Verses I’m working on…
Mark 9:35
Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, “If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all.”
Colossians 2:9-10
For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority.
Jeremiah 31:3
The LORD appeared to us in the past, saying:
“I have loved you with an everlasting love;
I have drawn you with unfailing kindness.”
2 Samuel 7:22
“How great you are, Sovereign LORD! There is no one like you, and there is no God but you, as we have heard with our own ears.
Psalm 19:1
The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
Psalm 22:3
Yet you are enthroned as the Holy One;
you are the praise of Israel.
Psalm 28:1-2,6 Of David.
To you, LORD, I call; you are my Rock, do not turn a deaf ear to me.
For if you remain silent, I will be like those who go down to the pit.
Hear my cry for mercy as I call to you for help,
as I lift up my hands toward your Most Holy Place.
Praise be to the LORD, for he has heard my cry for mercy.
Psalm 32:1
Blessed are those
whose transgressions are forgiven,
whose sins are covered.
Psalm 63:4
I will praise you as long as I live,
and in your name I will lift up my hands.
Psalm 84:10
Better is one day in your courts
than a thousand elsewhere;
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
than dwell in the tents of the wicked.
Psalm 88:1-2
LORD, you are the God who saves me;
day and night I cry out to you.
May my prayer come before you
turn your ear to my cry.
Psalm 88:9b
I call to you, LORD, every day;
I spread out my hands to you.
Psalm 91:1
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
Psalm 96 & 1 Chronicles 16 say the same thing:
Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name;
bring an offering and come into his courts.
Worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness;
tremble before him, all the earth.
1 Chronicles 16
Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name;
bring an offering and come before him.
Worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness.
Tremble before him, all the earth!
Psalm 100:4-5
Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.
For the LORD is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.
Psalm 116:1-2
I love the LORD, for he heard my voice;
he heard my cry for mercy.
Because he turned his ear to me,
I will call on him as long as I live.
Psalm 134:2
Lift up your hands in the sanctuary
and praise the LORD.
Isaiah 26:8
“Yes Lord, walking in the way of Your truth we wait eagerly for You, for Your name and renown are the desire of our souls.”*
*This version of Isaiah 26:8 is a combination of the NIV and NASB translations.
Isaiah 40 (28-31)
Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The LORD is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
and his understanding no one can fathom.
He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.
Even children grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall;
But those who hope in the LORD
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.
“The Word of God!”
Zephaniah 3:17
The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.
Romans 8:16-17
The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.
1 Timothy 2:8
Therefore I want the men everywhere to pray, lifting up holy hands without anger or disputing.
1 Corinthians 1:18
For the message of the cross is foolishness
to those who are perishing,
But to us who are being saved
it is the power of God.
Hebrews 4:12
For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.
Colossians 3:1-17
1Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. 2Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 3For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 4When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. 5Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. 7You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. 8But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 9Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. 11Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.
12Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.
15Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. 16Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. 17And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Ken Grant
December 21, 2007 at 10:27 am //
Good piece — I still disagree with the premise, though. You can’t take Christ out of something He was never in to begin with (trust me on this one, everything we associate with Christmas really started elsewhere).
That being said, I wholeheartedly agree with this statement from Mr. Martin:
“…do we have to be so crass during the Christmas season? Its time that we return to traditional values, and end this ridiculous charade.”
I would also urge those who REALLY like Christmas to take some responsibility for the holiday and not accept everything that comes down the pike just because it has “Christmas” attached to it. Just a thought.
Terry Foester
December 21, 2007 at 11:55 am //
Ken -
Thanks for you thoughts. I like your idea about taking responsibility and not accepting everything that comes down the pike…
Chris
December 21, 2007 at 12:03 pm //
Really? Have you ever met anyone who’s crass about CHRISTMAS??
The only “upset” I see at Christmas is from those who work in retail and have to put in crazy hours dealing with crazy customers doing a crazy amount of shopping. A nice “Thanks! And have a merry Christmas!” usually clears that up, though.
I guess I don’t really get the whole thing about the hidden agenda to get Christ out of Christmas. Those who celebrate Christ’s birth at this time of year generally do that with as much excitement, authenticity and gladness as those who choose to spend Christmas celebrating being with friends and family.
Ken Grant
December 21, 2007 at 12:44 pm //
Chris,
The crassness pervades the culture — try doing some simple grocery shopping any time between mid November and the end of December — you’re inundated with tacky crassness at every turn (good luck if you’re going to a mall just to pick up a CD or some clothes).
In a big way it’s like traveling abroad and seeing the stereotypical loud American who doesn’t understand why everyone can’t understand English so he just talks louder. Those who have bought into EVERYTHING just because it places itself under the banner of “Christmas” just can’t understand why some of us would rather go hide in a corner every December than subject ourselves to more of the crassness.
OK, I’m off to buy some stock in coal now, since everyone says that’s what they’re getting for me