1. Foreword
At Bethlehem, heaven and earth meet: God and Man
look each other in the face. A Mother for the first time in the universe, as
she holds the babe in her arms, now looks "down" to heaven. Because nothing
greater than this will ever happen in the world, the peace of the world is
conditioned upon that great act being repeated, in a reduced measure, in
each of us. ...
I. This Sunday in Church: Sunday Before Christmas
2.
Bible Readings for This Sunday (December 24, 2017)
http://www.MalankaraWorld.com/Library/Lectionary/Lec_sunday-before-christmas.htm
3.
Sermons for This Sunday (December 24, 2017)
http://www.MalankaraWorld.com/Library/Sermons/Sermon-of-the-week_sunday-before-Christmas.htm
4. Malankara World Journal Specials on Genealogy of Jesus
For more in-depth look at the genealogy of Jesus Christ
read the Malankara World Journal Issue 114 - a special
on the Genealogy of Jesus Christ.
http://www.MalankaraWorld.com/Newsletter/MWJ_114.htm
More articles can be found in Malankara World Journal
archives:
http://www.MalankaraWorld.com/Newsletter/MWJ_183.htm
Malankara World Journal Issue 319
http://www.MalankaraWorld.com/Newsletter/MWJA_319.htm
The Genealogy Of Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:1-17)
Malankara World Journal Issue 389 Dec 16 2016
Theme: Advent, Genealogy of Christ
II. Christmas Day (Monday, December 25)
5.
Bible Readings for Christmas (December 25, 2017)
http://www.MalankaraWorld.com/Library/Lectionary/Lec_Christmas.htm
6.
Sermons for Christmas (December 25, 2017)
http://www.MalankaraWorld.com/Library/Sermons/Sermon-of-the-week_christmas.htm
7. From Malankara World Journal Archives - Christmas
Volume 6 No 390 Dec 23 2016
Volume 5 No 320: December 23, 2015
Volume 4 No 254: December 24, 2014
Volume 3 No 184: December 23, 2013
Volume 3 No 185: December 28, 2013
Volume 2 No 115: Dec 23 2012
Volume 1 No 44: December 22 2011
8. Malankara World Advent and Christmas Supplements
To learn more about the spiritual significance of Christmas
and Advent Season Malankara World has created special supplements so you can
read all about them in depth. Click below to visit:
Malankara World Christmas Supplement
http://www.MalankaraWorld.com/Library/Seasonal/Christmas/Default.htm
Malankara World Advent Supplement
http://www.MalankaraWorld.com/Library/Seasonal/advent/Default.htm
III. Lectionary Reflections:
Luke's Nativity
9.
Luke's Nativity: Messiah Came into History
Caesar thought He was issuing his decree, in order to build his
army, cities and to better order his Kingdom. Millions of people were
inconvenienced and relocated for the census. But all of this took place to
fulfill the ancient prophecy of the Messiah,...
10.
Luke's Nativity: The Sign of the Inn, the Cave, and of The Swaddling Clothes
Everything in scripture is meaningful, all is the Word of God. What is it that
God is saying in this double binding of Jesus? ...
11.
Luke's Nativity: The First Coming Is like The Second
The story of the birth of Jesus, is perhaps the most familiar and loved portions
of the Bible. But the problem with familiar passages of scripture is that people
think they know what needs to be known about them and often aren't open to a
fresh look at the same text from another angle. ...
12.
Luke's Nativity: On Singing Christmas
How fitting, that not to the powerful, but to the lowly, and not into a palace
or temple, but into a lowly, filthy barn, basically a cave, did the "High and
Lofty God", from of Old, choose to condescend unto us, in order to save us.
...
13.
Luke's Nativity: Jesus' First Bloodshedding
Eight days have passed, since the birth of the Savior, therefore the time had
come for Joseph and Mary to present Jesus for circumcision. The Son of God would
come under the Law and covenant of God with all of its obligations and
privileges. He as a Son of Israel, would bear the mark of the covenant. ...
IV. Featured Articles on Christmas
14.
An Invitation to Touch the Skin of Infinite God
Two millennia ago, God answered the anguished cry of humanity by making "the
problem of evil" His own. God Almighty became Immanuel, "God with us." He lived
as we live, suffered as we suffer, died as we die, yet without sin. And He,
being the God-man, overcame the power of death in order to give us eternal life.
...
15.
