GRACE AND THE TRUTH - DAILY INSPIRATION

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TRUE RICHES IN CHRIST
by C. R. Stam

      To know God through Christ and His redeeming work is to be rich indeed.

  The Scriptures have much to say about the infinite riches of God. They tell us of "the riches of His glory" (Rom. 9:23; Eph. 3:16), "the riches of His wisdom and knowledge" (Rom. 11:33), "the riches of His goodness and forbearance and longsuffering" (Rom.2:4) and "the riches of His grace (Eph. 1:7; 2:7). God would have us enjoy these riches through faith in Christ, who died for our sins.

   "For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that ye through His poverty might be rich" (II Cor. 8:9)."

    We should rejoice continually that God, in addition to being rich in wisdom and knowledge and in glory and power, is also "rich in mercy" (Eph. 2:4) and that "the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon Him, for whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Rom. 10:12,13).

    To St. Paul, the chief of sinners, saved by grace, God revealed the greatest riches of all. Paul said: "Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints is this grace given, that I should preach among the nations the unsearchable riches of Christ" (Eph. 3:8 ). These riches include, among other things, "all the riches of the full assurance of understanding" (Col. 2:2). How wonderful to have an intelligent understanding of God's plan of salvation and of all He has purposed in His heart of love for those who accept the salvation He has provided through His beloved Son!

    True riches are not comprised of material things. The Scripture calls these "uncertain riches" and warns us not to trust in them (I Tim. 6:17). True riches is "to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge" and so to be "filled with all the fulness of God" (Eph. 3:19).

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GOD WILL DO IT
By M. Stanford


"For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of [his] good pleasure.  (Phil. 2:13, KJV)

As we mature we come to see more and more clearly that our Father just as fully controls our lives as He does the universe. As CA. Fox said, "Climb on, and you will find the correcting, the chastening, the cleansing, the calming of the deep affection of God."

"All the testing and trying is to first deal with, by the Cross, that which can never stand the stress and which must be forever failure to the Lord, and then to develop that which is Christ within us. That is the spiritual life - Christ in us in all His fulness. 'I will make him a pillar.' 'I will write upon him the name of my God.' He is going to do it. All the striving will never bring that end about, but He will do it.

"The great majority of us would say, 'If it all depends on me, then it is a bad lookout! ' Well, of course, that is true, but let us look at the blessing of Joseph - The arms of his hands were made strong, by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob. . . even by the God of thy father' (Gen. 49:24, 25)." --CO.

"Let a man renounce himself, and see himself as crucified with Christ, and soon another Himself ----the Lord Jesus Christ - will take the central place in the heart, and quietly bring all things
under His sway."

"It is a great thing to offer the Lord Jesus Christ as the Saviour to sinful man, but it is still greater to express Him in a world where He is rejected."-----J.B.S.

"According as His divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness" (II Pet. 1:3).

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VICTORY BY GRACE
Read: 1 Cor. 15:54-67


"Whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world; and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God!" (1 John 5:4,5). Carnal man has not the capacity nor the means to fortify himself against the destructive forces of this world. As vessels of clay we know only discouragement and defeat. So long as we walk the earth we are subject to its evils and temptations. Each of us has the same struggle as that described by the Apostle Paul.

"For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God THROUGH JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD...For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death" (Romans 7:22-25; 8:2).

"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or peril, or sword! ....Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us" (Romans 8:35,37).

"So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory .....The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ"



        What Thanksgiving Means . .  .


               T    reasures in heaven not on earth

               H    umble  before our God

               A    nswers to  our prayers

               N    ew life in  Christ

               K   indness to our fellowman

               S    inging Praises to Our Saviour for His  mercies

               G    ive love generously to our friends

               I     ntimate with our Lord to draw closer to Him

               V    ictorious in our walk with the Lord

               I     nsight we get as we lift up Christ

               N   ecessary to be ever mindful of God's Blessings

               G   lory in the Knowledge of  God



                         Written  By:
                        Loretta Jane  Moore

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A HOLY TEMPLE
By ROBERT E. HANNA, Pastor

Scripture Reading: Ephesians 2:21, 22

Individually and collectively, the members of the Body of Christ constitute the temple of the Holy Spirit of God. We need not await a divine visitation or a miraculous sign; the indwelling Spirit is ever present. "Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ? ... He that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit. Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's" (1 Cor. 6:15, 17, 19,20).

