Majesty!

It’s hard for us to imagine a King being born in the rough crude surroundings of the Bethlehem manger. Yet when we read the accounts in Matthew and Luke about the beginnings of the life of Jesus, we are amazed. Majesty in a manger?
The Doubting World
The world around us today has become more and more questioning about anything that speaks of religion or faith. The movies and the media of our ‘progressive’ world who want to push their own agenda of doubt and skepticism want the world to know that there are many valid reasons why we should not believe the Christmas story. They doubt the possibility of a virgin birth of the messiah. They want the whole event to be just another tale or allegory. They plant their seeds of doubt into our society on a regular basis. Some of those seeds of doubt are even planted by those who call themselves ‘Christians.’ Episcopal Bishop John Shelby Spong is a leader in this kind of spiritual ‘reformation.’ As one of their chief theologians, his acceptance of homosexuality as a lifestyle rather than his recognition of it as sin has turned the Episcopal church upside down. Here’s what he says about what Christians need to believe today. “The biblical story of the perfect and finished creation from which human beings fell into sin is pre-Darwinian mythology and post-Darwinian nonsense. The virgin birth, understood as literal biology, makes Christ's divinity, as traditionally understood, impossible. The miracle stories of the New Testament can no longer be interpreted in a post-Newtonian world as supernatural events performed by an incarnate deity. The view of the cross as the sacrifice for the sins of the world is a barbarian idea based on primitive concepts of God and must be dismissed.” As a ‘Christian’ he has taught an entire generation to doubt the reality of the supernatural, the validity of the Bible as our spiritual foundation, and the consequences of sin. While he calls the sacrifice of the cross ‘barbarian’, in reality, his ‘new’ thinking is not new at all, going back to the barbarian days of man before the flood, when sin ruled mankind causing God to regret creation enough to destroy most of it in a global flood. When carnal man tries to figure out a supernatural God, using his finite mind, he becomes a barbarian! God will out-think him any day! There must be faith! Faith is more than thinking and trying to figure it all out with our minds. It takes genuine faith to trust that what God has promised in His Word is valid and true. It takes faith to believe that God had a plan from the beginning of time to save mankind from himself, and from the sin he is so entangled within. It takes faith to accept that God is really who He says He is, that He sent us his only Son, to die for us, to prepare a way for us to be with Him for eternity. Thinking minds can trivialize the entire concept of God, faith, miracles, and messiah. But if their logical minds have thought just one concept wrongly, they are in serious trouble and God is really God. They can doubt and question every faith concept in the Bible, but if they are wrong (and they are) and God is Almighty God (and He is), then they will still face Him on their day of accounting. Judgment faces both the saint and the sinner. No one is exempt. It will be an astounding day for the Bishop Spong and all those he influenced to doubt. They will meet His Majesty!
Why did Jesus come?
He came because he chose to love us in spite of our sin. (John 3:16) He came because the Father planned it that way. (Gen 3:15) He came because He was completely obedient. (Phil 2:8) He came because He loved his creation. (1 John 4:10) He came because He is King. (Rev. 19:16) He came because there was no other way to redeem mankind. (Gal 4:4-6) Those that recognize Him for who He is….He blesses. His covenant blessing is for all those who are part of His family.
David called Him “Majesty”
When King David became the reigning king over all Israel, he knew who was really the King over all—-not himself, but the God who made him. “Wherefore David blessed the LORD before all the congregation: and David said, Blessed be thou, LORD God of Israel our father, for ever and ever. Thine, O LORD is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine; thine is the kingdom, O LORD, and thou art exalted as head above all. Both riches and honour come of thee, and thou reignest over all; and in thine hand is power and might; and in thine hand it is to make great, and to give strength unto all.” 1 Chronicles 29:10-12 Because David recognized who was really in charge, God blessed his reign as long as David sought the Lord. The moment David began to do his own thinking, and making his own choices, David got into trouble. It is just the same today. The moment we begin to rely on ourselves, on our own abilities, our own thoughts, our own choices, and we fail to seek God, we soon fall into the carnal patterns of doubt, skepticism, greed, and pride. But when we stop dead in our tracks and realize our mistake, and turn once again to God, He forgives us and restores us once again. When we see him as “Majesty”….we see Him as King. He is the One in charge! We are His humble and obedient servants. We deserve nothing and He has given us everything.
There are some truths to the questioning minds of the world, who see Christians making mistakes, walking in sin, living lives of prejudice and compromise...for we are not perfect by any means. Mistakes have been made. Sometimes we even interpret the Word incorrectly. But one thing I know for certain—Jesus is not a myth, fairy tale or legend. He is God incarnate...in the flesh. He is Redeemer. He is Prince of Peace, Mighty God, Counselor, King of Kings, and He is coming again. I don’t need to know when or how, or if it is going to be pre-tribulation or mid-tribulation or post-tribulation. The important thing is that we are ready for that moment when the clouds part and every eye shall see Him in all his glory and splendor—Majesty!
Somehow I think we will see him in a similar way that John the Revelator saw Him on Patmos. “I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet, Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last….And I turned to see the voice that spake with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks; And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle. His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire; And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters. And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp two-edged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength. And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead Rev 1:10-17 His Majestic presence will be more than our human minds can grasp. When we enter the presence of an earthly king or queen, there is a protocol to follow. One must dress for the occasion. One must learn how to address the royalty, how to speak with respect, and how to converse intelligently. True, you could try to enter the royal chambers in street clothes and act just as you normally do at home. But the guards would pick you out of the crowd in an instant. You would be ‘tossed out on your ear’ before the royalty would ever see you.
We will be presented before His Awesome Majesty. Are you wearing your royal garments? Are you prepared to meet Him? You must get ready. He is not the tiny baby in the manger anymore. He is Majesty! You must have “clean hands and a pure heart” (James 4:8). You must have your robe of righteousness (Is 61:10). Even as a child, the Kings from the east brought Him gold and other precious things. What will you bring Him? All He ever wanted was YOU!
This Christmas, take a moment and come before His Majesty and tell Him you are His… that you want nothing more than to recognize Him for who He really is. Remember He is more than just a baby in a manger, more than a stranger far away in distant Israel, more than a fabled concoction of men’s minds. He is the Almighty One, the Majesty on high! Christmas is not Christmas without Christ at the center of it all. Give Him the best gift you can give. Give yourself. Then go visit Him at his house….and give as He gave to you! Let Him turn your world upside down so you can see things from His point of view. Open your Bible and read the Christmas story in Matthew and Luke. Take the time to talk to Him...and don’t forget to call Him by his name… “Majesty!”
J. Johnson

Wishing you all a blessed and Christ Filled Christmas!
David & Joyce Johnson