Merry Christmas Everyone!!
By: Derrick Logan Ii
Tags: Peace, Christmas, Hope, Jesus, 2020

I know that this year may not have been all too merry for us, but I want us to be reminded of the Hope that came to us in a Bethlehem manger 2000+ years ago.

For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. His government and its peace will never end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity. The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will make this happen!

‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭9:6–7‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Though December 25th is most likely not the day of the His birth (some say that He was born in April), it is a day that we call to remembrance the meek entrance of the Lord onto the world’s stage. The moment He stepped out of eternity and into time — when the Eternal Word of God became finite flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth (John 1:14) — was the moment that the people who lived in darkness saw a great light (Isaiah 9:2) and basked in all the hope He brought with Him.

“The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon Me, Because the LORD has anointed Me To preach good tidings to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to those who are bound; To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all who mourn, To console those who mourn in Zion, To give them beauty for ashes, The oil of joy for mourning, The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified.” And they shall rebuild the old ruins, They shall raise up the former desolations, And they shall repair the ruined cities, The desolations of many generations.

‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭61:1–4‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

His name is Jesus

In the Hebrew, His name is Yehoshua, which means “YHVH (the Lord) saves” or “YHVH is salvation.” So aptly named because He was sent to save captives from their captivity and to save the broken-hearted from their pain. Many in His day thought that He was going to free them from their Roman oppression, but the freedom He offered was directed toward the soul. It was the freedom to love courageously, to follow God wholeheartedly, to be able to commune with Him without the need for an earthly mediator, to be free from the bondage of sin and death, and to have peace in any circumstances. Though He certainly will overthrow all workers of iniquity upon His return, the freedom He offers now is much more intimate and personal.

Side note: because the Scripture mentions “vengeance,” it reminds me of the scene in How The Grinch Stole Christmas (Jim Carrey’s Grinch) when Cindy Lou Who asked “Santa,” who was the Grinch in disguise, about the true meaning of Christmas. The Grinch responded with “VENGEANCE!” And in a way, he was biblically correct lol.

Hope for Tomorrow

Anyway, Jesus offers consolation to all who mourn, and we have much to mourn for this year. He offers beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, and garments of praise for heaviness. For we are planted by the Lord to grow into trees of righteousness, trees that can weather all storms and still have fruit and green leaves to provide nourishment and relief to all that come.

But He also offers us opportunities to rebuild, raise up, and repair the old ruins, the former desolations, and the ruined cities within us. This could be the innocence that was taken from us or given away, the trust that we can’t seem to give anyone anymore, the confidence that was stolen from us, the mountain of joy and excitement that’s been reduced to rubble by disappointment and betrayal — all of this can be raised up again.

How? Because the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead is the same life-giving, life-changing, resurrection Spirit that is available to you right now. Ask Him for His Holy Spirit and He won’t withhold it from you. Allow Him to start and finish the work of restoration within you.

My prayer is that you would welcome His Spirit so that you will be open again to new possibilities, that you would love yourself all over again, that you would do the work of recognizing that it happened, forgiving people of past offenses, and letting go, that you would create boundaries that honor the temple that God has given you, that you would grow in the knowledge of His power and unfailing love for you, that you would know Him and the power of His resurrection, and that you would allow Him to be your peace.

He Gives Us Peace

“I am leaving you with a gift — peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.”

‭‭John‬ ‭14:27‬ ‭NLT‬‬

The peace that He gives is something that cannot be gained from anywhere in the world, and this year in particular has shown us just that. His government — not ours — gives us justice, fairness, and peace that won’t end or ever be snuffed out by anything or anyone.

He is Immanuel, literally “God with us” (Matthew 1:23). And He has peace with Him. He is with us in every instance of betrayal and disappointment. He is mourning with us as we lose another loved one. He sits with us as we sit in despair, even as we are resistant to forgiving ourselves. Even when you think He isn’t there with us, He’s there.

Seriously, when I was mourning the end of a friendship, I had a brief vision of Him sitting next to me, resting His arm across my shoulders as I wept.

And because He sits with us, His peace also sits with us.

This is how He Himself is our salvation, for in Him alone our peace is found.

His advent gives us a reason to have hope beyond what we see, in ways we never imagined. I mean really, no one could’ve imagined God, the Master of the universe, becoming a lil babay to save us. So nothing will be impossible with Him (Luke 1:37). The way we are won’t remain the same. We are constantly being made new in Him. The circumstances that plague us won’t last forever. Since they had a start date, they will have an end date. And I believe that you’ll be alive to see it. My hope is that you’ll believe that too.

May His peace give you joy today and all of your days. As you spend time with loved ones or by yourself, may you find solace in the fact that Jesus came to earth and experienced all of the human emotions , including the loneliness and anguish, and He has conquered it all. Trust Him to lead you through what He has already overcome, and may His peace, joy, and love always be your portion.