The Word Was With God

John 1:1-3 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.

            Many people will tell you social media (Twitter, Facebook, You Tube,    Google +, etc.) is a waste of time. I hope you will make an effort to consider and dispel that bit of misinformation. There is a YouTube video I would like you to watch. Go to YouTube.com and search for Cloverton Hallelujah. Or you can cut and paste this link if you are reading this electronically http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1pQVRyPGTEc.

I learned about this video via social media. I shared it with all my Christian and non-Christian friends via social media. This version of Hallelujah shares the full story of Jesus If you are of the opinion all social media is a waste of your time, then you are missing wonderful opportunities for sharing the Gospel.

            There is an opportunity in the Advent season to miss a big part of the story of Jesus. Many will focus on the birth of the Christ child as all that there is. In doing so there is so very much missed. One of the most humbling images I have seen has been displayed in our sanctuary the past several weeks.  It’s the Nativity scene with the large cross on the wall behind it. The manger and the cross are inexorably linked. One does not exist without the other. The baby Jesus was born in the manger and the adult Jesus died on the cross. Both events are linked and you and I hold responsibility for both events. Our sins required the Son of God to step down from his place with God the Father and take on the form of a frail infant born in humble surroundings. Some will tell you this was done so that God would truly and fully understand our plight. Those who think along those lines miss a very important aspect of the incarnation. The baby had to be born and the adult had to die for our salvation. We, of our own efforts are completely incapable of meeting the standards for justification. We are by nature sinful. It took an atoning sacrifice from the Son of God to fill the void of our sin. That is how serious our sin really is. But thank God for Jesus Christ who took on human flesh, suffered all the temptations we experience and died for our sins. We are forgiven! The prisoners have been set free. That is what the Real Love of Jesus is all about. He paid a price we could not. He humbled Himself by taking on human flesh and experiencing pain, suffering, and death so that you and I can be free from the death of sin. Real Love like that cannot be found anywhere else but in Jesus

When we consider the Whole Jesus it helps us to keep Advent in perspective. By remembering the birth, the death and the resurrection we see the Whole Jesus. My prayer is you will find the joy of the birth in a manger, the humility of the death on a cross, and the blessing of an empty tomb in this Advent.

PRAYER: Father there are times when the only words that come to mind are thank you. This is one of those times, Amen.