The Ugliness of Christmas

In Taiwan, Christmas is something of a non-event. Most people will be working all day. I miss the festivities of Christmas--the lighted streets, the Christmas carols in the shops, wrapped presents under a tree, and the general merriment. I grew up on the farm, and Christmas was a time when the work slowed down, when the snow and cold forced everyone indoors. If I had my way, the Christmas tree would go up a week before Thanksgiving and come down the week before Easter. My wife likes Christmas, but isn't quite so enthusiastic about my desire for the tree being up so long. So someday when I'm not looking, the tree comes down in mid-February. If I could, it would be "always Christmas"--to quote one of the characters in Lewis' Narnia series. 

But amidst the portrayals of warm, attractive fireplaces in the winter, beautifully wrapped presents, and Jesus being born (according to the portrayal in many greeting cards) in what appears like a comfy stable, back lit with studio lights, there is a dark side. In reality, Christmas was quite ugly. That's because I Timothy 1:15 says, "Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance. Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners--of whom I am the worst." One of the most popular songs is "White Christmas", but the song belies the darkness of the meaning of Christmas. 

We should meditate deeply on a dark, cold night in a small nondescript village in Palestine where a lovely young woman gave birth to a a baby in the most unsanitary, wretched conditions imaginable, standing in the filth and manure of a stable. The little cloths wrapped around his body would have had the stench of animals, of fires burning to keep people warm. It was a filthy place of pain, blood, cold, manure, straw and odors. Why? Because the Bible said he came down to the stench of our own sins to bear them away on a cross 33 years later.  

It also reminded me of the death of Ronny Smith who had been one of the pastors at the Austin City Stone Church where my daughter Katie and her husband attend. He had gone to Benghazi out of his love for Christ and the Libyans. One of his students Yomna Zentan, an 18-year old student attending the Libyan-owned school, told reporters that he was "more like a best friend or a family member", adding; "After everything that happened in Libya, we were losing hope and he was the only one who was supporting us, motivating us, telling us that as long as we studied--everything could be okay. He was the silver lining. He dedicated so much of his time for all his students." When he was gunned down while jogging by militants, he was a sobering reminder of the ugliness of Christmas. Happily, Jesus came to take away the sin of the world. Someday, it will all be gone. May we all think on these things and invite our friends to the services because Christmas is truly ugly and beautiful at the same time.

Advent Reflections on Progress at Friendship

Advent is a time to reflect on Christ's birth and on the past year as we prepare ourselves for a new year. Kay and I have begun our sixth year at Friendship. We couldn't have enjoyed it more, and have tried to build on the gospel foundation established by your previous pastors.

Some of the highlights and challenges have been:

• Every year we have around 25% of the congregation who move on to new challenges and callings. We can only hope and pray that the seeds of the gospel grew in their lives, and that they can take that seed and plant it somewhere else. At the same time, we almost always receive back as many new people. This dynamic makes the congregation quite welcoming. In short, everyone knows what it feels like to be "the new kid on the block" and so along with trying to provide hospitable worship, it makes for an environment that is dynamic, welcoming and a real opportunity to speak to both those who know the Lord and those seeking to know Him.
• We try to grow community and small groups. It's not easy as people work long hours, are often tired, and scattered over the city. Pastor Jason has done the church special service in expanding the number of Beta and mid-week groups. 
• I had the opportunity of taking a few men to India this last spring to serve a mission where they plant churches and staff a children's home. Some of our younger people participated in an English camp on the southern part of the Island. We also had the opportunity to give toward the typhoon that devastated the Philippines. 
• We love our international students and so it's been a special joy to see the regular contingent of Indonesian, African students and others from all over the world on any given Sunday.
• Our attendance with the children during the fall to spring months continues to be somewhere between 200 and 225 most Sundays.
• We continue to have a connection with the Redeemer City to City Church Planting Movement. It has enriched Pastor Jason and myself in an extraordinary way. 
• We have had a growing contingent of young couples with small children and more weddings in the past year than anytime that I can recall since I have been here. That has increased the numbers in the children's ministry. We continue to pray about how to improve our ministry to teenagers.
• We are grateful for our elders, deacons, small group leaders, Li Lin Wu, Pastor Jason and Jerry Chiao who all make significant contributions.

Kay and I would like to thank you for your generosity to both of us. Nee-tai-ku-che (that's my poor attempt to say in Mandarin, "you are too generous." We also thank you for your financial support of the church. Even though you have taken on two full-time pastors, the giving has kept pace. May his grace and peace be with all of you during this season.

The Shield of Faith

This Sunday we look at "The Shield of Faith" from Ephesians 6. The Roman shield was large enough to cover the whole body. It was made of wood covered with hide, and bound with iron at the top and bottom. When dipped in water before a battle, it could extinguish fiery arrows that had been dipped in pitch and set ablaze. Paul said that it was strong enough to extinguish all the fiery darts of the enemy. What does it represent? Most commentators say that Satan sends shafts of temptation, doubt, accusation, lust, greed and that the shield of faith is to be used to counteract these shafts. But mostly it seems to refer to those seasons of fiery trial that both Peter, James, and the Book of Job describe in great detail. Here are a couple of things to observe:

1. You can notice that the shields are almost large enough to cover the entire body. 
2. You can notice that they were joined with other shields so as to provide an almost impregnable wall of defense. Behind the army of shields, there were the archers who would counteract with their arrows against the enemy.

The Bible says that "this is the victory that overcomes the world--even our faith." The shield of faith means everything that we believe about God, Christ, the Bible, life and death and its application particularly in the time of fiery assault. We are to always "have on" the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, and the shoes of the preparation of the gospel of peace. This means that truth should go right to the bone of our life so it comes out instinctively during the little skirmishes of life. It means that we are to live from the imputed righteousness of Christ that actually creates a righteous and holy life. We should always know that we have peace with God through Jesus life, death and resurrection. These parts of the armor are to be strapped on at all times.

But then there are those seasons of life that bring special trial. We are suddenly laid off from a job. We have a serious set-back with our health. A loved one leaves us or dies. During that time we need  to "take up" the shield of faith--faith in Christ and His promises, faith in the character of God that He is good and has good plans for us. The shields were almost as large as a door. It's a reminder that Jesus said he is the door to God, but also we could say he is the door of protection against all kinds of assaults. Moreover, it is not a solitary battle. We aren't to do it alone, but with one another as we create together an impregnable wall of defense against the enemy. This Sunday, we will also look at a case study of what it looks like in the life of one man under tremendous assault--namely Job. 

Sunday is also the beginning of Advent. This Sunday we have the advent candle lighting as we begin the celebration of his birth. Bring your friends so they can explore what it means to have Christ in their life who is the ultimate shield against every attack!