The Farmville herald. (Farmville, Va.) 1957-current, 1962-12-21
Good Comes To Us
Lesson for December %. 1862

OF the carols tell the story truly:
Emmanuel has come to
thee 80" or Thou didSt leave
thy throne -. or word of
the Father now in flesh appear
ing" and others telling the
same story.
The deep truth about Christ
mas is that the day celebrates
the coming Of God to us. The
very name Emmanuel means
God with u.s." Now it would not
at all be true to say that God
had never come to this world
before; He was here in creation,
He has been here in history, in
the beauty and the order Of all
this vast universe. The prophets,
one and all, knew Him. and the
poets sang Of Him. But what
was new about the first Christ
mas land what it began) was
that now men could not only
know that God is, we know what
God is like.
God Is Expression
Jesus Christ is the translation
Of God into the language Of hui
man living. He is the Eternal in
the pattern of time. There are
philosophers who do not see how
the High God can possibly ex-
press Himself: but the Bible
tells us of a God who is not con-
tent with expressing Himself, He
desires to communicate with His
children. In John ! Christ is
called the Word. He lived to be,
He lived to tell. He is Gods
messenger but also He is Gods
message. The Word - the Elk
preston, the Message. the Com
munication - of God became
flesh" on that first Christmas
Anyone might have thought that
if God came to the world He had
made, to the people He h a d
made. in a new way-they might
have thought it would be a new
form Of words, a new theology,
a new creed to believe. But no.
God expressed Himself above
all in a man who was first a
little baby. Gods Word to us is
put in the form we can under
stand, in one who was made "in
all respect like as we are, yet
without sin"
God Comes in Light
Poets and writer's of Christ
mas carols have often made
something of the Christmas-eve
picture-a dark hillside, no light
anywhere except for the stars
overhead and the one light in
the stable. The Apostle John,
writing his own Christmas story,
says nothing about the inn on
the stable or the shepherds. But
he does say something about the
light. John. is thinking beyond
Bethlehem to The generations
yet to come. He sees what the
story Of this child, grown a
man, this Gift of God to man
what this Man. this Goldman,
will mean to the race Of man.
He is the Light. Gods light,
lighting every man. John
does not fail to see that the pic
ture has a dark side. There
were and there are some who
do not receive Him. He is a
Light shining in darkness. The
darkness never has understood
the Light. the darkness never
has quenched the Light: but yet
the darkness is still there. To
drop the parable a moment, the
coming Of God to us in Christ,
the Light of the World. can
mean and does mean nothing at
all to those who will not see.
once we understand the
meaning of Christmas, the com-
ing Of God to men, to all men
who will turn and see. then we
understand there is something to
be done about it. No one ON
whom the Light has shone can
be content that it has Shone on
him alone. Those who have
found the Light are bound to
spread the Light, indeed to be
taS Jesus said) the light Of the
world themselves.
But if we stopped here, it
would leave US with a discourag-
ing question. How can we be the
light Of the world? Again John
points to the answer. To those
who receive the Light, God
gives power to become chill
dren Of God" BY ourselves, We
cast a pretty feeble light. BY
ourselves, We are weak. Gods
coming" is not like the coming
Of man. People come and 60
away. and we are not greatly
changed. But when God comes.
and we open our lives to Him.
we begin to be changed from
the very core of our lives. AS
We share in the vision of God,
so We share in the power of the
God who comes to us in Jesus.
BASED on outlines copyrighted
by the Division Of Christian Edu.
cati0n, National Council Of the
Cburches Of Christ in the U.S.A.
Released BY Community Press
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