As many as I love I reprove and discipline; be earnest, therefore, and repent. Rev. 3:19.
Christmas is an exciting season for 6-year-olds. Nicholas was a kindergarten, busily memorizing songs for his school's winter pageant. A dress rehearsal would take place the morning of the pageant, and parents who had scheduling conflicts that evening got a chance to view the presentation.
Most American public schools have stopped referring to the holiday as "Christmas," so the Christian parents did not expect more than the typical holiday entertainment, songs about the reindeer and Santa Clause, snowflakes and good cheer. And to no one's surprise, the children were all dressed in fuzzy mittens and red sweaters, with bright knit caps on their heads. It was a bit surprising, therefore, when Nicholas' class rose up to sing "Christmas Love."
The children in the front row of the class held up large letters, one by one, to spell out the title of the song. As the class would sing "C is for Christmas," a child would hold up the letter C. Then, "H is for happy," and so on, until the whole group had spelled out the complete message, "Christmas Love."
The performance was going smoothly until everyone began to notice a small, quiet girl in the front row holding the letter M upside down, totally unaware that her letter looked like a W. The audience of first through sixth graders snickered at her mistake. But she had no idea that they were laughing at her, so she stood tall, proudly holding her W.
Although the teachers in the audience tried to quiet the children, the laughter continued until the last letter was raised. A hush came over the audience and eyes began to widen. In that instant everyone realized the true reason they were there, the reason why anyone was celebrating the holiday in the first place, the real purpose for the festivities. For when one of the children held high the last letter, the message read loud and clear: Christ was love!
The word "love" is rare in the book of Revelation. Jesus loves us (Rev. 1:5); the Ephesians have left their first love (Rev. 2:4); and the church at Thyatira shows a lot of love, patience, and service (verse 19). Jesus loves the church at Philadelphia (Rev. 3:9); the people of God do not love their lives to the point of avoiding death (Rev. 12:11); and those outside the New Jerusalem love falsehood (Rev. 22:15). So Revelation seems to emphasize reproving and the disciplining more than love. That makes this text very important, because it shows that while bad things sometimes happen to God's people, a loving hand still guides all things for our ultimate good.
Lord, You sprinkle tokens of Your love throughout my life, even though I tend to overlook them. Open my eyes to see them today.
Christmas is an exciting season for 6-year-olds. Nicholas was a kindergarten, busily memorizing songs for his school's winter pageant. A dress rehearsal would take place the morning of the pageant, and parents who had scheduling conflicts that evening got a chance to view the presentation.
Most American public schools have stopped referring to the holiday as "Christmas," so the Christian parents did not expect more than the typical holiday entertainment, songs about the reindeer and Santa Clause, snowflakes and good cheer. And to no one's surprise, the children were all dressed in fuzzy mittens and red sweaters, with bright knit caps on their heads. It was a bit surprising, therefore, when Nicholas' class rose up to sing "Christmas Love."
The children in the front row of the class held up large letters, one by one, to spell out the title of the song. As the class would sing "C is for Christmas," a child would hold up the letter C. Then, "H is for happy," and so on, until the whole group had spelled out the complete message, "Christmas Love."
The performance was going smoothly until everyone began to notice a small, quiet girl in the front row holding the letter M upside down, totally unaware that her letter looked like a W. The audience of first through sixth graders snickered at her mistake. But she had no idea that they were laughing at her, so she stood tall, proudly holding her W.
Although the teachers in the audience tried to quiet the children, the laughter continued until the last letter was raised. A hush came over the audience and eyes began to widen. In that instant everyone realized the true reason they were there, the reason why anyone was celebrating the holiday in the first place, the real purpose for the festivities. For when one of the children held high the last letter, the message read loud and clear: Christ was love!
The word "love" is rare in the book of Revelation. Jesus loves us (Rev. 1:5); the Ephesians have left their first love (Rev. 2:4); and the church at Thyatira shows a lot of love, patience, and service (verse 19). Jesus loves the church at Philadelphia (Rev. 3:9); the people of God do not love their lives to the point of avoiding death (Rev. 12:11); and those outside the New Jerusalem love falsehood (Rev. 22:15). So Revelation seems to emphasize reproving and the disciplining more than love. That makes this text very important, because it shows that while bad things sometimes happen to God's people, a loving hand still guides all things for our ultimate good.
Lord, You sprinkle tokens of Your love throughout my life, even though I tend to overlook them. Open my eyes to see them today.
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