MY PERSPECTIVE, Gary Damron
Over the past few weeks, we've looked at the promised Anointed One, Jesus the Messiah, who's called Christ. From the time of humans' fall into sin in the Garden of Eden, God promised Eve that her seed [a descendant] would bruise the head of Satan (Genesis 3:15). In previous articles, we've discussed how Jesus was God's Prophet, Priest, and King, and the anointed Messiah is all of these, wrapped into one person.
God chose Abraham's descendants, the Jews, as the people from whom the Messiah would come. Through persecution, destruction, captivity, and dispersion, they carried God's promise with them throughout the world. Rome, an oppressor of Jews and many others, provided the network of transportation and communication which spread the message of a God who delivers and is faithful. In addition, Greek culture, language and philosophy served to bring new understanding to an ancient faith.
At just the right time, in the fulness of time (Romans 5:6 and Galatians 4:4), God sent His Son, born as a baby in Bethlehem, to bring complete deliverance to all. For the world 2,000 years ago, that was just the right time, and we as Christians continue to celebrate His birth each December 25th.
A recent Wall Street Journal article stated, "Radio has the Christmas season all mixed up. The lyrics of holiday pop songs tend to be anticipatory rather than celebratory, which is why stations pull them on December 26." Perhaps Christians also have the season mixed up. Advent and preparations for Christmas begin around the first of December, but in reality He has already come.
For me, Christmas came at "just the right time" when I was 12 or 13 - in a church which met above a drugstore in a lodge hall - and it hasn't ended since. My Christmas preparations had begun much earlier, though, when I'd just turned 5 and our grandpa died. Grandma talked to me about heaven, and from then on I wondered about God and heaven. Though our family rarely went to church, He used events and people to get me to that place.
My parents bought a house and moved out of the East Bottoms in Kansas City, Missouri. A neighbor kid invited me to Vacation Bible School, and then a couple started coming to pick up my sisters and me each Sunday. Often they'd have to sit in the car and wait until we were ready. Sometime after that, my parents lost the only house they'd ever owned, and we moved to an old rental farmhouse. The previous church folks contacted people from the start-up congregation, and several showed up to help us move in.
After some months of attending services above the drugstore, I decided I wanted what those people had. Jesus was the answer, and the Christ of Christmas entered my life. I found what God meant when He said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you'" (Hebrews chapter 13:5). Jesus promised, "'I will be with you always'" (Matthew 28:20).
God is with us all the time through the Spirit promised by Jesus. "'I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth...'" (John 14:16-17). See also John 14:26, 15:26, and 16:7-15.
There were times since then that the presence of Jesus was especially evident. My junior year in college, I made some bad choices and found myself dropping out, not sure what to do. God spoke to me almost audibly, saying, "Go home". When I went back to my parents' home, they had moved, and a new Christian college had opened in the town where they were. One of my sisters had enrolled, and she suggested that I could begin at the spring semester.
There, I rediscovered my call to ministry, and met the girl who would be my wife for the past 55 years.
Sometimes when God is in the details, what seems to be "the worst of times" turns out to be "just the right time". He shows up in so many ways, giving us glimpses of Himself. Of course, He's been there all the time; we just need to look.
I've seen God in people, in church services, in music, in nature, and especially in scripture. The new hope that came with Jesus' birth is a living reality. With His resurrection comes a daily living presence, experienced through the Spirit of Christ, by any who ask.
So, what are we waiting for? An old song exclaims, "Jesus has come, and my cup overruns. O, say but I'm glad!" The most precious Christmas time for me is when we see that Jesus Christ, the Messiah, the Deliverer, has come. We can each rejoice in His presence and know that the Christ of Christmas is with us all the time.
For our mom, this happened when she was in her 80s. One December 25th, she was in the hospital. I bought her a small ceramic creche, read her the Christmas story, and told her that Jesus was the gift of God's love to save us. That day she accepted God's gift of His Son as her Savior - and once again God appeared at "just the right time". We're thankful that all good things come from Him.