Not only so, but we are the permanent abiding place of the Holy Spirit. Pity the saint of God who is ignorant of the priceless gift of life eternal. There is no power in heaven or earth capable of snatching away our certified citizen-ship in glory.  " ..... After that ye believed, ye were sealed [in Christ] with that Holy Spirit of promise, which is the earnest (assurance or pledge) of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of His glory" (Eph. 1:13,14).

The work of Christ to secure our heavenly position, is finished. "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who HATH blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: according as He HATH chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world ... having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself...wherein He HATH made us accepted in the beloved" (Eph. 1:3-6).

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The Eyes Of The Lord
by Pastor C. R. Stam



“The eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward Him” (II Chron. 16:9).

The meaning of this famous passage of Scripture is clear, and its truth has been demonstrated a thousand times over. God is constantly searching, as it were, for men whom He can bless and use in the fulfilling of His purposes, but for whom, and through whom, does He accomplish His ends?

He does not need the world’s influential giants, for He says in Zech. 4:6: “Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, saith the Lord of hosts.” He does not need the world’s great thinkers, for our Lord, while on earth, prayed: “Thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Thy sight” (Matt. 11:25,26). Indeed, St. Paul declares, in I Cor. 3:19: “The wisdom of this world is foolishness with God.”

No, it is not upon the world’s great ones that God bestows His blessing and power; it is rather upon the humblest believer whose heart is right with Him. Thus it is that by divine inspiration St. Paul wrote to those in ancient Corinth who had trusted Christ as their Savior:

“Ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: but God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; and base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: that no flesh should glory [boast] in His presence” (I Cor.1:26-29).

To those of us who believe that God created the Universe from naught all this is perfectly consistent and it gives us confidence that He can bless and use even us.

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THE REAL DIFFICULTY
By late Pastor Win Johnson



In our study recently, we came across this pungent statement: "It is surprising when we really come to examine ourselves closely in this matter, how much of what we already believe has been received by tradition from our fathers. How little has actually been derived from our own direct personal study of the Word of God itself. We believe what we have received from man; and we do our best to get it confirmed by the Bible. When we are unable to get the confirmation we are in search of, then we find what we call a 'difficulty.' But the difficulty is not in the Word of God itself; it is in our own minds. The real difficulty is in giving up our own views because we fail to make the Bible conform to them. It does not, at first, occur to our minds that we may have to abandon some of our views if we would get rid of the difficulty." (From "How To Enjoy The Bible")

Multitudes of religious people attend church and like a baby robin, swallow anything and everything that is put before them. Few there are who like the Bereans of old "search the Scriptures daily whether those things are so" (Acts 17:11).

This writer has admonished his people never to believe what they hear simply because "the preacher said so." The preacher could be wrong! After all, he is human and prone to err as anyone.

The only sure test as to the soundness of the preaching and teaching we receive, is, "What saith the Scriptures?" Not just any Scripture taken out of context and misapplied, BUT the Scriptures rightly divided (II Timothy 2:15). This involves a recognition that though ALL SCRIPTURE is most certainly for our learning and blessing, NOT ALL SCRIPTURE is written to us or for our obedience. Seeing this, will go a long way in dispelling seeming 'difficulties'.

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STANDING WHATEVER THE COST
by C. R. Stam


    When the Babylonian multitudes prostrated themselves in worship before the golden god which Nebuchadnezzar had erected, three young Hebrews refused to bow and remained standing, erect and alone.

When called before Nebuchadnezzar to answer for their impudence and threatened with death in a fiery furnace, they answered:

"Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us... but if not, be it known unto thee, O King, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up" (Dan. 3:17,18 ).

