A PERFECT CHRISTMAS…

THE PERFECT TIME, 

THE PERFECT SAVIOR 

THE PERFECT…

Galatians 4:4-7

But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.

Dear friends, the Christmas season explodes with perfection! No, I am not talking about our situation right now. Even though in Italy we say: “Tutti sono più buoni a Natale”: “Everyone is nicer at Christmas”, everyone is actually more frustrated! Traffic is worse, the lines are longer, finding a parking place is nothing short of a miracle. Everyone is running, finding the right gift is stressful and the list can go on and on.

My dear friends, the perfection is in the true meaning of Christmas! Just look with me at these short verses.

THE TIMING WAS PERFECT!
Jesus came when the fullness of time had come. God was in total control and He chose the perfect time. God’s sovereignty is displayed in this truth. God’s plan before the foundation of the world was timed perfectly. The birth of Jesus came when the political climate was perfect, when Rome was at its peak, roads were built, travel was easier, peace was reigning, the timing of Caesar’s decree was necessary. The Old Testament Law had accomplished its purpose. All the preparations were ready. Our mighty, perfect God had controlled every circumstance so the timing would be right. And the same God controls all of our circumstances today with the same meticulous, perfect care.

JESUS WAS PERFECT!
He was God, the Son of God, born a man and born under the law. He lived as a man and obeyed the law in every single part, never sinned, never had a sinful thought or attitude. Only Jesus could be our Savior, for he lived the perfect life we could not live and died the death He did not deserve so we could have the perfect Savior! I am not required to do anything to be saved because Jesus Christ is the only redeemer. No works of mine can save me, for nothing can possibly improve the work of our perfect Savior before God’s holiness.

THE ADOPTION WAS PERFECT!It was God’s perfect plan to provide a way for man to be adopted. We needed a Savior who could rescue us from the father of lies whom we were following. We were prisoners of our lustful desires that pushed us to sin continuously, with no hope of ever changing. We needed to become children of God, and could have never become His adopted children, by our own effforts. But those who believe in the perfect Savior have a new family! We are part of the family of God, we have new brothers and sisters in Christ, we have the church where we can live out the blessing of having a spiritual family.

THE GIFT OF THE SPIRIT WAS PERFECT!
Jesus promised to send a counselor. Yes, He, the Wonderful Counselor would open the way for the Spirit to enable us to understand the Word, to follow the Word and live by the standards of the Word. Can you believe it? The Holy Spirit would guide us into such an intimate relationship with the Father, that we could call Him ‘Daddy’! Oh, what a blessing for all who live is such a difficult world with all the difficulties of sin’s consequences. We have the Spirit, Who has sealed our eternal destiny. If we are children of God, nothing can ever separate us from His love.

HIS ETERNAL BLESSINGS ARE PERFECT!
Those who have believed that Jesus Christ is their Savior are no longer slaves, for they are now children with all the benefits of God’s family. They are also His heirs, for the Father has made us co-heirs with Christ! What an amazing blessing that now, in Christ, heaven is ours, and we will be blessed forever in the presence of God.

Dear friends, we will all do our best to make this Christmas celebration a great one. We will worship, plan, give, serve and witness, but despite all our efforts, it will not be perfect even though we might call it that. What is perfect is the true story of Christ: it happened at the perfect time, it provided the perfect Savior, it provided the perfect way to become children of God, it provided the perfect Comforter and opened the gates to a perfect eternity!

This Christmas, rejoice in the perfection of God’s plan! Let us make sure that our main effort is to invite others to know Christ and the perfect Christmas.



TI AUGURO UN NATALE PERFETTO – WE WISH YOU A PERFECT CHRISTMAS!

WHY ARE YOU CRUSHING ME GOD?

DO NOT LOSE SIGHT OF THE ETERNAL PURPOSES OF GOD

READ PSALM 66

Psalm 66:8-12

Bless our God, O peoples;

let the sound of his praise be heard,

who has kept our soul among the living

and has not let our feet slip.

