The Alex McFarland Show-36-It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

The spiritual condition of America, politics, culture, and current events, analyzed through the lens of scripture.

Welcome to the Alex McFarland Show. The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light. They that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them the light hath shined. Isaiah 9, 2, and 3, and it goes on of course in verse 6. For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace.

Well with those very famous words from Isaiah chapter 9, I'm going to continue reading, and I'll read another verse from Isaiah. But I want to welcome you to this edition of the Alex McFarland program, and as I record this, it is Christmas week, and on behalf of myself and Angie and our board and staff at Truth for New Generation Ministries, we do wish you a very heartfelt and sincere Merry Christmas. I hope you have a very joyous, Jesus-filled Christmas.

And I'm very clear that this is my favorite week of the year. I love Christmas, always have ever since I was a kid. And obviously as a child you think about Christmas, very oftentimes children, and I was no exception, but we think about the gifts we're going to get and all the fun stuff, fruits and nuts and candy, as we used to ask from Santa Claus.

But as I've lived more and more with each passing year, Christmas becomes all the more beautiful, and I want to talk about some of the things that Christmas means to every human soul, really. The coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. And I'm going to read a verse that is probably not a Christmas verse you associate with the birth of Jesus as much as others. I mean, probably the most famous is Luke chapter 2, and rightly so. Matthew and Luke in the four Gospels have wonderful narratives about the birth of Jesus. John chapter 1 is good too, about in the beginning was the Word, and we'll talk about that.

But I'm going to pull another couple of Scriptures out of Isaiah and talk about the birth of Christ. But let me say that Christmas is a very wonderful season of honoring the Lord, worshiping the Lord, representing the Lord, and frankly allowing your soul to grow and mature in the Lord that I hope you won't miss. Do you remember that line from How the Grinch Stole Christmas?

There's that famous line in Whoville. They say that the Grinch's small heart grew three sizes that day. Dr. Seuss understood the power of Christmas. He really did. And there's so many allegories that we talk about gift giving, and there's so many real life illustrations.

A couple of years ago in the news there was the story of a man in Colorado and he had cancer, and he was a homeless person and didn't have a lot. But he went to a Walmart to get a cup of coffee. And there was a toy drive, and he bought a Barbie and a Hot Wheels set to put in a box. And he saw this bike, and it was marked for $59.

But the tag underneath it said $44. Now $44 may not be a lot of money to some people, but for this homeless man with cancer, Glenn McCarthy, it was literally every penny he had. And so he left the store, but he thought about it. And he later said in the news, he said he realized that this would probably be his last Christmas. And while every bit of money that he had would really leave him broke, why not go out and give everything he had to make quote some kid happy on Christmas morning with a bicycle? And Christmas prompts selfless giving in so many of our hearts, because Christmas is about God selflessly giving. I mean the greatest gift, as Philip Van Doren wrote in the book that would later become the basis for It's a Wonderful Life, the greatest gift of all the Son of God and life itself. But while God didn't have to give money because he owns the universe, and the cattle on a thousand hills belong to God, but God did give the most costly gift of all himself. And God took on a human body.

Like 1 Timothy 3.16 says, Great is the mystery of godliness, that God was manifested in the flesh, seen by angels, preached by men, crucified, resurrected, risen up into glory, coming again. We give, and hopefully we give sacrificially and generously, because God gave absolutely sacrificially his own Son to die on a cross. And so Christmas moves us.

Christmas does so many things in our soul. Now back to Isaiah. Isaiah 9.6, of course, wonderful counselor, the mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. Now speaking about peace on earth, and the prince who can initiate that peace, the Lord Jesus. Verse 7 of Isaiah 9 says, Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end. Upon the throne of David, upon his kingdom, to order it, to establish it with judgment and with justice, and henceforth even forever, the zeal, the power, the plan, the sovereign oversight of history, the zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.

