Pastor’s Blog – Bunker Hill Community Church

Recently, my wife and I watched a movie in which the main character was so preoccupied with getting ready to serve the prince that was coming to visit that she failed to see that her coworker was actually the prince himself.

While that storyline may make for good entertainment, unfortunately, it actually defines the lives of many believers. It is easy for us to get so caught up and busy in the activity of serving God that we neglect any opportunities to get to know Him.

Luke 10 tells the account of Jesus visiting with Mary and Martha, and in verse 40 we are told that “Martha was distracted with much serving.” Meanwhile, Mary is sitting at the feet of Jesus. When Martha complains to Jesus that Mary wasn’t doing anything to help her, Jesus responds to her,

“Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”

Jesus defended Mary’s choice as the better thing –the “one needful thing.” According to our Lord, it is more important for us to spend time getting to know Him than it is to be busy doing things for Him.

Have you lost sight of Whom you are serving because you don’t take time to spend with Him? May we all choose the thing that is better and needful and not get distracted by things that are good.

I was doing some shopping at Walmart this past week, and couldn’t help but notice the Salvation Army workers sitting outside with their bells and their buckets. As I approached the door, I watched the bell-ringer as she wished everyone who passed a “Merry Christmas” whether they donated or not.

I suddenly realized that she was not just being nice, but spreading the Good News of Christmas, even though she may not have realized it.

In Luke 2:10-11 the angel proclaims the message of Christmas to the shepherds:

“Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.”

The angel’s message was good news that would bring great joy to all people—the message that Christ is come. That is exactly what we are saying when we wish each other “Merry Christmas”—be merry and joyful because Christ has come.

So maybe that Christmas greeting should not be saved just for December. That is a message that should be shared every day of the year. Merry Christmas!

Ebenezer Scrooge (JIM CARREY)

In the opening chapter of Dicken’s famous classic, “A Christmas Carol,” Ebenezer Scrooge is visited in his counting house by his nephew.  The nephew wishes him “Merry Christmas,” after which a discussion occurs between the two about “keeping Christmas.”  Eventually, Scrooge closes the discussion by saying “you keep Christmas in your own way, and let me keep it in mine.”

I believe that our culture has basically adopted the attitude of Scrooge, in that the “keeping” of Christmas boils down to whatever each of us thinks is appropriate.

In Romans 14:6, Paul says this about celebrating holidays:

“He that regardeth the day, regardeth it unto the Lord; and he that regardeth not the day, to the Lord he doth not regard it.”

How we keep Christmas should not be determined by family traditions or culture, but by what gives honor to God.

Colossians 1:18 says that in all things, Jesus “should have the preeminence.” That means that in everything, He should be the focus, the purpose and the motivation.

We celebrate the Christmas season BECAUSE of Christ, and therefore it should be practiced in a way that brings Him all the honor and glory.

So, as you practice your Christmas traditions this year, consider whether you are conforming to the attitude of Ebenezer Scrooge, or following the Word of God.

Have you ever thought about serving in a governmental office? Perhaps you have considered being a city council member or running for some other public office.

For many of us, it may have never crossed our minds. But it should. Not necessarily for this earthly government, but for the future government of Christ’s Millennial Kingdom.

Revelation 5:10 says that Christ “hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.” As believers, we have been given authority, not just to bring the good news to others in this lifetime, but to rule with Christ in the next. The positions that we are given by the Lord in His Kingdom will be determined by how we used His authority in this life. In the Parable of the Talents in Matthew 25, the Master rewards the good stewards who invested their talents well, yielding a good return. His words to them were,

“Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things.”

Jesus was teaching that how we invest our lives and “talents” in this life will determine what authority and rewards we receive in the Kingdom.

So, based on how you are living today, will you be an exalted nobleman over much, or a Kingdom trash collector? It’s not too late to do better.

There are many people who claim to worship God but only step foot inside a church on Christmas and Easter, and maybe for funerals and weddings.

Obviously, we who frequent church on a regular basis wouldn’t call that worship. But true worship is not defined how often we are in church anyway.

Psalm 95:6 tells us,

“O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the LORD our maker.”

While the terms “bowing down” and “kneeling,” describe the physical actions of worship, these terms also describe the inner attitude of worship as well.  Bowing down and kneeling show an attitude of submission to a higher authority, which is exactly what our attitude before God should be if we are to worship Him in “spirit and in truth.”

The real question is whether we only demonstrate that attitude on Sundays, if even then, or if that attitude is prevalent in our lives every day of the week.

The answer to that question is answered by the things we value most and which we expend the most time and effort trying to achieve in our lives. Do our daily choices and lifestyle show that God truly is the most important and valuable thing to us? Or is He just someone we have added to our weekly routine to appear religious?

True worship is about bowing before Him in everything you do, not just what you do on Sundays.

Have you ever experienced loneliness in your life?  If so, you are not alone (pun intended).

