This devotional is part of the 2020 Christmas Devotional Book, “The Gift.”  Access the entire devotional and download your free copy by clicking here.

December 1

War and Peace (Isaiah 9:1-7)

War is a terrible side effect of living in this fallen world.  Had sin not entered the world, there would have been no World War II, no Vietnam, no Iraq or Afghanistan.  I saw a statistic recently that floored me.  It stated that 40 MILLION people died (civilian and military) in World War II alone.  Another statistic estimates that 160 million people died in the twentieth century due to military conflict.  These numbers are sobering and a stark reminder that we are not in Eden any longer.

Any reading of the Old Testament helps us understand that God does use war (inside this sinful world) to advance His purposes.  I am not quoting statistics here to say that all war is “wrong,” but what I am saying is that all war has a huge cost . . . and I am not just referring to an enlargement of the national debt.

Given the prevalence of war, and its destructive toll on humanity, it is not surprising that people (since the beginning of time) have longed for a day when peace would last.  In many ways, the world is like a giant school yard full of insecure bullies who abuse their people with violence to secure their own position.  People have always longed for a day when the bullies would be stilled, but is that day ever really going to come?  God says it will.  In fact, God issued a prophecy through Isaiah in Isaiah 9:1-7 declaring that the bullies of the world would one day be replaced by a most peculiar leader.  Under the direction of the Holy Spirit, Isaiah prophesied this:

“Nevertheless, that time of darkness and despair will not go on forever.  The land of Zebulun and Naphtali will soon be humbled, but there will be a time in the future when Galilee of the Gentiles, which lies along the road that runs between the Jordan and the sea, will be filled with glory.  The people who walk in the darkness will see a great light – a light that will shine on all who live in the land where death casts its shadow.  Israel will again be great, and its people will rejoice as people rejoice at harvesttime.  They will shout with joy like warriors dividing the plunder.  For God will break the chains that bind His people and the whip that scourges them, just as He did when He destroyed the army of Midian with Gideon’s little band.  In that day of peace, battle gear will no longer be issued.  Never again will uniforms be bloodstained by war.  All such equipment will be burned.  For a Child is born to us, a Son is given to us.  And the government will rest on His shoulders.  These will be His royal titles: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.  His ever expanding, peaceful government will never end.  He will rule forever with fairness and justice from the throne of His ancestor David.  The passionate commitment of the Lord Almighty will guarantee this!”

This prophecy is one of the most famous in all of the Old Testament . . . and for good reason!  What a blessed hope it promises.  From the land of Galilee, a small rural province in northern Israel that often drew the first attack from invading armies because of its northern exposure, a leader would emerge that would bring glory and peace to God’s people.  This leader would be a bully-buster who would establish peace on the earth and eliminate the need for trillions of dollars to be spent on national defense.  Surprisingly, though, the leader who would quell the bullies would not be a bigger bully, but a child.  What a contrast!  The mighty Assyrian army (in Isaiah’s day) could be stopped by God working through a little child.  The terror of Al Qaeda could be silenced from the crib of Bethlehem’s manger.  This child, of course, was Jesus who would grow up and reveal Himself as Mighty God.  700 years after this prophecy was given, Jesus would be born as a child, clothing Himself in humanity, to set in motion a plan to bring lasting peace to the earth.

What is amazing about reading this prophecy from Isaiah at Christmas time, though, is that the accomplishment of this prophecy has not yet fully taken place.  The gifts of Isaiah 9 are still wrapped under the Christmas tree of Christ’s second advent.  When Jesus returns to the earth at a future time, He will put an end to war and He will rule the world in peace.  One day war will cease, and the bullies will be stopped.  The One who was born a Child will return in glorious triumph and shine His light throughout our world.  That is one present I cannot wait to be unwrapped.

Suggested song for today:  “For Unto Us a Child is Born”

In this Christmas devotional, there is a song referenced for each day.  All these songs, are included in a playlist found on Apple Music and Spotify at the following links:

• Apple Music Playlist:  Wildwood Community Church Christmas 2020
• Spotify Playlist:  Wildwood Community Church Christmas 2020

This devotional is part of the 2020 Christmas Devotional Book, “The Gift.”  Access the entire devotional and download your free copy by clicking here.

November 30

Two-fold take on a 2,700 Year Old Story (Isaiah 7)

700 years before the birth of Jesus, King Ahaz ruled over the nation of Judah.  This reign was not marked by peace and prosperity, but by difficulty and war.  Judah was being attacked by the armies of Israel (the Kingdom was divided at this time) and Aram.  Ahaz, fearing the stability of the nation and his future legacy, turned to the feared Assyrian army to try to buy some help to fight off Aram and Israel.  For a King who was leading God’s chosen people, Ahaz’s choice of an ally was very peculiar.  God had made promises to protect Judah and provide for her needs, and He had delivered on those promises time and time again in her history.  Ahaz, however, did not trust in the Lord, instead looking to other men to secure the stability He desired.

