JESUS—“For this is how God loved the world: . . .”
“The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ,
(The 2nd Letter of Paul to the Corinthians 13: 14 NASB)
and the love of God,
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit,
be with you all.”
The precise origin of why we celebrate Christmas on December 25 is unclear, but according to the Britannica Encyclopedia, one widespread explanation derives from ‘the day of birth of the unconquered sun’ which was a Roman holiday that celebrated the winter solstice.
Today is December 21st, the Winter Solstice. As such, today becomes the first day of winter, the shortest day of the calendar year & the day when the Earth’s axis is tilted as far away as possible from the sun. Therefore, the sunlight and heat offered from the sun is furthest away from the Earth. Step outside today in the territory where I call home, and immediately, you will feel the coolness found in this calendar day.
In reading about the Winter Solstice, I found a description explaining how the sun we experience on this day at noontime will not even get as high as usual, so the day will ‘feel’ darker. Today—
- The Day will be shorter, making the entire day become less light-filled.
- The Night will be longer, causing the entire night to become more dark-filled.
Hence, our resting will seem to come more frequently to our bodies because in the ‘dark,’ we become physically, emotionally, & mentally fatigued. Therefore, the posture of this winter season becomes one of sitting, of lying down, of completely ‘being’ at rest.
It’s quite interesting that we celebrate the ‘coming of Jesus as a babe in the manger’ during this time of ‘being completely at rest.’
I found an anonymous, lyrical poem, and although we do not really know the tune, we can sense through the choice of diction, the rhythm & because we do find a sense of rhythm, we find how we can sing this poem together.
“At this season of the year
our blest Redeemer did appear,
and here did live, and here did preach,
and many thousands He did teach.
Thus He in love to us behaved,
to show us how we must be saved;
and if you want to know the way,
be pleased to hear what He did say: . . .”
Even though this particular conversation occurred so long ago, we still hold great value in the TRUTH found in this discourse. Nicodemus was a man of the Pharisees, a ruler of the Jews, who approached a man named Jesus under the cover of darkness. Nicodemus called JESUS a Rabbi and a teacher, one who must have come from God.
“Nicodemus said to Him, ‘How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born, can he?’
(The Gospel According to John 3: 4-10a NASB)
Jesus answered,
‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’
The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going;
so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.’
Nicodemus said to Him, ‘How can these things be?’
Jesus answered and said to him, . . .”
“For this is how God loved the world:
(The Gospel According to John 3: 16 NLT)
He gave His one and only Son,
so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.”
During the night, I heard the wind howling. Since it was dark, I found myself inside the house and unable to SEE the wind; nevertheless, I heard the wind. If I had been able to be outside in the light, then I would have been able to SEE the effects the wind caused, yet I would still be unable to SEE the wind, where it came from nor where it went. I would only be able (even in the light of the day) to SEE how the wind affected the Earth.
Please pause.
Please ponder the great difference found when in the darkness and when one knows the Light.
Consider the words spoken by JESUS, GOD’S ONLY BEGOTTEN SON—