According to Medical News Today, just in the last 2 years, there has been an “alarming increase” in the number of people who have experienced severe loneliness in their lives. The alleged cause is, of course, the COVID pandemic.  But we don’t need a pandemic to experience loneliness.  All we need is an absence of God.

When God created humans, He created us with an inherent need for Him. We need other people, but people cannot fill the spiritual void that can only be filled by God.  And that is why He sent Jesus Christ to earth in Bethlehem over 2000 years ago.  As the angel told Joseph in Matthew 1:23,

“and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.”

Jesus was sent to be GOD WITH US. He became God in the flesh to reconcile our relationship with God which we had broken. Through Him, we can finally experience the purpose for which He created us in the first place–fellowship with Himself.

But to have fellowship, you have to be WITH the other person.  And that is exactly what Jesus accomplishes—He is GOD WITH US all the time.  He is the best and only cure for loneliness and one which will last for eternity.

In Charles Dickens’s “A Christmas Carol,” Ebenezer Scrooge is visited by three ghosts, the first of which is the Ghost of Christmas Past.

The purpose of this visit was to show Scrooge how he had changed for the worse over the years and to remind him of merry Christmases that he had celebrated previously in his life. If only Scrooge could remember what he used to be, maybe he could become the right kind of man in the present.

If there is one specific Christmas of which we need to be reminded as believers, it is the very first Christmas, the night that Jesus was born. When the angel announced the impending birth of Jesus to Joseph, he made it very clear what would be important about Christmas:

“And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21).

While many of our past Christmases may include wonderful memories of family and friends and even joyful fellowship and celebration, Christmas would not exist without Christ as our Savior. He is what we should celebrate and remember at Christmas time. And let us not just remember that He was born in a manger, but that He came to save us from our sins.

So, this Christmas, and every Christmas, may we celebrate the Savior and not just the season.

Every four years in the United States, we have a Presidential election that decides who the next President will be. Yet, even though the next President is chosen at the beginning of November, he is not sworn into office until the third week of January.

During that time between the election and the installation of the new President, the current President is referred to as a “lame duck,” meaning that he really has little power to accomplish anything even though he still holds office.

Sometimes, as believers, we can begin to feel like lame ducks. We know from Scripture that the world is going to get worse, that Satan’s attacks are going to get stronger, and that many millions of people will reject God, even though they have easier access to God’s truth than at any other time in history. Why do we keep fighting what seems to be a losing battle?  Why don’t we just hole ourselves up in a safe little space and wait for Christ to come back?

Paul answers that question in 1 Corinthians 15:58—

“Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.”

Even though it seems that we can do little for God in our current environment, even our smallest witness for Christ is worth it.  If we can keep just one more soul from going to hell, then our life is not wasted.

Don’t be a lame duck. Be“more than conquerors through Him who loved us” (Romans 8:37).

Many of us have heard the tale of the Emperor’s New Clothes.  The story tells of an Emperor who thought much of himself and his clothing.

One day band of swindlers came to his kingdom, claiming to be great weavers of the finest cloth that could only be seen by the noblest and intelligent people of the land. Using the Emperor’s pride against him, they made him the grandest set of new “clothes” which would set him apart from everyone else. The Emperor’s pride kept him from admitting that he could not see the clothes, which, of course, did not exist. And so he proceeded to don the invisible clothing and walk naked in front of his subjects. In their pride, everyone else also pretended that these new clothes were splendid so that they would not be labeled as simple or stupid. In the end, it was the wisdom of a child that revealed the truth that the Emperor had nothing on at all.

In Revelation 16:15, Jesus tells us,

“Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.”

Those who “watch” are those who are looking for Jesus’ return, for they know He is coming.  These are the “overcomers” who will not be ashamed when He returns, for they will be clothed in the robes of the righteousness of Jesus Christ.

But all others, who resist the Truth in pride will be spiritually naked and ashamed at the day of His appearance.

Do you have your “robes” on, watching for the return of the Lord?

He is coming soon. Do not be caught off guard.

The holiday season is upon us. Everywhere you look, gift ideas and holiday specials dominate the landscape, focusing on all you can get at Christmas. Even Thanksgiving has degraded into nothing more than the start of Black Friday sales.

Although disappointed, I am not surprised that it is this way in a world full of people who put self above all else.  The “season of getting” has expanded so greatly in people’s priorities that they can no longer reserve even one day for thanking the One from Whom everything comes in the first place.

But God told us it would be that way. Romans 1:21 tells us,

“When they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.”

A lack of true thankfulness is a symptom of a life controlled by sin rather than by God.

Paul says these kinds of people are not thankful because they are “vain in their imaginations.” In other words, the only thing that they think of is themselves. And when you think more of yourself than you do of others, or of God, thankfulness dies.

Dr. Bob Jones, Sr. used to say that “when gratitude dies on the altar of a man’s heart, that man is well-nigh hopeless.” 

May none of us find ourselves in that category of hopeless people because we have lost our heart of thankfulness to the Lord. “In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you” (1 Thessalonians 5:18).