In Isaiah 7, God speaks to Ahaz and dares him to trust God (not man) for his deliverance.  In 7:9-11, God says to Ahaz, “‘If you (Ahaz) want me (God) to protect you, learn to believe what I say. . . Ask me for a sign Ahaz, to prove that I will crush your enemies as I have promised.  Ask for anything you like, and make it as difficult as you want.’”

I firmly believe that Ahaz thought that this dare from God was a test.  Ahaz did not want to fail the test, so he says back to God in 7:12, “No, I wouldn’t test the Lord like that.”  Ahaz must have puffed out his chest a bit as he said he would never put God to the test.    What Ahaz thought was a pious rejection, however, was actually a good depiction of his spiritual allegiance.  Ahaz would not put the Lord to ANY use in his real life.  He wanted God on his side, but he assumed that in order to maintain the nation’s stability, he would have to impress God with his self-directed wisdom, not a declaration of his utter need for dependence.  Ahaz did not want to show God any weakness, thinking that God wanted him to be strong (or at least have strong friends).

After rejecting God’s call for a sign, Ahaz is confronted by the prophet Isaiah who spoke God’s response in 7:13-16: “Then Isaiah said, ‘Listen well, you royal family of David!  You aren’t satisfied to exhaust my patience.  You exhaust the patience of God as well!  All right then, the Lord Himself will choose the sign.  Look!  The virgin will conceive a child!  She will give birth to a son and will call Him Immanuel – God with us!  By the time this child is old enough to eat curds and honey, he will know enough to choose what is right and reject what is wrong.  But before he knows right from wrong, the two kings you fear so much – the kings of Israel and Aram – will both be dead.’’”  In this verse, God is telling Ahaz that God will extract Judah from underneath the oppression of the armies of Israel and Aram in a short amount of time.  Indeed, God sets a time sensitive “sign” in place that says when God’s people see a child named Immanuel born to a woman who was still a virgin at the time of Isaiah’s prophecy, it will be less than two years until the kings of Aram and Israel will die and their threat to Judah will be subdued.  In this way, Ahaz and Judah were called to renew their trust in God alone to provide deliverance from their enemies.  

This prophecy was given in 735 BC.  Just 3 years after this prophecy was given (in 732 BC), the kings of Israel and Aram were dead and the threat to Judah from these two “enemies” was subdued.  God had made good on his promise.  There most likely was a woman who was not married in 735 BC who met a man shortly after Isaiah’s prophecy, married him, and they had a child together.  (NOTE: This would not have been an immaculate conception.  The “virgin” referred to the fact that the woman was not married yet at the time of Isaiah’s original prophecy.)  Before that child grew to be old enough to eat more than just baby food, Judah’s threats had been eliminated by God Himself.  God had shown Himself worthy to be trusted.

Fast forward 700 years from the events of King Ahaz, and you will find a young virgin woman pregnant with a child named Jesus.  Under the direction of the Holy Spirit, the Apostle Matthew, as he writes his Gospel, is directed to draw a connection between Isaiah 7 and the birth of Jesus.  Matthew 1:21-23 says, “‘She (Mary) will bear a son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.’  All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: ‘Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call His name Immanuel.’”  Though undoubtedly there was a contemporary application to Isaiah 7 in Ahaz day, ultimately, the words of Isaiah were looking to a day seven centuries away . . . when another baby born, this time by a woman who was still a virgin, would be a sign that an even greater deliverance was forthcoming for God’s people.  Jesus did not just come to rid His people of two pesky foreign kings . . . He came to deliver people from their sins!!

As someone who gets to read both stories from the comfort of the 21st century, I am so glad that Immanuel means more for us than just temporary military conquest.  Ahaz got temporary relief from Aram and Israel 2 years after a child was born.  We get to have permanent relief from the consequences of our sin 2,000 years after Jesus was born.

In our lives, like Ahaz, many times we assume that victory over our chief enemies (sin and its consequences) is found in our own self-righteous behavior.  Real victory, however is not found in ourselves, it is found in a child who was born to a virgin.  Jesus alone can deliver us from our sins.  When it comes to the forgiveness of our sins, God is daring us to trust Him.  He gave us (as Ahaz 2,700 years prior) a sign showing He is able to do marvelous things and is worthy to be trusted.  ”The virgin shall conceive a child” . . . and she did. . . and we can be saved as a result.  Immanuel . . . God with us!  Remember that blessed truth this Christmas season.