Amen. Well I'm going to read another scripture, and I want to talk about Christmas. Why God initiated Christmas. And I would submit that all human beings, although we grow up and we're innocent little children, although we do have a sin nature inherited from Adam and Eve, but we are in this world before the age of accountability, we're innocent little infants, and I'll talk about that in a moment, but we humans, we were made for relationship. Remember back in the book of Genesis, even before the fall of Genesis 3, God looked at all he had made, and more than a dozen times it says, It is good, it is good. And yet there was something less than ideal. God said, It is not good for man to be alone. And of course Eve was created. And there's not only human-to-human relationships, but there's human-to-God relationship, that we were made for connection with our Creator and Savior. Now Christmas happened because we were made for relationship. We were made for reunion.

We were made to be redeemed and restored. Perhaps with babies you're familiar with what's called the Apgar score. You know, babies shortly after birth are evaluated with appearance, pulse, grimace, activity, and reception.

And that's an acronym that adds up to Apgar. But do you know that they also, during activity, you know they will tickle a baby's hand and a baby will, you know, grip, and a baby will make the pointing gesture. You know, some of you that work in perhaps neonatal care, you know about this activity. But a baby, if you reach to pick up a baby, virtually always a baby will reach its arms out.

We are made for relationship. Now psychologists talk about socio-emotional reactions of babies, trust versus mistrust. And the two expressions that infants show virtually all the time, enjoyment and anger. That's the human race, isn't it?

Or the human condition. There's the laughter face and the pout face. Enjoyment and laughter, which is what so many newborns show. And then there will be the anger or the pout face.

You know, it's kind of funny. Sociologists talk about the body movements, and I was reading one sociologist's evaluation of infant expressions and how infants, they reach out. They reach out to be picked up, to hug and to hold, because we were made for relationship. And it's just amazing how we think about Jesus, the Savior, understanding our condition. He hungered. He was fearful in the Garden of Eden. But do you know, even from the manger and being a newborn infant, God identified with our predicament and God identified with our life experience.

And no doubt, those infant expressions, laughter, crying, hunger, reaction to discomfort, the baby Jesus went through all of those things. Well, we're going to come back and we're going to talk about how Christmas ministers to the human soul, and I pray that Christmas and this reminder about the coming of Jesus will minister to your soul as well. The Alex McFarland Show will be right back after this. Fox News and CNN call Alex McFarland a religion and culture expert. Stay tuned for more of his teaching and commentary after this.

Welcome back to the program. I'm going to read a scripture that is probably not a scripture you often associate with Christmas, but the book of Isaiah we talked about, he will be a wonderful counselor, the mighty God, and he will be a wonderful counselor to the mighty God. So if you are going to read a scripture that is probably not a scripture that you often associate with Christmas, but the book of Isaiah, we talked about he will be a wonderful But the book of Isaiah, we talked about he will be wonderful counselor, the mighty God. And you know, Jesus, when he was 12 years old in the temple, he was talking with the scholars and they could perceive that the hand of God was on him, and then when he started his ministry at age 30, he read from Isaiah 61 and said, this day is Scripture fulfilled in your ears. Isaiah is often called the evangelist of the Old Testament. One of the verses that is a Messianic verse, speaking of the coming Redeemer, is Isaiah 33.6, and it says of this Savior who would come, quote, he will be the stability of your times, a wealth of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge. I want to talk about this a little bit and open this up, because so many of these attributes where Jesus was born, the shepherds, the angels, the wise men, the manger, artists, composers, authors have woven them into the beautiful images of Christmas that we all cherish, and I want to pick out some of those. But I want to talk about this Messianic Scripture about the Savior, Isaiah 33.6, because if ever we needed to really stand on and rejoice in some of these things. As humans, made for relationship, made for reunion, we're not made to be alone. And very often at Christmas, people talk about reconnecting with estranged friends or siblings that they haven't called all year or maybe for a long time, coming back to be with parents, coming back home, we were made to be reunited at Christmas. History's greatest rescue mission was heaven coming to reconnect with earth, even though we were the offended party.

