Luke 2:10
“Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people."

I took the picture this morning. It is hanging just inside our front door. I love mistletoe!! Kissing is a beautiful thing. It is an intimate expression of love. "Greet one another with a holy kiss," says the heart of God. A holy kiss!! A holy kiss is never forced. It is freely given and gratefully received. I kiss my wife. I kiss my children. I kiss my grandchildren. I kiss my brothers and sisters in Christ. 

If holy kisses filled the world how different the world would be!! If every kiss that was exchanged was a HOLY kiss the nightly news would take on a much different flavor. 

Psalm 85:10
                Steadfast love and faithfulness meet;
righteousness and peace kiss each other. 

This is one my favorite Christmas revelations in the Bible. This happened in Jesus. Love, faithfulness, righteousness and peace kissed each other. In Jesus we have absolute holiness. Righteousness! AND at the same time we have unstoppable love and peace! Because of Jesus, His coming, His death for our sins, we have all that matters. His righteousness is fulfilled instead of our doom sealed. AND we experience His love and peace! 

Where there is perfect righteousness we experience judgement because we are not righteous. Through Jesus righteousness kisses love and peace with God. 

Need a holy kiss? Jesus! 

For Unto You Is Born...Savior...Christ...Lord

Luke 2:10
“Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people."

It feels like we live in a bad sad world. Killings on a mass scale like we haven't imagined. Yesterday the Chief of Police stopped by to help our church Pastors think about the unthinkable. "Lock your doors," he said. "On Sunday mornings!" Crazy! Isn't it?!! And then there are the scandals. A new nightmarish surprise every day. Not to mention those around the world who seem hellbent on killing us with a bomb or a missile or even a bus while we shop. 

The worse thing of all is we ourselves. Against the backdrop of pure perfection that is God, our smallest of sins look depressingly shameful. The brighter He is to us, the more nightmarish our sin.

Is it possible to feel joy and be excited about the future! Sometimes we get discouraged. Sometimes we feel the blows. But there is a strength and life and joy that Christ came to give us. He entered this mess and gave Himself so that we could be filled with His presence. He is life. He is great joy. 

That is why Paul wrote, "We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies (2 Corinthians 4:8–10).

We are not crushed, not in despair, not forsaken, and certainly not destroyed. No matter what! Instead, through Christ in us, we are whole, joyful, experiencing Jesus and more than conquerers. 

Colossians 1:27
...God chose to make known...the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.