When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.  

–Matthew 2:10-11

Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker; for he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under his care.

–Psalm 95:6-7

God has given us so many gifts for Christmas.

He gives the gift of prayer, so we can communicate with Him, and intercede on behalf of other people. He gives the gift of light through Jesus, to bring hope for our lives; a gift we must shine on to everyone in our dark world. He gives the gift of good news, the Gospel of Jesus—to lift our hearts and change our mission. Another gift that we can’t keep to ourselves—good news must be shared!  

When has God given us so much—what gift can we give him?

The gift of worship. We give to God our worship. He is the only one worthy to receive it.

The wise men recognized the baby in Mary’s arms as Jesus the King deserving their worship. Even before giving their precious gifts, they “bowed down and worshiped him.” Men of great learning, wealth, and power, now on bended knee before the infant Jesus. Any symbols of their power and rank were laid at his feet. There would be silence, reverence, honor, and respect from the depths of their hearts.

The wise men bowed down and worshiped the Eternal King—Jesus, the Lord God, Emmanuel. They saw the superiority of His position and authority, the greatness of His power, and His riches and wisdom beyond measure.

For many of us, worship has become a noisy word, a style of music, voices raised in song and activity. And it’s a wonderful experience, to come before God in praise and joy. Psalm 95 begins with this invitation: 

Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation.

Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song.

We have plenty of reasons to praise God and rejoice. Just look at the next verses of Psalm 95:   

For the Lord is the great God, the great King above all gods.

In his hand are the depths of the earth, and the mountain peaks belong to him.

The sea is his, for he made it, and his hands formed the dry land.  

Yet the psalmist also calls us to “worship and bow down.” To humbly, with honor, worship the Lord. He is our Maker. We did not make ourselves. He is God. We are not; we are His people, under His care.

Worship focuses on the truth that God is God, and we are not. It underscores His greatness—and our frailties. It spotlights His glorious grace and mercy—and how much we need that grace and mercy to cover our sin and shame.

Worship draws attention to His power, His wisdom, His might—and our weakness, our feeble understanding, our limitations. It is not only words on our lips or humbly bowing our knees. As one author put it, “Worship begins when we bow our hearts before Jesus and trust Him for all that we can’t fix on our own…which, as it turns out, is everything.”¹

Today, and in the coming year, you and I will encounter many things that will grab our attention, demand our praise, capture our affections, and indeed, expect our worship. Yet only our God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—is worthy of worship.   

Take a page from the wise men’s book, and humbly bow your knee—bow your heart—before Jesus the King Eternal, God with us.  

What can I give Him, poor as I am?

If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb;

If I were a Wise Man, I would do my part;

Yet what I can I give Him: give my heart.  

–Christina Rossetti

¹Ruth Chou Simons, Emmanuel, 2022, Harvest House Publishers

An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.”           –Luke 2:9-11

Good news is a gift.

Something good comes into our lives and we tell people! A new job, a wedding, a baby on the way, cancer gone, a relationship restored. People helping people. Answered prayer. Unexpected blessings. The best stuff gets shared.

You can’t keep it to yourself!

Good news is a treasure in times like these when so much news is not good. We need good news more than ever—deep, soul-reaching, life-changing good news.

Good news like that an angel delivered to a huddle of chilly shepherds on that first Christmas night. He had more to announce than just “Hey, here’s something you may be interested in.”

The message was so good, a great host of angels came along to reinforce the “glad tidings of great joy to all the people”!

It will do more than put a smile on your face. This news will bring life to your heart!  

What is this good news? A Savior is born. The long-promised Messiah who delivers us from the curse of sin. The Savior who rescues you and me through His own sacrificial death and resurrection life.

That Savior is Jesus. God’s own Son, born Immanuel—God with us. The Lamb who takes away our sin. Jesus who came as the Light for the nations, for all people.

Today, at least a third of our world still needs to hear the Good News of Jesus. They need to know this Savior who loves them so much that He died for each one. That He carried the penalty for their sin on his own shoulders. This is the Gospel message—Good News—you and I can share to bring joy to all the people.

If you have unwrapped and embraced the gift of Good News in your life, give thanks today. Tell Jesus what it’s meant to you to have Him as your Savior.

Then look around and see who else needs the Good News—a neighbor, a co-worker, someone who crosses your path this Christmas season. You can also share this gift with the third of the world still waiting, when you assist Global Disciples and others working to take the Good News of Jesus to unreached people.

Be the bearer of the Good News, wherever you go, and watch it transform lives. After all, this is one gift that only grows when you give it to others.

Christmas! It’s a day we look forward to all year long. Yet, it’s more than just a day, more than a story of the baby in a manger, with shepherds and stars and angel choirs.

The birth of Jesus was the beginning of something the world had never seen! He modeled life for all of us—perfectly! And He sacrificed His life to save us from our sins—to save all people from their sin—so that each and every man, woman and child can have a personal, life-transforming relationship with God.