How to Take a Holy Pause before the Christmas Crazy
Life doesn't stand still, but we can. Scripture invites us to do just that: "Be
still, and know that I am God! I will be honored by every nation. I will be
honored throughout the world." (Psalm 46:10 NLT) ...
16.
What a Poor Chicago Family Taught Me One Christmas Eve
To her, this child in the manger was the undeserved gift that meant everything -
more than material possessions, more than comfort, more than security. And at
that moment, something inside of me wanted desperately to know this Jesus -
because, in a sense, I saw him in Perfecta and her granddaughters. ...
17.
The Nativity of Christ
The threatening clouds of God's wrath were over us. The Lord-the
Peacemaker-has come, and has dispersed the cloud. We were covered with the
wounds of sins and passions; the Healer of souls has come and healed us. We
were bound by the fetters of slavery; the Liberator has come and released
our fetters. ...
18.
Christmas of Life in Bethlehem, Which Is the Church
The almighty Love is "under the forms of a Child. The Omnipotence as non-power.
Non-power as Love, which surpasses everything and gives meaning to everything.
God became a little child so
that we could understand, welcome and love Him. ...
V. More Christmas Features
19.
Why Christmas?
Why do we need Christmas? Have you ever thought about that question? Probably
not! If the truth be known, you, like me, are just so busy "doing" Christmas,
and enjoying it too, that you haven't stopped to consider the reason for the
celebration. ...
20.
How You Can Get to The Heart of Christmas
Every Christmas morning before any of those presents were opened, our family
would spend some time opening God's Word, reading the story of that first
Christmas, and praying and thanking God for the gift He had given us in His Son.
...
21.
Five Tips for PEACE-Full Christmas
Have you ever been tempted to run away at Christmastime? There is a solution! We can intentionally cut the
Christmas chaos this year. The five steps to doing so spell the word PEACE...
22.
The Audacity of Christmas
Christmas marks the "fullness of time" when God,
in his sovereign freedom, "sent forth his Son." The One who dispenses times
and seasons determined that it was time to send forth the Son who had
existed with the Father from eternity. ...
23.
The Incarnation
How do you package love? God used a stable and straw on the eve of Christ's
birth. The incarnation means that Jesus Christ is God in the flesh. ...
24.
Life, Death, and Incarnation
The Incarnation is hard to dismiss out of hand because it so radically comes
near our needs. Into the world of living and dying the arrival of Christ as a
child turns fears of isolation, weakness, and condemnation on their heads. ...
25.
The Spirit of Christmas Is Generosity
If it weren't for God's generosity, we would have nothing. The air we breathe is
a gift of God's generosity. The blood coursing through our veins is a gift of
God's generosity. The fact that our hearts are beating is a gift of God's
generosity. Every good thing in your life - including your life itself - is a
gift of God's generosity. ...
26.
How to Demonstrate God's Mercy at Christmas
Earlier this month, in Tarrant, Alabama, the beautiful light of hope shined into
one woman's family. Let me tell you their story. ...
27.
The Christmas Sermon I Need to Hear
It's an audacious claim, when you think about it: that the birth of a baby to an
unwed teen amid the squalor of a backwater town could possible matter. And yet
there, in a nutshell, is the promise of the Gospel: that God regularly shows up
where we least expect God to be and always for us. ...
28.
The Real Reason You Need Christmas
This quick exploration into Genesis 3 reveals the real reason we need Christmas.
This holiday of holidays doesn't exist because we need vacations, presents, and
extra church services. Christmas exists because we have sinned. ...
VI. General Weekly Features
29.
Recipe: Spicy Mutton Chops (in Malayalam)
30.
An Alaskan Christmas Story - A Lesson From A Dog
God sought us before we knew Him, reached out to us before we trusted Him
and loved us before we knew how to love him back. ...
31.
The Goodness of God
Make a point of frequently encouraging each other by reciting the great
deeds of God, reflecting back on those spiritual milestones that prove His
long-term faithfulness. ...
32.
Combating Loneliness
Let's keep our focus on God and call out to Him when we feel loneliness setting
a trap for us: in the festive times, in the quiet times, at all times. ...
33.
5 Ways to Winterize the Soul
Winterizing our souls doesn't mean the storms won't happen, they will come
through all seasons of life. But it does mean that we may be better equipped and
prepared for whatever comes our way, trusting we are held with the sure grace
and powerful strength of our Lord. ...
34.
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