I mean, from the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve had sinned, and yet the Lord was walking through the garden and said, Adam, where are you? And you know, ultimately, as the Isaiah 9-7 says, of the increase in his government, there will be no end, we need the Prince of Peace in our world today. You know, I think about so much, and I'm not going to digress and talk about culture and politics right now, because I don't think I have to prove to any of you that we are in a desperate place globally. I mean, the loss of morality, the breakdown of the family. I just read today that in a public library in a major city, they're having to close a public library because the air ducts have meth residue in them.

There are so many homeless people, so many meth addicts, that just hang out in the library all day, that the air handling systems are blowing out a slight meth amphetamine residue. I mean, we are a nation desperately in need of truth and restoration, and only Jesus can do that. But Isaiah 33-6 of the coming Messiah says, quote, he will be the stability of your times, a wealth of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge.

This is Jesus, who 750 years after the prophet Isaiah's life would be born. Now look at the promises of what Jesus can give. The stability of your times. The Hebrew word for stability there means firmness and fidelity, a foundation. If you're not building your life on the Lord Jesus Christ, you don't have a foundation.

Fidelity means trust. You can trust Jesus to build your life upon it. And it says of your times, and literally the wording there is your appointed times. Do you know you have an appointed time?

You have an allotted quantity of time. Hebrews 9-27 says, it is appointed unto man once to die, and after this the judgment. You and I, we do not know the time that we're going to leave this world, but praise God, we can be ready to step into eternity. Now your appointed time, your life, whether it be from a human perspective brief or lengthy, have you built your life on the stability of Jesus, the stability of your appointed times? Isaiah 33-6 says that this Messiah, if you will avail yourself to him, will be a wealth of salvation. Now do you know what that, in Hebrew, literally it means, he will be, quote, the storehouse of Yeshua. Yeshua. You know, very often, in Hebrew wording, we speak of Jesus Messiah as Yeshua Mashiach. The word there for salvation is the word Yeshua. It's a variant of Joshua. And so when you have Jesus, we pray, we know God is our source, God is our provider, but you have in your life the storehouse of Yeshua.

Isn't that wonderful? Isaiah 33-6. Then it goes on, and it talks about some of the outflow of the blessing of having a relationship with the true and living God. Wisdom and knowledge.

Okay, let's talk about this. Wisdom, now this word in the Hebrew is the word very often associated with quote, a sailor's ability to navigate. It's bad enough to try to navigate this world, right, and life decisions and the pathways that life takes us on, but imagine being out at sea, and you know, I've often been fascinated with not only ships today, but imagine in the ancient world sailing ships with primitive instruments and no computers or satellite, you know, abilities, imagine how the sailors of old could make their way across the oceans and to their appointed destinations. And the word wisdom that God is offering to give you, it does mean skill plus wits. Now sometimes the word for wisdom is used to reference skill in war or skill in technical works, but wisdom, not only skill and aptitude, but wits. In other words, you can think on your feet and think accurately, and it's used, as I said, to reference a sailor's ability to navigate oceans, uncharted waters, rough seas.

God is willing to help you navigate this pathway called life, but you've got to build your life on His Word and your relationship with Him. And then finally knowledge, which is a little bit different than wisdom. Wisdom is to see life from God's perspective. Knowledge can reference facts and data, but in this verse, this Messiah, Isaiah 33, 6, He will be the stability of your times, a wealth of salvation, the storehouse of Yeshua, wisdom and knowledge.

And the word there, this is wonderful, premeditation and perception. And it goes on, and it says the fear of the Lord is His treasure. Now the word L-O-R-D, the word Lord, Philo, the Jewish scholar who lived about five decades before the birth of Christ, he, based on Exodus 27 and Leviticus 24, 10-16, he called the name of the Lord the nomen ineffable, n-o-m-e-n, in other words, the name that is not to be uttered. Because Exodus 27 says, do not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.

And we are not to take the name of the Lord in vain, but Jesus taught us that we could pray Abba, Father. See Christmas came, and not only God in love sent His Son, because we were made for relationship. Man had severed that relationship with God. And we crave reunion, closure.

