“According to Thy Word”

CURRENT RADIO SERIES The Gift   CURRENT TV SERIES The Christ of Every Christmas

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. --Romans 6:23 I’ve told the story before of a man who was getting ready to put a sign in his yard that said “N-O-E-L” to spread some Christmas cheer. It was a cold night, a snowstorm hit, and the man was trying to put the letters up from behind instead of facing them. He fumbled and bumbled, and said some very un-Christmas-like things in the process. He finally finished, plugged in the lights and promptly forgot about them. The next morning, he awoke to a foot of snow on the ground. He went outside to take a look at his sign and noticed he put the letters up backwards, “L-E-O-N.” Now, his neighbor across the street was named Leon. And when he saw him fixing the sign he said, “Man, I thought that was just for me!” When God came in Christ, He came for you. It wasn’t a mistake. It was a gift with your name on it, a gift Jesus purchased. And the question of Christmas is whether or not we’re willing to open that gift and receive it by faith, or simply let it sit under the tree. The greatest gift of Christmas is the gift of salvation. In fact, the very name of Jesus means, “God saves.” Receive that gift, be saved by faith, and you’ll experience eternal life! “According to Thy Word” Saturday, December 21, 2019 by Dr. Paul Chappell “And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren. For with God nothing shall be impossible. And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.” Luke 1:35–38 Mary’s life was turned upside down when Gabriel appeared to her with the news that she would be the mother of the Messiah. She went from planning a wedding to planning to be a mother—realizing what everyone would think about her and Joseph, and the danger the news posed to her dreams for the future. Yet despite all the implications, Mary willingly accepted what God had planned for her life. She viewed herself as His servant, and was willing to do whatever He wanted her to do. Many times we struggle, not with knowing what the right thing to do is, but with being willing to do what we know is right. There is no promise given to us that God’s way will be easy. George Muller said, “Nine–tenths of the difficulties are overcome when our hearts are ready to do the Lord’s will, whatever it may be. When one is truly in this state, it is usually but a little way to the knowledge of what His will is.” Obedience may and often does require a significant sacrifice on our part. But that should not deter us from doing what God has commanded. The response of our hearts should be the same as Mary’s, that we are willing to do whatever God has called us to do, regardless of the cost. Today's Growth Principle: We can only fulfill our role in God’s plan if we are willing to do everything His way.