There is no doubt 2017 will go down as one of the most politically charged years in history. A concerning observation is the number of Christians worried and worked up over politics. It begs the question, whom or what are they worshiping?

As I pondered this issue, the wise men came to mind. Nearly two years had passed since Jesus was born, and Herod the Great was in power. Herod was a political tyrant. He increased taxes. He enforced harsh labor from the Israelites. He issued a decree to have all children under the age of two be put to death.

It was in the midst of this political crisis when the wise men traveled across the continent to Jerusalem. Their only aim: “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship” (Matthew 2:2).

The wise men were not kings. They were known as Magi, a combination of wise men and priests likely from Persia.

They had political and religious influence and were figures of some province in their land.

What made the wise men wise? Their elite education, or their humble quest to seek the true King and His star in the East?

How they came to connect the birth of Jesus with the star is a matter of conjecture. Some scholars believe they were responding to a piece of scripture left to them by God’s prophets centuries before. The content of this scripture is unknown. But they were compelled to cross the continent at all costs to worship their King.

The Greek word for worship is proskuneo. It is used 61 times in the New Testament. Among the people of that day, especially Persians, the word described a person who would fall on their knees, forehead to the ground, as an expression of profound reverence.

Such reverence for scripture gave the wise men a spiritual revelation. It appears it was only the wise men who saw the star. Herod didn’t see it. The chief priests and scribes didn’t either. Only the wise men could see and were led to the holy Child.

“When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshipped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh” (Matthew 2:10-11).

Reverence for scripture, spiritual revelation, true worship, there is a correlation here.

Worship is singing praise songs before the pastor speaks. If we think it is merely that, we are entirely wrong.

We don’t know if the wise men entered the house of God singing songs. What’s sure is they fell on their knees and presented their gifts. They came to worship Him, and worship they did.

A great explanation of worship is this: Worship is the art of losing self in the adoration of another. Praise is a part of worship, but worship goes beyond praise alone. Praise is easy. Worship is not. Worship cuts to the heart of who we are. To worship God, we cannot worship selves. We must be willing to be humble before God, to surrender every part of our lives to His control. We adore Him for who He is, not just what He has done. Worship is a lifestyle, not an activity or occasion. “For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth” (John 4:23). This is the explanation from Jesus.

Paul explained worship in this way:

“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God” (Romans 12:1-2).

True worship is when worshipers “present” their bodies and minds to serve God.

The word service in the Greek is latreia and is also translated worship. It is used 21 times in the New Testament, expressing the reverence and adoration of God that leads to serving Him.

Before it appears in Romans 12, the word transform is used three times in the New Testament. Two of these instances are in both accounts of Jesus’ transfiguration. Peter, James and John followed Jesus up to a high mountain where Jesus was transfigured before them. “His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became white as the light” (Matthew 17:2).

The transfiguration of Jesus is an example of what happens to us when we are transformed by God. The process begins within and works from there out. The changes God makes in our hearts and in our souls become visible in our outward selves. The only way to meet the challenges of changing our carnal minds is to truly worship God. For an example of how it’s done, follow the wise men’s lead.

The political problems for 2018 are uncertain. If we choose wisdom’s path -reverence for scripture, spiritual revelation, true worship – God will meet us there. He will transform us into the image of His Son. For peace and all you need, seek and worship Him.

God likes creativity. It’s possible to think He is merely a strict taskmaster in the sky, begrudging us any sort of enjoyment in life. But He is the Creator God, and we are made in His image and likeness. That situation holds plenty of implications for us. God made us to enjoy relationship with Himself and with other people. He made us for fellowship, expression and sharing. He gave us the ability to respond to His love and share it with others. He talks a lot about joy. Expression is personal response. It’s worthwhile to express.

1. Creative Expression Is Incarnational

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth… And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace” (John 1:14,16)
Jesus is the ultimate expression of God: the Word, the image of the invisible God, put on flesh and became a Man not just so we could see or hear about His grace and truth, but that we could behold His fullness in real life. Simply by knowing Jesus and believing in Him, we receive the fullness of His grace. If expression could have no other topic, wouldn’t grace be sufficient? It’s real; it’s messy. It’s unbelievable; it’s lovely. It’s free; it’s heart wrenching: characteristics which typify all the best art.

If our lives, art and expression are known for the grace of God at work within us (in all the various forms it manifests), then our art has become incarnational: We have let the Word of God put on our flesh because we’ve received fullness of grace. (Plus, receiving full grace means being humbly enabled to give it; nobody likes a know-it-all, but everyone likes a fellow learner.) Art is humble and honest and raw and helps people interpret life. Let’s interpret through the lens of the Gospel and the love of God.

2. If The Word Is In Us, We’re Able To Express

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord” (Colossians 3:16).

