Pastor's Corner

What a Gift!

"Do not be afraid, Zechariah," Gabriel tells him. "Your prayer has been heard. Your wife, Elizabeth, will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John .. he will be great in the sight of the Lord. Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God. And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous - to make ready a people prepared for the Lord."

Not too many people think about the crucifixion of Jesus on Christmas morning! As I prepare personally for the Advent season, I too think of the manger, the baby, Mary and Joseph. But imagine the thoughts of God as He sent His only Son, Jesus into the world that morning knowing full well that he would die to save a dying world. That is beyond me! I tried a few years ago to deal with this same thought, but fell flat. However, I am grateful for God’s mercy, love and compassion for His children.

We each have the greatest gift already inside our hearts. It was free and has brought us new life. But there are so many in our world today who have never heard about this new birth or this life changing experience in Jesus Christ. It is hard to believe, but true. We who grew up in the Church and are surrounded by the love and grace of Jesus Christ take it all for granted.

When God communicates with us or takes action in our lives, it is rarely with the impact of the angel's appearance. But I think our reaction is often much like Zechariah's. We question whether it is real. "Was that God speaking to me, or a hallucination? Was that a miracle, or just a coincidence? And if that really was God, can that really be what God meant?"

While we may relate to Zechariah's confusion and skepticism, we must be aware that it has its’ cost. It's not so much that we might be struck dumb if we doubt God's authority or interest in us, but that we might miss the blessings and peace God desires to share with us.

Christmas season is very special, folks warm up when they are mindful of the Christ child's birth, and make an extra effort to practice the virtues the angels sing of "peace on earth, goodwill towards people." But consider this - why do we notice this at Christmas? Why does this surge in warm heartedness stand out? I think it's because, despite our best intentions, good will towards people can easily become a seasonal event rather than a standing attitude.

During our annual Christmas bazaar, which was held last month, I noticed something that really impressed and encouraged me immensely. It was so beautiful to see so many new faces from the church community. They took time from their busy schedules to come and help the church out. I take this opportunity to say a thousand thanks.

When Christ entered our world, He didn't come to brighten our Decembers, but to transform our lives into His likeness. It can be hard work to practice good will towards one another. But John the Baptist's message was that as we prepare for Christ to come into our lives, we could change our ways.

The Gospel accounts of Jesus' ministry provide the blueprint for loving our neighbour in a busy and complicated neighbourhood. Christ made a point of seeking out the broken and disenfranchised people of his day - the lepers, prostitutes and tax collectors - and he saw the value in each one of them. And in so doing, He helped them recognize the value in themselves.

This Christmas season, let us recognize that just as faith is a decision, good will towards all people is a series of decisions that work themselves out not in temporary holiday cheer, but in the details of everyday life. Whether the Word comes to us through a heavenly messenger, or a passage of Scripture, or a preacher, or from common folk God's promises are trustworthy, and our ability to accept them and live them is limited primarily by our ability to believe them.

At this Christmas I am thankful for the baby that was born in the manger, but I am also thankful for the cross, together both have changed my life and I will never be the same. As Zechariah's story demonstrates, God is never predictable, but is always faithful.

Merry Christmas, Glædlig Jul, Frohe Weihnachten, Happy Hanukkah, & Joyeux Noël

With Christ in your heart … have a blessed Christmas.
Joy to the world the Lord is come.

Yours in Christ,

Pastor Samuel King-Kabu

Reflections from the Editor

I believe how we follow Jesus should be represented in our church. Small groups model the intimacy that Jesus had with his twelve disciples. Our corporate worship on Sunday is when we become a crowd. The early church in scriptures had a structure, a gathering and mission. It is a “house of worship.” Worship requires intent along with expression. I do not lose my personality, will or mind, I simply follow God and express that in how I live. I diminish the activity of worship when I make all of it common and none of it holy or separate from the mundane or routines of my life.

Worship is not a lifestyle to be worn like a favourite sweater. It is costly. Following Jesus means all my possessions are his. It means my family and life are second. A worshipper goes farther than any of us are comfortable going. Acts of worship are separate. Some things need to be reserved and set apart simply to identify my life with Christ. It is just like being married. You identify who you are as a union with your spouse like with no other person. Our corporate worship is a special, separate place and time there is made to identify with Christ. This kind of worship is not sipping coffee or saying a quick prayer between appointments. It costs me something--or, perhaps at least it should. I will have a purpose from the time I was born until eternity. That purpose is to worship. Following Jesus is worshipping him. The idea of making more disciples is the idea of making more worshippers of Jesus. It is loving him. It is modeling my life after him and it is making a big deal, (even in ritual) that he is the one I follow and happy to do so. Only our church can help me do this--by being that time and place where I and other people gather for the purpose of worshipping. This is corporate worship. It is this special place in time with the people of God together identifying our lives with him.

This brings me back to following Jesus. That is our goal. Our church, should be a place that can move us forward in the process. Our church is a place where I can find Jesus and make a personal growing level of commitment to follow him no matter where I am at on my journey as a worshipper/follower of Christ. It is both the crowd where Jesus taught his parables and the small groups where the deeper meanings are explained. It is both the joy of having a party with Matthew’s lost friends with Jesus and being in the boat with a small group during the storm. In a church, we can get both the crowd and the personal--the worship service and the small group.

We can personally be challenged and see Jesus work in amazing ways--big and small. We are to follow Jesus even if imperfectly. We are imperfect creatures this side of heaven, so our church will only be as perfect as we can be. The fact is, our church is God’s institution. Don’t give up on our church, and let us settle for nothing less than the best. It does matter.

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Content-New Topics Last Updated: 2008/03/04
St. Ansgar's Lutheran Church - Montreal