From: Ben Kelley
Subject: Four empty things
As we approach the Thanksgiving/Christmas/New Year season,
most people's minds drift towards thoughts of fullness. We count our
blessings and then eat like pigs. We fill our shopping carts at the store,
our driveways get filled with cars of friends and family, and our mail box is
full of cards, sale papers, and offers of new credit cards. Even though
fullness is a prevalent thought this time of year, I would like to
mention four empty things, things that count and
matter, not only this season, but for all eternity.
The first empty thing is the manger. If
you formulated your theology from our celebration of Christmas, you would
probably think the manger was still occupied by the "sweet little baby
Jesus." When December begins to draw near, church yards, parks, fireplace
mantles, etc., all begin to show the "manger scene," with a little helpless baby
wrapped up and tucked into the straw bedding. Believe it or not, I've
asked a few young children, over the years around the Christmas season, where
they thought Jesus was. I've had more than a few tell me, "in the
manger." I even remember one who grew up next door, who, when she was
about 5 or 6 years old, got quite upset with me when I tried to tell her
that was just a depiction of something that happened a long time ago. She
remained very adamant and was not about to believe otherwise. The manger
is where many people still picture Jesus, but, despite the
world's attempt to keep Jesus as a helpless "babe in a manger," they have
failed, it's empty. Scripture tells us, And
the Child grew and became strong in spirit, filled with wisdom; and the
grace of God was upon Him. (Luke 2:40
(NKJV)
The second empty thing is the cross.
The Catholic Church, along with a few others, constantly pictures Jesus nailed
to a cross. We have seen that representation so many times that many
automatically think of Him as still hanging there. it would be sad to
leave it at that, with a helpless, dead Savior, but it's not where HE is, for
Scripture tells us of a man named Joseph, from the city of Arimathea, who:
went to Pilate and asked for the body of
Jesus. Then he took it down, wrapped it in
linen, and laid it in a tomb that was hewn out of the rock, where no one had
ever lain before. (Luke 23:52-53 (NKJV) The cross is
empty, Jesus is no longer there!
The third empty thing is the tomb.
Although a large, very heavy stone had been rolled into a "slot" dug in front of
the tomb's entrance, to keep out potential grave robbers; Scripture tells us
that certain female followers of Jesus came to the tomb on the Sunday morning
after His crucifixion, for the purpose of further "embalming" His body.
They came with aromatic spices prepared for that purpose. As they
approached the area, they believed Jesus was still in the tomb,
because: they said among themselves, "Who will roll away the stone from the
door of the tomb for us?" (Mark 16:3 (NKJV) That stone
was huge, and presented a very large problem for them, but we read in Luke
24:2-3: But they found the stone rolled away from the
tomb. Then they went in and did not find the body of the Lord
Jesus. We read further and find: as they were
greatly perplexed about this, that behold, two men stood by them in shining
garments (angelic messengers). Then, as they were afraid and
bowed their faces to the earth, they said to them, "Why do you seek the living
among the dead? He is not here, but is risen!
(Luke 24:4-6 (NKJV) Jesus got up from that cold rock
tomb and left it empty, for all time, never to return!
The fourth, and final, empty thing has to do with each
and every person born of a man and woman, the heart (as
depicting our inner being). We know that people like to quote Genesis 1,
in saying: So God created man in His own image.
(Genesis 1:27 (NKJV) Therefore, they believe they are all going to
Heaven. The problem is, they fail to read on, after the fall, in the
Garden of Eden, to Genesis 5, verse 3, where we read: And Adam
lived one hundred and thirty years, and begot a son in his own
likeness, after his image, and named him
Seth. Romans 5:12 continues this, by telling us: just as
through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus
death spread to all men, because all
sinned. Adam, the first man, may have been made into the
image of God, but he changed all that when he chose to listen to Eve and
partake of the one fruit God had forbidden him to eat. At
that point in time, through him, sin entered into the world and brought along
its foretold consequence, death. Since we all are born through the line of
that man, we all are in his image, and have that same
consequence passed down to us. Our hearts, as we naturally
come into this world, are empty of God. As it has been
put before, "every man has a God shaped hole in him, which can only be filled by
God." We are not all saved, we are all
lost, until we receive Jesus into our hearts and lives as
Savior. Jesus told Nicodemus, in John chapter 3: Most assuredly, I say
to you, unless one is born again, he
cannot see the kingdom of God. Remember,
through our natural, fleshly birth, we are made in the image of sinful Adam,
with the "death gene" a part of our very fiber, but, through a "supernatural"
birth (the words for "born again" are more literally translated, "born from
above"), we are made over into God's likeness and image.
That God shaped hole is then filled, and our hearts are no longer
empty! We can begin to experience the fullness of God's joy, as we learn to live with Him.
If you have never personally received
Jesus as your Savior, realize the truth of these "four empty
things," and confess them to God the Father. Ask Him to cleanse
and forgive you of all your sins. Ask Jesus, His Son, to come into your
heart. HE will do it, and your heart will never be empty
again!
In Jesus' Name,
Ben
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