CHRISTmas 2015

     Christmas means many things to many different people.  To some it is simply a holiday and a day off from work.  To others it represents family and home.  To some, Christmas is a time for reflecting on memories and times passed.  Some people are offended at the mention of the word "Christmas," because it represents a God they refuse to recognize as God.  Many people look forward to partying and merry making at Christmas.  There are countless people who are needy and neglected, even at this special time of year.  Christmas to God, is the demonstration of His Love in the highest degree.
     The world has tried desperately to hide the truth of what we proclaim is the truth of salvation, which is the Gift of Life from Almighty God Himself.  It was never in God's heart for man to be separated from Him.  After Adam's fall, God would need to implement the means to recover His family back to Himself.
     Do I know for certain what day Jesus came to earth as a Baby?  No, I really don't.  Many peoples war against one another over the exact date and time of year He came.  I don't think it matters.  God Himself knows the exact time.  People are unwrapping this precious gift every day as Jesus is being born born in their hearts.
     Some Christians feel that Christmas is a pagan holiday and therefore, do not celebrate December 25th in any manner.  And, we all know people who celebrate the Christmas season with love and giving and then, on December 26th, they're done with those things.  I believe that this is a time of year when the Spirit of God has more access to men's hearts, than almost any other time.  It seems like, whether or not they believe in the true meaning of Christmas, they are moved in the giving and loving.  We actually delight in buying, making and giving to others with a cheerful and giving heart.
     Snow,decorations and lights are simply traditions that we identify with throughout the years and that rekindle memories in our hearts.  I enjoy all of the lights and festivities that accompany this glorious day.  What could be more appropriate than lights and beauty to celebrate the birth of the Christ Child into the world?  Even the angels shouted and proclaimed His birthday.  It was an event that divided history and changed how mankind observes earth as we know it; changing history to B.C. and A.D.
     Satan has fought, with no avail, to keep man from acknowledging this day.  This day will live on in mankind's lifetime, throughout history.  Our Heavenly Father foresaw this day from eternity to eternity.  God never left anything to change, but as a Master Designer, He always had a plan.
     Hebrews 13:8 (Amplified) says, "Jesus Christ (the Messiah) is (always) the same, yesterday, today, (yes) and forever (to the ages)."  We acknowledge Jesus at this time of year, but God had always known Him, according to Hebrews 1:2-3 (Amplified) which says, "(But) in these last days, He has spoken to us in (the Person of a) Son, Whom He appointed Heir and Lawful Owner of all things, also by and through Whom He created  the worlds and the reaches of space and the ages of time. (He made, produced, built, operated, and arranged them in order). He (Jesus) is the sole expression of the glory of God (the Light-Being, the out-raying or radiance of the Divine) and He is the perfect imprint and very Image of (God's) nature, upholding and maintaining and guiding, and propelling the universe by His mighty Word of Power. When He had by offering Himself accomplished our cleaning of sins and riddance of guilt, He sat down at the right hand of the Divine Majesty on High."
     Hebrews 10:5 (Amplified) says, "Hence, when He (Christ) entered into the world, He said, sacrifices and offerings You have not desired, but instead You have made ready a body for Me (to offer)."  Hebrews 10:12 (Amplified) says, "Whereas, this One (Christ) after He had offered a single sacrifice for our sins (that shall avail) for all time, sat down at the right hand of God."
     Revelations 13:8 (Amplified) tells us, "And all the inhabitants of the earth will fall down in adoration and pay Him homage,everyone whose name has not been recorded in the Book of Life of the Lamb that was slain (in sacrifice) from the foundation of the world."
     When the Christ Child was born in Bethlehem, it became possible for man to see Him, touch Him, hear Him and identify with Him as a Man, but He had always been.  We celebrate the body that God prepared for Him to sacrifice, but His Word (Jesus) lived on after the death of that body and was raised back to life and ascended to heaven to sit at God's right hand, where He still lives.
     The body born in Bethlehem's manger, was simply the "Body that was prepared," according to Hebrews 10:5 (Amplified) which says it was, "For Him to offer as a sacrifice for us."  Only the body could take on the sin, guilt, curse and death that was the price for mankind's redemption.  The Christ Who came in the flesh, always was, always is, and always will be.  We simply see and celebrate that which we can see and identify with.  But, He always was.
     When I celebrate Christmas, I celebrate the Gift of Life that was His Gift from the foundation of the world.  This was a Love so great and so much faith was placed in God's creation (His forming man in His Own Image and Likeness) that He could trust the One Who became Light and Life.  God's faith in His Own creation allowed Him to put Jesus' body into the hands of a mortal woman and into the hands of His Own earthly child.  God trusted Mary to raise His Own Son, for Him.
     What kind of Love can trust and believe in someone so very much, that He would entrust a woman to raise the "Unblemished Sacrifice" unto the altar of the cross?  Now we understand what Hebrews 13:8 says, "Jesus Christ is the same, yesterday, today, and forever!"  The Same One Who spoke light into existence, is the Same now.