Christmas brings the means of settling our eternity …

Even those who live long lives often comment on the brevity of life.

There’s a story told about an old mountaineer who had lived a full but not exactly saintly life and now was on his deathbed. He summoned his weeping wife.

“Sara,” he said, “go to the fireplace and take out the third stone from the top.”

She did as instructed.

“Reach in there,” said her husband, “and bring out what you find.”

Her fingers touched a large Mason jar, and with some effort she pulled it up. The jar was full of cash.

“Sara,” said the old man, “when I go, I’m going to take all that money with me. I want you to put that jar up in the attic by the window. I’ll get it as I go by on my way to heaven.”

His wife followed his instructions. That night the old mountaineer died. After the funeral his wife remembered the Mason jar and went to the attic. There was the jar still full of money still perched by the window.

“Oh,” the widow sighed. “I knew I should have put it in the basement!”

Life is short, and then you die. After that comes eternity.

It’s the issue of eternity that was the problem for humankind. God had created us to live in perfect union with Him, but when we broke that relationship, we ushered in consequences that would forever separate us from God.

Paul wallace, who ministers at Dixonville Wesleyan Church, tells the story of how a few years ago there was a TV show called Early Edition. The main character in this program would receive a newspaper every day that showed what was going to happen the next day. He would then set out to correct the bad things before they happened. Through a series of events in which he often put himself in harms way, he would accomplish his destiny.

Christmas isn’t about Jesus seeing a day ahead and fixing things, but God looking back at the mess humankind has made with our choice of sin since the days of Adam and Eve, and providing a way to fix what we’ve ruined by introducing us to our destiny, who is Jesus Christ.

The baby born that first Christmas entered the world with a mission to die in our place so that we could be set free from sin and sin’s consequence of death. Christmas is God launching His initiative for making a way to reconcile us to Himself and provide for us an eternity of being in perfect union with Him. All of this would be achieved through Jesus Christ.

When we enter a covenant relationship with Jesus Christ, we have fulfilled our destiny!

Our life here and now will never exceed the fullness of life found in Jesus Christ, and our eternal destiny will be one of forever worshiping our Savior born that first Christmas day. There may still be tasks to complete, a mission to fulfill, adventures to be lived, and a journey to be finished, but there is nothing more, nothing greater, nothing bigger than coming into a right relationship with God through Jesus Christ. Thus, our destiny was born that first Christmas, and surrendering our lives to Him is the culmination of the greatest thing that can happen to us. That’s because our eternal destination hinges on our entering that New Covenant with Christ.

Christmas brings big gifts … the means of settling our eternity by introducing us to our destiny!

Have you been reconciled to God? Have you discovered your eternal destiny in Jesus Christ?

Scotty