Celebrate Jesus

Dear Mike:
The identity of Jesus of Nazareth has been the subject of great controversy for 2,000 years. Yet there remains imposing evidence to the validity of His claims and those of the Apostles.
The Bible contains many prophecies—written hundreds of years prior to the arrival of Jesus—in such specific detail about His birth, life, and death that it would have been impossible for Jesus to have made them come to pass by human manipulation.
I am convinced that Jesus was totally human and totally God. The flesh part of Him He received from Mary, His virgin mother, while the Spirit that breathed life into Him and inspired His doctrine was the Spirit of the Creator.
Jesus was God manifest in the flesh; the Son of God after the flesh and the very God after the Spirit. Jesus was born of God in Bethlehem through Mary while having existed in the mind of God from the beginning of the world.
Jesus said He was the way, the truth, and the life. He was clear about sin and salvation and judgement. He did not teach that we should compromise truth to gain world peace but that we should love, do good to, and pray for all those who oppose Him and His teaching.
Jesus did not come to overthrow governments but to establish a spiritual kingdom of righteousness and mercy, and He initiated it by giving His own life up as a sacrifice for our sin on the cross.
Some tried to say that the disciples of Jesus stole His body and started a rumour concerning His resurrection. Yet all of the disciples except John were martyred horribly.
I do not suppose that any person would suffer for a lie that he made up himself.
Jesus was the Christ, or anointed one, and so all who follow Him claim to be Christians. While there is great variance in the definition of the term today, I believe that there is coming a defining moment in history that will restore the church to the power and influence that it had in the first century.
Jesus said He was coming back for a glorious church and I believe something glorious is about to take place.
While some may define unity along the lines of political correctness, there are thousands who earnestly desire for the Holy Spirit to be poured out and bring them to a personal relationship with Jesus.
When Jesus ascended from the Mount of Olives, He said He would be back! One day the one born in Bethlehem will return in the Spirit with a glorified body to take His followers out of a declining system.
Some may doubt this promise but consider one final prophesy before you sign out! John the Beloved, who wrote the book of Revelation 2,000 years ago, pictured a day when the whole earth would receive a mark that would connect them to a global system of trade and security.
One hundred years ago, this would have been impossible yet today we stand on the brink of its fulfilment.
So celebrate Jesus, receive and obey Him, worship and look for Him both in this wonderful season and throughout the year.
(Signed),
Pastor Sean Ward
Fort Frances, Ont.