This is the stand every believer should take for God and His truth. He is able to deliver us from persecution if we stand true, but even if He does not see fit to do this we should still stand alone, if necessary, for the light He has given us from His Word.

Many have suffered temporary loss for standing for their convictions. Hebrews 11 lists among the heroes of faith some who were "tortured, not accepting deliverance," and others who suffered "trial of cruel mockings and scourgings...bonds and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword; they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented" (Heb. 11:35-37).

But we read that these all "obtained a good report" before God and looked forward to "a better resurrection" (Vers.35,39).

As the apostasy rises all about us and those who stand for God's truth are often ridiculed and despised, may God give us the grace to stand true regardless of the cost, remembering that any sufferings for Christ are only temporary while the rewards will be eternal.

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A LITTLE LEAVEN AND LOST BLESSING
by C. R. Stam



It is difficult, if not impossible, to determine from Paul's Epistle to the Galatians, just what the Galatian believers thought the rite of circumcision would accomplish for them spiritually. We doubt that they knew themselves, but the Judaizers had come in among them and had captured their attention so that these, who had been so gloriously saved by grace, now "desired to be under the law" (Gal. 4:21). They did not deny the efficacy of the finished work of Christ, but they were interested -- just interested -- in submitting to a religious ceremony which would in itself be a denial of the all-sufficiency of His redemptive work (3:1; 5:2-4). Result: the blessing was already vanishing (5:14) and the Apostle had to warn them: "A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump" (5:9). You can't admit a little leaven and expect it to stop there.

With the Corinthians it was rather a case of countenancing moral wrong. One of their members had been living in grievous sin. But then, their number was large, and he was just one, and the congregation as a whole abounded in spiritual gifts. Feeling quite satisfied with themselves, therefore, they simply overlooked this disgrace to the name of Christ. But listen to Paul's -- God's -- view of the matter:

"And ye are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you" (I Cor.5:2).

"Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump? "Purge out therefore the old leaven..." (Vers. 6,7).

In these days when both spiritual error and moral wrong are made so palatable, when apostate unbelief and worldliness are presented so appetizingly, we do well to take heed to the Spirit's warning to quickly purge out the "little leaven" that threatens to permeate the whole loaf.

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PAUL REJOICES
By RALPH F. BALOG

Scripture Reading: Philippians 4:10

Whenever II Corinthians 11:22-33 is read don't you wonder wherein Paul would have anything to rejoice about? If anyone was looking forward to a glorified body, it was surely Paul. Truly he is our example of God's strength made perfect in physical weakness (II Cor. 12:9-10).

But in this later Philippian epistle, Paul's rejoicing is not for relief of his physical needs, but rather that other members of the Body of Christ were learning their responsibility to Paul. He was rejoicing this way because "ye were careful, but ye lacked opportunity." They had tried but could not reach Paul with their gifts of love. And for their efforts, Paul rejoiced.

In verses 11,12 and 13 Paul states he is not concerned with his physical needs. Whatever the Lord allows, Paul will accept. He states: "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." In verse 14 he writes something similar to verse 10: "Notwithstanding ye have well done that ye did communicate with my affliction." Verse 17 tells why Paul was rejoicing: "I desire fruit that may abound to your account." Could this be anything less than the Judgment Seat of Christ where "our account" will be made known?

Nevertheless Paul expresses gratitude for the gifts sent through Epaphroditus which he says are "well pleasing to God." Again, though Paul rejoices, the end result is that it pleases God, and that is what really counts. May we learn from Paul to rejoice in the growth of fellow members of the Body of Christ as together we minister to each other's needs.

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Christ Is All
By John Nelson Darby


Christ is the key to the puzzle of this world. May God give us to be anything or nothing, so that the Lord Jesus may be everything. The magnet always turns towards the pole; the needle always trembles a little when the storm and tempest roar, but its direction changes not; the needle of the Christian heart always points toward Christ.  The only thing which can be truly blessing to our brethren, so precious because they belong to Him, is that which we reproduce of Him. . . .  If He is the life, all which that life does has Him for its end and object..

