Bethlehem's Story

What is Bethlehem famous for? Our first thought is that Bethlehem was the birthplace of Jesus, but for a long time the little town had a bad reputation. In Genesis 35 we read that Rachel died and was buried “on the way to Bethlehem,” just after she gave birth to her second son Benjamin.

Remember Rachel’s story? She was the beloved wife of Jacob, who was the grandson of Abraham (and whose name God changed to Israel). Jacob was tricked into marrying Rachel’s older sister Leah, and eventually he married Rachel as well. Leah was having no problem having children, but Rachel was barren. Both sisters gave their handmaidens to Jacob for the sake of childbearing (a common practice then), but Rachel continued to struggle with her infertility. This was a cause for sorrow, leading Rachel to lament, “Give me children, or else I will die!”

She finally had a son, Joseph, whose name means, “The Lord will add.” Rachel was glad to have a son, but she believed God would give her another. He did, but it would cost Rachel her life. Knowing her life was leaving her, Rachel named her son Ben-oni, “Son of my Sorrow,” but Jacob changed it to Benjamin, “Son of my Right Hand.” For Israelites, Bethlehem was always thought of as the place of death for their mother.

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem King Herod put out an order to kill all baby boys two years old and under. Matthew said that event fulfilled Jeremiah 31:15, the voice of Rachel weeping for her children. When Jeremiah wrote those words he was speaking of Israelite mothers weeping for their children being taken into captivity, but Matthew saw it as a fulfillment of Messianic prophecy.

For so many years Bethlehem signified the birth of Benjamin, but the death of Rachel. Now, because of Jesus, Bethlehem represents not the Son of Sorrow, but the Son at God’s right hand. It is no longer a place of death and sadness, but of life and victory. So what is Bethlehem famous for? It is no longer death, but life.

That’s what Jesus does. He redeems things. He turns death into life. When we were dead in our sins and trespasses, Jesus brings us to life in Himself. I was once like Bethlehem, a picture of death because of my sin; but now thanks to Jesus, I am alive and well.

Lip-Syncing to God

The 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing produced several stories about the Chinese government’s propaganda campaign, making their country look as nice as possible for the cameras. But the worst example of this was when it was discovered that they used a young girl for their image. Nine-year-old Lin Miaoke sang a beautiful rendition of “Ode to the Motherland,” which led to an outburst of applause from an impressed audience. Later the truth came out: Miaoke was only lip-syncing. Seven-year-old Yang Peiyi pre-recorded the song so that Miaoke could act as if she were the one singing. The truth is awful: Peiyi had the better voice, but Miaoke had the better face. A Communist Party official made the decision to pull the fast one because Peiyi had lost her front teeth, and they had not fully grown back in.

Think about what a terrible message that sent to those young girls about their image. Miaoke was made to believe that her looks are so important that, even if she did not possess the talent needed, she would still get to go on stage and hear the applause. Peiyi was made to believe that, no matter how talented she may be, her looks are more important. If you aren’t pretty enough, according to the opinion of someone else, then nothing else matters.

That superficial evaluation is a bad message, but there is another point that should not be overlooked. We tell people it is not what is on the outside that matters, but what is on the inside. That is also true of spiritual matters. Just as the Chinese government tried to impress the world with what was on the outside, people today try to impress God and others by the outward appearance. They think that going to church and dressing their best, saying things like, “God bless you” to everyone, or sounding like Shakespeare when they pray will give the appearance that they are better Christians or closer to God. But if those things do not come from a pure heart, they are nothing more than propaganda pieces for others’ benefit.

God cannot be fooled, so just be yourself. If you are doing things to make yourself look more spiritual, you are just lip-syncing to someone else’s voice. When Samuel was looking to anoint the future king of Israel, he was looking for someone big and strong, someone who looked the part. But the Lord told the prophet, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature…for the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart (1 Samuel 16:7).” God sees your heart already, so there is no point in pretending.      

$15 Million Mistake

Have you ever made a $15 million mistake?

Russell Christoff became aware of one when he was doing his grocery shopping near his home in California. On the coffee aisle he saw a familiar face on a can of Taster’s Choice; the face staring back at him was his own. Christoff bought a can of the coffee and headed straight to a lawyer’s office. Sixteen years before that trip to the supermarket, Christoff, a kindergarten teacher and part-time model, auditioned for a campaign with Taster’s Choice. He was told he would be notified if he was chosen, but he never heard back.

Years later an employee came across the picture when working on a promotion, and he assumed a contract had been worked out with Christoff. A judge decided that Christoff’s face helped the company sell a lot of coffee, as his image was used on cans in Mexico, Canada, Japan, South Korea, Israel, and Kuwait, in addition to America. Christoff was awarded five percent of the company’s profits during the years his picture was used, which amounted to $15.3 million dollars.