This Biblical command is quite simple: Let the Word dwell in our hearts richly. Let the Word in, and we will have the grace to praise the Lord and encourage others. It will make us wise, so we aren’t just venting our feelings or proclaiming something other than the Gospel. Furthermore, obedience to this command actually enables every person in the church to write “worship songs” — and it doesn’t require musical talent. We can teach and help one another by the songs of praise (musical or otherwise) that we share because of the Word in us.
Maybe by dwelling on a passage during a particularly hard season, we will find a treasured promise, which becomes the “new song” in our mouths until we are brought out of the pit, like David sings about in Psalm 40:1-3. When we simply let the Word say what it says, it changes our perspective, and God changes us. Please note that expression is a God-given gift to all people, not just the ones who think they’re creative. This is for all of the church, to the glory of Jesus. It’s not self-glorification; it’s practically and humbly relating with God and others. Let’s communicate from the position of learners and listeners, with a well-watered garden of the Word of God in our hearts.

3. There Is No Secular Or Sacred

“And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him” (Colossians 3:17).
“Whatever” is a pretty big word. It isn’t constricted to church services or worship leading or mission trips or Bible studies at a coffee shop. We don’t have to divide things into Christian or otherwise. It’s whatever. Anything. If we’re living in the reality of the Gospel, the Bible and the Holy Spirit will be showing us what doesn’t glorify God, and all the other things become fair game for glorifying Jesus. It’s words and deeds; not just one or the other. Every act and word of our lives can express our thanks to God. We do this through Jesus, whose blood paid to redeem every part of our lives for His glory. A.W. Tozer wrote about this in his book, The Pursuit of God:
“The sacred-secular antithesis has no foundation in the New Testament…The Lord Jesus Christ Himself is our perfect example, and He knew no divided life…By one act of consecration of our total selves to God we can make every subsequent act express that consecration.”

Let’s engage in every aspect of our lives, creatively and wholeheartedly, out of freedom and thankfulness and love to God.

4. Expression Is A Catalyst for Joy And Fellowship

“That which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. And these things we write to you that your joy may be full” (I John 1:3-4).
Life is about fellowship. The Godhead enjoyed fellowship together, and then God created man to enjoy fellowship with Him as well. Jesus died to restore the fellowship, which our sins had broken, and by faith in Him, we also receive the Holy Spirit in our hearts, enabling communion with God and people. As people, we all see things a little differently. We all know God personally. And God saw fit to make us all into the Body of Christ (the Church). To put it plainly, we need each other’s perspective to know God most fully. When we share our lives and God’s goodness in plain sight of one another, we love God and one another more fully.

We don’t need to know it all to be able to express: We just need to open our mouths and share what we have seen and heard. Sometimes this will correct us when we’ve thought wrong; other times it will strengthen a weary soul in season (see Isaiah 50:4). …And more, there are many other Scriptures which encourage me to bravely share what God is teaching me in my life and to eagerly listen when others share from their perspective.
Life is exciting, and Jesus invited anyone with ears to hear. As we listen to the Word and live in light of the Gospel, we’ll find creative inspiration everywhere. And when we do, let’s fill our own creative outlets with grace and thanksgiving and joy — not with burdens, but with freshness and life. Let’s serve one another through the honest expression of our lives. We’ve been loved by Love Himself, the original Creator. I think He’s pretty pleased when we attempt to express like Him.

Over and over again, I discover how easy it is to say the right things, yet how often I must be reminded to live them.

Over and over again, I am reminded how necessary it is that I preach the Gospel to myself.

I know that I am a sinner saved by grace. I have memorized the Scriptures, including whole books of the Bible in my teen years. I have sung the songs and read the stories, and the truths that have shaped my life are settled in my soul.

There is great danger in this kind of knowing. It means that I can say all of the right words without my heart’s chords stirring to the tune of the Gospel. In my daily, ordinary, unseen, unsung life, it means that I can speak of the work of God and fail to recognize how deeply and desperately I need that work in my own life.

To make this practical, let me share a few examples. I have been reading the book of Esther; the story of kings and kingdoms, banquets and brides, feasts and fairness. In the first chapter, we read of Vashti, who refused the summons to the king’s presence. I have heard this passage taught many ways, but the simple application I received as I read was that one woman’s choice held massive implications, not just for her own relationships, but for her whole nation.

Quietly but insistently, God spoke to me:

“The choices that you make hold weight far beyond what you even realise.”

In the light of the Gospel, this means that my God is at work redeeming my poor choices and calling me to the choices that will reflect His sacrificial love.

Practically, this means that I must recognize, in light of the Gospel, that some of my choices will be the ones that must be redeemed. I am a sinner, eternally saved by grace.

It is far easier for me to tell others that their sins are ransomed and redeemed than to examine the ugly reality of my own poor choices. And yet…I am continually discovering my own faults and failings.

To choose another example, for years I have told teenage girls to wait to share their hearts to the one who is God’s best.

Until I fell in love myself and couldn’t figure out how to release that love for over a year. It is easy to say that I should give God my love life. It’s much harder to actually surrender what I desire. It is in light of these failures that the glory of the Gospel becomes ever more radiant. Although I know this is not true, I sometimes imagine that I have earned the relentless love of God. Preaching the Gospel to myself reminds me that every good gift in my life is an act of grace.

