Changing the Calendar

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Before Common Era (BCE) and Common Era (CE) are alternatives describing the years BC, which represents the years before Christ, and AD which stands for Anno Domini. In its fullness, AD reads more like, “Anno Domini nostri Jesu Christi,” which translates, “in the year of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Therefore, the year 2024 CE and 2024 AD each describe the same current year. Well big, fat, enormous deal. This Common Era nonsense is simply another attempt to eliminate Jesus Christ from our vernacular. There are always some intellectual knuckleheads afraid that Jesus may offend somebody. So what? He’s been offending people for a long time.

Jesus did not come to change the calendar. He came to change people. In case you haven’t noticed, we’re a mess. All have sinned and plenty of Christians have yet to die to self. That’s bad news. All of humanity should be terrified of hell, while a few non-believing eggheads are afraid we’re going to call this year, “2024 in the year of Our Lord.” Try as they may, they will never get rid of Jesus, and that’s the good news.

I remember the western musical called, “Paint Your Wagon,” when Lee Marvin sang, “God made the mountains. God made the sky. God made the people. God knows why.” Did you see that? A Hollywood movie giant declared that God made the people. God did make the people because He really loves the people, and He loves us enough to change us, not the calendar. 

As another Christmas approaches, with all the decorations, parades, light displays, shopping, eggnog, tree lightings, parties and a fair amount of drunkenness on our highways, let’s make a special effort to include Christ in our homes as well as any family gatherings. I love how Pastor Al Cicolelo of Calvary Dayspring in Prescott Valley has his family gather to read the Christmas story together after a great Christmas dinner. The calendar of current events reveals, He cometh soon.

Keep Looking Up

Pastor Huck 

That Most Expensive Tree

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Black Friday is regarded as the first day of the traditional Christmas shopping season, on which retailers offer special reduced prices and shoppers snap up some of the season’s best deals. Crafts, dinners, gifts, artists, Santa, parties, parades, lights and decorated trees have all highlighted the start of the season, with little attention given to the world’s most expensive tree of all time, and that tree would be the one God decorated.

Matthew 1:23 reads, “Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel meaning, God with us.” Some three decades later that child became the required innocent sacrificial victim, as He was hung on a tree fashioned into a cross (John 19:19). That most expensive tree was decorated with the body of our Kinsman Redeemer, the sinless Jesus Christ. The decorations included a sign declaring His Kingship, His cleansing blood, as well as spikes, thorns and wood that He spoke into
existence.

God the Father also decorated His tree with lights, for His Son who was nailed to it is known as the Light of the World, although not much light is shed on Him by the masses these days. On that most expensive tree the wrath of God against all sin was satisfied as Colossians 2:14 declares, “God canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the (that) cross.” Thus, Jesus Christ becomes the greatest gift ever offered, and to receive this gift one must repent of sin and entrust their spiritual well-being to Christ for eternal life (John 1:12).

I have no higher goal in this life than to increase my love and deepen my friendship with my Savior, my God and best friend ever, Jesus Christ (John 9:38). May we demonstrate our commitment to Him whenever and however we can, for He has certainly demonstrated His commitment to us.

Including Him
Pastor Huck

Do Yourself a Favor

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Inside every one of us there is a contest going on for the right to dominate. Is it going to be Jesus Christ, or will it be me who rules the day? In Luke 9:23 Jesus said, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.” The word “deny” in this context means to say no to oneself.

Many years back when I was a very new Christian, I went to our church retreat and had some great one on one time with my pastor. We were out on the deck on a beautiful sunny day in Page Springs, Az when I said something regarding my rights. In an instant he shot back saying, “But Huck, you don’t have any rights. You gave them up when you came to Christ.”

Paul introduced himself as a bondservant and back in the day, these servants possessed no will of their own. Today our rebellious flesh wants to superimpose its will over God’s will. Choosing my will over God’s only slows down the growing up process. When we Christians ignore the will of God, a sense of conviction will set in until we surrender. This feels like being stuck in a spiritual mud hole. Have you ever seen these truck or tractor pulls where the sled slowly grinds these powerful vehicles to a stop? That’s what disobedience will do to a believer’s progress.

Until we’re brought to the place of total dependence on Jesus Christ, allowing Him to be the supreme authority in our lives, it is impossible to be an authentic disciple of Christ. The Holy Spirit looks deeply into our lives. When He puts a finger on known disobedience, a true disciple will address that sled that is slowing him or her down with repentance.

We do ourselves a big favor by walking in obedience, and keeping ourselves under the spout where God’s blessings are pouring out. For serious disciples, read Psalms 32 and 51, then follow David’s lead.

The World is Watching

Pastor Huck