Suggested song for today:  “O Come, O Come Emmanuel”

In this Christmas devotional, there is a song referenced for each day.  All these songs, are included in a playlist found on Apple Music and Spotify at the following links:

• Apple Music Playlist:  Wildwood Community Church Christmas 2020
• Spotify Playlist:  Wildwood Community Church Christmas 2020

This devotional is part of the 2020 Christmas Devotional Book, “The Gift.”  Access the entire devotional and download your free copy by clicking here.

November 29

Preparing for the Required Course (Galatians 4:4-5)

When I arrived at the University of Oklahoma in the summer of 1992 to begin my college education, I was excited to take every class on my schedule . . . except one.  Attending college meant the end of the 8:30 AM – 3:00 PM school day and the advent of the three day a week lecture rotation.  As an aspiring procrastinator, committed intramural athlete, and John Madden football playing (on the Sega Genesis mind you) enthusiast, I was looking forward to all that free time!  All of my classes had that three day-a-week rhythm except one . . . Spanish 1.  The required five day-a-week mandate of this class cramped my style.   No me gusto.

Now, truth be told, I did not have to take Spanish 1 at OU.  My degree program only required me to take one 3 hour (read 3 day a week) foreign language course in the “2000” level.  The reason I did not simply sign up to take that Spanish reading course first semester my freshman year was simple . . . I did not speak Spanish.  I needed to learn the basics before I could read poetry and short stories.  My five day-a-week year long Spanish marathon was a prerequisite necessary for me to understand the material I would read in the one required reading course my sophomore year.

I was thinking about this experience today as I reflected further on the Law that God gave to His people in the Old Testament through His servant Moses.  Moses went up on the mountainside and God gave him 10 commandments that would form a contract (we know it now as the Old Covenant) for how people in that era would relate to God.  This Law was given to the Jewish people and governed humanity’s relationship with God for roughly 1500 years until God would establish a New Covenant with His Church through the saving work of Jesus Christ.  When Christ came, God tells us through the book of Hebrews that salvation had always been through the person and work of Christ for all people.  In a sense, the required course for salvation for people has always been about what Jesus has done and become effective as people take Christ into our hearts by faith.

If Jesus Christ had always been humanity’s required course, then why did God establish a 1,500 year period governed by the Law?  The answer from Galatians 3:24 is clear, the Law was the prerequisite to people understanding Christ.  Galatians 3:24 says, “So then, the Law was our pedagogue to Christ, in order that we might be justified by faith.”  The idea of a pedagogue is one of a teacher who would come alongside a parent and help train a child, maturing them for adulthood.  God gave the Law for 1,500 years to teach His people something in preparation for Christ.  What does the world learn through the Law that prepares it for Christ?

In the Law we learn that God is holy and we are not.  The Law shows us that the standards of God are lofty and perfect.  Humanity’s problem is that we cannot perfectly live out God’s perfect standard.  In a sense, the 10 Commandments are a document that condemns all of humanity.  The Law says do not lie, yet even Abraham Lincoln told a lie at some point in his life.  The Law says honor your father and mother, yet all parents (and children) know how impossible this is every moment of every day.  Jesus goes so far as to apply the 10 commandments to our thought lives, effectively making virtually all of us murderers and adulterers!  The Law shows us what Romans 3:23 famously states, “All have sinned and continue to fall short of God’s perfect standards.”

The Law also informs us that the result of sin is death.  Think of all the bloody animal sacrifices the Old Testament demands as temporary coverings for the guilt of sin.  Every lamb sacrificed on Passover, every sacrifice offered in the Temple was a reminder of what Romans 6:23 tells us, “The wages of sin is death.”

The period of the Law also shows us the power and character of God.  For 1500 years God poured out miracles and messages on the earth through supernatural means and the pen of the prophets.  These prophecies, signs, and wonders helped people understand just how powerful the God of the Bible really is.

All these works of the Law helped prepare people for the truth of Christ.  Jesus came into the world to seek and save the lost . . . the people who understood that they were not self-righteous enough to perfectly adhere to the Law and save themselves.  The Law prepared people for their NEED for a Savior.  Further, the Law prepared people for the understanding that death was the result of sin, so when Jesus died on the cross to take the payment for humanity’s sins, we would know why that needed to happen.  Finally, the supernatural demonstrations of God in the Old Testament help us to recognize the presence of God in the miracles of Jesus in the New Testament.  The Law was given as a prerequisite to teach humanity so that they would understand Christ!