In subtle ways, I tend to package grace.

In my life, grace unwrapped looks like the gift it always has been: The unearned favor of a God who gave us a garden and the joy of His presence. In my life, redemption unfolded looks like the tree that springs forth with life from what seems bitter, the cross that carried the death of God Himself that He might live again, the hope that the only true King walked in humility; so that He could live in victory forever.

When I preach the Gospel to myself, I rediscover the wonder, the mystery, the radical awe of a triune God who is Father, Saviour, and Spirit. I re-engage with a love that precedes history and stretches past one trillion tomorrows.

When I preach the Gospel to myself, the story is no longer about me. I am so glad that there is a true and better hero. All of heaven sings His name.

There is much debate about who Jesus is. Some believe he was a good man or a great prophet. Others claim he was an angel or a god among other created gods. Still others say he was a legend, liar, or lunatic. The Bible, however, tells us that He is God. This means He is the second Person of the one, triune God; eternal and uncreated; holy, sovereign, and supreme; all-powerful, all knowing, and everywhere present at the same time; the maker and sustainer of all created things; worthy of all worship, devotion, and obedience. With this said, here are 6 reasons from the Bible why I believe Jesus is God:

1. THE BIBLE CALLS JESUS “GOD”

Isaiah 9:6, “For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, MIGHTY GOD, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
John 1:1, 1:14, “In the beginning the Word (Jesus) already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was GOD … the Word became human and made his home among us.”

Colossians 1:15, “Christ (Jesus) is THE VISIBLE IMAGE OF THE INVISIBLE GOD. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation.” 1 John 5:20, “And we know that the Son of God has come, and he has given us understanding so that we can know the true God. And now we live in fellowship with the true God because we live in fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ. He is the ONLY TRUE GOD, and he is eternal life.”

2. JESUS CLAIMED TO BE GOD

John 5:16-18, “So the Jewish leaders began harassing Jesus for breaking the Sabbath rules. But Jesus replied, ‘My Father is always working, and so am I.’ So the Jewish leaders tried all the harder to find a way to kill him. For he not only broke the Sabbath, he called God his Father, thereby MAKING HIMSELF EQUAL WITH GOD.”

John 10:30-33, [Jesus replied] “The Father and I are one.” Once again the people picked up stones to kill him. Jesus said, “At my Father’s direction I have done many good works. For which one are you going to stone me?” They replied, “We’re stoning you not for any good work, but for blasphemy! You, a mere man, CLAIM TO BE GOD.”

3. JESUS’ RESURRECTION FROM THE DEAD AFFIRMS THAT HE IS GOD

Romans 1:3-4, “The Good News is about his Son. In his earthly life he was born into King David’s family line, and he was shown to be THE SON OF GOD when he was raised from the dead by the power of the Holy Spirit. He is Jesus Christ our Lord.”

4. JESUS POSSESSES THE UNIQUE TITLES OF GOD

In the Old Testament, God claims to be the only Savior who saves sinners from sin (Isaiah 43:11), and He alone is worthy to be called “the first and the last” (Isaiah 41:4, 44:6, 48:12). In the New Testament, Jesus possesses both titles. In John 4:42, He is called “the SAVIOR of the world”, and in Matthew 1:21, He is announced as the one who will save His people from their sins.

Jesus claims to be “the First and the Last”: “Look, I am coming soon, bringing my reward with me to repay all people according to their deeds. I am the Alpha and the Omega, THE FIRST AND THE LAST, the Beginning and the End.” (Revelation 22:12-13)

5. JESUS POSSESSES THE UNIQUE ATTRIBUTES OF GOD

God is eternal (Psalm 90:2), unchanging (Malachi 3:6), everywhere present (Psalm 139:7-12), all knowing (Job 37:16, Psalm 147:5), and all-powerful (Jeremiah 32:17).

These attributes belong to God, and Jesus possesses them all.
• Jesus is eternal: Colossians 1:17, “He existed before anything else,
• and he holds all creation together.”
• Jesus is unchanging: Hebrews 13:8, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.”
• Jesus is everywhere present: Matthew 28:20, “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
• Jesus is all knowing: Colossians 2:3, “All the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden in Him.”
• Jesus is all-powerful: Matthew 28:18, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth.”
Also, Colossians 1:16, “Everything was created through him and for him.”

6. JESUS PERFORMS THE UNIQUE WORKS OF GOD

He created all things: John 1:3, “All things were created through Him, and apart from Him not one thing was created that has been created.” He sustains all things: Hebrews 1:3, “The Son radiates God’s own glory and expresses the very character of God, and he sustains everything by the mighty power of his command.” He forgives sin: Mark 2:7, “Only God can forgive sins”, and Colossians 3:13, “even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do.”

He will judge the people of the world: Romans 14:10-12, “We will all stand before the judgment seat of God. For the Scriptures say, “‘As surely as I live,’ says the LORD, ‘every knee will bend to me, and every tongue will declare allegiance praise to God.’” Yes, each of us will give a personal account to God.”

Compare this with Philippians 2:9-11: “God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”