God’s Assurance

Psalm 16:7-11

“7 I bless the Lord who gives me counsel; in the night also my heart instructs me.

8 I keep the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved. 9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my soul rejoices; my body also rests secure.

10 For you do not give me up to Sheol, or let your faithful one see the Pit. 11 You show me the path of life.  In your presence there is fullness of joy; in your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”

God, through scripture, has assured us that when we sincerely repent of our sins, we are forgiven.  We receive this assurance from the Holy Spirit.  Many Christians do not have this assurance because they doubt their worthiness due to past sins.  They do not feel forgiven.  They let their guilt for those sins quench the truth of the Holy Spirit.

The assurance of salvation for a Christian is worth all the material treasures of a lifetime. Assurance is what gives us spiritual peace that surpasses all understanding  and the deep sense of satisfaction that we keep in our hearts no matter our situation or circumstances.

Through the gift of assurance, we are given a sense of what heaven will be like when we are in God’s presence.

“Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine! Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine! Heir of salvation, purchase of God, Born of his Spirit, washed in His blood “

(Blessed Assurance, UMH p. 369)  

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

God’s Hope

Psalm 8:3-9

“3 When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars that you have established, 4 what are human beings that you are mindful of them,

mortals that you care for them? 5 Yet you have made them a little lower than God,

and crowned them with glory and honor. 6 You have given them dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under their feet, 7 all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field, 8 the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, whatever passes along the paths of the seas.9 O Lord, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth!”

God’s beautiful, mysterious, awe inspiring creation is limitless, a work of His boundless love.  He gave us dominion over His wondrous work, even though we are finite creatures with a bent to sin. 

Who are we that God loves us so?  Who are we that we are trusted with such a glorious honor?

This  is amazing given our daily rejection of Him; given our misuse and abuse of His creation; given our greed and our pride; given our anger and our violence. 

God’s hope, born of His infinite love for us, is that we will rise to the occasion. 

So, the earth continues to revolve around the sun.  The stars continue to shine in the heavens.

And God’s hope for all humanity shines forth.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Light in Heaven

Matthew 2:9-12

“ 9 After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. 11 On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. 12 And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.”

During this time, many Jews were scattered throughout the Roman Empire and the East. With them they carried the hope of the Messiah as promised in the scriptures.

The Magi were aware of these scriptures and prophecies and were eager to see for themselves this promised Messiah.

God guided the Magi to Jesus using a special star that He knew would attract their attention.  With God’s help, they found the holy family who were now living in a house.  They worshiped the Messiah and presented him with gifts.

With God’s help, the Magi avoided another encounter with the jealous King Herod and were able to return home.

God’s ancient words, and God’s light in the heavens, led men from far away to see The Word and the light lying in His mother’s arms.

God incarnate.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

God’s Words and Light

Matthew 2:9-12

“ 9 After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. 11 On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. 12 And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.”

During this time, many Jews were scattered throughout the Roman Empire and the East. With them they carried the hope of the Messiah as promised in the scriptures.

The Magi were aware of these scriptures and prophecies and were eager to see for themselves this promised Messiah.

God guided the Magi to Jesus using a special star that He knew would attract their attention.  With God’s help, they found the holy family who were now living in a house.  They worshiped the Messiah and presented him with gifts.

With God’s help, the Magi avoided another encounter with the jealous King Herod and were able to return home.

God’s ancient words, and God’s light in the heavens, led men from far away to see The Word and the light lying in His mother’s arms.

God incarnate.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Shepherds Keeping Watch

Luke 2:8-11

“8 In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: 11 to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord.”

The shepherds were watching their flocks on an ordinary night.  There was nothing out of the ordinary.  Some of the shepherds may have been tired and sleepy from the day’s work.  

Suddenly, an angel appeared before them and a strange light emitted from him and surrounded them.  The shepherds were terrified to say the least.   Throughout the Bible, the first words of angels to people they encounter is “fear not.”  Apparently, their appearance is not the appearance of humans.  

Then the shepherds were told the good news.  The Messiah had been born.  The savior of the world was in the world.

The first people, other than Mary and Joseph, that God informed of the incarnation were lowly shepherds.  The greatest news in the history of humankind was not delivered to kings, diplomats, CEO’s, military commanders or religious leaders.

This news was given to people of no influence, no power, no education,  and no material wealth. 

Shepherds, watching their flocks by night, were given the news of all news.

The Messiah had been born.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

The Perfect Bed

Luke 2:6-7

“6 While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child. 7 And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.”

Have you ever traveled a long distance and arrived at your hotel tired and worn out only to find out that they had not held your reservation or that there was some mix-up and you received a smoking room with no view or balcony? Now, imagine that you had walked or ridden a camel for 90 miles, 20 miles a day for four and a half days and you were pregnant, and this happened.

When Mary and Joseph arrived in Bethlehem, they were probably very tired and in need of a room.  Yet, because of the influx of crowds of people who were in Bethlehem for the census, there were no rooms to be had. So they were relegated to staying either in a stable or a room where animals were kept. 

When Mary gave birth, she laid the savior of the world in a manger.  

The manger bed, normally the symbol of Mary and Joseph’s poverty, actually symbolizes God’s plan for the redemption of all of humanity.  Christ was not born in a palace.  He was not laid in a bed of gold.  He did not have servants attending His every need.  

Christ was born into the world so that all could be saved.  The manger represents the plan of salvation for all humankind.

And there was never a more perfect bed for such a savior.

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)

Caught in the Wind of God’s Will

Luke 2:1-5

“1 In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered. 2 This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. 3 All went to their own towns to be registered. 4 Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. 5 He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child.”

Emperor Augustus was Julius Caesar’s great nephew.   He  was also Rome’s first, and some say, greatest Emperor.  His reign was marked by great expansion of the Roman Empire and the building of great buildings and monuments in the city of Rome.

In order to support all of this, the Romans needed to know how many people were available who could pay the taxes that they would use to supply their armies, build new cities, etc.  Each person in the Roman Empire was required to travel back to the town of their birth to be registered (so that they could be taxed).  

Joseph and Mary had to travel approximately 90 miles from Nazareth to Bethlehem.  If they were able to travel 20 miles per day by foot or by camel, it would have taken them four and a half days of constant travel.   This would have been a difficult journey for anyone.  It would have been especially difficult for Mary.

Is it any wonder that Mary gave birth in Bethlehem?

God’s plan was that Jesus would be born in Bethlehem.   He used the needs and worldly ambitions of Rome, the ego of Augustus, the willingness of the Palestinian officials to comply with the edicts of Rome, and the strength and endurance of two very ordinary people (Joseph and Mary) to accomplish His will.

On the surface, Joseph and Mary appear to be helpless feathers caught in the winds of worldly powers.  But in reality, it was God that was working, it was God that was acting, it was God that was the moving force…

and it was Rome and the rulers of Palestine that were the feathers caught in the winds of God’s will.

“for dominion belongs to the Lord and he rules over the nations.” (Psalm 22:28)

May the love of Christ be with you,

Rev. Eric Lanier (Retired)