For you, O God, have tested us;

you have tried us as silver is tried.

You brought us into the net;

you laid a crushing burden on our backs;

you let men ride over our heads;

we went through fire and through water;

yet you have brought us out to a place of abundance.

What are you doing God?
Why are you allowing evil things to happen in my life?
Why is life so hard? Why do people behave the way they do?
Why do others seem to have an easier life than mine?
These are only some of the questions that come to our minds, at times.

Remember the words of the Israelites?

Exodus 14:11

They said to Moses, “Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us in bringing us out of Egypt?

       

Exodus 17:3

But the people thirsted there for water, and the people grumbled against Moses and said, “Why did you bring us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?”

The psalmist is calling the children of Israel to recognize the work God had done in their lives. They had proven, many times, that when they faced adversities they lost sight of God and His purpose. Dear friends, we are prone to do the same.

God is the one Who gives and sustains life. We cannot prolong a day of our existence if God does not will it. We know that He has kept us from falling many times, and there are many more times that we do not even know about. His hand is there to sustain us before we fall and to pick us up when we do.

Yes, our life is filled with exams! Every test we face exposes what is in our hearts. Our reactions expose what our expectations are. Our complaints expose what our goals really are.

We know we should live our lives with an ongoing desire to grow in sanctification, to help others in their Christian walk and to invite the unsaved to Christ. We should ask ourselves if the displeasing trial we find ourselves in is a deterrent to our selfish goals or conducive to the eternal purposes of God. I already know the answer and so do you! God is best served when we react in a godly way to the difficulties of life and when we repent quickly when we fail.

Yes, it is possible that God is allowing us to have to carry some very heavy burdens, that He will allow some people to bring us great pain, but His purposes are good.

God is leading us to a place of abundance. No, not material abundance, but spiritual blessing. We sorrow today for the loss of loves ones. We feel the pain of physical ailments. We live under the pressure of broken relationships. We work under the leadership of difficult authorities. We struggle through financial difficulties. We strain, as we are confronted with daily obstacles. It is all true, but none of these events are deterrents to the life of abundance God has planned for us. Rather, they are carefully-chosen instruments to guide our hearts and lives to the exact place God desires for us.

Psalm 66:13-15

I will come into your house with burnt offerings;

I will perform my vows to you,

that which my lips uttered

and my mouth promised when I was in trouble.

I will offer to you burnt offerings of fattened animals,

with the smoke of the sacrifice of rams;

I will make an offering of bulls and goats. Selah

Through all of this, our worship must continue faithfully, our promises to God must be maintained. Losing sight of God’s purposes will easily lead us to sin. The writer reminds the readers to keep the promises they made during their trials.

I have found that some come closer to God during trials, but as soon as things change, they go back to the same ways as before. May we learn to come to God during the difficulties and to remain faithful during the easier times.

The psalmist began by inviting us to make our praise be heard by those around us, so may our daily praise be continual and sincere!

DO YOU REMEMBER?

WE STAND IN AWE OF GOD’S MIRACULOUS CARE

READ PSALM 66

Psalm 66:5-7

Come and see what God has done:

he is awesome in his deeds toward the children of man.

He turned the sea into dry land;

they passed through the river on foot.

There did we rejoice in him,

who rules by his might forever,

whose eyes keep watch on the nations—

let not the rebellious exalt themselves. Selah

• Do you remember the day you understood how destitute and needy of salvation you were? 
• Do you remember the amazing discovery of God’s infinite grace? 
• Do you remember when the Word of God became alive and you were able to understand the wonderful truths in it? 
• Do you remember when your unbelief was replaced by faith and trust in the saving power of God? 
• Do you remember when living for the goals of this world became empty, and new desires were placed in your heart? 
• Do you remember when your selfishness was transformed into selflessness for the progress of the Gospel? 
• Do you remember when your old friends were replaced by your brothers and sisters in Christ? Do you remember when sins that were normal for you became loathsome? 

