Post by Alfred Dunholm on Dec 18, 2011 21:42:44 GMT
As I’m unlikely to be online on Christmas day itself, or indeed in any of the days immediately preceding or immediately after Christmas day, I thought I may as well post a brief Christmas message now while I’m thinking about it. The theme for this is going to be “What does Christmas mean in the modern world?” and I’ll make it as brief as possible as I’m somewhat convinced that no one will read it anyway .
The Christmas story is familiar to us all and there’s little need to go through it again, but I would like to focus in on one simple aspect of it, the name “Emmanuel” which is used to refer to Jesus. This phrase, Emmanuel, has a very simple meaning: God is with us. This is as pivotal to us in the present day as it was in that stable 2011 years ago when God came to be with us in physical form. By sending the Holy Spirit down at Pentecost God fulfilled the promise that he would be with us ever more, and indeed he is. So, if God is with us and was with us physically in the form of Jesus, what does that mean for us?
If God is with us we should be thankful, that He is with us and for the manifold gifts which he has bestowed upon even the least of us, we should be exhilarated to know that a being so powerful as God cares for us so warmly and watches us so closely, we should be compassionate and show that God is with us by our actions towards others, and finally we should be relieved that through all the trials of our life the Lord is with us, and therefore who can stand against us?
That, in brief, is the meaning of Christmas in the modern world: to be thankful, joyful, caring and filled with the inner peace that comes with the knowledge that God is with us. And therefore I would finish this brief post by wishing you all utmost happiness and joy this Christmas season, and may you be blessed with good health and happiness during the new year 2012 and always. Amen
The Christmas story is familiar to us all and there’s little need to go through it again, but I would like to focus in on one simple aspect of it, the name “Emmanuel” which is used to refer to Jesus. This phrase, Emmanuel, has a very simple meaning: God is with us. This is as pivotal to us in the present day as it was in that stable 2011 years ago when God came to be with us in physical form. By sending the Holy Spirit down at Pentecost God fulfilled the promise that he would be with us ever more, and indeed he is. So, if God is with us and was with us physically in the form of Jesus, what does that mean for us?
If God is with us we should be thankful, that He is with us and for the manifold gifts which he has bestowed upon even the least of us, we should be exhilarated to know that a being so powerful as God cares for us so warmly and watches us so closely, we should be compassionate and show that God is with us by our actions towards others, and finally we should be relieved that through all the trials of our life the Lord is with us, and therefore who can stand against us?
That, in brief, is the meaning of Christmas in the modern world: to be thankful, joyful, caring and filled with the inner peace that comes with the knowledge that God is with us. And therefore I would finish this brief post by wishing you all utmost happiness and joy this Christmas season, and may you be blessed with good health and happiness during the new year 2012 and always. Amen