"There Is Born To You"

            Earlier this week, William and Kate were blessed with a baby boy.  When someone told me about it, I believe that I said something like, “Oh, well, that’s nice.  I didn’t know they were even expecting... Who are William and Kate again?  Did I go to college with them?”  In case you are like me and have been living under a rock for the last “however-long,” we’re talking about Prince William of England and his wife Kate Middleton and their newborn child who will one day be the king of England.  And, considering the lack of monarchs today, this is truly a momentous event and a time of great rejoicing for all nations.

            Since the new prince was born, we have been bombarded with pictures and stories about it on television, in the newspapers, and on the internet.  People feel the need to share this good news.  And, it gives the world a very rare opportunity to rejoice together.

            I imagine that you all are like me and, when you heard that a new king was born, that your minds went straight to Luke 2 and the birth of THE King, Jesus.

            Oh, how His birth was different than the new prince of Cambridge!  While this new prince was born in a reserved hospital room to royal parents and greeted by the whole world, while this new prince doesn’t even have a name yet, Jesus’ birth was very different.  While Jesus was born to two loving parents, His earthly parents had not even “known” each other yet (Matthew 1:18-25).  While born to descendants of King David (Matthew 1:1-17; Luke 3:23-38), Jesus was not born to royal parents, but to a lowly carpenter (Matthew 13:55) and his young wife.  Jesus was not born in an “important” place, but the sleepy little town of Bethlehem (Luke 2:4-7).  He had no reserved place or hospital bed, but a manger because there was no room for them in the inn.  And, while this new prince doesn’t even have a name yet, Jesus was given His name by God: Immanuel which is “God with us” and Jesus which is “God saves” (Matthew 1:21-23).  And, while the world greeted this new prince, only lowly shepherds came to greet their newborn King (Luke 2:15-16).  Truly, there are some pretty big differences between the births of these two kings.

            With all of these differences, there is one greatest of all differences.  This newborn prince will inherit the throne and he will affect the course of western civilization for the next eighty-or-so years.  But, as is the case with all men, he will pass from this life and another will take his throne.  Jesus took His Throne after defeating humanity’s two greatest foes, Sin and Death (1 Corinthians 6, 15; Hebrews 2, 9-10); He ascended into Heaven to sit at the right hand of the Throne of God (Acts 2:32-36).  And, two thousand years later, Jesus is still sitting on His Throne, ruling over His eternal Kingdom forevermore (Daniel 7:13-14, 26-27)!  His Kingdom will not be passed to another.  Rather, at the appropriate time, it will be delivered to the Father in Heaven where those in it will be with our King and our God in eternity (1 Corinthians 15:23-28). 

            While this newborn prince will be a king of an earthly realm one day, Jesus is the King of all kings, over all mankind (1 Timothy 6:13-16) and, especially, over His eternal Kingdom, His Church (Matthew 16:18-19)!

            So, while we rejoice with the world at the birth of this new prince, let us all always remember the One who is reigning over us today and forevermore.  And, let us all always honor, magnify, and serve our King as long as we have life (Colossians 3:23)!

~Curtis Carwile

Driving Home In The Rain

             As I was walking out of the church building after services last Wednesday night, it started to drizzle.  And, in the thirty yards from the front door to my car door, it was pouring down torrential rain.  So, I got in the car, buckled myself in, started the car up, and took off for home.  I have to admit, I was eager to get home.  Not only had I been at the building all day, but my little boy was home sick with a cold and I really wanted to see him.  I was also thinking about how we were going to leave for Kentucky the next day and all the things I would have to do to get ready for that.  Well, by the time I got to the end of the church’s driveway, my windshield wipers going at top speed, making a ridiculous racket; huge droplets of rain were pummeling my car, sounding like a thrash drummer was performing on the roof of my car.  Now, I hate driving in the rain; it makes me nervous.  So, I turned on the stereo to make some of the noise enjoyable.  This, of course, was the moment that the phone rang.  And, while I was talking to the person on the other end of the line, over all of the commotion, I heard my stomach growl.  I got about a mile down the road when I just said, “This is ridiculous.”  So, I told the person on the phone that I had to go, I turned off the stereo and, despite all the other noises, I put all other thoughts out of my head and concentrated on getting home.  And, about twenty minutes later, as the rain was stopping, I pulled into my driveway.

            Now, why did I tell you all of that?  It wasn’t to fill space or to tell a somewhat amusing story.  Rather, it was to illustrate a very important point.

            While we all have physical homes here on earth, where we long to be at the end of the day, there is a greater Home awaiting us at the end of the day of our lives.  That Home is Heaven.  When Jesus ascended back into Heaven, He fulfilled His promise to His disciples to prepare a place for them in His Father’s House (John 14:2).  This is what God Himself has prepared for those who love Him (1 Corinthians 2:7-9).  This is the true Home of all who have called on His name with thanksgiving and who have become His saints through faith-filled baptism (Acts 2; Philippians 3:20-21).  This Home is a place of beauty and of peace (Revelation 21-22).  And, while our earthly homes age and decay, our heavenly Home never will (2 Corinthians 5:1).  This is the Home we desire (Hebrews 11:16).  This is the Home we seek (Hebrews 13:14) and faithfully march towards every day (Philippians 3:12-16).

            And, while this is the case, on our way Home, there are many distractions.  We can be distracted by a number of things like what’s going on in the political world or the weather or what’s happening in the wild world of sports.  We can be distracted by our failing health or the failing health of a loved one.  We most certainly can be distracted by financial issues.  Really, anything can be a distraction, making it more difficult for us to get Home safely.

            Well, when we are faced with distractions, what should we do?  First, we need to realize that things are distracting us (Mark 4:18-19).  Second, we need to refocus on our goal, Heaven (Hebrews 11:9-10, 14-16).  And, third, we need to get rid of every distraction that we can (Hebrews 12:1-2).  I understand that it is simple to say for us to do these things, but going Home really will be easier if we do these things.  So, let us walk the narrow way Home, joyfully encouraging one another to do these things as we go.

~Curtis Carwile