This is only part of the awesome work God does in the believer.

The transformation that takes place in us is gradual, to be sure. We do not become perfect over night, our desires don’t change completely, and we do continue to struggle with the desires of the flesh. But we should be alarmed if signs of these transformations are not taking place in our lives.

Galatians 5:17-24

For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

The psalmist is inviting others to come and see the work of God. He reminds them of how God preserved them and saved them. And he makes clear the distinction between those who rejoice and those who are rebellious, for men react to God in one of two ways: either by humbly and thankfully recognizing His meticulous care, or by rebelling against His sovereignty. We must ask ourselves where we find ourselves today.

We are tempted daily to forget the work of God and to return to the ways of the past. Our selfishness is there to take over at any time we allow it to control our hearts.

We quickly lose sight of our great blessings.

Instead, our lives and goals should be directed to those things which are eternal.

We should live with such a pressing desire to see our Savior and to be with Him that the only attractive deterrent to that is to stay here to be used by the Lord for the progress of the Gospel in the world.

This desire should gain strength within us: to be transformed daily into the image of our Lord, Jesus Christ. We know that this happens through the Spirit’s application of the Word of God and through the refining fire of trials.

We should also desire to be used by God for the progressive growth of our brothers and sisters in Christ. This is done principally in our local church, where we can walk side by side with those we love and be an instrument in the hands of God for their benefit. The way we go through trials and what we learn by them also makes us all the more useful in our ministry to fellow believers.

Finally, our work continues as we become more aware of the lost people around us and we plead for opportunities to reach them. As they observe our lives and listen to our words, they may be attracted to know the Eternal God revealed in the Scriptures.

“Come and see what the Lord has done” should be our continuous song of praise. Is it possible, though, that our mouths are more inclined to say the opposite, “Come and see what the Lord has NOT done”?

I know that I am guilty of that message, masked in my righteous indignation, my displeasure with injustice and just plain complaining.

God is ruling today! God is alertly watching today! I am cared for and no one can come against me, unless God allows it for my own good.

2 Timothy 1:12

… But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that Day what has been entrusted to me.

       

May our day begin with an awareness of God’s presence and with a prayer that we will be more and more convinced of His intentional work in us and through us!

DO YOU REMEMBER THE NAMES OF GOD?

DO NOT OVERLOOK YOUR JOYFUL DUTY TO PRAISE YOUR SAVIOR 

READ PSALM 66

Psalm 66:1-4

Shout for joy to God, all the earth;

sing the glory of his name;

give to him glorious praise!

Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds!

So great is your power that your enemies come cringing to you.

All the earth worships you

and sings praises to you;

they sing praises to your name.” Selah

  

Can you see it? God’s works and glory are filling the earth: His mercy is abundant, His majesty is prominent, and His care is matchless. Can you see it? This psalm is inviting us to see God’s glory and to be in continuous awe of His supremacy.

Those who know God should be especially appreciative of God’s creative and sustaining power. Even though we live in a world that is oblivious of what the Lord is doing, we should certainly not be the same. We are human and frail. God knows that we are quickly distracted and sidetracked, so He gave us His Word to continually remind us of Him and His wonderful works. This psalm calls us to pay attention.

Shout for joy, sing the glory of His name, and give Him praise!

I am saved! I know my eternal destiny is sure! I know I will not receive the punishment I deserve! I know the God of the universe and I can call Him ‘Father’! He is my shepherd, my good shepherd. I know Christ, He is my advocate! I am indwelled by the Holy Spirit! I can pray and know I am heard! God is my friend!