Everybody does. We want broken relationships somehow to be resolved. We want things to turn out right, and fences to be mended, and relationships restored. And we really didn't have the power to achieve these things in and of ourself. But not only can man be reconciled to God, we can call the name of God, and Jesus taught believers in three places in the New Testament.

It talks about Abba, Father, the Aramaic word for Daddy, that we can be children of God through a relationship with Jesus Christ. Christmas represents all of these wonderful realities, and so much more. Stay tuned, we're going to come right back and talk more about these things on this edition of the Alex McFarland show.

Merry Christmas. Don't go away. We'll be right back.

Fox News and CNN call Alex McFarland a religion and culture expert. Stay tuned for more of his teaching and commentary after this. What are you doing next summer?

Hey, how about this? I want to invite you to join me in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, August 6 through 11, 2023 for the faith and family retreat. It's going to be awesome. We'll talk about foundational things. What does it mean to be a disciple?

How can you defend your faith? Family time, concerts, renewal of wedding vows. It's going to be great. Then fun. A trip to Dollywood.

Who wouldn't like that? And then faith in action. There'll be a mission outreach, talking to people about Christ. So again, August 6 through 11, 2023, Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, go to faithandfamilyretreat.com. I hope to see you there.

He's been called trusted, truthful and timely. Welcome back to The Alex McFarland Show. Welcome back to the program.

Alex McFarland here. We're going to resume our talk about Isaiah 33 verse 6 and some of the great realities of Christmas. But I do want to remind you that summer is coming. Now two things, and there's a lot I could say about our calendar of events, publishing and broadcasting. You can go to my website, which is alexmcfarland.com. It's so exciting what the Lord's allowed us to do in the last 12 months, our ministry. We have reengaged with our publicist out of Philadelphia, Hamilton Strategies.

They are wonderful. And we're sending out news releases every week, and I've got more and more interviews. I just felt led to do this, because there are so many things in the news, and especially with the rise of transgenderism and just so much delusion out there, and people are so hungry for truth, that we just felt like we had to speak out. We have another book coming out in the fall of 23, a lot going on. But I want to ask you to please pray for our upcoming summer camps. We did four summer camps.

Last year we'll be doing eight in the summer of 2023. And you can go to equipretreat.org to learn about our summer camps. And we talk about biblical worldview, and we talk about the gospel and how you can know that you're saved, and it's our joy to work with so many young people. But we're talking about America.

We're talking about God and country, and we're talking about a response to wokeness. And so I want to encourage you on two fronts. Our camps are $375, which is just so affordable. And parents can even pay on installments and layaway. And by the way, every teenage camper will have roughly 1,250 campers next summer that I and our staff and associates will be pouring into their life gospel truth, biblical worldview.

But even at $375 per camper, we still have to raise several hundred dollars per camper to pay all the bills. And so I want to ask you to please pray at a time when our nation so desperately needs truth and young people need direction, salvation, and yes, patriotism. Pray about helping us. You can give securely online a tax-free donation, tax-deductible. You can give online at alexmcfarland.com, or you can mail in a contribution to P.O. Box 485, Pleasant Garden, North Carolina, P.O.

Box 485, Pleasant Garden, North Carolina, 27313. If you write a check, you can just write the letters TNG, as in Truth for a New Generation. The other thing that I would say is I'm going to be at the Cove, the Billy Graham Training Center in western North Carolina, July 7-9, teaching through 2 Peter. And the theme is Thriving Till He Comes.

And so the website for the Cove is t-h-e-c-o-v-e, thecove.org. I would love to see you there. A lot more going on at one of our big national conferences in Paris, Tennessee, April 21-23. So please pray, promote, and plan to attend, and know that we're so grateful as we link arms together to proclaim Jesus to our nation. But Christmas.

First of all, let me again say I hope that you have a very wonderful Christmas. And I was teaching from Isaiah 33-6, speaking of the Messiah. He will be the stability of your times, a wealth of salvation, wisdom and knowledge, and the fear of the Lord is His treasure. You know, before the break we were talking about how Jesus taught that we can approach God as Abba Father. And that means a relationship that now God really deals with us as His family, His children. And this is just revolutionary in terms of people's understanding of God, because it's not that God is this far-off deity. You know, I mentioned Philo, the Jewish philosopher-scholar, who basically said you couldn't and shouldn't even pronounce the name of God, and he didn't even really believe that God acted in the world.

