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NEW HOLIDAY GREETING
I would like to suggest a new greeting this holiday season that will offer you a creative way to share your love for Christ with family and friends and the people you know.
The greeting is: “Merry Christmas” and “Maranatha.”
Let me explain the reasoning behind this greeting.
(I think you will like it.)
Merry Christmas has to do with the first coming of Christ (of course).
Maranatha has to do with the second coming of Christ.
(Maranatha means “the Lord is coming,” or “come, O Lord,” or “O [our] Lord come!”) (1 Corinthians 16:22c)
On the early Church’s use of Maranatha, gotquestions.org expands:
Living under [the] adverse conditions [of persecution and the Roman requirement to worship Caesar or else], the believers’ morale was lifted by the hope of the coming of the Lord. “Maranatha!” became the common greeting of the oppressed believers, replacing the Jewish greeting shalom (“peace”). The followers of Jesus knew there would be no peace because Jesus had told them so. (Matthew 10:34; Luke 12:51) But they also knew the Lord would be returning to set up His kingdom, and from that truth they drew great comfort.
WHAT YOU CAN TELL OTHERS
Now here’s what you can tell others.
For every prophecy of the birth of the Savior in the Bible (the first coming of Christ), there are eight prophecies of the second coming of Christ.
(Let that sink in!)
One such prophecy of the first coming of Christ is found in the Old Testament book of Zechariah, chapter 9 and verse 9, where it reads…
“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you.” (Zechariah 9:9)
This verse about the first coming of Christ was fulfilled when Jesus rode on a donkey into the city of David 2,000 years ago.
The very next verse in Zechariah, verse 10 that follows verse 9 about the first coming of Christ, is interestingly about the second coming of Christ…
“And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim, and the horse from Jerusalem; and the bow of war will be cut off. And He (the Messiah) will speak peace to the nations; and His dominion will be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth.” (Zechariah 9:10)
This verse about the second coming (or return) of Christ will be fulfilled at the end of the age which many believe we are on the very door step.
It is not without purpose that the Holy Spirit moved upon Zechariah to record both the first and second coming predictions together like this in one verse (Zechariah 9:9) and then in the next (Zechariah 9:10).
The reason for doing so is this: the first verse and its fulfillment is the guarantee on the second verse and its fulfillment.
Zechariah 9:9 – and Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey 2,000 years ago – it’s a guarantee of His coming the second time – riding a white horse as “King of kings, and Lord of lords”!! (Revelation 19:11-16)
You can take it to the bank.
You can bet your life on it (and life’s savings).
There is no other event in the future that is more set on the calendar (in cement) than the Son of God coming back to planet earth.
A RICHER CHRISTMAS
And so from me to you and my family to yours, “Merry Christmas and Maranatha!”
Our celebration of the one is made richer when we realize its connection to the second.
(To be ready for the second coming, repent and believe in Christ crucified for the forgiveness of sins and bear fruit in keeping with repentance.) (Ephesians 2:8-10)
“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ.” (Titus 2:13; KJV)
(Second Coming of Jesus via Waiting For The Word. CC BY 2.0)
You might also be interested in:
- God of the Inconvenience
- Wise Men Myths and Why We Sometimes Believe Things That Are Simply Not True
About Pastor Mike
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