His name is above all names

El Shaddai (Lord God Almighty)

El Elyon (The Most High God)

Adonai (Lord, Master)

Yahweh (Lord, Jehovah)

Jehovah Nissi (The Lord My Banner)

Jehovah-Raah (The Lord My Shepherd)

Jehovah Rapha (The Lord That Heals)

Jehovah Shammah (The Lord Is There)

Jehovah Tsidkenu (The Lord Our Righteousness)

Jehovah Mekoddishkem (The Lord Who Sanctifies You)

El Olam (The Everlasting God)

Elohim (God)

Qanna (Jealous)

Jehovah Jireh (The Lord Will Provide)

Jehovah Shalom (The Lord Is Peace)

Jehovah Sabaoth (The Lord of Hosts)

As the children of Israel spoke these names of God, they might have been more aware of the glorious character of their Lord and His attributes than we are, from day to day. But we have the additional advantage of knowing Christ the Lord, after His coming to earth.

Isaiah 9:6

For to us a child is born,

to us a son is given;

and the government shall be upon his shoulder,

and his name shall be called

Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,

Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Let me remind us of more scriptural names and descriptions of Christ

The Son of God                           The Word

The first-born of every creature    The Good Shepherd

The Son of the Highest                 The King

The Alpha and Omega                  The lamb

The door                                     The light

The way                                      The chief corner-stone

The truth                                     The author and finisher of our faith

The bread of life                           The Lord

The life

Dear friends, these are only a few! As we sing and rehearse the names of Christ, our praise for Him can only be full-hearted and glorious.

Yes, we live in a world where there is pain, many unknowns, adversity, and wickedness. But we must not allow earthly circumstances to distract us from our amazing privilege of knowing God, having been made righteous by faith, of knowing why we are alive, and that our sure future is to be in His holy presence forever, because of His Son.

The writer orders us to tell God how awesome His deeds are. So let us stop now, setting aside all distractions, and tell our precious Father and Lord how great He is. We might do this amidst tears, but let us begin our day aware of, and in awe of, our glorious God!

5 DISCIPLINES THAT WILL INCREASE OUR FAITH

WHAT CAUSES YOU TO BE EXCITED AND CHEER?

READ PSALM 65

Psalm 65:9-13

You visit the earth and water it;

you greatly enrich it;

the river of God is full of water;

you provide their grain,

for so you have prepared it.

You water its furrows abundantly,

settling its ridges,

softening it with showers,

and blessing its growth.

You crown the year with your bounty;

your wagon tracks overflow with abundance.

The pastures of the wilderness overflow,

the hills gird themselves with joy,

the meadows clothe themselves with flocks,

the valleys deck themselves with grain,

they shout and sing together for joy.

God is our abundant provider and we should respond with grateful praise!

Living in Italy, you quickly observe that many live with an incredible dependence on “il calcio” - soccer. Thousands fill the stadiums every weekend, cheering on their favorite team and allowing the results of the matches to set their mood for the day - and for some, even for the whole week. Things in the USA are not that different. According to the season, college or professional sports attract the attention of many and for some it borders on devotion. The professional athletes involved become idols to be praised and followed. But David’s attention is on His God, who deserves all praise for His abundant provision for His creation.

The question for all of us is whether or not we allow things of this world, even those that are not necessarily wrong, to transport our attention and emotions, rather than focusing our awe and thankfulness upon God’s gracious provision and care.

Our God is our provider. All we have and all we are is from His generous hands. Nothing grows apart from His care. Everything we eat is a gift from God. At times, we live as if we depend on men, when our true dependence is only on our Father in heaven.

We do thank God before our meals, I hope, but even that can become a routine that we do without giving it much thought.

Take time to reread these verses and apply them to your life.

I love the words that the author uses: ‘Greatly enrich’, ‘full’, ‘abundantly’, ‘blessing’, ‘growth’, ‘overflow with abundance’, ‘overflow’, and ‘joy’.

God’s provision is so full, so wonderful, so caring, so appropriate, and so useful!

Matthew 6:26-31

Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’

These were the words of Jesus, as He spoke to those who followed Him. Our God certainly wants us to live in total awareness of our dependence on Him. Our Father does not want us to be anxious or fretful. He does want us to grow closer in trusting dependence upon Him each day. Why don’t we do it more? Because we have little faith!

