January 4, 2026

THREE days to Bethlehem…

…journeying as magi.

GOD’S WORD FOR TODAY:

“If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth.” (John 14.15-17a)

TODAY’S REFLECTION ON GOD’S WORD:

Yesterday we were reminded of the fruit of the Holy Spirit, the multi-faceted gem of true spiritual life which the Apostle Paul declared, “…against such there is no law.” Can you imagine that there would be such a thing as laws against “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” There is, of course, a “law” that is against such things. It is called the “law of sin.” We know that sin is disobedience against the Word of God, which is a “law” itself. It is a natural law by which the earth itself and all of creation abides. In truth, nothing that exists can exist without this law which is “the Word of God.” Can you imagine life without the Word of God? Adam and Eve did but just for a moment. In a moment of being introduced to the “law of sin,” they dwelt in a place where the “Word of God” seemingly did not exist. It was a fleeting moment in their very short lives. It was the most terrifying moment of their lives. In that moment, they experienced the reality of a world where there was no “Word of God.” It was a world where the naked truth was so obvious to them they were filled up and covered over by shame and guilt. Before that time, they had known only the Word of God. In the presence of that natural Law, they enjoyed the fruit of the Holy Spirit. Their very lives were filled with that fruit and fruitfulness. And so are our lives filled with fruitfulness when we abide by the Law of the Word of God and follow its directives. What was that Law of the Word of God in Eden? It was simply this- “And the Lord God commanded the man, ‘You are free to eat from any tree in the garden but ONE; you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.’” (Genesis 1.16-17) It was as simple as that. There was one God, one people and one rule. That rule was one directive, one guideline, or as Jesus would identify Himself as being “one way, one truth and one life.” (John 14.6) He revealed this about Himself to His disciples so that they would know the journey they each had been seeking which would bring authenticity, validation and the fulfillment of their hope to dwell with God in His favor forever began and ended with Him. We know by that “Word of God” this is true. Humanity was made, in the beginning, in the very image by which God established as the true model. It was His own image. It was the image of His Son. God had already decided to made creation personal to Himself by creating everything in and through the image of His Son. In Him was the embodiment of true righteousness. That is why the very teachings of Jesus reflected the call to righteousness. True righteousness is the natural and normal order of life. It says simply, “Obey the Word of God, apply its truth to the way you go through each day and you will have life in abundance.” The antithesis was true and remains true to and through this very day throughout all eternity: disobey the Word of God, do not apply it to every decision you make daily and you will have a life that can never be filled and will always be in want. David, the shepherd king of Israel had found this truth for himself and declared it in his shepherd’s psalm. In Psalm 23, we hear him say, “The Lord is my shepherd, no want shall I know. He leads me to green pastures and by still waters. He restores my soul. He guides me along the paths of righteousness as He promised by the authority of the promise of His Name alone. And though I will walk into the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for Immanuel is with me, His rod and His staff are a reminder to me of His promise and I receive the greatest comfort from them. In the presence of my enemies who invite me to consider there is no God who cares for me, God Himself has prepared a banquet table full of the true goodness of life. He anoints my head with oil and fills my cup to overflowing so I will know His blessing is upon me. And I will walk through that valley of death. I shall dwell, there is no doubt about it, in the House of the Lord forever.”

Yet, in that moment of the absence of the Word of God to provide the fruitfulness of His Holy Spirit, Adam and Eve saw life without it. It was barren and dark and empty. It had no life, as they knew it, in it. What was there, however, was the inescapable truth of God’s presence. There is nowhere where God’s presence is absent. His presence is either in the discernment of goodness, mercy and grace and the blessing of life or of judgment and the sentence of dwelling in the valley of the shadow of death without escape. This is the reality to which the “ten lords a-leaping” were in step with. As a teaching they caused the students to look back at the “Ten Commandments,” the rules of righteousness. They were not laws of judgment and condemnation as so many before then had proposed. Instead they were the discernments of what made for an abundant and sacred life as a normal and every day reality. They were descriptors of “the way, the truth and the life” that were emblematic of the image in which we have been created. The summation of those rules, or laws, is the new command of Jesus Christ. He said, “If you love Me, keep My commandments and I will ask the Father to give you and advocate like no other- the Holy Spirit.” That Advocate will bring into our lives the restored luster of our original selves as being born the first time with all the fruit and fruitfulness before sin dulled and stole it all. That is the desire of the Enemy whose law is sin. He comes to steal, kill and destroy. But, the Son of God, the image of the true love of God which is His Word, comes that we might have life and have it abundantly. That life is know by its fruit and by its desire to fulfill all righteousness as described in the Ten Commandments.

TODAY’S PRAYER IN RESPONSE TO GOD’S WORD:

Father, in these days we are finding the need to believe even more than ever before. We all have known trouble, some in greater ways than others, but You are offering us the assurance that we will not be consumed by it forever. Regardless of the “time” we are in and the “time” we have been given, we ask for Your Holy Spirit which Jesus asked You to share with us, to lead and guide and direct us in the paths we should go. Teach us what we still need to learn. Empower us to put that learning into action. Bless our actions not as a works righteousness but as righteous works of faith, hope and love in Jesus’ name. AMEN.