Good Morning Friends,
Yesterday was the Feast Day of Saint Stephen, the second day of Christmas. And today is the third day of Christmas and we build upon this message as we continue to unpack the lives of those who experienced the incarnation of Christ by looking at scripture attributed to John the Evangelist and Apostle. Like Stephen he is pictured as having a wonderful countenance that is instructive for us too when we volunteer with Jesus being the focal point of our service. We are to experience the mystery connected to the promises of God as a revelation of how the birth of Jesus is connected to the death of Stephen and a belief in the resurrection that births in us the Spirit of God as children of God. So, Do You Have The Face Of Faith Fulfilled When You Have A Vision Of Volunteering To Glorify God?
Scripture: By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to set out for a place that he was to receive as an inheritance; and he set out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he received power of procreation, even though he was too old—and Sarah herself was barren—because he considered him faithful who had promised. Therefore from one person, and this one as good as dead, descendants were born, “as many as the stars of heaven and as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore.” By faith Abraham, when put to the test, offered up Isaac. He who had received the promises was ready to offer up his only son, of whom he had been told, “It is through Isaac that descendants shall be named for you.” He considered the fact that God is able even to raise someone from the dead—and figuratively speaking, he did receive him back.
Hebrews 11:8, 11-12, 17-19 (NRSV)
After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision, “Do not be afraid, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.” But Abram said, “O Lord God, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” And Abram said, “You have given me no offspring, and so a slave born in my house is to be my heir.” But the word of the Lord came to him, “This man shall not be your heir; no one but your very own issue shall be your heir.” He brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven and count the stars, if you are able to count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your descendants be.” And he believed the Lord; and the Lord reckoned it to him as righteousness. The Lord dealt with Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah as he had promised. Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the time of which God had spoken to him. Abraham gave the name Isaac to his son whom Sarah bore him.
Genesis 15:1-6; 21:1-3 (NRSV)
When the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (as it is written in the law of the Lord, “Every firstborn male shall be designated as holy to the Lord”), and they offered a sacrifice according to what is stated in the law of the Lord, “a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.” Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; this man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit rested on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. Guided by the Spirit, Simeon came into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him what was customary under the law, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying, “Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.” And the child’s father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him. Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, “This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed—and a sword will pierce your own soul too.” There was also a prophet, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, having lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped there with fasting and prayer night and day. At that moment she came, and began to praise God and to speak about the child to all who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem. When they had finished everything required by the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him.
Luke 2:22-40 (NRSV)
Stephen, full of grace and power, did great wonders and signs among the people. Then some of those who belonged to the synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called), Cyrenians, Alexandrians, and others of those from Cilicia and Asia, stood up and argued with Stephen. But they could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he spoke. When they heard these things, they became enraged and ground their teeth at Stephen. But filled with the Holy Spirit, he gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. “Look,” he said, “I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!” But they covered their ears, and with a loud shout all rushed together against him. Then they dragged him out of the city and began to stone him; and the witnesses laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul. While they were stoning Stephen, he prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”
Acts 6:8-10; 7:54-59 (NRSV)
Beware of them, for they will hand you over to councils and flog you in their synagogues; and you will be dragged before governors and kings because of me, as a testimony to them and the Gentiles. When they hand you over, do not worry about how you are to speak or what you are to say; for what you are to say will be given to you at that time; for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death; and you will be hated by all because of my name. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.
Matthew 10:17-22 (NRSV)
Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, ‘They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.’ Then Peter and the other disciple set out and went towards the tomb. The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent down to look in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he did not go in. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the cloth that had been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed;
John 20:1-8 (NRSV)
We declare to you what was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— this life was revealed, and we have seen it and testify to it, and declare to you the eternal life that was with the Father and was revealed to us— we declare to you what we have seen and heard so that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. We are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.
