One MCS ¢
TRAC Highlights
The Rev Dr Gordon Wong was re-elected President of Trinity Annual Conference (TRAC) in 2016 for a second quadrennial term, but is primarily grateful to God for the gift of his wife Lai Foon and two children Deborah and Jeremy.
The reason for the season “She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” Matt 1:21, NIV
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hristmas commemorates the birth of a Child who is given the name Jesus.
This name offers one reason why Christians celebrate Christmas. (Other verses provide us with a second name, Immanuel, and a second reason for the Christmas season. But here we return to the first name.) Matthew says that the Christ Child is named Jesus “because he will save his people from their sins”. The name Jesus is derived from a common Hebrew name that means “salvation.” This is one reason we celebrate the season of Christmas. The name Jesus is a promise of salvation from sin. Sin? Nobody likes to talk (or read) about “sin”, and especially not in a merry Christmas issue! So I’ll be brief. The Bible presents the promise of salvation from sins as very merry (good) news. That is something we should all be happy to hear (or read about). We live in a world plagued by the problem of sins. It is a world where babies are abandoned in rubbish dumps; widows are scammed of their life savings; parents abuse their own children; the elderly die alone; churches and mosques are burned down; social workers are raped or killed. This is what the Bible describes as the problem of sin. If you don’t like the word, call it something else: evil; human failing; moral ineptitude; inhuman behaviour. But whatever we call it, we mustn’t pretend it doesn’t exist. Sin destroys our families, our friends, our serenity and safety. Sin is a serious problem for all of us. And this is why the promise of Christmas is good news for all of us. It is Joy to the World, not just Joy to Christians. Sin is a problem for the whole world, not just Christians. The Child born at Christmas is named Jesus, a promise that all of us can be saved from the sins that destroy us. Who amongst us wouldn’t want welcome such a hope and promise of salvation? And that is merry good news indeed.
METHODIST MESSAGE DECEMBER 2020
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