I praise God that He has brought us through another year of uncertainty due to COVID 19. In all, after brief closings, personal disagreements about mask wearing, coupled with misinformation and outright untruth from outside sources, our congregation has persevered. We have lost some of our precious people who have moved to different communities, and some who have disagreed with decisions we have made to keep the most vulnerable of our congregation safe and healthy. Still, we are together having 101 attend our “Together Again” Bethlehem Breakfast last Sunday morning with 121 attending worship celebrating the Lord Jesus’ birth. That number is just 9 short of our average attendance of 130 per week before COVID arrived.
 
We have been faithful all year to recite scriptures together every Sunday morning in keeping with the year-long theme: “2021 – The Year of the Gospel.” I have preached sermons about the meaning of the gospel, the seven last words of Jesus from the cross, the seven “I Am” statements of Jesus, and now the prayers that Jesus prayed before He ascended back to heaven. To celebrate our year of the gospel emphasis, our church has successfully raised $27,000 to install our “Making Christ Real on Mundy Mill” digital sign by which we will keep the gospel alive to tens of thousands of people who pass by our church every day. Jesus said, “…If I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw all men to Myself” (John 12:32). Through our gospel sign, now totally funded, we will lift up Jesus to multitudes of unsaved and unchurched people.
 
Renovation work has continued during these difficult days. We are now poised to transition our ministry to the lower building, now fully renovated, to begin renovations on the upper building. The transition will take place on February 19th of this new year. We are under our renovation budget due to the tireless work of our people and the great relationships we have made with sub-contractors who have done their work in off hours saving us thousands. We praise God for the work of our Renovation Team and volunteers. We have come so far. There still is much work yet to do. We have taken our time, been patient, and made progress every day during this difficult year.
 
Recently, I said to our Deacon Body, maybe it is time for us to take Baptist off the name of our church. I have had some personal struggles with my own spirit and attitude toward the denomination of my upbringing. I am disappointed that Southern Baptists seem no longer interested in servicing small churches. Southern Baptists have become absorbed in mega church polity, national political wranglings, and social marketing pressures. We seem to have lost our will to serve rather than to be served. I am personally disappointed and broken hearted in the direction our beloved convention is taking.
 
My deacons responded to my disappointment with a hearty, “NO SIR!” They told me without hesitation that Grace is a Baptist Church and will always be a Baptist Church. I respect their commitment and their instruction. To that end, I will begin a new emphasis in 2022. This past year has been the “Year of the Gospel.” This new year will be the “Year of Our Faith.” We will focus this entire year on the doctrines we believe. We will restate and recommit ourselves to our Baptist roots. The focus scripture will be the one that led Martin Luther in 1517 to form the protestant reformation, “For by grace you are have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not of works, lest any man should boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9). I love Grace Baptist Church. I love our Baptist beliefs and confession of faith. I look forward to this new year, this new emphasis, and this new opportunity to serve the Lord Jesus together with you.

I read a caption this morning which said,
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That is basically true in my childhood and upbringing. While we practiced the blessing wrapping and giving gifts, Jesus was taught in my family as the greatest gift ever given. I learned to recite the Christmas story in the gospel of Luke when I was 7 or 8 years old. I loved the part about the shepherds in the fields keeping watch over their flocks by night. I remember the feelings of peace and joy when I quoted, “…and she brought forth her first born Son and wrapped Him in swaddling clothes and laid Him in a manger because there was no room in the inn.” (Luke 2:7)
 
I remember feeling pretty upset about the inn keeper who would make the Son of God be born in a stable. It was later that I learned this inn keeper was more sensitive than anybody about the serene nature of what was about to take place. Overnight accommodations in those days were not like they are today. People piled in on each other sleeping together in cramped quarters where there was no privacy or respect for another person’s needs. The stable was the best place Mary and Joseph could have hoped for and the inn keeper was the one who took special care of them that night.
 
Today, our church family will continue its wonderful practice of sharing Christmas together around the table in our annual Bethlehem Breakfast. Like that first Christmas in Bethlehem people came together to be counted in the census ordered by Caesar Augustus. They all were together in one place and one time to be counted because they were descendants of King David. Praise God, our fellowship this morning is due to our relationship to Jesus Christ. We are family. We are believers who belong to the household of God. That’s makes us special and highly favored in God’s eyes. We truly are a blessed church family.
 
The final point I want to make about this Bethlehem gathering is that it is comprised of regular, everyday folks. There are no kings or government officials here. There are no star athletes or Hollywood superstars in this fellowship. We’re just normal, hardworking, tax-paying friends and neighbors. We are a lot like Mary and Joseph. While they were in Bethlehem that first Christmas night, no one noticed except angels and shepherds. There were no spotlights, parades or loudspeakers blaring the good news that Jesus was born. It was just a simple, quiet, and largely unpublicized occasion.
 
That’s the way God does things. He takes regular things and makes them special. He loves to turn the normal into the extraordinary. He makes heavy weights out of light weights. We celebrate our Bethlehem Breakfast this morning in the knowledge that God is with us. He is doing a great work in our church just like He did on that first Christmas night in Bethlehem when the Savior of the world was born. Let the miracle of Bethlehem be born in your heart this morning.

The members of Grace are entering into the spirit of Christmas. After two years of disruption and isolation caused by the pandemic, our church family is coming together again. Like the prophet Isaiah announced, “The people who walk in darkness will see a great light, those who live in the dark land, the light will shine on them” (Isaiah 9:2). This light is the promise of a coming Messiah, Jesus Christ. He broke into the world’s darkness and sin and became the light of Salvation for us all, “In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. And the Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.” (John 1:4-5)
 
This past Sunday at Grace the Light of Jesus once again filled our church and our lives. It was such a great display of God’s amazing goodness when people came to fellowship and worship together. We rejoiced in the singing of Christmas carols, prayed together for God to fill our lives with the fellowship and joy of our great salvation, and then we gathered once again around the open Bible to hear what God had to say. It was a glorious day to be at Grace. I felt Sunday was like old times again. What a great joy to wash away the darkness of past days to greet the Light of Jesus who makes this season bright.
 
Sunday afternoon was a special blessing for Robbie and me as well. Over 30 of our folks came to our house to enjoy the goodies Robbie had prepared. Our people gathered around the tables and in the great room to relax and share the love of Jesus that lives in our hearts. It is wonderful when the people of Grace are blessed to share each other’s company.
 
Then, after the adults left around 4:30, the young people flooded in for hot dogs and all the trimmings. In all, 16 kids were present with supporting adults from our Student Ministry Team making our total youth gathering over 20. I spent my time praising God and thanking Him for this display of love and goodness as folks came together once again.
 
Jesus prayed for His church in John, chapter 17. Here is what He said, “I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word; that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me.” (John 17:20-21)
 
As I watched everyone having such a great time in worship and fellowship this past Sunday, I could not stop thinking and praying about what all those in heaven, who have gone before us, were doing. Was our fellowship this past Sunday morning anything close to what is going on in heaven right now. I want your Christmas season to be like that which heaven is celebrating. Let’s do our best this morning to once again join with those in glory who are rejoicing together around the throne of the Lord.