The Christmas season comes with all it s busyness. We can get so caught up in it that we forget the real meaning, the birth of Jesus Christ, our Savior. May times we sing Christmas carols without realizing just what the words are saying. They have been sung so many times that the meaning is lost to us.

This year, as we were discussing Christmas, we thought about the fact that “Silent Night” speaks much to us in the truth of who Jesus really is! “All is Calm, All is Bright”…..this was a night unlike any other night or any other event ever to come to Earth!! Calmness ruled the stars that night as they lit up the night sky . The KING IS BORN, HOLY INFANT SO TENDER AND MILD…..SLEPT IN TRUE HEAVENLY PEACE!

God the Father looked down from Heaven and saw HIS SON sleeping ! HIS MISSION HAD BEGUN that SILENT NIGHT!!

“Shepherds quake at the sight”….tells of the fear of God causing real trembling of the shepherds in the fields! At the sight of Heaven’s glory coming down which is described in Luke chapter 2. When a true move of God comes…there is an accompanying “Fear of God”….because God’s Glory is truly AWESOME and the REVERENTIAL FEAR OF THE LORD comes with it. Can you imagine simple lowly shepherds keeping their watch over their flock in the fields…when SUDDENLY…a TRUE ANGEL of the LORD APPEARS TO THEM and brings them an awesome message from Heaven’s Throne as they all stand bathed in the GLORY OF GOD!! Of course they were “Greatly afraid” as the scripture says. We would be too! But the Angel says to them “DO NOT BE AFRAID for I BRING YOU GOOD TIDINGS OF GREAT JOY WHICH WILL BE TO ALL PEOPLE….for THERE IS BORN TO YOU THIS DAY IN THE CITY OF DAVID A SAVIOR WHO IS CHRIST THE LORD.” God in His Awesome wisdom did not reveal this fact to the GREAT, the MIGHTY, the PRINCES and the KINGS: He revealed this fact to LOWLY SHEPHERDS who were ABIDING IN THE FIELDS!!! There they were: simple folk doing their simple tasks, just abiding ….there…..being faithful and true, holding down a job in caring for the sheep and SUDDENLY…there appeared the ANGEL OF THE LORD!!! JUST AS SUDDENLY there was an entire HEAVENLY HOSTS OF ANGELS PRAISING GOD AND SAYING “GLORY TO GOD IN THE HIGHEST…AND ON EARTH, PEACE AND GOODWILL TOWARD MEN!!!” That was a real CHOIR , FRIENDS!!! That was a REAL PRAISE AND WORSHIP TEAM!!! …the HEAVENLY HOST of ANGELS RECOGNIZED THIS AWESOME MOMENT…THE MOMENT OF THE BIRTH OF CHRIST JESUS, THE SAVIOR OF THE WORLD SENT FROM THE FATHER IN HEAVEN!!!

This, then, is the true MESSAGE of CHRISTMAS!!!…Not only of Christmas, but of all the AGES!!! This is a message that should be spoken of and talked about not only one month out of the year, but ALL YEAR LONG: so THAT we understand that JESUS CHRIST UNDERSTOOD what we are like…because HE BECAME ONE OF US!!! God the FATHER…scripture says, “SO LOVED THE WORLD” (that’s all of us, friends)…..that HE GAVE HIS ONLY BEGOTTEN SON….that WE MIGHT NOT PERISH BUT HAVE ETERNAL LIFE!!!”

I am here to tell you today there is NO ETERNAL LIFE outside of GOD’S SON, JESUS!….We must recognize this fact, and Honor Him as the Son of God, as WHO IS WAS AND WHO HE IS AND WHO HE IS TO COME!!! He is no different today than He was then….He is STILL the REASON FOR THE PRAISE AND WORSHIP!!! HE IS THE ONLY REASON FOR OUR WORSHIP!!! Worship is not about people, or instruments, or songs….it is about JESUS and WHO HE IS!!!!

The ANGELIC HOSTS taught us that ….on the FIRST CHRISTMAS NIGHT!!!

And so it was: the most Wonderful Christmas Story EVER TOLD!!! Christmas is not about “THE KRANKS” or “POLAR EXPRESS” or even “HOME ALONE” !!! Christmas is not about parties and presents and who has the most beautiful tree with ornaments!!! It is a wonderful thing to give gifts to those we love if they come from a true heart of love….but Christmas is about the ONE TRUE AND EVERLASTING GIFT: JESUS!!! A BABE, HOLY AND PURE…BORN OF A VIRGIN LYING IN A MANGER!!! A BABE, A HOLY BABE….who grew up to be the ONE WHO DIED AND ROSE AGAIN to save us from our sins, according to the prophetic scriptures given many years before!!! It all came to pass 2000 years ago in a manger in Bethlehem….and the prophetic scripture will all come to pass once again today….for the RETURN OF JESUS CHRIST to EARTH to claim HIS BRIDE!!!…THE BELIEVERS that WILL FOLLOW HIM, WORSHIP HIM, and LIVE TO DO HIS WILL!