Everything relates to Him: we do not eat without Him (how can we when He is our very life?), we do not drink without Him; what we say, what we do, is said and done in the name of the Lord Jesus.

The most eminent Christian is one of whom no one has ever heard speak, some poor labourer or servant, whose all is Christ, and who does all for HIS eye, and His alone. Jesus is the fountain of all blessedness, sent to poor, weak, wretched sinners, that they may have abundance of comfort, of peace and of enjoyment.

We must find everything but Christ nothing.

No trial can touch a person who has Christ for his all. He may have lost this or lost that; but if he has Christ he has that which he cannot lose.  It is not the quantity we do that makes spirituality, but the measure of presenting Christ: that is the value of our service, in a world where there is nothing of God. It is not always in the correction of the failures which come before us that sources of unhappiness are heaped; they disappear when souls are nourished upon the riches which are in Christ. We must think of this; we must, while ourselves feeding upon Christ, and He gives us to feed on Him without stint, cause other to breathe a new atmosphere, where Christ is.  He has purchased a “peculiar people, zealous of good work.” He has brought you to Himself, to have your whole heart wrapped up in His interests, your thoughts, your actions, everything for Him. . . . Are we living enough out of the world (not merely out of its pleasures but its cares) and enough with Christ for Him to have a large place in the daily thoughts of our hearts? . . . Have we the consciousness from the time we get up in the morning till we go to bed at night, that our hearts are with Christ, . . .  a consciousness that He is in us, and we identified with Him?

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"THE THREE WORDS FOR LOVE IN THE SCRIPTURES"

Our language is handicapped, for the Word "Love" must cover everything from puppy love and fornication to love of science and love of God. There are four words for it in Greek. Suppose we disentangle the confusion by considering three of the Greek Words.

THE FIRST WORD IS 'EROS' which stands for carnal love. This love is in the glands, rather than in the will, an emotion rather than a responsible dedication. Examples people who use people to further their own career, or helps them climb socially. This 'EROS' is also lustful love, I need you to satisfy my own desires.

THE SECOND WORD IS 'PHILEO' which is also translated love. It begins when there is a communication and respect between two persons. Such love is not just sympathy, but empathy. The difference between the two is that while in sympathy we feel compassion for one another, we always remain outside the one who needs help. Or another example is I love you because you do so many nice things for me. Or because you are so lovely, different from others, popular, wealthy, so famous, etc. This is called friendship love.

THE THIRD WORD IS 'AGAPE' this is reserved for total, sacrificial self-giving. This love is the wonderful message of the Bible that in Jesus Christ this kind of love first became available to man in satisfying fullness. The love that Christ brings to us from God is not the "if" kind of love. God does not say to us, "I will love you if you become a Christian." He loves Christian and non-Christians without any partiality. He does not say "I will love you if you are a good and moral person, if you go to church, if you give contributions to Christian causes, if you read the bible, if you pray, if you become a minister, etc." There are no "ifs" of any kind He loves us exactly as we are. He does not love us for what He can get out of us. There is no requirement we must meet, no condition to fulfill.  How can we prove this? The fact that Jesus died on the cross is the proof, Jesus, the son of God, He paid a high price for serving those who had nothing to return to him; He was criticized over and over. Then in obedience to God, He died on the cross for the SIN of mankind.

Even today the only source of this 'AGAPE' love is Jesus Christ, the Living Lord who died on the cross, and risen, who came to be your LIFE. He is the only one who can love others without seeking anything in return. Since, you are a new creation in Christ it is His life thru you that will love others and shine forth out of you.

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"DISCIPLES AND APOSTLES"
by C. R. Stam

    "And when it was day, He called unto Him His disciples: and of them He chose twelve, whom also He named apostles" (Luke 6:13).

Many people fail to distinguish between our Lord's disciples and His apostles. They suppose they are the same. This is incorrect, however, for our Lord had a multitude of disciples while He had only a few apostles. His apostles were chosen from among His disciples, as we learn from the above message from Luke's gospel.

