There is one old hymn that I do not find easy to get out of my head, and one that I am glad sticks as easily as it does. I like the version of it that Elvis Presley sang:
But who is the "Lord"? In many Bible passages it is clear that the term "Lord" is a reference to God. Of course that is correct, God is the Lord. Here are just a couple of examples, the first related to Christmas:
21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” 22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).
and
7 Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”
So until the man Jesus appears there are many examples in the Bible where "Lord" is a direct reference to God, just as we see in the above two examples.
But a further review of the use of the word "Lord" in the New Testament demonstrates that many times the term "Lord" is a reference to Jesus. You can review those here:
On a side note the website BibleGateway is a fabulous on-line Bible resource and I use it all the time. Virtually all the English translations of the Bible can be viewed at the site and there are great tools such as "word search" which is what I used to find each occurrence of the word "Lord" in the New Testament.
So who is Lord, Jesus or God?
Consider this:
If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
and this:
Therefore I want you to know that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus be cursed,” and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit.
Clearly the Bible makes it plain that "Jesus is Lord" is pretty important. When you think about it, the interchangeable use of the term "Lord" to describe Jesus AND God is a very important clue as to who Jesus really is.
"Doubting Thomas", as many like to refer to the disciple Thomas, had it correct when he said:
28 Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!” 29 Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
Believed what? What Thomas said, that Jesus is Lord and God.
I'm with Thomas on this. Jesus is Lord and God. I believe that the Christian religion turns upon the fact that Jesus is the Mighty God and Everlasting Father. And if Jesus is not the Mighty God, then who does this Bible passage refer to:
6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
To summarize: ...a child is born and he will be called Mighty God and Everlasting Father. Can you think of anyone else that could be referring to?
I could go on, but I have already done so at this website: Jehovah is Jesus
OK Bob, so what's your point? What does this have to do with Christmas?
Here's my point: Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Christ, and Christ is the Mighty God. And further, the Christ of Christmas is the only way to everlasting life with God. Consider what Jesus himself said:
6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
Jesus is "the way", not "a way". That doesn't seem to leave a lot of other options. But Jesus made that point even more plainly when he said:
13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
So as Christmas is upon us, and we consider the meaning of Christmas, I would like you to give consideration to the Christ of Christmas, who He is and what He did for you by becoming a man, born of a woman, and dying on a cross for your sins.
And while we are thinking of His birth, I would like you to think about your own birth and what Jesus also said:
3 Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.” 4 “How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!” 5 Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit.
How can you be born again? The answer is in a verse we previously looked at:
If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
And while we think about how the angels rejoiced when Jesus was born, think about how they rejoice each time another person is born again.
7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.
This Christmas, as you take time to enjoy the holiday, I hope you will give consideration to the Christ of Christmas, who He really is, and what that means to you and for you.
If you don't know the Christ of Christmas, then I hope you will be born again. I would like to think that this Christmas someone else's new birth was being heralded by angels singing and rejoicing. I hear them humming. If you don't know Jesus as your Savior, give the angels a reason to sing by giving your life to Him.