Christmas...What if?

To begin, I love the traditional idea of Christmas including the tree, presents, good food, merriment, children and the opportunity to say a prayer of thanksgiving.  This we would do as a matter of fact. Thanking the good Lord for our daily sustenance, for the particular meal  in which we are about to partake.  Never forgetting to include a blessing for that meal as well as the hands that prepared it.   Usually gains me some points...unintendedly...ladies.

I love the carols, the music unique to Christmas and some, if you are older like me, often do take you back to some previous 'white Christmas' place or time in your life usually when times were simpler. I am not crazy about snow even though I was raised on ice skates in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  Yet around Christmas time, I make concessions to my wife that some snow will be allowed during the Christmas season...and I really wish I had such control.

This year, my 63rd Christmas, finds me in great health, partially retired and working an average of 20 hours per week  The good book says that God's will for us is to prosper and be in good health, even as our soul's prosper.  No problem you say.  As a student of God's Word, I can only tell you that your soul will prosper in your obedience first to be born again in the Spirit, then by allowing the newly indwelling Holy Spirit of God begin His work in you.  It was imperative for Jesus Christ to be ascended after His resurrection from the grave which He did after seeing and talking to numerous witnesses including our friend Thomas...that 'doubting Thomas'.  The orginial. 

Jumping to the place where we already have Christ crucified, died and resurrected after doing battle with Lucifer, during which He was victorious over sin, death, and then the grave itself means that I still have to go further back to the place and time where Christ was born.  It is easier for me to go from where we are today to that place when God looked down on a world full of sinners, whose self-righteousness was as 'filthy rags' and where all have sinned and fallen short of the glory that is God. 

There was that tradition the Jews have in which the sacrifice of an unblemished, unspotted lamb must be offered up on the altar for the atonement of sin.  Jesus Christ played the role of the "Lamb of God Who Takes Away the Sins of the World" when He died on Calvary's cross over 2,000 years ago.

And the most important thing you should take from my foregoing is that as I spoke of Jesus, His birth, His death and His resurrection, I spoke in the past tense.  Those things are done.  I could go on and on about the foretelling of those events from the Old Testament and compare them to their fulfillment, found in Christ, in the New.   But, what if.....?

"But I would not have you to be ignorant brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.  For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with Him.  For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.  For the Lord Himself, shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:  Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air; and so shall we ever be with the Lord.  Wherefore comfort one another with these words". I Thessalonians 4:13-18.

What if that rapture (the word rapture is not in the bible...I know) was to take place on December 21st or 22nd coming?  It would be really cool if it happened on the Druids and Wiccans big winter solstice (21st) night...they would celebrate even harder totally unaware of what awaits them over the very next several years.  The Apostle Paul said to comfort one another with these words, but for you, knowing you missed the train to the coast, and your bravado has just burst, do you know what you will have to do to get back what was offered freely once for all?

I hear that after we are gone, an evil person known as the Anti-Christ, Mr. 666....that nasty man of perdition is to be revealed and he will impress many of you.  All will be required to swear loyalty to this nasty man and prove this by taking his mark (666)either on your forehead or the back of your right hand.  Without this mark, you will not be able to affect commerce....buy and sell, etc...plus you will probably, ultimately be hunted if you do not show up for your chip (RFID)  implantation day. If you choose Christ instead of that loyalty to the Anti-Christ, you will be beheaded and martyred for your belief.  I had a minister friend tell me recently that you can't scare people to Christ and that is not my intention.  I am redeeming the hour, as we speak, there is no prophesy that still needs to be fulfilled prior to that rapture and I like to spread the gospel every time I blog in case that is the last time I get to.

That Holy Spirit I referred to earlier is the reason why Christ had to ascend because as He does, He promises to send this Spirit.  The Holy Spirit is part of the triune nature of God and because this is true, as He indwells us, he comforts us, he gives us the right words to pray when we do not know how we should be praying sometimes, and very importantly, He enables us to begin to discern the mysteries hidden in plain sight in God's Word.  That is why He tells us to 'study to show ourselves approved'.  He is knowable.

As far as evil is concerned....the world ought to know the Holy Spirit as the "Restainer".  When the Holy Spirit leaves your neighborhood because His dwelling place has relocated, and very much evil restraining is missing....guess what!

If we are all still here on the morning of December 25th, I will shout out loud, "Merry Christmas!".  And I will turn up my Christmas caroles and turn the news of the atheist pranks off!  Oh yeah!  I will also continue to watch the Eastern sky because that is the direction from which Jesus is returning.  Do not be deceived if someone tells you there is someone performing miracles and calls himself the christ, here or there....or even in DC for that matter. Remember, Lucifer can appear as 'an angel of light'.

So What If people?  What if Christians left your presence?  Wouldn't be much need for anyone to celebrate Christmas now would there?  Oh yeah, the Great tribulation would have just begun.