What can increase our faith?

1 – Getting to know our God! His Word, the Bible, is our resource. We must not neglect our time of meditation and study. In scripture, we will learn about the character of God, about His wisdom, His power, and His love for us.

2 – Availing ourselves of sound teaching! Our involvement in a local church should be faithful. And yes, we must make sure that the teaching is based on the Word of God and that the preaching never ignores its centrality.

3 – Spending time with mature, faithful believers! There are times when we lose sight of God, when our difficulties seem to crush us, when trials are prolonged and difficult, when the end seems impossible. We need fellow believers who know how to point us to the encouraging truths of the Scriptures.

4 – Serving God faithfully! When we serve others for the sake of the Gospel, our attention will be drawn away from ourselves to focus, instead, upon the needs of others. We will then be able to be part of God’s faithful provision in their lives.

5 – Reflecting on God’s past care for us! God has revealed Himself to us and has attracted us to His grace. All of us have experienced His grace and care through difficult times. In fact, we will also be able to realize how He has prepared us for the situations we are currently confronting.

Dear friends, we should rise to our feet and praise our God! Our exaltation should be filled with sincere enthusiasm! Let’s make sure our excitement and our cheers are directed to the One who truly deserves them and provides for us with loving care!

START AND END YOUR DAY WELL!

THE WAY YOU DO THIS IMPACTS THE WAY YOU LIVE

READ PSALM 65

Psalm 65:5-8

By awesome deeds you answer us with righteousness,

O God of our salvation,

the hope of all the ends of the earth

and of the farthest seas;

the one who by his strength established the mountains,

being girded with might;

who stills the roaring of the seas,

the roaring of their waves,

the tumult of the peoples,

so that those who dwell at the ends of the earth are in awe at your signs.

You make the going out of the morning and the evening to shout for joy.

When someone asks you to describe the God you believe in, what do you say? When you ask someone to describe the God you believe in by observing your life, what would they say? Far too often, the two answers do not match as they should. David here describes for us the God of the universe, the eternal God, the God we believe in.

Our God, first of all, is righteous. His work is never tainted by any kind of imperfection, for it is holy in its motives, intentions, application, and in its results. God is never vindictive; every action He does is perfectly gracious and just. God hears our every cry, every word of our prayers; He knows our very thoughts and answers every prayer in the most perfect of ways.

Lest we forget, David reminds us that our God is also our Savior. How is it, that, although we have entrusted our eternal lives to Him, we can still question the way He conducts our every-day events?!

We are saved forever. We never deserved it when we were born again, and we will never merit it with our deeds now. Our salvation was based on grace, and our Lord continues to deal with us according to His grace.

God is our only hope. He is not only the hope for those who believe in Him, but also for those who mock Him and reject Him. No one breathes or moves without the sustaining power of God. The whole universe was created and set in place by Him, and  is ordered and sustained only by His power and perfect will.

Only under the control of God does the ocean roar and swallow the land in its rage, just as it calms only at God’s command. If we simply took the time to observe nature, we would be awestruck by our God. God is meticulously controlling the world; He is accomplishing His goals.

Our God has no problem in controlling nature or in controlling man. When the nations roar, they do it only because God permits it. When leaders make decisions, they are under the control of God.

As His children, who are aware of His righteous might and perfection. We should never be in fear. Our health, our circumstances, our interactions, our future, and our final destination are in the righteous hands of the God of our salvation. We do not know what the future will bring, but we do know the character, wisdom, power, and love of the One who holds it.

David cannot help but praise God. He begins in the morning and he finishes at night.

Maybe that reveals our problem: we too often begin our days chasing the cares of the world and end exhausted by our efforts, forgetting to meditate on our God.

We become so busy that we lose sight of what is true and what has merely been produced by our fears. We live our lives as if we were in control and are driven by earthly desires. We lose sight that God is in control and that His purposes are perfect and eternal.

