When I was a child, a long time ago, my family would gather to watch Little House on the Prairie. This TV show aired from 1974 until 1983. I can’t imagine Hollywood creating something like that today, nor do I think that our culture would value it. This series was based on a series of children’s books written by Laura Ingalls Wilder. She wrote the series from her childhood experience living in Pepin, Wisconsin and several family transitions to Kansas, Iowa, Minnesota, and South Dakota. Did you know that she published her series when she was sixty-five years old?

I’ll admit, at fifty-three, her age doesn’t seem that far off. Some reading this might think that sixty-five is young. Our passage this week lists two people, Simeon and Anna, who were in their later years. Both were devout people who communed deeply with the Lord. Both had experienced a lot of life and were blessed to see God’s Christ. Join us as we consider the first Christmas of these wise, faithful people.

Have you ever heard of Thomas Obadiah Chisholm? Probably not. He was born in 1866 in a log cabin near Franklin, Kentucky and grew up on his family’s farm. At sixteen he began teaching in the one room schoolhouse. He came to faith at twenty-six and worked for a religious newspaper in Louisville, KY. At thirty-six he entered the ministry, pastoring a small church in Scottsville, KY for just a year. He resigned due to failing health, moving back to the family farm.  He spent the rest of his life as an insurance agent living in New Jersey. You might not know his story, but you know his work because he wrote Great is Thy Faithfulness.

In explaining the song, he writes, “My income has not been large at any time due to impaired health. But I must not fail to record here the unfailing faithfulness of a covenant-keeping God, and that He has given me many wonderful displays of his providing care, for which I am filled with astonishing gratefulness.”

It’s stories like Chisholm’s and our text this Sunday that demonstrate God’s delight in using humble, unknown people to do his work. Join us as we consider Joseph and Mary’s first Christmas.

C.S. Lewis was asked for his response to the creation of the Atomic Bomb. Fear had gripped the world at this invention. Here is an excerpt from his response:

If we are all going to be destroyed by an atomic bomb, let that bomb, when it comes, find us doing sensible and human things—praying, working, teaching, reading, listening to music, bathing the children, playing tennis, chatting to our friends over a pint and a game of darts—not huddled together like frightened sheep and thinking about bombs. They may break our bodies, but they need not dominate our minds…Let the bomb find you doing well.

This reminds me of Psalm 11:3,4: “if the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do? The Lord is in his holy temple; the Lord’s throne is in heaven.”

For the faithful believers, people like Zechariah and Elizabeth, experiencing their first Christmas, God’s sovereignty guided their response to perilous times. Luke opens with an ominous line, “In the days of Herod, king of Judea.” That sets the context for the narrative. What do we learn? The angel of God comes and says, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and bring you this good news” (Luke 1:19). Gabriel finds God’s people faithfully serving and worshipping Him. But more than that, it tells us that God is sovereign over His creation, leading us through perilous times. Join us Sunday as we consider the experience of the first Christmas and worship our Sovereign Lord.

The election is over, but I think I might need some therapy. Between the over-the-top rhetoric from both sides about America ending if their opponent won and the fear these statements generated in people I love, I’m glad it’s over. Unfortunately, now the sides are forming ranks as those in power seem determined to continue the fight. In my fifty-three years, I’ve not known it to be different. It’s at times like these that I’m thankful for Psalm 2. The Psalmist says, “He who sits in the heavens laughs…I have set my King on Zion, my holy hill…Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son…Blessed are all who take refuge in him.” 

As we begin our Christmas series, Experiencing the First Christmas, we’ll go a bit deeper into the story and examine the experiences of the participants in the first Christmas. This week, we’ll consider the politicians of the first Christmas: Caesar Augustus (Octavian), Quirinius (Governor of Syria), and Herod (King of the Jews). All their political power, plots, and maneuvering against the Lord and His Anointed, played right into God’s sovereign decrees. Join us as we worship the One who sits in the heavens and his Anointed Son.

In one of my favorite movies, What about Bob, the psychotic Bob, played by Billy Murray, is extoling the wisdom and skill of his psychiatrist, Dr. Leo Marvin, played by Richard Dreyfuss. In a classic line, Bob says, “We can't be expected to understand him. He is so far above us. We are like ropes on the Goodyear Blimp.”

Likewise, the Apostle Paul ends his teaching on justification by faith through grace with a stunning doxology! He erupts into praise, proclaiming the distance between God and mankind in wisdom, knowledge, judgments, and ways. God does not submit his plans to us for approval, nor has anyone given or done so much for Him that parity is established or a debt created. All things come from, pass through, and return to God! Truly God alone deserves our worship, service, and praise. Join us Sunday as we consider this doxology and declare His glory.

Mutual disdain springing from mutual self-righteous pride characterizes the conflict between Jew and Gentile believers in the Roman church. Seems like an episode of Dr. Phil where a couple of brothers are complaining about each other. One brother complains that his brother doesn’t value the family, isn’t following the rules, and yet still gets the parents’ favor. The other brother resents the accusations because he loves his parents, doesn’t care about the inheritance, and says his brother is just using his parents. Dr. Phil asks his infamous question, “How’s that working out for you?” 

What do these brothers need to hear? What will enable them to love each other and pursue family unity?  Join us Sunday as we answer these questions and worship our Savior!

Sunday, I framed our text in the story of the prodigal son, Luke 15:11-32. The younger son went away but came back and was welcomed by the father. The older brother was jealous that the wayward son was graciously welcomed back and responded to him with disdain. But now a temptation exists for the prodigal son: how will he respond to his older brother’s disdain? Join us Sunday as we consider the response of the graced!

Elon Musk is giving away one million dollars each day to swing state voters who sign a petition to support the First Amendment. Why haven’t you signed that petition? If you did, what would you think if you don’t win? Would you conclude that Elon wasn’t faithful to his promise? What if your sibling won and you didn’t? Is Elon fair?  

Sunday, Paul will address Israel’s rejection of God’s offer of grace. Was God faithful to his people? God has made the same offer to the nations. Is he fair? What teaching of the Scripture helps us answer these questions? Join us as we consider God’s sovereign grace and worship His Christ.

America runs on Dunkin! Have you seen that commercial? I’m not a big fan of Dunkin (at least that’s what I tell my doctor), but their point is that their coffee (and doughnuts) fuel America. What fuels the heart of God? Is it our obedience? Is it our service? Is it our success? Our performance? Our counter-cultural lifestyle? What if we have misunderstood God? What if we’ve recreated him after our own image? Join us Sunday as we consider that God runs on grace!

In Romans 10:14-17, the Apostle Paul summarizes the heart of the Great Commission, the call for the Church to spread the Gospel message to all the world. As we reflect on these verses, we are reminded that the Good News of Jesus Christ does not spread without us, His people, actively participating in proclaiming it. Paul asks a series of rhetorical questions that highlight the logical necessity of Gospel ministry: How can people believe in Christ if they have never heard of Him? And how can they hear unless someone tells them?