Saturday, December 25—Christmas Day

SOMETHIN' BIG'S DONE HAPPENED HERE!

2 Peter 3

In the golden days of the old west, an old prospector was searching the new land for gold.  As he and his donkey made their way over the ridge, he could hardly believe his eyes— a huge chasm, 1 mile deep, 18 miles across, and more than 200 miles long.  Awesome!  Incredible!  Amazing!  It would become known as the Grand Canyon, but for the moment, he simply said, "Thunderation!  Somethin' big's done happened here."  But how, and who did it?  Well, many today still stubbornly insist that the Colorado River did it—just attach "million of years" to it, and anything can happen!  No, the truth is even more amazing!  About 4,400 years ago, a world-wide flood—which every ancient culture in the world attests to—backwashed that canyon into existence in a matter of days.  Yes, somethin' big's done happened here, and God did it!

The same thing can be said right here, right now!  Over these past few weeks of this Christmas Season, the Lord has been showing us His call to give Him room in our hearts and lives.  And not just a little; and not just enough to call ourselves "Christian"; and not just enough to "get by", but every crack and crevice—yes, something very big!  Why?  Because God is love, and, as Lord, He wants more than anything to be our Lord.  He knows that if we will allow for His Holy Spirit to come within us, by the power of that Spirit, He can lead and guide us in every way.  No longer will we be held in bondage to sin and Satan, but we will be set free to live for Him—not to our glory, but to His!  What mercy!  He has already died on the Cross of Calvary to forgive and to take away our sin, but as we make room for Him, that mercy actually becomes operative in our daily lives—we no longer have to see sin as inevitable!

Praise God!  Immediately after the afore-mentioned flood receded, God promised that He would never again destroy the earth with the waters of a flood.  But don't forget—2 Peter 3 makes clear that this world's insistence on rebellion is going to bring a destruction of a different sort—"…the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.  Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation (lifestyle) and godliness." (vss. 10-11)  Yes, there will be "scoffers" (vs. 3), but they are just proving that they are "willingly ignorant." (vs. 5,8)  It may seem strange to speak of such things at Christmas, but it really isn't!  Even here in 2 Peter, the call is to make room for Him.  His birth, His death, His resurrection, His Pentecost, His coming at the end of this age—they all call us to repentance, turning from sin, and allowing Him—the only one who can—to give us an ever-deepening life-long commitment to His Lordship and His rule.  Yes, even today—Christmas Day—for, there is no doubt about it, somethin' really big's done happened here!  Will we let Him happen in us?

~ Rev. Roy D. Warren, Jr.