Of the increase of his government and of peace
there will be no end,
on the throne of David and over his kingdom,
to establish it and to uphold it
with justice and with righteousness
from this time forth and for evermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this
I had to write about this – we had a Christmas gathering this week, in our home. People we had heard of, but never met came and joined us from all over Sydney. It was such a delight, as a group of passionate believers shared intimately in the presence of Christ eating, sharing and communing into the night.
One couple work in Western Sydney with Muslims and the Yazidis, as they speak Arabic and have lived in Israel. Here is a story they told that had us that soon had us in tears:
A Muslim woman, a teacher of the Koran who fastidiously wore a black hijab from head to toe, revealing only her face and hands, was contemplating taking her own life. She found no answers in what she did. The night before she planned to kill herself with a knife, Jesus came to her in a dream. With a radiant face he came up to her and said, ‘I am Jesus and I love you.’ He then kissed her on each cheek and gazed into her eyes. She asked him, ‘can I kiss you too?’ to which Jesus affirmed her. She kissed Christ on each cheek and broke down and cried in her dream.
From that moment her life changed forever. She awoke the next morning completely and utterly transformed. She now spends her time ministering Christ to others, and teaching them of the outrageous love of God through his Son. Such was the total change, that a month later her husband marched into church and demanded to know what had happened to his wife – he wanted the same thing for himself and gave his life to Christ on the spot.
Today, they minister Isa into their Muslim community, and see lives change as others turn to Christ.
Friends, the most remarkable thing about this outrageous love of God, which we remember especially at this time, is that Christ does not discriminate in his love for us. We may think others are beyond redemption, but he has the power to change everyone, and loves all equally. There is nobody else like Him whom we worship at this time.
Let us pray that others might experience such life changing love. Tell someone of his love this Christmas.
Happy Christmas.
Yes. Beautiful! This ‘this outrageous love of God’ beyond all our ideas of what love is all about. Thanks again Michael.
A joyful Christmas to all your readers and may Jesus be incarnated in each one of us who know his love and into the new year 2018 and beyond and into eternity.
Thanks Ian. It was a wonderful story we heard so close to Christmas – why is it that so many “Aussies” seem so reluctant to do more with Jesus, yet others from afar are so willing to embrace him. We see it on the streets all the time. Perhaps God hasn’t let our country fall far enough yet for us to turn to him? God Bless you and your family this Christmas.