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CURRENT RADIO SERIES Songs for the Savior   CURRENT TV SERIES Songs for the Savior

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. Colossians 1:15 I want you to try to imagine what the world would be like if Jesus had never been born. It’s beyond our imagination, but just try to picture it. We certainly wouldn’t know God as we know Him now. In fact, we’d be fortunate to have even heard about the God revealed in the Old Testament. So what changed on that first Christmas so long ago? Well, when Jesus Christ came, the Bible says He was Immanuel— “God with us.” God was no longer a distant deity. He was no longer an unfathomable, unapproachable image. God became flesh and blood; God was with us! The Lord of all creation came as a baby, toiled as a carpenter and lived His final years on earth as an itinerant preacher. He is God incarnate. That’s why Jesus would later say, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father” (John 14:9). When Jesus was born into the world, He was God! He wasn’t a man acting like God; not even God acting like a man; but God who was fully man and a man who was fully God! What Christ was seeing, that was God seeing. And when Christ was walking, that was God walking! If Jesus hadn’t come, and if He wasn’t God, we’d never have the knowledge of God we have today. So thank God for sending Jesus to Bethlehem all those years ago so that you might have a clear picture of a God who loves you unconditionally!

According to the Plan

by Dr. Paul Chappell

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed on the name of the only begotten Son of God.”
John 3:16–18

Even before the creation of the world and Adam’s sin in the Garden of Eden, God’s plan for our redemption had already been established. Nothing in the Christmas story happened by accident or coincidence. It was all arranged and ordered ahead of time. John wrote, “And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world” (Revelation 13:8). The need for a Saviour did not take God by surprise. He was not caught off guard when man fell and death entered the world. There was no search for a solution to the problem of sin—it was already in place.
Jesus made the necessity of salvation crystal clear when He talked to Nicodemus. Every person is born under the condemnation of sin. Our destiny is not determined by our actions, thoughts or intentions, but by our nature. We start out as sinners, opposed to God. The Saviour did not come for the good, but those hopelessly lost without Him. Jesus said, “But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance” (Matthew 9:13). Our most desperate need—salvation from our sins—can only be obtained by faith in Jesus as our substitute and Saviour according to God’s plan.
 

Today’s Growth Principle: 

God’s love for us is clearly seen in His plan that brought Jesus into the world at Christmas.

You are the Air I Breathe

Empowering Others

Although I am far, I felt the need to share my (2008) experience for others to feel more at peace and not be anxious. I believe, everything has a reason; we do not have the right to complain but rather to seek for the purpose - a purpose of what God wants us to be in our lives as the ultimate answers to the questions we ask. It takes a lot of patience though. A precious virtue that taught us to wait because in waiting, we may lack nothing; undivided not broken; Mature and not childish; completely satisfied.

CURRENT RADIO SERIES Songs for the Savior CURRENT TV SERIES Songs for the Savior

For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures … 1 Corinthians 15:3–4 Our world has spent the past month going through a whirlwind of consumerism mixed with religion and a dash of spirituality when appropriate. Now that we’re just a few days from December 25th, let’s try to answer this question: What is the meaning of the Christmas season? If you asked 20 people on the street this question, you’d probably get 20 answers. Some might say, “Peace on earth, goodwill to men.” Others might answer, “It’s about being with those you love.” Now there’s a lot of truth in both of those answers, but they’re really both inadequate because they miss the main point: Jesus. So I want to give you what I believe the Bible says is the real meaning of this season: In Jesus Christ, our greatest need is exposed; and in Jesus Christ, God’s greatest deed is disclosed. He came for us, He died for us, and He rose again for us. If we can start living our lives in light of this key truth, we can have Christmas in our hearts year round. So start living today with a new awareness of what Christ did for you by coming into the world! God with Us by Dr. Paul Chappell “And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins. Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.” Matthew 1:21–23 Dr. Lee Roberson told the story of a little boy whose mother died unexpectedly. He was too young to understand everything about death and Heaven, but he knew that his mother was gone. After the funeral, father and son returned home. When it was time for bed, the little boy asked to sleep with his father. But even that proved scant comfort when the lights were turned off. Through the darkness his soft voice whispered, “Daddy, is your face turned toward me?” All of us have an empty place in our hearts that only God can fill. No amount of success, money, fame, accomplishment or earthly love can supply the need only God can meet. And so often in the darkness when no one else can hear, we ask if God sees us and knows the burdens that we are carrying. Jesus is the answer to that question—and the answer is YES! God sees and knows every burden and heartache that we feel. Yet so many times we do not feel a real sense of God’s presence and care in our lives. That is because of the effects of sin. Jesus came into the world to bridge the divide that had existed between God and man since Adam and Eve’s sin in the Garden of Eden. We do not serve a distant God who is far off and hard to reach. We serve a God who is present with us, and who accepts us into His family through the blood of His Son Jesus. Today’s Growth Principle:  Through the coming of Jesus into the world, the gap between us and God has been filled.

Every move I make I make in You

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CURRENT RADIO SERIES Songs for the Savior   CURRENT TV SERIES Songs for the Savior

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!

Our Precious Saviour

by Dr. Paul Chappell

“Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded. Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.”
1 Peter 2:6–8

Probably the most famous set of presents ever given were the Imperial Eggs the house of Faberge made for the Tsars of Russia between 1885 and 1917. Numbering fifty in all, most of these intricate and elaborate eggs are in museum and private collections, but some were lost during the Russian Revolution. A man paid $13,302 at a flea market for a sculpted piece, that he originally intended to melt for scrap metal. But he had trouble selling it, and about a decade later, in 2012, he investigated further and found that he had the missing Third Imperial Egg—worth more than $30 million. When we think about things that are precious, there are some that are valuable because of their age and craftsmanship. Others have great value because of the materials that went into making them. Some are prized because of who made them. The Faberge eggs are valuable because of all three.
The worth of Jesus is beyond price. There is no measure by which we could appraise or evaluate just how precious He is. But we can and should remember to be grateful for the amazing sacrifice that brought the Lord into the world, and then took Him to the cross. The measure of the worth of the blood that He shed for our salvation is seen in what it purchased—the eternal souls of all of us who accepted God’s salvation through Jesus Christ. No human gift will ever compare to the precious Saviour born in Bethlehem.
 

Today’s Growth Principle: 

Celebrate the birth, life, and work of our precious Saviour every day throughout this Christmas season.

Sanctuary