Why do we celebrate Christmas?

What is the meaning of Christmas? And why do we celebrate Christmas? Most people would say, Christmas is the time when Jesus was born and we are celebrating His birth. Our Heavenly Father gave His only Son to us and we try to emulate that act of the Father when we give to others during the Christmas season.

Sadly, many of us, over the years, have overlooked the very reason why we celebrate Christmas. Since this is the season of giving, for some, they wait for Christmas only because they are expecting to receive gifts from family and friends. While others look at Christmas as an opportunity to make money!

This coming Christmas, may we pause for a while and contemplate why we are celebrating it, and that is the first coming of our Messiah! Giving should not be confined to material things only. Yes, Jesus was presented expensive and rare presents by the wise men who went and visited Him, but let us not also forget the “other” present given to Him that very day, and that was the love Mary and Joseph had for Him.

If we were the wise men and we are to give Jesus a present, what would we give Him? In John 13:34-35, Jesus Himself said, “A new command I give you: Love one another as I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

I believe, Jesus will be very happy if we give love to one another more than material things. I am not saying that we neglect the joy those people would feel when they receive material things from us as presents, but if Jesus is the reason to celebrate Christmas, then we should be able to see beyond the “price tags” of the things we will give or we will receive.

We can give love in so many ways: forgive those who hurt us, give to the orphans, visit those who are in prison, pay for the fare of somebody you do not know in a bus, among other things. If we expand our view of Christmas like this, then, we can truly say, Christmas is the time of giving, in its true meaning!

Isaiah 2:22

Isaiah 2:22 of the New International Version says “Stop trusting in mere humans, who have but a breath in their nostrils. Why hold them in esteem?”

When we put our trust in man, getting disappointed is inevitable. Man by nature is frail and cannot keep his promises at all times.

Because of this nature of man, we can’t help but sometimes get mad at one another and lose our joy. And God does not want these things happening. That is why, in the verse I’ve included above, God clearly said, we must not put our trust in man.

God is the only One faithful to His promises. All that is written in the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, concerning His promises to man have come to pass and will surely come to pass.

But God here didn’t mean not to completely trust in man, because how can we love one another (which is the second greatest commandment) if we don’t trust?

We can trust our spouse, family, friends, co-workers, neighbors, church-mates, and other people who are in any way we have something in relation to, to have a good foundation of whoever they are in our lives, BUT we cannot see them as our ultimate source of happiness, completeness, healing, provision and other things which God is able to give us. Why? Because they are mere men and they are subject to fail us.

This is also the reason why there are lots of verses in the Bible that talk about forgiveness. We ought to forgive when we fail to keep our promises, disappoint a loved one, or offend a church-mate.

We need to fix our eyes on God and put our 100% trust on Him because He does not fail us. He always fulfill His promises.

My Top Ten Christian Books

Like the Ice Bucket Challenge that is happening around, I was challenged by a friend to list down my top ten Christian Books.

In our modern society where people are preoccupied with so many things going on around, I see this challenge timely to be reminded us of the importance of reading and that how it can take us away from all the things that’s keeping us busy in life.

Not that I’m saying that those things aren’t good and important, but sometimes we tend to forget the “more” important things like feeding the spirit, mind, and soul. And reading good books is one way to do just that.

And so, I accepted the challenge of listing down my top ten Christian books. And here they are:

1. The Holy Bible
2. Thru His Eyes (By Pastor Paul Chase, Senior Pastor of Alabang NewLife Christian Center.)
3. Seeing Thru Heaven’s Eyes (By Leif Hetland)
4. Dug Down Deep (By Joshua Harris)
5. Under Cover (By John Bevere)
6. If satan Can’t Steal Your Joy, He Can’t Keep Your Goods (By Jerry Savelle)
7. The Discipline Of Intimacy (By Charlie Cleverly)
8. Ablaze For God (By Wesley L. Duewel)
9. Respectable Sins (By Jerry Bridges)
10. Supernatural Healing (By Sid Roth and Linda Josef)

Of course, there are other must read Christian books out there that are equally worth reading. To love God is to know Him more. And when we know Him more, the more He’s drawing nearer to us. This is when we begin to have an intimate relationship with Him.    

Do you have a list of your top ten Christian Books? Feel free to list them down in your comments.     

Pray. Believe. Act It Out!

When we need healing, we have to PRAY. BELIEVE, and ACT IT OUT.

“Pamela was diagnosed to be suffering from a debilitating disease. Her friends got together and prayed over her. Everybody was in agreement that Pamela got her healing.”

A few days later, Pamela posted on her FB that she was in pain and how tired she was being in such condition. That kind of posts went on. Some people could say it was normal for Pamela to be posting such comments. After all, that was how she was feeling then.

This reminded me of one of my fave praise songs, “Nothing Is Impossible”. There was a line there that goes, “I’m not gonna live by what I feel. I’m not gonna live by what I see.” I believe, as Christians, this should be our battle cry!

Please don’t see me as somewhat insensitive cause I assure you, I’m not. In fact, there are still times I’d be like Pamela. That’s why I am writing this to serve myself a reminder, too.

When we believe we are the healed of the Lord, then, we are! Even though the devil strikes back at us with the symptoms of the disease, that will not change the truth that by the stripes of Jesus, we are healed! He is only trying to lure us to believe that we are still sick! He’s trying to instill fear in our hearts!

