From the Pulpit ................................................................Pages

Immanuel!

Owner/Publisher: Rob Wood

It's the most wonderful time of the year... words from a popular Christmas song. It's true; it is a wonderful time to be with the people you love, hot chocolate, and just having fun with family and friends, a time of gift giving, turkey dinners, movies and just relaxing. It can also be very stressful for some people; maybe they live alone, or don't have money for gifts, never mind money for food.

Unfortunately during this time of year, alot of families are impacted this way... too much stress and not enough joy. Don't let satan steal your joy this Christmas; go to the Lord and let Him know what is going on in your life and tell Him why you are so stressed. Lay it all out for Him; ask Him to take it from you; He can help you through it.

As we grow, let's rely on Him more; let's learn to surrender a little more each day, each week, each month.

Sometimes, we don't actually realize what God is doing until later on. Then we see and understand, just like in this story, A

delayed Christmas Present.

A ten year old boy named Jeff wanted to buy his first ten speed bike, and he worked out a deal where his dad would help him buy it. Even though it was not a new bike, he was still excited to have a bike. He started to cut grass and shovel snow to make money, and his dad would put in the other half. He would pay his dad back in monthly payments for the next six months. He spent that summer and fall riding his bike everywhere. His sister, Liz, with her old five speed and a banana seat just couldn't keep up with his bike. He would ride all over town, even as far as the beach on some days.

It was just before Christmas and his deadline was coming up to pay back his dad. It really helped that they had a few snowstorms back to back so with his shoveling money, he had more than enough to pay it all back. Now Jeff was a very happy bike owner.

Christmas was finally here and they gathered by the tree to receive their presents. Jeff remembered receiving a portable record player, which was a blessing because he didn't have to share the family stereo anymore.

Then his dad called his sister Liz to the kitchen, "We have one more gift for you," he said to her as he opened the door that led to the garage.

God with Us!

There in front of her on the stairs, was a brand new ten speed Schwinn bike! All Jeff could think about at that very moment was he had to endure all the scraping of his shovel on driveways and pushing the lawnmower to cut grass in order to buy his used bike, and less than a week later, his sister had a brand new shiny bike.

He didn't want to feel ungrateful, but he was feeling a little hurt.

Jeff's sister with joy said to him, "Let's go for a ride, Jeff!" as their dad held the bike upright for her.

Jeff muttered to her, "It's too snowy to ride today."

After a few weeks had gone by, Jeff's dad asked him, "Is everything okay Jeff?" "It's not fair," he said. "I worked so hard for my bike, and it's not even new. Then Liz was given a brand new bike and she didn't have to do anything for her new

December 2021 Merry Christmas! Page 5

Immanuel!

bike."

His dad then just looked at him and smiled. He said, "She didn't have to do anything for it because it's not really for her." After he said that, he left the room.

Jeff stood there, thinking to himself, 'What did that mean? I don't want her bike, it had girls' bars that sloped to the frame, and had a big white basket in the front." He pondered that for a long time; eventually he simply got over it and moved on.

By the spring, Jeff and Liz were riding their bikes all over town together, now that she could finally keep up with him. They were the two youngest of seven children and they formed a bond that would last forever.

As Liz and Jeff grew up, they became very close, best of friends.They rode their bikes to the pond and went for a nice swim together. Afterwards, they would bike for seven miles to take free tennis lessons. They even ended up at the same college and graduated the same year.

It wasn't until many years later that Jeff finally realized what his dad meant. That brand new 10 speed bike was actually not a gift for his sister, Liz; it was a gift for him. His dad had given him the gift of his sister's company, the ability to become so close that they would stay together and never drift apart, even in the midst of adversity or stress of daily life. Jeff's dad gave him his best friend.

In a way, our lives can be just like Jeff's was; we pray for things that we think we need, or want. But when we don't receive them, we get upset. We get mad at times, don't we? But we don't see the whole picture; God sees everything and we don't. Jeff's dad is like our Heavenly Father. God knows and wants the best for us, so next time something doesn't work out the way we thought it should, thank God for looking out for us, and know that something way better is on its way, in God's perfect timing.

Speaking of the best gifts that have been given to us, how about the gift that God gave us on that night two thousand years ago in a town called Bethlehem...the birth of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ; they shall call Him Immanuel meaning, "God is with us." Matthew 1:22-23 says, "So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: "Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel, which is translated, "God with us."

What a perfect gift that is! Just think about it; Jesus was born to die on the cross for our sins.

He came as the light of the world. John 8:12 says, "Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, "I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of Life." And also, John 9:5 says, "As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world."

The day that we are celebrating is the birth of Jesus Christ. We are now in the Advent season, as it usually starts four weeks before Christmas and it finishes on Christmas Day. Advent which means "Arrival," refers to the arrival of Jesus Christ into the world.