The employee who assumed he could use Christoff’s picture cost his company a lot of money. In Luke 16 Jesus talks about a man who made a costly mistake. In his life he was rich and comfortable, and he ignored the poor beggar that sat outside his house hoping for scraps of food. Both men died on the same day, and the poor beggar found himself in paradise, while in hell the rich man lifted up his eyes, being in torment (v.23). He soon discovered that his wealth could not deliver him from the wages of his sin; no one could bring him water, no one could quench the flames, and no one could warn his brothers. When he opened up his eyes in hell, it was eternally too late.

We all make mistakes, and some are more costly than others. The employee of Taster’s Choice cost his company dearly, but even that pales in comparison to failing to receive God’s generous offer of salvation. The story of the unnamed rich man in Luke 16 is tragic because no one should have to go to hell. Our mistakes—sin—separate us from God, but because of the gift of Jesus, we all can be forgiven. Accept His offer today. Don’t make the mistake of dying without Jesus.

Florida Recounts

Well Florida, you’ve done it again. It took about fifteen years for people to stop making “recount” jokes to me when they discover I’m from the Sunshine State, and now your inability to tabulate ballots has hit the reset button on all that. Because of Florida in the 2000 Presidential Election we learned what a chad is (the circular part of the ballot punched out when voting), as well as every way it can be improperly removed (dimpled, hanging, swinging, pregnant). The Gore Lieberman ticket, dubbed the “Sore Loserman” ticket, made headlines for their demands for more and more recounts. Images of election officials holding ballots up to the light, trying to determine if a vote cast for Pat Buchanan was intended to be a vote for Gore, dominated the headlines for weeks, as America waited to see who would ultimately become the forty-third President of the United States.

Now in 2018 it is Tallahassee mayor Andrew Gillum refusing to concede in the gubernatorial contest against Ron de Santis, and Congressman Bill Nelson doing the same in his bid for re-election against the current governor Rick Scott. Boxes of provisional ballots (which are normally fake ballots or those cast by people pretending to be someone else) are turning up in the trunk of rental cars, school cafeterias, and broom closets. Cries of “voter fraud” and “stolen elections” are heard on social media and the nightly news. Georgia has a similar problem as Stacey Abrams refused to concede to Brian Kemp in their struggle to become governor.

In all three races, the candidate who refused to concede eventually lost after the dust from the provisional ballots had settled. Determining voter intent, counting dimpled chads as a vote, and producing ballots out of thin air did not help the loser become a winner. Losing a close election is hard (I know!), and it is worth making sure everyone got it right, but the numbers don’t lie. After the polls have closed, it is too late.

The Bible tells us we each have an appointment with death, and then is the judgment (Hebrews 9:27). Those who never put their trust in Jesus will hear the chilling words, “I never knew you; depart from me, you who practices lawlessness. (Matthew 7:23).” If that is you, you won’t like the verdict, but the polls will be closed. No demanding recounts, no refusal to concede will change the results of what has happened. A candidate who wants to be victorious on election day must do the work while there is still time, and anyone who wants a home in heaven must do what they need to do now while there is still time. If you have not done so, repent of your sins, put your faith in Jesus Christ, and begin a new life with Him today.   

Trees in the Bible

We put up our Christmas tree a few days ago, which is still one of my favorite traditions (getting on the ladder to hang outside lights, not so much). After thinking about chestnuts roasting on an open fire I got to thinking about trees, and ultimately about trees in the Bible. Did you know there is a theme that runs throughout the pages of Scripture?

From the earliest pages we see Adam and Eve get into trouble because of a tree. They had free reign to eat from any of the multitudes of fruit-bearing trees, but there was a single exception: the tree of knowledge of good and evil was off limits. Once they listened to the serpent and disobeyed God they were evicted from the garden that served as their home. Because they ate of the forbidden tree, they were barred from eating of the tree of life. The tree of life gave them immortality, and if they ate that in their sinful state, there would have been no hope of being forgiven and resurrected to a better life in eternity.

Adam and Eve’s sin meant that something had to be done to destroy the curse. Jesus reversed the curse when He hung on a tree at Calvary. As Galatians 3:13 says, “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us. For it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree.’” Paul was able to say, “It is written” because he was quoting Deuteronomy 21:23. Jesus, who never sinned, became a curse by bearing our sin in His own body on the tree (1 Peter 2:24) so that we can be forgiven of the sin nature we were born into.

It all comes full circle when we realize we will eat from the tree of life in heaven; Revelation 22:2 tells us the tree of life will be present in the New Jerusalem, and each month it will produce a new fruit that will bring healing to the nations. We missed the opportunity to eat from the tree of life in the Garden of Eden, but if we have been forgiven by our Savior on the tree, then one day we will get to eat from the tree of life in the New Jerusalem.

When you look at your Christmas tree this year, let it be a reminder to you of the tree of life from which we will one day eat, and know it is only possible because of the tree that Jesus once hung upon.