A disciple is a follower; an apostle is a "sent one". A disciple is a learner; an apostle is a teacher. There is a great lesson here for us all to learn.

We must come before we can go. We must follow before we can be sent. We must learn before we can teach. We must listen to the Lord before we can speak for the Lord.

"Thus saith the Lord", was the familiar phrase with which the Old Testament prophets began their messages. But at the head of the long list of Old Testament prophets we find Samuel, a young lad, saying: "SPEAK LORD, FOR THY SERVANT HEARETH" (I Sam.3:9).

Before we can do or say anything for God, then, we must listen to God. This explains why the reading and study of the Word of God is so important.

First, salvation itself comes by hearing and believing God's Word, especially about Christ, and His death for our sins. Romans 10:17 says: "Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God", and I Peter 1:23: "Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the Word of God, which liveth and abideth forever". Then, having been saved, we can serve God acceptably only by diligent study of His Word. Perhaps the most important passage in the Bible on this subject is II Timothy 2:15:

"STUDY TO SHOW THYSELF APPROVED UNTO GOD, A WORKMAN THAT NEEDETH NOT TO BE ASHAMED, RIGHTLY DIVIDING THE WORD OF TRUTH."

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THE LIVING GOD
by C. R. Stam


"My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God" (Psa. 42:2).

The recent "God is dead" theory had little true comfort or satisfaction for men in trouble or sorrow.

For years we supposed that the term "the living God," in the above passage, had reference to God’s power to help, in contrast to the impotence of dead heathen idols. A careful examination of the context, however, leads us to believe that it has rather to do with His ability to respond. The gods of the heathen, by contrast, were like children’s dolls; they could not even change their countenance or respond in any way.

"The idols of the heathen are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands.
"They have mouths, but they speak not; eyes have they, but they see not;
"They have ears, but they hear not, neither is there any breath in their mouths" (Psa. 135:15-17).

But the true God is a living God. He does see, hear and respond. The Psalmist, in Psalm 42, compares himself to a stag, panting with thirst. It is sometimes supposed that the scene is one of a stag pursued in the chase, but the passage says nothing of this. Palestine is a dry land and entirely apart from being hunted down, a deer might well pant for streams of running water.

Be this as it may, the stag, in this passage, is not seeking for help; he is thirsting for refreshment, and so did the Psalmist long for the refreshment of fellowship with God, the living God.

How wonderful it is that we may know the living God through faith in Christ! This is why the Apostle Paul declares in Heb. 10:19:

"Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus... a new and living way, which He hath consecrated for us through the veil, that is to say, His flesh. "

By His death at Calvary our Lord tore away the veil that kept us from entering into God’s presence, and now in response to our need He says:

"Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need" (Heb. 4:16).

Yes, God is a living God!

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KNOWING CHRIST AS HE SHOULD BE KNOWN
By Pastor C.R. Stam


John the Baptist introduced our Lord with the proclamation: "Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matthew 3:2). Throughout His earthly ministry Christ was known as the "Son of David," the King with whom God made a covenant to establish His kingdom forever.

The Old Testament prophets predicted that Christ would (and He will) reign on earth upon the throne of His father David. While His kingdom was being proclaimed "at hand" He walked and talked and ate with men as "the Son of Man". Wearied with traveling He sat at Jacob's well and asked for a drink of water. Pressed by the throng, He got into a fishing boat and addressed the multitude from the sea. Hated by His adversaries, He was tied, scourged, spit upon and nailed to a tree. This was indeed "Christ manifest in the flesh."

With regard to His humiliation, however, the Apostle Paul says by divine inspiration that "God also hath highly exalted Him and given Him the Name which is above every name" (Philippians 2:9).

Again, the Apostle declares that God's mighty power was "wrought in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead, and set Him at His own right hand in the heavenliest, far above all (Ephesians 1:20). He is no longer to be known as "the lowly Jesus" but as the exalted Lord in Heaven. And this has its bearing on us too: "Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: Yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now, henceforth, know we Him no more" (II Corinthians 5:16). Our blessed Lord is now to be known as the glorified Son of God, the great Dispenser of Grace to a lost humanity; the One who in love and mercy "tasted death for every man" (Hebrews 2:9).

