The Wayside Pulpit No.51
"The Saviour of Mankind"
"Christians awake, salute the happy morn,
Whereon the Saviour of mankind was born."
At this time of the year
the world goes mad on a spending spree of prodigious proportions, and
shop-keepers do all they can to encourage it; after all, it lines their
pockets! The amazing thing is that the celebration is (supposed to be) based
upon a Child born in a manger in
Those who celebrate
Christmas as true believers will indulge in festivities, but in addition will
remember Jesus' birth in their homes and their churches. To all such, my wife
and I would like to extend our greetings, and pray that your celebrations will
not only bring you joy, but will also bring joy to the Lord Himself. It was indeed
an event of momentous importance when He "left His throne and His kingly
crown to come to the earth for me." None of us will ever be able to fathom
the depth of that "happening", and what it meant in the courts of
heaven.
I quoted the carol's words,
"The Saviour of Mankind" at the head of this paper. The reason is
clear. Jesus IS the Saviour of mankind, even though the majority of Christians
vigorously deny it. I would like to pose a simple but very serious question
this Christmastide, in the hope that those who read these words may ponder its
answer whilst worshipping the One who came as the Babe to
"At the name of Jesus
every knee shall bow, of those in heaven, and those on earth, and those under
the earth, and every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the
glory of God the Father." Philippians 2:10-11
"The Lord Jesus . . .
shall be revealed in flaming fire, taking vengeance on those who know not God,
and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, who shall be punished
with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord." 2
Thessalonians 1:8-9
These are, on the surface,
irreconcilable statements. So here is my question. Why is it that quite the
majority of Christians PREFER to believe only the verses like that in
Thessalonians above, rather than both of the verses? I have
frequently noticed this tendency, and it is very widespread. People are
irresistibly drawn to DESTRUCTION rather than SALVATION. What is it that causes
them to lean so heavily on the negative things instead of judging them in the
light of the positive?
I should like to share two
fragments of family testimony at this point. First of all, our daughter Ruth,
when at High School some years ago, was one afternoon in the art lesson, where
it was quite common for pupils and teacher to engage in conversation and
discussion whilst painting. The topic of Christianity came up, and Ruth joined
in as a believer. The subject was tossed around this way and that until Ruth
said; "It is my firm belief that one day ALL of you will believe in Jesus
Christ for salvation." This produced a profound silence, and nothing more
was said on the subject. It certainly got them thinking, and we often wonder,
even now, when those seeds will finally germinate.
The second concerns myself.
Ever since 1967, when Rosalind and I received the baptism of the spirit, we
have been able to discern the Lord's whisper, and hear blessed words of
direction in our lives. But as many others will no doubt concur, the ability
also allows dark forces to whisper their serpentine words as well. On this
particular occasion, some years ago, I distinctly heard Satan himself speaking
to me, trying to destroy the confidence I had in the Lord Jesus. I rebuked him
in Jesus' name, but he would not go away. Eventually, (and I thank God for
putting this into my mind,) I said to him, "Satan, I believe that one day
even YOU, will of your own volition, bow your knee to Jesus and
confess that He is your Lord." That did it. He was gone like a shot out of
a pistol.
My answer to my own
question is based on Scripture, but also backed up by experience. I believe
that Satan is so angry at the thought of his ever repenting and believing in
Jesus, that he infests the minds of Christians all the time, causing them to
think in terms of everlasting hell-fire, which, if you think about it
logically, based on the erroneous translation of certain words, is accepting
that Satan will win the battle over the souls of 90% of mankind, and leave God
with a mere tithe of humanity. I suggest it is this serpentine whisper
that is the real cause for such a strong emphasis being placed on destruction
rather than salvation. May I ask which is it in your case?
Centre of the ages, the Lord talks to a girl,
And by the words He speaks He gives a Saviour to the world;
The time grows to its fullness, and Mary's Son is born,
The promise's fulfilment lies asleep now in her arms.
He didn't come to terrify, to judge, or condescend,
To call us as His servants, but to lift us as His friends,
To save us all from Satan's power, to reign at His right hand,
In the little town of
The day the God of Majesty was given to the earth,
A gift of such magnificence, we can never plumb its worth,
And the rudeness of the setting just ignites the Jewel's fire,
A Pearl beyond the greatest price, the joy of man's desire.
(Words by Don Francisco, in his song "When God became a man.")