curses his father or his mother is to be put to death.’ But you teach that if a person has something he could use to help his father or mother, but says, ‘This belongs to God,’ he does not need to honor his father.”  Matthew 15

 As they were going away, behold, a demon-oppressed man who was mute was brought to him.  And when the demon had been cast out, the mute man spoke. And the crowds marveled, saying, “Never was anything like this seen in Israel.”  But the Pharisees said, “He casts out demons by the prince of demons.”  Matthew 9

 

When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for ^fI must stay at your house today.”  So, he hurried and came down and received him joyfully.  And when they saw it, they all grumbled, “He has gone in to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.” And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.” And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man 

came to seek and to save the lost.”  Luke 19

 

There were times when the believers in Jesus pointed the finger at other believers:

Then the disciples of John came to Him, saying, "Why do we and the Pharisees fast, but Your disciples do not fast?" And Jesus said to them, "The attendants of the bridegroom cannot mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them, can they? But the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast. Mark 12

While Jesus was in Bethany reclining at the table in the home of Simon the Leper, a woman came with an alabaster jar of expensive perfume, made of pure nard. She broke open the jar and poured it on Jesus’ head.

Some of those present, however, expressed their indignation to one another: “Why this waste of perfume? It could have been sold for over three hundred denarii (a years wages) and the money given to the poor.” And they scolded her.

But Jesus said, “Leave her alone; why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful deed to Me. The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them whenever you want. But you will not always have Me. She has done what she could to anoint My body in advance of My burial. And truly I tell you, wherever the gospel is preached in all the world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.”  Mark 14:3-9

In Nazareth, Jesus’ home town, the people there hated what Jesus was saying so much they tried to kill him.  “When they heard these things, all in the synagogue were filled with wrath.  And they rose up and drove him out of the town and brought him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they could throw him down the cliff.  But walking through their midst, he went away.”  Luke 4

Jesus was criticized even while he hung on the cross, suffering physical and mental pain:

The people stood watching, and the rulers sneered at Him, saying, “He saved others; let Him save Himself if He is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.”

The soldiers also mocked Him and came up to offer Him sour wine. “If You are the King of the Jews,” they said, “save Yourself!” Luke 23:35-37

As soon as the chief priests and officers saw Him, they shouted, “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!”

“You take Him and crucify Him,” Pilate replied, “for I find no basis for a charge against Him.”

 “We have a law,” answered the Jews, “and according to that law He must die, because He declared Himself to be the Son of God.”  John 19

Seeing how many people hated Jesus, pointing their judgmental fingers at him, do you think this is something believers in God should dare to do? It shows how completely wrong their judgement was and how they hated that which is good.

Did Jesus criticize the Romans? Never. But he did criticize those who, instead of loving people, pointed the finger of hate at people. Jesus drew people to himself with his love. I’m sure everyone could see the love in his face and words. Yes, he asked people to repent. We need to see how much we need Jesus, and if we think we are okay, why would we need him?

We are all capable of great sin. We all sin, we all hurt people. We may not even want to, but we do. With Jesus in our lives, he will whisper to our hearts and change us. We won’t be perfect in this world. I think God does not make us perfect in this world or we would become proud. We would take credit for it and our souls would be ruined. St. Paul said he was not perfect, but it was something to strive for.

I loathe the way Christians in power want to force the whole country to become Christian. This is not possible. God wants a willing heart. I think he is capable of knowing if someone is faking it. If Christians had lived like Jesus, many would have been drawn to God. As it is, we have pushed them away.

If people study history any longer, they would know the result of religious force and the uniting of Church and State. It always ends in persecution and death. But this is where we are heading. Gays, news reporters and anyone who doesn’t go along with their brand of religion will be persecuted and eventually be put to death.

This is coming, but we can have hope if we cling to God. He will walk through the fire with us. He will give to us eternal life in a place we were created for. Do we feel so comfortable in this world? That’s because we were made for a better world where there is peace, goodness and love. We will be part of a  family with God as our father and Jesus as our brother.