The birth we celebrate was only the beginning of a mission we carry on today. Jesus, the baby worshiped by shepherds and kings, grew to teach and challenge and call others to follow Him. To build His kingdom.  

To those who saw and listened, Jesus never built a church building. No glorious temple. No well-tuned school, organization, or institution. He travelled with little more than his clothes on his back and shoes on his feet. He sometimes “had no place to lay his head.” Even his grave was borrowed. It was hardly the making of a Kingdom.

When Jesus returned to heaven, having accomplished the mission of eternal life to all who believe, he left nothing behind. Nothing…but people.

Just people. Men like Peter and John and Matthew. Women like Mary and Martha. Ordinary people—nothing to make them stand out in a crowd.

Except that they had walked with Jesus. Listened to Jesus. Put their life on the line to follow Him, and to live out His teaching.

Only people. Like you and me. Like the millions around the world who’ve heard the story and received the message of Jesus in faith. Those who continue to step out and follow Him, no matter where or what the cost. This Christmas, remember the blessing you have in knowing Christ. And join those who continue to build His Kingdom by sharing the Gospel with those still waiting to join us in this glorious story!    

–B Gerhart, Global Disciples

Because of love, Jesus set aside the glories of heaven to come to earth, to live among the people he created, and to die for their sins. What a glorious gift to celebrate this Advent season! And now, he calls each one who follows him to carry out this mission of love to those around us.

Look at how Jesus engaged with people during his time on earth. He not only listened to their words, he heard their hearts. He looked beyond their status and reputation. He acted out of compassion. He spoke truth. He valued and loved people—enough to sacrifice Himself so that every person could have eternal life.

Nanda, from Myanmar, reflects Jesus’ heart for people—lost, hopeless, forgotten, rejected, broken people. Nanda said, “When I became a child of God, I experienced His wonderful love and I was so eager to share it with others.”

Even though his family rejected him because of Jesus, it only reinforced his belief that they needed Jesus too. “I felt myself to be appointed as a witness to my people,” Nanda said.

He’s now training disciple-makers and leading them in outreach with the Good News of Jesus. He sees people who have no hope and he’s quick to point them to Jesus. When he met a man rejected by his community because of his alcoholism, Nanda said, “As a servant of God, I knew that he was so precious before God.” Every time the man asked for money to drink, Nanda prayed for him. And the Holy Spirit’s amazing work of transformation in this alcoholic’s life opened the eyes of his community to God’s power.

At times, Nanda faced criticism from others—including other Christians—for reaching out and embracing those with spiritual needs. But he responds, “People around me sometimes say that the Burmese people are not worthy to go to heaven. But God’s love is for all people. As we are working for God, we are to see what’s on the heart of God—and people are so precious in His sight.”

As a disciple of Jesus, Nanda lives out Christ’s mission of loving others. He has developed the same heart for people that His Savior has.              

–B Gerhart, Global Disciples

A dozen ladies with sewing machines.

When the photo crossed my desk and I read the story that came with it, the mission of Christmas was once again clearly visible.

Christmas is about mission, God’s mission of redemption. Jesus made it clear: “I came to seek and save the lost” (Luke 19:10), so that every person in the world “may have life and have it to the full” (John 10:10).

Pastor H believes in that mission. He leads a Global Disciples partner program in South Asia, training local believers in discipleship-mission and small business and he sent along the story

“As we were conducting our training, the Holy Spirit spoke to us to take the Gospel to the rejected and neglected people in society,” he said. “We didn’t understand, but we kept on praying, asking God to guide us to the place He wanted us to take the living Word.”

The Lord answered their prayers and directed them to a community with no witness for the Gospel. As they entered the village, they saw a group of women sitting outside their houses.

“The Lord led us to share the love of Jesus with them,” Pastor H said. “All were eager to hear the Gospel of Jesus, of His deliverance and acceptance. When we began to pray, several started crying and confessing their sins.”

The disciple-makers learned that twelve of these women were involved in prostitution, with about 14 children between them. “The Lord put a burden on us to counsel these women and help them come out from this evil experience,” Pastor H said.

For a month, the disciple-makers counseled and prayed with them, showing them how Jesus offered life and freedom. Finally, all twelve surrendered their lives to Jesus and accepted Him as Lord and Savior! A church was planted in the community and these women are now engaged with the new fellowship, growing spiritually.

As new disciples of Jesus, this group of women knew they needed a different way to support themselves and their children. With help from Pastor H’s church, each was given a sewing machine and a teacher came to teach them. “They have learned to sew,” Pastor H shared, “and they are taking care of their families with their daily earnings. Kindly pray for them, and for the entire village that we can win the lost in this area.”

This is the redemptive mission of Jesus, to seek and save the lost, to set the captives free, to bring hope, dignity and life eternal to those trapped in sin. And a dozen women, with their sewing machines, can tell you how that mission transformed their lives.

–B Gerhart, Global Disciples