YES!!! JESUS WILL RETURN TO EARTH!!! TO CLAIM HIS PEOPLE!!!

“SON OF GOD!! LOVE’S PURE LIGHT!….RADIANT BEAMS FROM THY HOLY FACE…..the DAWN OF REDEEMING GRACE!!”….Truly the Dawn of redeeming GRACE had come to mankind! JESUS LORD AT THY BIRTH!

GOD CAME DOWN TO SAVE HIS CREATION and here we are over 2000 years later….some of us still walking around in the shadows wondering who our GOD should be!

Some of us have made our OWN GODS….for some of us, our GOD is $$$$ money! For some of us, our GOD is OUR CHILDREN. For some of us our GOD is our RELIGION AND OUR CHURCH! For some of us our God is OUR PASTOR……and for some of us our GOD is Our SELF!…..

JESUS CHRIST MADE A WAY FOR EVERY SOUL TO KNOW ETERNAL SALVATION. IF WE DON’T GO HIS WAY AND FOLLOW HIM ONLY IT IS A SIGN THAT WE HAVE INVENTED OUR OWN GOD…because JESUS SAID “I AM THE WAY”.

II Corinthians 6 says “For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the Glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” Jesus came to Earth to save us but also to show us the LOVE and MERCY and FORGIVING GRACE of HIS FATHER GOD. Jesus came and His very body was a MAP to HEAVEN for us. He said that believing in Him brings us to receiving life and life eternal with Him. This is a life that through our acknowledgment and belief in Him….we come into Eternal Fellowship with Almighty God and are brought into His Everlasting Covenant of Faith…..where we stand before Holy Angels and are part of the Family of God!!!

It is not enough to attend a church or even to do lip service to God. We must “believe in our hearts and confess with our mouths “ that Jesus Christ is Lord….and we MUST FOLLOW HIM!!!! We must OBEY Him and acknowledge that HE IS THE WAY. Without Jesus, we can do nothing…He is the Author and the Finisher of our Faith.

He is the only WAY. He is the TRUTH. He is the LIFE. He is the LIGHT SHINING IN THE DARKNESS!!

New Years Eve we attended a wonderful home church service . In this service was a small dog who got our attention. The small dog wanted so much to be a part of EVERYTHING that was going on. When people sat at the table for refreshments, the small dog hopped into the nearest chair and placed his paws on the table as if to say, “I’m part of this dinner too! What about ME?” When we all listened to the New Years Sermon, the small dog sat in one of the chairs near me. He sat at attention and seemed to be hanging on every word….God’s Word says “Let Everything that HAS BREATH praise the LORD!” If even an animal like a dog is DRAWN to the fellowship of God….I wonder if these animals sometimes have more sense that human beings?

It is said that when the Tsunami hit in Asia, no animal carcasses were found dead!! Even the great elephants that should have been hit with the high waves and the other animals had somehow FLED the SCENE!!!! These animals were not killed!!!

I don’t know about you, but there is something that smacks of the Fear of God in these things. Animals have SENSED something that humans are NOT SENSING: we should ask God to give US warnings even like He has given dumb animals!!! Perhaps God can use animals to help us to come to our senses!! He used a dumb donkey once to talk to a foolish man who had lost his way!

May we begin to realize the truths that God is giving us for these days. We are entering into difficult times in this world. Let us keep in our hearts and hold sacred that one SILENT NIGHT many years ago when an event took place that shook Heaven and Earth!!

A child was born who was Christ the Lord.!!! One day that “child” who was born will return to RULE and REIGN in the Earth!! A child no longer, but the grown and mature SON OF GOD will come to RULE AND REIGN.

It is time to come to a knowledge of a personal savior. It is time to draw near to the heart of Jesus Christ, not only to recognize Him briefly in the passing of Christmas, but to come into the fellowship of WHO HE IS on a daily basis. It is time for US to mature and to understand and to realize what it means to FOLLOW JESUS NOW.

There is no other way.

That Silent Night will not come again.

The next time Jesus comes, it will not be in a meek or silent way. He will “SPLIT the EASTERN SKY”…..and EVERY KNEE SHALL BOW and EVERY TONGUE SHALL CONFESS THAT JESUS CHRIST IS LORD….

By then it will be too late for some.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, we pray that those who have BYPASSED the true meaning of Christmas will bow their hearts to you in this new year. We pray that those who have fashioned and created Other Gods before you would come to a place of repentance and have their souls and spirits renewed before you. We pray that the year 2005 for all its goodness and for all its difficulties will see a new Reverence for the Spirit of God and for the Truth of WHO JESUS IS in the world today. We pray that barriers of resistance will be brought down and broken forever, that stumbling blocks would be removed from your people and they would be able to see clearly now the path you have for each of them.

We pray for clarity and definition in the year ahead, for your will to be done, and for the souls of thousands to be touched by the truth of your salvation and the truth of how real your forgiveness and love really is.

Let us remember that Silent Night….and let our hearts keep your Name Holy throughout the year, in Jesus we pray., Amen.

Article is copyrighted by Sondra Stallman.
May not reprint without permission from author.