Zealous

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 (ESV)

I love this verse. When I read it I can hear choirs singing “Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” And I remember all the ways that Jesus is those things. How he is wonderful in my life; my Counselor, Mighty God. All of it.

As I kept reading, I realized I needed to add another description. Zealous.

The last line of verse 7 reads “The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.”

According to Merriam Webster, zeal implies energetic and unflagging pursuit of an aim or devotion to a cause. Think about that for a minute.

God, your God, loves you with so much passion, so much devotion that he pursues you with zeal. And then take that a step further. The entire Christmas story, everything in the Bible, everything in our lives is about God’s zeal for each one of us. His passion for us, His love for us – It’s all to get us into relationship with him.

God was so zealous for us that he offered up and sacrificed His Son so we would see how great His heart is toward us. There is no love like this. None. He uses everything in your life as a means to speak to you. I love the words ‘unflagging pursuit’. There is no pause. There is no hesitation. Only a consistent, never ending, never waning desire to be in a love relationship with you. He will do whatever it takes. It started at the beginning and will continue until Jesus comes.

That is the best Christmas present ever.

A Minute In It - This Changes Everything

A minute in God’s Word will change your life. Take a moment to read the text below and then answer the questions at the bottom of the post.

4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them. Luke 2:4-7 (NIV)

Why do you think Jesus came as a baby?
What would be the impact if he had come as a grown man instead?
How would you see him differently?
What does his life, born as a baby, signify to you?
How does this change your relationship with him?

Not As I Expected

You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. Jeremiah 29:13 (ESV)

In the Christmas Story in the Bible, there are lots of characters. We tend to focus on the main actors like Mary and Joseph, the Wise Men, the Shepherds. But we don’t look too much at the other players.

Take for example, the Wise Men. When they went into Jerusalem, they were asking everyone where Jesus was. No one even knew he was there. He was not on their radar. Even the Scribes and Pharisees who had the Scriptures memorized missed his arrival.

And then there were the Shepherds. They were the lowest in society yet the Angels appeared to them and pointed them to Jesus. They went, found him and then went all around telling everyone that he was there. But the Bible doesn’t say there was an onslaught of people rushing to see him. There didn’t seem to even be a blip on the radar.

Why were the Shepherds, totally uneducated and unrefined, and the Wise Men, foreigners and non-believers, able to find him? Why did God chose to reveal his Son to these?

I wonder if it is because they were open to receiving him, even if he didn’t look like what they thought he would. The people of Israel were looking for a conqueror. When Jesus showed up as a baby, they dismissed him because he didn’t fit their preconceived ideas. They were not willing to accept him for who he was. He didn’t fit in their box.

Makes me wonder. Am I doing what they did? Do I miss Jesus when he shows up because I was looking for something else? Do I lose sight of what he is trying to do in my life because I am so focused on what I think should happen and am not on where he is working?

I don’t want to be like the other characters in this story. I want to seek him. I want to see him however he decides to show up in my life. I want to be completely bold and go out on a limb to follow him even if it looks different than I think it should.

How about you? Will you join me?

A Minute In It - What Are You Doing With The Good News?

A minute in God's word will change your life. Take a minute to read the passage below. Then, ask yourself the questions at the bottom of the post. 

There were sheepherders camping in the neighborhood. They had set night watches over their sheep. Suddenly, God’s angel stood among them and God’s glory blazed around them. They were terrified. The angel said, “Don’t be afraid. I’m here to announce a great and joyful event that is meant for everybody, worldwide: A Savior has just been born in David’s town, a Savior who is Messiah and Master. This is what you’re to look for: a baby wrapped in a blanket and lying in a manger.”
At once the angel was joined by a huge angelic choir singing God’s praises:
Glory to God in the heavenly heights,
Peace to all men and women on earth who please him.
As the angel choir withdrew into heaven, the sheepherders talked it over. “Let’s get over to Bethlehem as fast as we can and see for ourselves what God has revealed to us.” They left, running, and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in the manger. Seeing was believing. They told everyone they met what the angels had said about this child. All who heard the sheepherders were impressed.
Mary kept all these things to herself, holding them dear, deep within herself. The sheepherders returned and let loose, glorifying and praising God for everything they had heard and seen. It turned out exactly the way they’d been told! Luke 2:1-20 (MSG)

Shepherds were considered to be the lowest of the social hierarchy of society. Why did God appear to them?
Why were they afraid of the angel?
If you were a shepherd, what thoughts would be running through your head as the angels sang?
After they saw the Baby Jesus, what did they do before they returned to their flocks?
If God revealed something miraculous to you, would you share it like the Shepherds did?
Wait! He did! He's told us about Jesus and the Cross! Who are you sharing that with?

With You All The Way

The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel (which means ‘God is with us’). Isaiah 7:14 (NLT)

God with us. He came right smack dab in the middle of our messy world. That's where Jesus decided to show up.

Jesus wasn't just a God that was for us. Being for something isn't the same thing as being with it. I can be for our troops but until I show up with our troops, fighting on the front line, well, I'm just an observer. Jesus was not just an observer. He was an active participant.

He still is. Jesus is still here, in the thick of it. He is still right smack dab in the middle of our messy lives. He is still active. He is still participating. And this Christmas season, I praise Him for that!

And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins. Matthew 1:21 (NLT)