If you are like me, you might be feeling heavy-hearted about the future of our nation. The people of the United States are not the same kind of people they used to be. Socialized, government education, along with propaganda through the media and entertainment, have successfully brainwashed millions in the past two generations. We reached the tipping point in 2012, and now we are on the other side.
So there you are. One woman in one home. You might be wishing you could do something about it. Make a difference somehow. Start the ball rolling in a healthy direction. But HOW? And how are we supposed to process our sorrow, disappointment, and fear of what the future holds for our posterity?
I wonder if the key lies in Christmas.
Think about the world that the Son of God was born into. Israel was not a free nation. The people lived under an oppressive, power-hungry government. Creative, free, entrepreneurship was stifled. Taxes were high. Fear lived in every heart. Poverty was rampant. God was mocked. Immorality in every imaginable form was the norm. Hypocrisy, hatred, intolerance, wickedness, debauchery, deception, murder, arrogance and infidelity were as common and predictable as the sun rising and setting.
And into this cesspool of humanity…Jesus Christ, the Supreme Treasure of the Universe…was born. The Light of the world…a small, warm, flesh-bone-and-blood mass of BABY…pushed into a dark, chilled, torch-lit cave, and caught by the rough, calloused hands of a common carpenter.
God…
with us.
And the people were waiting for Him to come and set things RIGHT in the world. To clean up all the sin, get rid of the oppressors, bring prosperity and happiness to everyone. Set them FREE.
And He did. Just not in the way they were thinking.
As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:9)
His first order of business was to take the penalty for our sin upon Himself that we might be set free from sin and made right with God once again.
But don’t think He stopped there.
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this. (Isaiah 9:6-7)
Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name,so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:9-11)
Douglas Wilson comments on this passage in his new book, God Rest Ye Merry: Why Christmas is the Foundation for Everything: (Please note that the link takes you to the Kindle edition since the print edition is currently sold out on Amazon.)
The message of Christmas is politically incendiary, when you think about it, and it is not for nothing that secularist are trying to get us to forget Jesus with their C.E. (Common Era) and B.C.E. (Before Common Era), and seasonal conifers instead of Christmas trees. Nice try, but we aren’t buying any.
We were not given a Son who aspired to have the government be on His shoulder. The result of His coming was promised just as surely as His coming was, and the result was that the “government shall be upon His shoulder.” According to the prophet, this government will be established in fact (as it was two thousand years ago), and the growth and increase of that government will necessarily be inexorable. “Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end.” His government will not be manifested all at once because the prophecy describes it as needing to be ordered and established with judgement and justice. But this will happen, and we have the assurance that God is zealous to accomplish this. And so this is Christmas–a cornerstone in the building of a new humanity, a new heaven and a new earth.
And a bit more here:
This is why we as Christians have to learn that saying “merry Christmas” is an act of insurrection. How do we define our lives? More than this, how do we define our lives as a people? Far from retreating into a minimalist celebration or no celebration at all, we as Christians must take far greater advantage of the opportunity we have in all of this. Now the Lord Jesus is on His throne. And His government will continue to increase. But He works through instruments, and one of His central instruments for establishing His kingdom on earth is the faith of His people. Why is it that Christians shopping at Walmart are being reminded over the loudspeakers that, “He comes to make His blessings flow, far as the curse is found?” Why are they telling us this? It’s our religion. Why don’t we believe it? And if you believe it, then say merry Christmas to somebody.
I wonder if what God wants from us is quite simple. So simple we miss it. What if all that is needed…is to believe. To take God at His Word. To rest in His promises no matter how unbelievable they are?
And for the record, I’m not talking about “believing in our dreams,” or “what our hearts are saying,” or our warm, fuzzy feelings. Are you kidding? Insane people believe in their little imaginations. I’m talking about believing the Substantial, Objective Truths of the Word of the Creator of the universe. Now that’s something we can hang our hats on. And it is not insanity to believe the Creator. He’s omniscient, omnipotent, and omnipresent. It’s insane not to trust Him.
Without faith, it is impossible to please Him (Hebrews 11:6). So this Christmas, while we revel in the mystery that God would become a Wemmick, let’s bless His heart with our child-like faith…and believe that He is greater than little countries and little kings. Believe that He reigns. What is hidden will be revealed. Dying is living. To serve is to be great. Tiny seeds reap harvests. Darkness will one day give way to light. Prisoners will be set free.
Doug Wilson puts it this way:
It has always been like this. Our good God, our overflowing God, our God of yes and amen, has always been able to promise far more than we are able to believe. I am not here speaking of unbelief, or of hard hearts, which is another problem. I am speaking here of a true and sincere faith, a God-given faith, but one which is still infinite, and which God loves to bury under an avalanche of promises. We serve and worship the God who overwhelms, who delights to overwhelm. At His right hand are pleasures forevermore–a cascading waterfall of infinite pleasures, with no top, no bottom, no back, no front, and no sides. Nothing but infinite pleasure in motion, and every one of those pleasures is attached to His promises.
Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him. (I Cor. 2:9)
Trusting the awe-inspiring King with my fellow Wemmicks–this Christmas–and always,
About Wemmick Girl
Good word my friend.
I have been wanting to read this book, and here I get a review today! Thanks so much. I love the long quotes. Doug Wilson is thought-provoking and hope-giving.
This book is excellent. We are going through the short advent meditations at the end of the book this year after dinner. It is a book well worth owning.
Thank you so much for writing this. I needed to be reminded again. Our time here on earth is just the tiniest little speck when compared to all of eternity. Sometimes we get so worked up about little insignificant things that seem so huge at the time. Thanks for reminding me that God is much bigger, mightier, holier, and majestic than the temporary, daily struggles we face. What a comfort to remember that we can rest peacefully in His perfect will and trust completely in His plans for us. May God continue to bless you!
“Our time here on earth is just the tiniest little speck when compared to all of eternity.” AMEN! : )