If we entertain his tactics, by telling ourselves “am I really healed? Why do I still have the symptoms?” or by telling friends how terrible we feel, sooner than we thought, the illness that left our bodies, by faith in Jesus’ name, comes back! Why? We keep on thinking and “feeling” it.

But even if we don’t feel well, and friends ask us, “how are you feeling now?” and answer them “I am getting better every day, in Jesus’ name!” and we always wear a smile, the healing that Jesus purchased on the cross for us will cover completely whatever sickness the devil puts on us.

Here are some bible verses about healing that we can meditate on. Instead of saying “ouch!”, read these aloud!

 

Mark 11:23-24

(If I would)…say to this mountain, ‘you must immediately be removed and you must immediately be cast into the sea,’ and would not doubt in my heart but would believe that what I am saying is happening, it will be to me. I must continually pray for everything, then for whatever I am asking, I believe that I have taken it, and it will be there for me.

 

Romans 10:17

…my faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God. [When I hear myself speaking God’s Word my faith grows and I become a God pleaser].

 

Exodus 23:25-26

If I serve (Hebrew: “worship”) the Lord my God, He will bless my bread and my water. And He will take sickness away from the midst of me. He will fulfill the number of my days.

 

2 Corinthians 1:20

For all the promises of God in Him are yes, and in Him Amen (so be it)…

 

Isaiah 53:4-5

Surely He has borne my griefs (Hebrew: “pains”) And carried [away] my sorrows (Hebrew: “sicknesses”);…And by His stripes I am healed.

 

Psalm 1:1-3

I am Blessed because…my delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law do I meditate (ponder by talking to myself) day and night. I am like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever I do shall prosper.

 

Hebrews 11:1

Now faith is the assurance (the confirmation, the title deed) of the things [I] hope for, being the proof of things [I] do not see and the conviction of their reality [my faith perceives as real fact what is not revealed to my senses].

 

I just got out of a job! Must I continue to Worship Him?

“I just got out of a job! Must I continue to Worship Him?” This was my question when the call center company I used to work for closed its operations on December 2012. It was really a devastating moment, not only for me, but also for hundreds of employees of that company. That time also, I was involved in the praise and worship team of our church.

I remember, the first weekend after the closing down of the company, I was assigned to co-lead. In my heart of hearts, I really wanted to sing and worship because I had the revelation that God is good and that what I was going through, God is in full control.

But the anguish that I just got out of a job was so intense that I didn’t have the physical strength to stand and worship. And the enemy was rubbing it hard on me, “Why worship Him? The company closed down! You’re out of job!”

I still chose to worship God! I told the enemy, “sit back and watch how, despite of what I am going through right now, I’d still worship my King!” And so, I went up the platform and sing with the rest of the worship team.

In the middle of the worship, I was crying. Why? I don’t know. But I felt a release from that tormenting thought that I was out of a job. And after a while, I felt “great” peace in my heart. As if God was telling me, “Relax, son. I have you in the palm of my hand. I love you! I will never leave you nor forsake you! I’ve got something better for you!”

And true enough, after a while, opportunities started to come my way. And these opportunities allowed me to continue on serving Him while earning a decent pay.

Worship is one way for the believers to express how worthy God is. From the root word, worthy, we got the word worship. Worship can be done individually, when you’re alone in your room, or in a corporate setting, i.e. during Sunday services.

We worship God because He is worthy! It can’t get any simpler than that! When we have the revelation how good our God is, worship becomes our response to that goodness. God wants us to have an intimate relationship with Him and in worship, we are doing just that. We put ourselves in a place where the Spirit of the Lord allows us to feel His tangible presence. That’s why, He wants us to worship Him.

But are we to worship Him only in good times? How about when we are in the midst of trials? Can we still worship Him?

When other people see us worship God in the midst of trials, He gets glorified! Why? Because only by His grace can we lift up our hands in praise even if we’re hurting inside. We cannot do it by our own might.

So, if you are in the same situation I was at before and you are kind of like saying, I just got out of a job! Must I continue to Worship Him? Oh yes! Absolutely!

 

God’s Unmerited Favor

When God’s unmerited favor is upon you, it simply means you are favored by Him even though you think, you do not deserve it. You might say, “but how is it possible that He will favor me when I did something wrong last week?” My friend, that is exactly what grace is all about.

When Jesus Christ died on the cross 2000 years ago, He took away with His death all your past, present, and future sins. His most precious blood continues to wash them away!

When you accepted Jesus to come into your life and made Him your personal Lord and Savior, He represents you to the Father. When the Father looks at you, He sees Jesus and not you anymore. Jesus is now your very own High Priest and He is bigger than any sins you could ever commit or think of.

Does that mean that you will continue on sinning? Absolutely not! Although your salvation is already secured by Jesus’ finished work on the cross, you have to remember that in the natural, every sin has a consequence.

What do I mean by this? Say for example, you robbed a bank and you got caught by the police. One thing is for sure – you are going to the jail! But your salvation? Yes, it is still there. You are still saved!      

When you live a life that is pleasing to God, you live victoriously! His unmerited favor becomes so alive in every aspect of your life. You enjoy it more cause you know how to give importance to it – by pleasing God. Not to repay Him for the grace He has given you, but pleasing Him is now your response to that unmerited favor.  

Something that is given to you freely, there’s no need for you to pay! Just receive it!