You are One of a Kind

Pastor and author James Merritt once joked about his wife’s infatuation with the actor Patrick Swayze. He said that she owns all his movies, and whenever he is on TV, she stops what she is doing and watches. Merritt said he knows when Swayze is on TV because his wife gets that glazed over look in her eyes and she doesn’t hear anything he is saying to her. He asked her one day, “If you were to take away Patrick Swayze’s face and hair and body, what would you be left with?”

“You,” she teased. 

Merritt took that as a compliment, knowing he is one of a kind. The truth is, we are each unique individuals, and while there may be things about us that we would prefer to change if we were able, we are exactly who we are supposed to be. The best part is, God loves that about us because He chose to make us that way. He is the creator of all life, and the Bible says that we are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14). In another psalm we read that the God of the universe cares for us. 

Psalm 8:4 says, “What is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit him?” It is mind boggling to realize that someone as big as God cares about people, and out of the billions of people currently on this planet, God knows and cares for each and every one. It is especially humbling to realize God’s care for people when we compare ourselves to things that we might think as the pinnacle of God’s creation. In verse three of the same psalm David contemplates the “heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained.”

Surely the moon and stars would be God’s great masterpiece. If not them, maybe the heavens themselves are His piece de resistance. But no, people are actually the highlight of God’s creation. We are His magnum opus. God didn’t become a star and save stars. He didn’t become a moon and save the moon. He became a man to save mankind. 

When we consider all that He has made, it makes us wonder along with the psalmist, “What is man, that you are mindful of him?” God not only creates people, He cares about people. You are a unique individual, and God cares for you. You may not be Patrick Swayze, but that is OK. You are you, and you are the best you there is.   

Give Me the Bad News

We always want the bad news first, right? Whenever someone says, “I’ve got good news, and I’ve got bad news; which do you want first?” we take the bad news first. It isn’t that we like bad news so much that we can’t wait to hear it, we just prefer to get the bad news out of the way and get to the good news. Hearing the bad news is hard, but knowing that some good news is coming right behind it can help to soften the blow of the bad news. 

It reminds me of the man who got a call from his landlord. “I’ve got good news and bad news. The bad news is your rental house burned down and all your possessions are gone. The good news is you are finally out of the lease.” 

Bad news is a part of life, so it is nice when a little good news helps to offset some of the bad. There is a verse in the Bible that begins with really bad news, but quickly shifts gears and gives us the good news. Romans 6:23 begins by saying, “For the wages of sin is death…” That is very bad news since we are all sinners; just three chapters earlier it says “all have sinned,” and “there is none righteous, no, not one.” So we are all sinners, and the earned payment of our sin is death—both physical and spiritual. 

But there is good news! The verse continues, “…but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” That is an amazing turnaround in just a few words. We are all sinners by birth; we are all facing a death of our own deserving; but now we learn that we can avoid death and receive eternal life. While death is the earned payment for our sin, eternal life is an unearned free gift because of the amazing grace of God. 

This verse doesn’t mean that Christians will drink from the fountain of youth and find immortality. The Bible teaches that we pass from death to life when we trust in Christ (John 5:24). When my heart stops beating here and my time on earth is over, I’ll continue living in heaven. In that sense I will never truly die. Conversely, Revelation 20:14 and 21:8 teach that the unsaved will experience a second death when they are condemned to the lake of fire. We can avoid this death because of the gift of God. 

God said, “I have good news and I have bad news. The bad news is your sin will lead to your death. The good news is I love you so much that I sent my only Son to die your death in your place. And if you trust in what Jesus did, you won’t face that death you deserve, but instead will have eternal life with me.” 

Christmas Peace

Waiting is hard, isn’t it? In our fast food society with instant gratification and next day shipping, we are not used to having to wait for anything. The more serious the event, the harder the wait. As a child waiting for Christmas was hard because it seemed like December 25^th would never get here (and as parents we can’t believe how quickly it comes back). But think about how hard it is to wait to see if you got the job you applied for, or to see if the cancer has spread. While we wait it is hard to be still or comfortable because there is something major hanging over us. We need to realize that is how people lived throughout the Old Testament, waiting for God’s Messiah to come. 

From the day that God told Eve her seed would crush the serpent, humans had waited with baited breath for the Promised One. There could be no real peace until He came. That is why in Luke 2 a multitude of the heavenly hosts joined in singing, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace and good will toward men.” Peace on earth is available because God finally came in the flesh. 

