Counter-Cultural Christmas
Counter-Cultural: a way of life and set of attitudes opposed to or at variance with the prevailing social norm.
The two main sources of our Christmas stress are
“Peace I leave with you; My peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” —Jesus, John 14:27
Culture conditions us to think that peace is about
God’s peace is defined, not by the
Sovereignty: supreme authority over all things.
“This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was a RIGHTEOUS man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins.’ All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ‘The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel’—which means, ‘God with us.’ When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. But he had no union with her until she gave birth to a son. And he gave Him the name Jesus.” —Matthew 1:18-25
“in all things He [God] works for the good of those who love Him who have been called according to His purpose.” —Apostle Paul, Romans 8:28
“When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. ‘Get up,’ he said, ‘take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.’ So he got up, took the child and His mother during the night and left for Egypt, where he stayed until the death of Herod. And so was fulfilled what the Lord had said through the prophet: ‘Out of Egypt I called my son.’” —Matthew 2:13-15
“After Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, ‘Get up, take the child and His mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who were trying to take the child’s life are dead.’ So he got up, took the child and His mother and went to the land of Israel.” —Matthew 2:19-20
Joseph
God is sovereign in my life when I not only
- Do I really believe God has a plan for creation, and a plan for me, individually?
- Do I really believe God knows and cares about what I’m going through?
- Do I really believe God has the power to be my provider and win the day?
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” —Apostle Paul, Philippians 4:6-7
“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.” —Apostle Paul, Romans 5.1-2
Practices
Prayer: Pray for someone who needs to receive peace.
Solitude: Find peace by being with Jesus, the Prince of Peace.
Witness: Tell someone about the peace that you have found in Jesus.