This Christmas, as you worship with your family, probably reading a lot from the first chapter or two of the first four books of the New Testament, allow yourself to skim back over the 39 books of the Old Testament.  This prerequisite will help you understand the meaning of Galatians 4:4-5, “But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, to redeem those who were under the Law.”  The fullness of time came when the world had gone through the necessary prerequisite training under the Law to receive the new-born King.

Suggested song for today:  “Come Thou Long Expected Jesus”

In this Christmas devotional, there is a song referenced for each day.  All these songs, are included in a playlist found on Apple Music and Spotify at the following links:

• Apple Music Playlist:  Wildwood Community Church Christmas 2020
• Spotify Playlist:  Wildwood Community Church Christmas 2020

Christmas is an amazing gift-giving time of year.  In 2019 alone, Americans spent (on average) $1,000 per person on Christmas.  WOW!  While we may debate the amount spent on each gift, we cannot deny that gift giving is a very relevant way for people to celebrate the Christmas holiday.  At Christmas, we remember THE GIFT that was given by God to you and me.  THE GIFT, of course, is Jesus Christ.  Because Jesus came to the earth, we have experienced the most amazing collection of blessings:  

• Hope, in the face of despair
• Life, in the event of death
• Peace, instead of war
• Intimacy with God, instead of separation from God
• Forgiveness, instead of wrath
• Power, in place of weakness

We have been given all these (and more) through the person of Jesus Christ.  As Ephesians 1:3 reminds us, we have been blessed with “every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places” and as John 1:16 explains, “from His (Jesus) fullness we have all received grace upon grace.”

But how do I know that these gifts are for me?  After all, most Christmas presents purchased every year are NOT for us.  Many of those gifts were for others.  How do I know the gift of Jesus is intended for me?  

When I look at presents under our Christmas tree, I can determine which gift is for which person by looking at the tag on each gift.  When I see my name in the “to” column, I know that gift is for me.  When Jesus was born that first Christmas night, God “tagged” THE GIFT with the names of many who would represent the types of people Jesus came for.  Amazingly, when we look at these different groups of people, we see that THE GIFT of Christmas is intended for all of us!

• The prophecies of the Old Testament remind us that Christmas is for the “Distressed.”  Those experiencing the ill effects of this world can find their hope in Jesus.
• In Mary and Joseph (Jesus’ earthly parents) we see two very “Decent” people.  They were morally exceptional in their day.  But even the “Decent” need a Savior and the supernatural intervention of God.
• In the invitation of the shepherds of Bethlehem, we are reminded that the “Dirty” are also given the gift of Christmas.  Shepherds lived their lives being told by religious folks that they were “unclean” and could not enter the Temple … but the night Jesus is born, they are invited to the manger.
• In the star in the sky lighting the way for the Magi, we are reminded that the “Distant” are also given this gift.  The Magi lived in a far away land that worshipped other gods, but the one true God, wanted them to know that they were invited to open this Christmas gift as well.
• Jesus Christ is “THE GIFT” and the biblical accounts show us that He was given by our loving Heavenly Father to ALL of us!

This 2020 season at Wildwood Community Church, we are inviting you to join us in opening by faith THE GIFT of Christ this Christmas.  To help us in doing that, we have a number of opportunities:

Sunday Worship Services (each Sunday morning at 9:00, 10:15, and 11:30):

• November 29:  To the Distressed (Isaiah 11:1-9)
• December 6:  To the Decent (Matthew 1:18-25, Luke 1:26-38)
• December 13:  To the Dirty (Luke 2:8-20)
• December 20:  To the Distant (Matthew 2:1-12)

December 24 Christmas Eve Services (3:00, 4:00, 5:00, 6:00)

• Singing of carols
• Candlelight
• Scripture reading of the Christmas story
• For the whole family!

Daily Devotionals:

• I have prepared a daily devotional for each day from November 29 – December 25. These are included in a free book, found:
  •  in pdf form here, 
  • in epub format here
• On my blog each morning, you can also find that day’s devotional (you can also subscribe to the blog to have all new posts sent straight to your inbox … see the “subscribe” area on the blog – pastormarkrobinson.com)

Christmas Playlist:

• In the Christmas devotional, there is a song referenced for each day.  All these songs, are included in a playlist found on Apple Music and Spotify at the following links:
  • Apple Music Playlist:  Wildwood Community Church Christmas 2020
  • Spotify Playlist:  Wildwood Community Church Christmas 2020

We hope and pray that these resources help you worship Jesus this holiday season!

In Christ,

Pastor Mark