Today @ The Gathering we dealt with the message “The Day God Screamed, ‘Lighten Up!’” The subtitle of this talk was “God came so that where there is night, there is light.”
We were encouraged today to “Lighten up.” Christmas means that light has come and the darkness can never put it out. No matter how bad things become, the light will prevail. God will prevail. This enduring rumor of hope called the gospel of Jesus Christ has been and will continue to be the light of the world as we move into the future.
If you read the headlines and listen to people about how we’re descending into moral, ethical, political, and national chaos, you might tend to believe that God is somehow finished with us. Either He is so disgusted with what we’ve done with His world that He is simply going to let us destroy ourselves, or He is incapable, or worse yet, He doesn’t care.
It is the message of Christmas that says God has invaded our world, never to leave. The light has come. Jesus said, “I am the light of the world. Those who follow me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” What a promise that Christmas makes!
We talked about the two myths of Christmas: Christmas is just for children. It is G-rated. And secondly, Christmas is just for decorating or for covering up. Neither of which is true. Christmas isn’t just a nice holiday about a baby in a manger, or a fat man in red clothes, or excuses to buy presents or to take off work.
This is really serious business. This is high-drama. This is life on the edge at its best. The ultimate insider – God – coming to be born as an ultimate outsider; outside the city, outside of culture, outside of privilege; no royal robes or castles, no armies, no overt exerting of power, no bombs bursting, no dead bodies strewn across in His Kingdom. It is a Kingdom of love.
This was a powerful and important message given today and would really be a great time to subscribe to the podcast so you can receive these weekly talks that we experience at The Gathering, delivered straight to your computer and downloaded to your iPod.
We were also reminded of our Christmas Eve services tomorrow night at 4:00 and 6:00 at The Embassy Suites Cool Springs 820 Crescent Centre Drive. This will be a celebration you won’t want to miss. So bring your friends and families for a perfect way to start your celebration of the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ.