No Other God...

I was reading the prophet Daniel the other day and I came across a passage that captured the true meaning of Christmas for me.  Many of you may remember the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego.  These 3 Jewish men were taken forcefully to the land of Babylon and then recruited by the Babylonian King, Nebuchadnezzar, to be his servants.     

Nebuchadnezzar is eventually so overcome with pride that he builds a big statute of himself and commands his subjects to bow down and worship it.  The penalty for disobeying this command was death.  If you didn't bow down, you were thrown into a raging fire that was sure to do more than just singe your eyebrows.     

Because of their devotion to the One True God Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego refuse to worship the statue. Nebuchadnezzar has them thrown into a fire that is so hot, even the soldiers who threw them into the fire were burnt to a crisp.  But Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego walk out of the fire unharmed and untouched even by the smell of fire!  Not only that but the witnesses testify that there was another man in the fire with them who looked like "a son of the gods."     

When all is said and done, Nebuchadnezzar says these profound words in Daniel 3:29: "...for no other god can save in this way."  This really is the true meaning of Christmas.  Christmas is about the reality that there is no other god who can save in the way that the One True God saves.     

In Matthew 1:21 an angel says these words to Joseph, "She (Mary) will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."  Christmas is all about God who has saved us in a way that no one else could.  He broke into human history as a baby.  It blows my mind to think that the Infinite God who created the universe was once a baby completely dependent upon His parents!  He grew up and experienced all of the cold, harsh realities of life that you and I experience.  He died a brutal death on a cross and experienced God's punishment against sin-the punishment and death that we deserved.  Then He was raised from the dead so that we too could have new life in Him never to die again.  And all we have to do is admit our need and receive this gift.     

I agree wholeheartedly with King Nebuchadnezzar - there truly is no other god who could save in this way.  

Acts 2 Community and Trust

A few weeks ago our Genesis Team went away for a few days to attend a teambuilding time up at Mount Hermon. This seminar was not your typical teambuilding retreat. The approach taken at this seminar was actually very Biblical when it came to community. Actually, it was Acts 2 Biblical. We learned the foundation for healthy teams is trust. They believe no small group or community of people can accomplish anything significant without true, healthy, authentic, loving trust.

Many of us believe this in theory but we have a hard time living it out practically. Trusting people is risky business. When trust is broken it can easily lead to unwanted emotions such as hurt, pain, loss, frustration, anger, loneliness and disappointment. When we trust another person we put ourselves in a very vulnerable place and we can easily be hurt. This is why many of us choose not to trust.

I am realizing I have been holding out on my fellow Genesis team members. I have been afraid to trust them for fear of being hurt by them. It was an amazing realization for me when our facilitator very gently but firmly told me to stop being a wimp, step up and commit myself to this team. I immediately knew he was right.

If we are going to "be the church in Santa Cruz County and beyond" trust is going to be central to this vision. First and foremost we need to place our trust in God and what He's done for us through His Son. Then we need to commit to that smaller group of people who will challenge us to become more like Jesus as a result of our trusting them and them trusting us.

I don't know about you but I don't want to just go to church; I want to be the church. In order to do this I am realizing that it's going to take trust. I think I'm ready. What about you?