1 John 1:1-4 (NRSV)
Message: Now John the Apostle was at the Crucifixion and was at the empty tomb believing in resurrection on the third day, but the Gospel of John makes no mention of the birth of Jesus in a narrative sort of way. So, it seems a little strange to honor John as part of the Christmas season. Maybe it is because he was thought by some to have been a virgin like Mary and chaste like Joseph. Regardless John was eager to share the words of life that reflected his experience of the incarnation of Christ. The amalgamation of the character orthodoxy attributes to being John demonstrates the nature of what it means to have Christ in us. God became one of us in order to meet us and the scripture in the Books of John and the letters attributed to John demonstrates what it means to extend the relationship back in a spiritual sort of way beyond the temporal and into eternity. So, for me it really does not matter whether we are dealing with one John or a half dozen of them. The message is meaningful and of value regardless of who authored the Gospel, the Book of Revelation, and the letters, for they were inspired by God. No, I am not suggesting we throw orthodoxy out the window, but I am suggesting that we are all potential heroes in the storyline and especially when we extend the relationship with God in service related to the promises of God. So, we do not have to elevate a person to greater significance to benefit from the message of the Glory of Christ. The method of entering into this relationship for Christ was leaving a glorious throne and becoming limited, for the Infinite became finite for a time. John unpacks this in a way to help us better grasp the mystery of it all. Also, today we in the scripture connect the message with the promise given to Abraham and his family of faith.
And So, we are to be examples of the members of the larger family of God and extend the Christmas story suggesting that our suffering in service too can become a signature of Christ’s presence in us in sharing the message of the season. You see there is a connection between serving with conviction and sacrificing our pride and privilege. Even years after the fact, Paul could not forget the face of Stephen as he sat on trial before the Sanhedrin. Joseph and Mary and Simeon and Anna were amazed in the presence of Jesus even as an infant. The message is about the incarnation of Christ in us and how it is birthed through service and how belief in the promise Glorifies God.
And So, Jesus Christ led by serving in faith of promise. So did Stephen. So did Simeon and Anna. Joseph and Mary as part of the Christmas story. And John did as well for his revelation is nothing short of the revolution of human religion through Jesus Christ that guides all conversions and transformation. So, attracting humanity to a relationship with God and experiencing God in the process is what it is all about. For the thing is that in this dark world, we need to shine for Jesus Christ. We need to get off our thrones and be humble in service of those who hunger for a relationship with the divine. And to do this we need to seek to be full of Christ’s faith fulfilled. We need to seek words of wisdom and faithfulness in the face of life, not being fair. We need to have a radiant relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ that extends to others in love. Friends, John has the distinction of being the disciple Jesus loved and to whom he entrusted the care of his mother. His commitment to Christ was unwavering, and his devotion was unending in the face of real opposition. We would do well to mimic him in a way. The great hope is that we would see Jesus and people see Jesus in us as a trusted friend and guide of how the incarnation is to instruct us. And the amazing thing is that in the imitation there is a hope in each of us that in life and in death our actions would count for something good. Like the great heroes of the Bible, we need to be filled with the Holy Spirit and the invisible working of God’s power manifested as we share the message of Christmas by being who God called us to be.
Pray on this the third day of Christmas that we continue to unwrap our spiritual gifts. Pray the Spirit of our conviction and devotion is palatable. Pray
that we have the confidence of believing we will someday be with Jesus. Pray we wait hopefully for the consolation and redemption of Christ. Pray even as we wait that we give ourselves to God to be used by God. Pray we serve in ministry to those vulnerable in need of support. Pray we are full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom and continue to grow in grace and in the promises of God. Pray we have a grace that extends beyond salvation to the gifts we have been given so we might accomplish great things for the kingdom of God. Pray we realize that those who present stumbling blocks to the work of Jesus are ignorant of what they do and need our prayers. Pray we learn to serve imitating the love of Christ with the faith of Christ given in the promises of God. Pray we look for the Hero within. Pray we focus on Jesus. Pray we have a generous heart for the poor and those in need. Pray we realize that the coming of Jesus is reflected in the needs of the poor. Pray we are focused on Jesus who knows when we need to take the next step. Pray we take the next step in faith not in fear. Pray we have enough courage to challenge the systems of the world. Pray we have the right spirit. Pray we have the heart of heroes of faith in service to the kingdom. Pray we help open the door to freedom by pointing others to the consolation and redemption found in the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Christ. Pray we learn about Christ through the lives of those closest to him so our faith might become stronger and our effectiveness in volunteering multiplied to God’s glory.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 