Like the Psalmist who said, “I waited patiently for the Lord; He inclined to me and heard my cry (40:1)” the world waited in a profound way for the Messiah to come be the Deliverer. The Jews wanted primarily peace from their enemies—whether the Babylonians, Assyrians, Egyptians, or Philistines in the Old Testament, or the Romans in the New Testament. We need to understand that peace is more than just the absence of conflict. Peace is more than just national tranquility. As Americans we have not had a real threat of being defeated since World War II, so we might not fully appreciate their desire for national peace. 

But the bigger idea is about us being at peace with God, with fellow man, and with ourselves. Philippians 4:7 says the “peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” We need this peace of God in our hearts and minds. 

First, we need peace with ourselves. So many people walk around feeling bad about themselves because of their faults or mistakes that they render themselves useless in the kingdom work. We need to appreciate the beauty of forgiveness. Hebrews 10:22 says we can have our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience. God wipes the slate clean when we confess and repent. We need to do our best to live right, but we can walk upright knowing we are clean. 

We also need to be at peace with others. Leviticus 3 describes the peace offering as part of the law. This was also known as fellowship offerings because they were designed to keep peace with God and others through fellowshipping together. This offering was unique in that the family bringing the sacrifice got to take home most of the meat (normally the priest kept most of the meat). The idea is that the family takes the meat home and have a fellowship meal with other people. The New Testament is filled with commands to be unified with fellow believers, and reconciled if the relationships have gone south. Christmas is a great time to heal hurts. 

Finally, we need to be at peace with God. This is mankind’s greatest need. 2 Corinthians 5:18 says God has reconciled us to Himself. He fills the God-shaped void. We have real peace when we are at peace with God because we were created to be in a right relationship Him. Maybe this Christmas season you need to make peace with God or someone else. 

Christmas Joy

As we inch closer to Christmas we often hear the word joy thrown around, and there certainly should be joy at Christmas. But our secular society has hijacked this word. I did a simple online search using the word joy in Christmas advertising, and among other things I found a Starbucks ad that said “Share Joy With Buy One-Get One” drinks. Gadbury had an ad that said “Unwrap Joy.” GameStop’s ad touted “Joy to the Players.” Dollar Tree invited shoppers to “Spread the Joy” in their stores. Big Lots promised “Joy is in Store.” I don’t blame the advertisers for these tactics; they are doing business. But they operate from a dishonest premise, telling customers that their products will bring joy. They may bring a minute or more of happiness as we drink the coffee, eat the chocolate, or play the games, but that is not real joy. 

Joy should be associated with Christmas because the birth of Christ brought the real reason for joy. In Luke 2:10 the angel told the shepherds, “Fear not, for behold I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all people.” Why? “For unto you a child is born this day in the city of David, a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.” We can have real joy at Christmas because of Christmas. The great joy of which the angel spoke is that Jesus was born into the world to be our Lord and Savior. 

I believe it is important for us to have a good definition of real joy. John Piper has defined it as “a good feeling in the soul, produced by the Holy Spirit, as He causes us to see the beauty of Christ in the Word and in the world.” A simpler definition would just be a good feeling deep down that has nothing to do with circumstances. The world can’t give joy, and neither can it take it away. Starbucks, Gadbury, Big Lots, and the others cannot give us joy, no matter how good their products may be. 

If joy doesn’t come from a store, then where can we find it? Piper said it comes from the Holy Spirit, and he is right. Galatians 5:22 lists joy as being fruit that the Spirit produces in the life of a believer. It is possible to be sick, sad, or tired, and still have joy because Jesus is still Lord and Savior. If your sins have been forgiven, if Jesus is preparing you a home in heaven, then you can have real and abiding joy. 

We get joy from the Holy Spirit, but also by being connected to Jesus the Vine. In John 15:11 He told the disciples, “These things I have spoken unto you that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.” This was in reference to the disciples being the branches and Jesus being the vine. So long as we stay connected to Him, we can have joy even in difficult times. 

The shepherds had joy at that first Christmas, and so did Mary. In the Magnificat of Luke 1, Mary sang, “My spirit rejoices (has joy in) in God my Savior (v.47).” Even if our circumstances are not what we want them to be (remember, Mary was unmarried and pregnant), we can still have joy at Christmas because of Christmas—because God broke into our world to bring salvation to all who call upon Him. That is plenty of reason to have joy this Christmas! 