Why is the birth of Jesus so important? Well, the reason is because over 2,000 years ago, God came down from heaven and became a human being without the sin nature. Jesus Christ was born God in the flesh, as John 1:14 says, "And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth."

A baby who was born in a manger could have come down as the powerful God that He is. But no; instead, God became a man in Jesus. This is called the "Incarnation", which is from the Latin meaning, 'in flesh.' This isn't a biblical word, but it is a biblical truth

Page 6 Merry Christmas! December 2021

Immanuel!

because Jesus is God who became flesh. The incarnation means that, while He remained God, Jesus also took on human nature. This means that the incarnation was the uniting part of the divine and human into one Person, because Jesus Christ was fully God and fully human. Why did Jesus come down to be among us?

The first reason why God came down was to give us a revelation of what God is really like. If you truly want to know God, then you don't have to look any further than Jesus. Without knowing Jesus, you cannot know God and without accepting Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you cannot gain eternal life. We need to focus more on Jesus by reading scripture. John 1:18 says, "No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him." Jesus Himself tells us about God's humanity. So we already know what God is like, as Jesus shows us and He says in John 14:9: "... Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father, so how can you say, 'Show us the Father'?" Colossians 1:15 tells us that, "He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation."

Secondly, when sin entered the world and Adam and Eve were kicked out of the Garden of Eden, God then brought in a concept of a substitute sacrifice. But the sacrifice of animals wasn't a long term answer because it couldn't take away the sin, much the same thing with an ordinary person; that person is simply not able to remove sin from anyone. What had to happen and what was needed was the perfect sacrifice to take away everyone's sin. This could only be accomplished by God coming down, becoming a human being, by being born as a baby. God was born in the flesh, and came down to be with us, so we could go up, to be with Him. This was God's plan, even before the beginning of time, to provide a way for us to be forgiven of our sins. Before we even existed, God the Father and the Word, who is Jesus Christ, were willing to pay the ultimate price - to have Jesus, the beloved Son of the Father, sacrificed in suffering and death as a substitute for our sins. In Titus 1:12, we read: "... the acknowledgment of the truth which accords with godliness, in hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began." Also, 1 Corinthians 2:7-8 says: "But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, which none of the rulers of this age knew, for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory."

Jesus Christ was born to die for us on the cross. All of the sins of the world were put on Him; He sacrificed Himself. Matthew 20:28 says, "Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many."

Jesus died and paid the penalty for us, for our sins. He died in our place, so that our sins would be covered by His blood.

Also, God became a man to fulfill the prophecies of the Old Testament. Luke 24:44 says, "Then He said to them, "These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me." When Jesus referred to the Law of Moses, the prophets and the Psalms, He was including all of the Old Testament prophesies of Him fulfilling God's promise by coming

December 2021 Merry Christmas! Page 7

Immanuel!

to this world. Jesus spoke to His disciples as He stood in their midst and said, "Peace to you," because He knew, that in that day, the disciples would have perceived Him as a spirit and it would be frightening to them. Luke 24:38 says, "Why are you troubled? And why do doubts arise in your hearts? Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have."

The fourth reason why God became a man was to identify with our weaknesses. God chose the least of cities to be born in (Bethlehem) for the birth place of His Son. Also, God chose the least in people (shepherds) as first witnesses of the birth of Jesus. Back in the day, shepherds were considered ceremonially unclean, because they had contact with Gentiles during financial transactions. Because of this uncleanliness, they were not allowed to enter the Temple to worship. This was all done so that God could show His love for us; not as a powerful God that He is, but as flesh and blood. He humbled Himself as a baby... God born in the flesh.

Jesus is God, always has been God and always will be God. Jesus gave up His position in heaven, before He came down to earth as a child. Philippians 2:5-7 says: "Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men." Hebrews 4:15 says, "For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin."

We can take all of our burdens and pains to our Lord in prayer because we know that He understands and relates to us because He experienced all of our temptations, even more so because He was tested in ways that we could not even comprehend. Jesus' name is 'Emmanuel', and it means 'God with us.' God is with us, He understands us. Apart from Christ, where do we go when we need help? There are times in our lives when we need grace and we will find it in Him. We can boldly go to Him in our time of need. He bore the marks of evil that we deserve so that we can be forgiven; He made Himself approachable, reachable and touchable.

Everything in the Old Testament on the first coming of Christ is true and accurate and is fulfilled in the New Testament. You can rest assured that everything you read in the Bible about the second coming of Christ is just as real and just as true. Jesus came, and Jesus will come again! The message of Christmas is that the Prince of Peace is knocking on your door, desiring to be your Lord and Savior. Won't you invite Him into your life today? From everyone here at Wood Ministries, we wish you a Merry Christmas!

WOOD Ministries

Publisher/Sales/Graphic Designer/Writer: Rob Wood

wood.ministries.2020@gmail.com Editor/Writer: Donna Wood

wood.ministries.2020@gmail.com Writer: Lynne Wood

wood.ministries.2020@gmail.com