PASTOR'S CORNER

One of the most famous Christmas trees in the world is the
Rockefeller Center Christmas tree in New York City. The tree
is anywhere from 69 to 100 feet tall and covered with 50,000
LED lights. These lights are a far cry from the lights that
adorned the first Christmas trees in Germany: candles attached
to tree limbs with melted wax. When electricity became
available in the late nineteenth century, electric lights slowly
replaced the candles and small lanterns used for centuries.
Regardless of the kind of lighting, Christmas trees have
always displayed lights. Why? Originally lights to illuminate
dark houses in the dead of winter were a welcome source of
cheer. But fro Christmas, the reason was obvious: to celebrate
the birth of Christ who came as the Light of the World (John
1:3-9). As Simon declared when seeing the infant Jesus, "A
light to bring revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of Your
people Israel" (Luke 2:32).
Be the light of Christ in your world as you celebrate
Christmas this year. His light dispels all darkness wherever it
shines forth.
A father reassures his teenage daughter about her first solo
airplane trip: "I'll be with you all the way to the gate, and the
flight attendants will be with you after that. Then Grandma
will be with you when you arrive." "With you" happens a lot
in this life--but there is always a starting point and a stopping
point. "With you" never lasts forever in the human realm.
But in the heavenly realm, it does! The name given to the
Messiah in the Old Testament was Immanuel, which in Hebrew
meant "God with us", a name confirmed at the birth of Jesus
(Matthew 1:23). When the writer to the Hebrews wanted to
convey God's omnipresence, he quoted God's words to Joshua
on the eve of Israel's entrance into the Promised Land: "I will
not leave you nor forsake you." (Joshua 1:5). Jesus even told
His disciples He would be with them "to the end of the age"
(Matthew 28:20).
You were not alone yesterday; you are not alone today; you
will not be alone tomorrow. Jesus is Immanuel--He is with you.