{"id":8210,"date":"2005-12-08T00:06:23","date_gmt":"2005-12-08T05:06:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.covchurch.org\/newswire\/?p=8210"},"modified":"2011-07-06T08:28:58","modified_gmt":"2011-07-06T13:28:58","slug":"4629","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blogs.covchurch.org\/newswire\/2005\/12\/08\/4629\/","title":{"rendered":"Advent: Discover the Reality of Jesus’ Birth"},"content":{"rendered":"

KALAMAZOO, MI (December 8, 2005)\u00a0 – Editor’s note: In preparation for the\u00a0 Christmas observance, Covenant Communications is sharing devotionals\u00a0 that originally appeared in local Covenant church newsletters and are\u00a0 being published here by permission. The following comes from pastor John\u00a0 Kepler of Kalamazoo Covenant Church.<\/em><\/p>\n

By John Kepler<\/div>\n
Since many have undertaken to set down an orderly account of the\u00a0 events that have been filled among us . . .<\/em> (Luke 1:1)<\/div>\n
So begins Luke’s gospel as it unfolds the story of Jesus Christ in his\u00a0 particular style of writing. Isn’t it typical for a physician to want to\u00a0 give an “orderly account?” In fact, Luke mentions it twice in the\u00a0 opening five verses.<\/div>\n
His narrative gives us the most complete of the two accounts of Christ’s\u00a0 birth, providing details of the common, human touch and the miraculous.\u00a0 The good Doctor Luke sees Jesus as “fulfillment,” as God’s promised\u00a0 action to provide humanity with a final gift for their salvation. His\u00a0 gospel is filled with the humanity of Jesus more than any other . . .\u00a0 God reaching out to touch their lives.<\/div>\n
During the Advent and Christmas seasons, perhaps we need an orderly\u00a0 account of things for our lives – perhaps we need a fulfillment of our\u00a0 own. It is terribly easy to be side-tracked during this time of the\u00a0 year. It is easy to let fun divert us away from a true sense of joy. It\u00a0 is easy to let purchased gifts replace the gift of Christ. It is all too\u00a0 easy to place worship at the end of the list of things to do. It is easy\u00a0 to replace Luke’s ordered account of the first Christmas with the more\u00a0 modern stories of Santa, Christmas trees, family traditions, and the\u00a0 constant refrain, “It’s such a busy time of the year” . . . (translated:\u00a0 chaos).<\/div>\n
Christmas may be about the birth of a child, but it was never intended\u00a0 to center on our children to the extent our culture has manufactured it.\u00a0 In fact, Christmas Day wasn’t established until the Fourth Century, and\u00a0 the holiday didn’t start emerging toward what it is today until the\u00a0 Nineteenth Century (many point the finger at English writer Charles\u00a0 Dickens).<\/div>\n
Let me encourage you this Christmas to find that ordered account for\u00a0 your life and to put it at the top of your list. Be drawn into the\u00a0 magnificence, the simplicity, the life-changing reality of the birth of\u00a0 Jesus Christ.<\/div>\n
<\/span><\/div>\n
\n
Copyright \u00a9 2011 The Evangelical Covenant Church.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Report This Post<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

KALAMAZOO, MI (December 8, 2005)\u00a0 – Editor’s note: In preparation for the\u00a0 Christmas observance, Covenant Communications is sharing devotionals\u00a0 that originally appeared in local Covenant church newsletters and are\u00a0 being published here by permission. The following comes from pastor John\u00a0 Kepler of Kalamazoo Covenant Church. By John Kepler Report This Post<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8210","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nAdvent: Discover the Reality of Jesus' Birth - Covenant Newswire Archives<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.covchurch.org\/newswire\/2005\/12\/08\/4629\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Advent: Discover the Reality of Jesus' Birth - Covenant Newswire Archives\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"KALAMAZOO, MI (December 8, 2005)\u00a0 – Editor’s note: In preparation for the\u00a0 Christmas observance, Covenant Communications is sharing devotionals\u00a0 that originally appeared in local Covenant church newsletters and are\u00a0 being published here by permission. 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