The Baby That Changed The World

The Bible says that God sent his son to this earth "in the fullness of time" - at just the right moment in history, chosen by him in eternity past.

Israel was a dark place when Jesus was born. The pagan Roman Empire ruled God's chosen people with an iron fist. The Jews had been waiting for centuries, clinging to the prophetic promises that a Messiah would come who would redeem Israel and rule the world with divine justice from his throne in Jerusalem. They envisioned a mighty warrior coming to save them from their enemies. The prophets had said that the Messiah would come in power and majesty to deliver his people from destruction.

So the Jews were looking for a king. But they had mis-understood the prophecies. Yes, the king was coming, but not yet in his full majesty. That final glorious revelation of the Messiah was reserved for a later date in history. It was time for the Messiah to appear, and indeed he did, but not as the conquering King of Kings. First the Messiah would arrive on planet earth like all the rest of us, a helpless baby, crying his way into the world.

One Morning in Lego Land

I spent a recent Saturday morning assisting my daughter-in-law's father Andy on a perilous mission - escorting our two young grandsons to the Lego KidsFest at the Indianapolis Convention Center. It was going to be a special day of grandfather/grandson bonding.

Andy and his wife Carol originally planned to take the boys themselves, but when Carol was unexpectedly delayed out of town, Andy asked me to step in and help him. Despite my misgivings, I couldn't bear the thought of leaving a fellow grandfather alone with Zeke and Malachi in such a mob scene. And it could be fun, spending some quality time with the boys and a few thousand other young children frolicking amongst the Legos. What could go wrong?

My son and daughter were quite amused at the thought of me embarking on this expedition.

"Dad is going to the Lego fest?" my daughter Stephanie asked her mother. "I can't quite picture that."

My son Steve laughed at me out loud. "Spending the morning with a few thousand kiddies at the convention center? Have fun, dad."

What Really Happened in Ferguson?

Historically, black Americans have had a tough time living here.

The horrors of slavery are almost unimaginable to us today. Later, when slavery was abolished after the Civil War, blacks had to endure ingrained racial prejudice, Jim Crow laws, lynchings, the rise of the Ku Klux Klan, and segregation.

After World War II, when the Civil Rights movement began to really build up some steam, the struggle between black and white America reached a fever pitch. I was a goofy white grade-school kid in the 1960s, and I vividly remember the TV news coverage of the peaceful Civil Rights marches in the South, and the often violent push-back from white police departments.

Black Americans have a painful history with the white power structure. The distrust built up after centuries of abuse and mistreatment is hard to get past. I get that.

Even today, racism still rears it's ugly head much too often. I have a black friend who was seriously hassled last year while traveling through French Lick, Indiana. I'll spare you the details, but the cops gave him a really hard time, and ended up impounding his car, for totally bogus reasons. Had he been white, none of what happened to him would have happened.

This is just another example of the kind of "slow drip" soft racism that keeps black resentment simmering towards American society. I get that, too.

The Most Dangerous Place to Be

There are some people in the world who just seem to be born with their act together.

They are self-confident, disciplined, talented, hard-working, ambitious and successful. They live a moral, respectable life and make a positive contribution to society.

They create businesses or provide high-demand professional services. They volunteer in their communities and take care of their families. The world is a better place because they live in it.

But prosperous, successful people have one incredible difficulty to overcome if they want to enter the Kingdom of God – they have to forsake the pride of their self-reliance.

If you are a successful Type-A go-getter, it is easy to fall into the trap of self-justification. It is tempting to think that you have earned your way into God’s good graces. You might convince yourself that you have made it on your own and you don’t need anything from God.

That is a very dangerous state of mind.

Jesus once told a parable about a rich man who had just reaped an abundant harvest from his fields and was congratulating himself for his great success.

“A rich man had a fertile farm that produced fine crops. In fact, his barns were full to overflowing – he couldn’t get everything in. He thought about his problem, and finally exclaimed, ‘I know – I’ll tear down my barns and build bigger ones! Then I’ll have enough stored away for years to come. Now take it easy! Wine, women and song for you!”’
“But God said to him, ‘Fool, Tonight you die. Then who will get it all?’
“Yes, every man is a fool who gets rich on earth but not in heaven.”
 (Luke 12:16-21, Living)

The Key to Faith

Pastor Robert Morris is one of my favorite Bible teachers. Check out this great post he recently wrote about the simple key to finding your personal faith in God. READ MORE