People are not obstacles to our sanctification, but they are the instruments God wants to use to produce godliness in us. Circumstances are not obstacles to a godly life, but the instruments God uses to expose our earthly desires.

If God is continually at work for our own good, intending to produce godliness in us, then our only response should be to praise and thank Him.

We need to begin our morning by preparing our hearts, reflecting on our God. Our day, without a doubt, will be different. We must also end our day by evaluating the way we responded to our circumstances, reviewing our thoughts, our interactions with others. And then we must rejoice in what the Lord is doing in our lives, even when we see that we must ask forgiveness, first to God and then to those we have wronged.

We all desire to live our lives for the glory of God. So we need to prepare ourselves, as we start each day, with an awareness of our God and we must end each day by examining how we responded to Him.

I am resolved to know my God better and to rejoice in His perfecting work in me. Then I will exclaim like David: “You make the going out of the morning and the evening to shout for joy”. 

DOESN’T GOD DESERVE OUR PRAISE?

OUR FOCUS PRODUCES OUR ATTITUDES AND ACTIONS!

READ PSALM 65

Psalm 65:1-4

Praise is due to you, O God, in Zion,

and to you shall vows be performed.

O you who hear prayer,

to you shall all flesh come.

When iniquities prevail against me,

you atone for our transgressions.

Blessed is the one you choose and bring near,

to dwell in your courts!

We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house,

the holiness of your temple!

This is the way every day should begin for all of us: praising God for His wonderful work in our lives. Our lives should be dedicated only to Him. Our every action should be consciously done to His glory. Everything we are, have and are surrounded by is because of God’s provision and loving care for us.

Being a son or a daughter should be done to the glory of God: our respect and honor and care for our parents should be obvious and heartfelt.

As husbands and wives: every attitude, every response, every action, every desire should be done to the glory of God.

As parents: our education, correction, encouragement, and care should be done to the glory of God.

As workers: whether we have nice employers or not, the excellence of our work should be directed to the glory of God, rather than as a response to recognition or for a paycheck.

As members of a local church: our timeliness, presence, service, and love for the brethren should be done to the glory of God.

We could go on, thinking about how we live among our neighbors, how we drive, how we stand in line at stores, how we respond to our authorities should also be done to the glory of God.

Have I been redundant with the phrase ‘to the glory of God’? Well, I need to be reminded that as I have committed to serve and submit to the Lord, I have also committed to do all things to the glory of God.

Does God deserve this kind of commitment? He most certainly does!

What a wonderful privilege we have, to know that He listens to our prayers. We can come to God with our deepest feelings, our sorrows, our hurts, our confusion, and our disappointments and lay them at His feet. God hears them and is always careful to respond in the most loving and appropriate way for meeting our need to grow as children who are pleasing to Him.

As we approach God in His holiness and perfection, it is no small blessing to know that He forgives our iniquities. He forgives by grace alone, for we cannot merit or repay any of the forgiveness He offers to us. We never need to wonder if there is something He is holding against us. His forgiveness is always complete, when we repent and confess our sins to Him. Christ paid for our sin and God is pleased to show mercy and forgive.

Dear friends, as we reflect on God’s care for us and His forgiveness, living our lives to His glory is the only response we should ever have.

Lest we forget, it is God who chose us and brought us near to Him. He knew exactly what kind of sinners we would be and how many times we would be unfaithful. He chose us before the foundation of the world. We cannot respond in any other way but with humble and grateful amazement.

There is complete satisfaction in God’s presence and His care.

Do we ever become ungrateful and dissatisfied? Certainly yes, and it happens when we take our eyes off of the glories of who God is and onto the world’s empty enticements. When this happens, we are paving the way to sin.

Each day anew, we need to devote ourselves to our wonderful God and Savior. We must take time to reflect on our privilege to know Him, to speak to Him, and to be cleansed by Him. We must recommit ourselves to leading lives that bring glory to Him in every aspect. Then we will be blessed and find the inner peace and joy that cannot be tarnished or taken away.