The human race cannot have any hope without Christmas. We let Satan draw us into mutiny against God and we never saw it coming. Satan orchestrated the whole thing; the door was opened to sin and all of creation was poisoned. And the crazy thing is that Satan uses pretty much the same process that he did in Genesis 3. There a serpent comes to the Garden of Eden where Adam and Eve reside. It is just perfect…the only thing is that they are not to eat from the one tree in the middle of the garden…the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Because when that knowledge becomes a part of our knowledge…we lose our innocence. Satan, through the serpent, tells Eve three things in convincing her that to disobey God is no big deal. He first challenge God’ Word. He pressures Eve with the statement “Did God really say that you weren’t supposed to eat of that fruit? Challenging what God has already said…all kinds of people buy into that today.
And then Eve tells the serpent that if they eat of this fruit…they will die. Satan says “You won’t die…God is righteous…he isn’t going to let you die from disobedience. He challenges God’s righteousness. And then Satan, through this serpent, says God knows your eyes will be opened…and you will be like God…knowing both good and evil. That is the bottom-line dream…to not serve God, but to be God! It is a challenge to God’s holiness. Pretty much all temptation comes from that same sequence. We are tempted to challenge God’s Word, challenge God’s righteousness and then challenge our position as creations of God… living as though we are in charge of the world. And the crazy thing about temptation is that we can only be tempted by things that are attractive to us. But the next step from temptation is to sin…to disobey God…and when we do that, we
have crossed from being enticed by things our heart is attracted by…and then we sin. And the Bible reminds us that the wages of sin…is death. Physical and spiritual death. And the rescue plan for anyone willing to get in the boat is Christmas. God becomes flesh and dwells among us and pays for our sins and all we have to do is to receive it. But people are tempted, in just this same sequence, to walk away. Christmas is God’s answer to our desperate situation. And like the Christmas carol proclaims, the hope and fears of all the years are met in him tonight. Merry Christmas! Here’s our Bible verse for today...
James 1:13-15 NLT And remember, when you are being tempted, do not say, “God is tempting me.” God is never tempted to do wrong, and he never tempts anyone else. (14) Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. (15) These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death.
Remember I’m praying for you…
PJ
And then Eve tells the serpent that if they eat of this fruit…they will die. Satan says “You won’t die…God is righteous…he isn’t going to let you die from disobedience. He challenges God’s righteousness. And then Satan, through this serpent, says God knows your eyes will be opened…and you will be like God…knowing both good and evil. That is the bottom-line dream…to not serve God, but to be God! It is a challenge to God’s holiness. Pretty much all temptation comes from that same sequence. We are tempted to challenge God’s Word, challenge God’s righteousness and then challenge our position as creations of God… living as though we are in charge of the world. And the crazy thing about temptation is that we can only be tempted by things that are attractive to us. But the next step from temptation is to sin…to disobey God…and when we do that, we
have crossed from being enticed by things our heart is attracted by…and then we sin. And the Bible reminds us that the wages of sin…is death. Physical and spiritual death. And the rescue plan for anyone willing to get in the boat is Christmas. God becomes flesh and dwells among us and pays for our sins and all we have to do is to receive it. But people are tempted, in just this same sequence, to walk away. Christmas is God’s answer to our desperate situation. And like the Christmas carol proclaims, the hope and fears of all the years are met in him tonight. Merry Christmas! Here’s our Bible verse for today...
James 1:13-15 NLT And remember, when you are being tempted, do not say, “God is tempting me.” God is never tempted to do wrong, and he never tempts anyone else. (14) Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. (15) These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death.
Remember I’m praying for you…
PJ