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THE TRUE CHRISTMAS STORY
By  the late Pastor Vernon A. Schutz


   The Christmas story is indeed true, but do you really know the true Christmas story?
   What do you see in the manger? For many the manger is filled with brightly colored ribbon girding a box wrapped neatly with beautiful Christmas paper. Others see tinsel, ornaments, spruce, cookies, candy and an assortment of other seasonal things. But empty the Crib of all of these, for they do not belong there, and see what the Crib really contains.
   Now that all has been taken away, what do you see? Do you see only a babe? It is sad how many know about this babe, but do not know who He is? Zacharias knew, for he praised God that He had visited His people (Lk. 1:68 ). Yes, this babe was God in flesh. This Jesus is Jehovah (Lk. 1:76); and His descent to earth was to deal with sins and their remission (vs. 77). Paul says, "Great is the mystery of Godliness: God was manifested in flesh." And of this Jesus he said, "Christ came, who is over all, God blessed forever."
   Why should God take upon Himself human flesh? Ah, this is the Christmas story: the Crib and the Cross. His taking flesh at Bethlehem was only a means to an end, which end was Golgotha. This babe, God's eternal Son, Himself God, was born in order to die. The wooden Crib in Bethlehem in which He lay was to become the wooden Cross of Calvary on which He was to hang. We have heard and read often about His being born, but this is only the Christmas birth. God's Word always puts the Crib and the Cross together, and this makes the true Christmas story.

"He hath appeared (the Crib) to put away sin by sacrifice
of Himself" (the Cross), Heb. 9:26.
"The Son of man came ... (the Crib) to give His life a ran-
som for many" (the Cross), (Mk. 10:45).
"And ye know that He was manifested (the Crib) to take
away our sins" (the Cross), 1 Jn. 3:5.

On the night of His birth, the Shepherds praised God for a Saviour. A Saviour must be one who is capable of dying (God took flesh), yet at the same time one upon whom death has no claim (Christ was sinless). Christ died for us because we were incapable of paying the debt we owed to God's holiness. His holiness demands that sin be punished. Sin's penalty is death: physical, spiritual, and eternal. We could not pay it without being eternally ruined, so Christ redeemed us, i.e., He paid our debt (damnation) on the Cross. Only God Himself could satisfy the demands of His holiness without being eternally ruined, but only man owed the debt. None could pay it but God; none owed it but man. Therefore, if the debt were to be paid, it must be God that pays it; but it must be God as man, since it is man alone who owed it. Would God Himself, because of His love for us, bear the penalty of our sin? Yes! God became man at Bethlehem's Crib, in order to become our Saviour at Calvary's Cross. God took flesh (the Crib) and died for us (the Cross) so that whosoever puts his trust in this for the remission of his sins should never perish but have eternal life.
   Remember, the Bible is God's Word to us. He cannot and will not lie. Take Him at His Word. Read these Scriptures and believe what He says:

"To Him (Christ) give all the prophets witness, that
through His name whosoever believeth in Him shall
receive remission of sins" (Acts 10:43).

"Through this man (Jesus) is preached unto you, the for-
giveness of sins: And by Him all that believe are justified
from all things" (Acts 13:38,39).

   Do not just believe about Christ as a historical figure, but believe on Christ as a personal Saviour. Believe on Him as the only way you can be saved.

"Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved"
(Acts 16:31).

"Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none
other name under Heaven given among men, whereby we
must be saved." (Acts 4:12).

   The Crib was the preparation necessary to accomplish the wondrous plan of redemption. His holy, sinless life was the prelude to becoming the spotless lamb to be slain for our sins.
   The Cross and its suffering was the purpose for which He came into this world. There He bore our sins "in His own body on the tree." The condemnation we deserve He suffered, "the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God."
   The Crib and the Cross give us the true Christmas story. May it bring true joy to your heart at this important season of the year.