Christmas Season

During the Christmas season, we focus on the amazing, miraculous birth of Jesus. It is a wonderful time for a Christian, as we consider the enormous impact of the birth and life of Christ Jesus. It is a time of reflection and celebration. As glorious and prophetic as the birth of Jesus was, evil still lurked. We know from the scriptures that King Herod, upon learning of Christ's birth, immediately began a process of trying to have Him killed:

"...Herod is going to search for the child to kill him." (Matthew 2:13).
"...and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem." (Matthew 2:16).

This process hasn't changed in over 2,000 years. As we celebrate the birth of Christ Jesus, evil still lurks in this world.

The New York Times, hardly a biblical prophecy news site, has declared that Iran now has enough nuclear fuel for one nuclear weapon. This "tipping point" is something that prophecy watchers have been waiting to see. Many of us believe that the last remaining prophecies will fall like dominoes - once the "powder-keg" is ignited. This "powder-keg" could very well be Iran's development of nuclear weapons.

At the same time, we see renewed calls for the total destruction of Israel. Hamas Cleric Muhsen Abu 'Ita, representing Hamas, a puppet organization for Iran, has again called for the "annihilation" of Israel.

At the same time, Iran's leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad - a leader who controls the use of nuclear weapons in Iran, again declares that "Israel is at the end of its life".

Connecting those dots doesn't take a lot of imagination. The person responsible for the development of nuclear weapons in Iran is also calling for the total destruction of Israel.

Just as Herod could not succeed in killing Christ Jesus, those who oppose the God of the Holy Bible, and those who reject the fact that Jesus is indeed the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords - will not succeed in their efforts.

While we celebrate the Christmas season, the other side plots evil. Just as Herod attempted to eliminate Christ, in an effort to destroy God's plan, we see the same form of evil again attempting to thwart God's plan. This is nothing new. Throughout history, we see efforts to divert God's plan - only these efforts ALWAYS fail. God's overall plan marches on, completely unaffected by such feeble, human efforts.

Their threats, their attempts to instill fear, their efforts to divert God's plan - all should be of no significance to us. We know how the story ends. Just as Herod failed, so will today's terrorists fail. The best they can do is to attempt to instill fear. But we should have no fear:

"I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies" (Psalm 23:5). What an image. The symbolism of this image is profound. In the very presence of our enemies, we can literally rest assured that God's plan will prevail - and we should have no fear - to the point of comfortably sitting at the table, prepared for a meal - in the literal presence of the enemy.

At the time of Jesus' birth, evil rose and attempted to destroy Christ, and in turn, God's plan for mankind. Similarly, as we celebrate the birth of Christ, the same evil plots against, and opposes the God of the Holy Bible. Just as Herod failed, so will today's efforts to eliminate God and His plan.

As we sit at our tables this Christmas, we should remember the promise issued in Psalm 23. Evil will not prevail. The forces opposing Christ Jesus will not prevail. Only God will prevail. As we celebrate Christmas, we should also remember God's promises. At the conclusion of Psalm 23, we know our fate:

"...and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever." (Psalm 23:6).

Our ultimate fate. It will not change, nor will it be diverted by the evil that exists on earth today. The birth of Christ ultimately led to the sequence of events, over the next 33 years, that ensured us of this fact:

We will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

God's plan. It will not be changed nor diverted, despite the feeble efforts by evil men.

Thank you Father, for the miraculous, divine birth of Christ Jesus, and everything that He did for us.