Da Vinci’s Models

I recently read about the process Leonardo da Vinci undertook when he was painting The Last Supper. It was a twenty-five year project that involved the artist bringing in models one at a time while they were painted. Da Vinci spent a lot of time trying to find the perfect models to sit for the characters in the painting, but he spent the most time trying to find the ones to portray Jesus and Judas Iscariot. He began with Jesus, and a quarter century later, he found the man to sit for the betrayer. 

The man da Vinci found captured what he imagined in his mind’s eye. His shoulders were slumped, he looked like he had a cold heart, and he had evil in his face. He agreed to sit while he was painted, and upon entering the room he remarked to da Vinci, “I was here twenty-five years ago. I sat for Jesus.” 

How had this same man once had the look of Jesus? What happened to him over those years to change him into the villain? How did he go from protagonist to antagonist? We do not know, and if da Vinci asked, it isn’t recorded. That sad transformation reminds me of the one Israel undertook over a longer period of time. At Sinai they willingly entered into a covenant with God, stating, “All that the Lord has spoken, we will do (Exodus 19:8).” By the time of the prophetic letters, Israel was a million miles from that promise. 

They agreed to have no other gods besides Yahweh, and yet they were worshipping the Baals and Asherah, and engaged in all the fornication that went with it. They agreed to observe sabbatical years and years of Jubilee, but they were oppressing the poor so that the rich could richer. They were supposed to look like Jesus, but instead they looked like Judas. They looked like Judas because they lived like Judas. 

The way we live has a similar impact on us. When we live the way we are supposed to —in accordance with God’s Word—we have joy in our face that the world sees. If da Vinci saw us, he might ask us to sit for Jesus. When we choose to live opposed to God’s Word, we forfeit our our joy and end up looking like Judas. When we live God’s way we have an extra bounce in our step, but when we live like the world we find ourselves with slumped shoulders, a cold heart, and evil on our face. 

Do you look more like Jesus, or more like Judas?  

Forever Homes

Everywhere we look we see people who are focused on taking care of their bodies. Many New Year’s resolutions include eating better, working out, or losing weight. And so we join gyms and start diet plans; we buy creams to smooth our wrinkles, and dyes to color our hair; we lift weights to build muscle, and get braces to help our smile. If there is a flaw, we fix it. The American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery noted a 173% increase of cosmetic surgery between the years 1997 and 2000, with more than ten million cosmetic medical procedures now being performed annually in this country. I’m not saying that any of that is right or wrong, but we certainly put an emphasis on taking care of our bodies.  

These bodies, though, are only temporary. On those reality shows where people buy houses or renovate their existing ones, they often speak of getting that “forever home,” that place that meets all their needs, and from which they will never have to move again. I like to think of our bodies that way. The ones we have now are good and serve their purpose, but we are in the market for a forever home—a perfect body.

Paul compares the body to a house that is only temporary. Remember, he was a leather worker and tent maker by trade, so he was very familiar with this concept. These tents were intentionally temporary, and were used by soldiers and nomads (most famously by the wandering Israelites during the Exodus). One day, though, these tents will be exchanged for a house with a foundation. These bodies will be exchanged for perfect ones. In II Corinthians 5:1 Paul wrote, “For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.”  

These reality shows always ask, “What are your must haves in a house?” Some need a fourth bedroom, an office, proximity to work, a mother-in-law suite, or a finished basement. What are your must haves for a body? One that never gets sick? One that will never slow down or wear out? One that will never die? No problem. God can give you that forever home, and once you move in, you will never be on the hunt for anything else ever again. 

In the meantime, that does not mean that we throw up our hands in futility. Just because we cannot be perfect here does not mean that we are not supposed to use our bodies for the glory of God while we wait for our perfect ones. In verses nine and ten of the same chapter Paul says, “For whether we are home or away (meaning in these bodies on earth or absent from them in heaven), we make it our aim to please the Lord. For we must all stand before the judgment seat of Christ and give an account of things done in the body…” 

In the twin passage where Paul discussed this same concept—I Corinthians 15–he gave this conclusion: “Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain (v.58).” 

It is great that we can look forward to living in our forever home—our glorified bodies. But we must never do so at the expense of the present. We must make it our aim to please the Lord, and be always abounding in this great work.