It was really kind of a primitive form of deism. God created, but God doesn't intervene. Christmas shows us that, yes, God intervenes. God acts in this world.

And God was able, think about this, without compromising His deity, His power, His authority, God was able to come into the world under the frailty of a human being. You know, John 1.14 says, "...and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, a glory as of and only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth." You know, think about the wonderful song referencing Luke 2, Hark the Herald Angels Sing, Glory to the Newborn King, "...Peace on earth, and mercy mild, God and sinners reconciled." And that great song, Hark the Herald Angels Sing, now listen to these words, because the songwriters of old, many of them were very, very theologically astute. Hark the Herald Angels Sing says, "...Christ, by highest heaven adored, Christ the everlasting Lord. Late in time, behold Him come, offspring of a virgin's womb," oh this is wonderful, "...veiled in flesh the Godhead see, hail the incarnate Deity, pleased as man with men to dwell, Jesus our Emmanuel." Hark the Herald Angels Sing, amazing, and it goes on quoting Malachi of old, "...hail the Son of righteousness, light and life to all He brings, risen with healing in His wings." It's just amazing. You know, Luke 2.13 and 14 says that the angels in heaven said, "...Glory to God in the highest on earth, peace, good will to men." It's no wonder that the songs of Christmas, the images of the manger, they're so special to us.

They captivate us. Because this is reality. Miss this and you've missed the greatest reality of history. Miss Jesus and you've missed the very point of life.

It doesn't matter what you achieve, it doesn't matter what you earn or where you go or anything. If you miss Jesus, you've missed the very point of human existence, is to know the Savior. I want to close our time, and it's unfortunate that we're almost out of time. I want to quote, it came upon a midnight clear. This is a really great Christmas hymn.

Speaking of the fact that yes, we were made for relationship, reunion, redemption, restoration, and our soul longs for it. But you know, very famously, it came upon a midnight clear, that glorious song of old. Alright, there is a line in that song that says of the angels that come to announce the birth of Jesus. Maybe these words are a comfort to you today, even in the 21st century when we are world-weary and so sorely we need truth and we need encouragement, and just that reminder that God is able and God is with us. It says, still through the cloven skies they come with peaceful wings unfurled, and still their heavenly music floats o'er all the weary world. Now listen to this, above its sad and lowly plains they bend on hovering wing, and ever over its babble sounds the blessed angels sing. See, this world is just a noisy place of the darkness and the untruths of babble.

And my goodness, with the wired up 21st century internet world, I mean, the Tower of Babel seems to loom taller than ever. And here's our word to thirsty souls today, O ye beneath life's crushing load whose forms are bending low, who toil along the climbing way with painful steps and slow. Look now for glad and golden hours come swiftly on the wing, O rest beside the weary road and hear the angels sing.

Christmas is a reminder from Luke 2-7 that Mary brought forth her firstborn son, wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger because there was no room for them in the inn. Hey, I hope there is room for him in your heart because he loves you so. This Christmas, don't miss that God loves you, God has acted, and Jesus has come to have a relationship with you. He's as close by as a prayer.

Call out to him today. Merry Christmas from all of us at Truth for a New Generation, Alex McFarland Ministries. Please tell somebody about our show and our ministries, but most of all, tell everybody about Jesus.

God bless you. Alex McFarland Ministries are made possible through the prayers and financial support of partners like you. For over 20 years, this ministry has been bringing individuals into a personal relationship with Christ and has been equipping people to stand strong for truth. Learn more and donate securely online at alexmcfarland.com. You may also reach us at Alex McFarland, P.O. Box 10231, Greensboro, North Carolina 27404, or by calling 1-877-YES-GOD1. Thanks for joining us. We'll see you again on the next edition of The Alex McFarland Show.