{"id":1339,"date":"2009-12-03T10:01:15","date_gmt":"2009-12-03T15:01:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/shieldsgroup.com\/?p=1339"},"modified":"2009-12-03T10:22:07","modified_gmt":"2009-12-03T15:22:07","slug":"the-importance-of-prophecy-at-christmas-and-in-our-lives","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shieldsgroup.com\/blog\/2009\/12\/03\/the-importance-of-prophecy-at-christmas-and-in-our-lives\/","title":{"rendered":"The Importance of Prophecy at Christmas — and in OUR Lives…"},"content":{"rendered":"

In Dickens\u2019 A Christmas Carol<\/em><\/strong>, Scrooge is an evil man, whose only love is himself and his money. When confronted by the outcomes of his evil life, past, present, and future Scrooge is repentant. He isn\u2019t just sorry \u2013 he wants to change, to make amends. He tries to do so with the little time he has left, by investing in the Cratchit family. In a sense, he\u2019s trying to redeem himself.<\/p>\n

Even when I was a little kid, watching that in movie or cartoon form, the same thought occurred to me. Ebenezer, what makes you think that these last half-dozen or so years of your life can make up for the decades of evil you\u2019ve done? It is impossible for you to redeem yourself.\u00a0 That\u2019s true of Ebenezer. And it\u2019s true of you and me.<\/p>\n

The Bible teaches us that Jesus is our Redeemer. <\/strong>He is the One who can pay for the evil we\u2019ve done. It says, \u201cfor all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.\u201d (Romans 3:23-24)<\/p>\n

While all of us know this deep inside, the Bible is what makes it crystal clear to us. As the prophecies concerning Christ\u2019s advent in Bethlehem lit the way for those seeking him, so God\u2019s word lights the way for us.<\/p>\n

Please forgive the sound of my voice in this message. I could barely talk. ~Steve<\/em><\/p>\n