Many traditional Nativity scenes and paintings show all the characters in the story arriving at the stable to worship and adore Jesus at the same time. The Biblical story does not support this view, for it’s clear from Matt 2:1-11 that the wise men or magi arrived some time after the birth of Jesus in the stable at Bethlehem.

This morning at the Cherry Tree Court carol service, Stephen spoke about these wise men and the gifts they brought. Gold is still a popular gift today, for it still represents wealth and expense; in Biblical times, it was associated with greatness, for often kings were the only ones who could afford this gift. Its presence shows us that this baby was not just a baby, but was God Himself, King of all Kings, worthy of the most precious metal found on earth. Thomas reached the conclusion after the resurrection that Jesus was ‘my Lord and my God’, but these wise men recognised Jesus’ deity and worth even at His birth.

Frankincense is the aromatic resin obtained from certain trees and was burnt in the temple by the priest as an offering to God. In Rev 5:8, we see golden bowls of incense representing the prayers of God’s people. Frankincense, therefore, pointed to Jesus’s role as our high priest, offering prayers for His people and ultimately offering Himself as a sacrifice for sin (see Hebrews 7-10).

Myrrh is another form of resin used as incense and as a perfume, particularly associated with death and suffering (it was used in embalming since its strong aroma masked the stench of death.) Suffering is an inevitable part of life in a sin-stained world, but this gift foreshadowed the suffering of Jesus when He died for our sins.

The gifts brought at Jesus’s birth carried both symbolic value and spiritual significance, pointing to Jesus as King, Lord, Priest and Sacrifice for sin. They foreshadow our custom of giving gifts at Christmas-time, but Christmas is more about the greatest gift that God has given the world than about any gifts we may give (see 2 Cor 9:15). The question we must answer is ‘have you accepted this gift?’ God’s gift is Himself, given in the form of Jesus, who was God incarnate. We are wise when we accept this gift.

Last night we enjoyed playing the game ‘Risk’ with a friend who lives in Malaysia. He introduced us to the game a number of years ago, and so it has become a bit of a tradition that we play the game when he’s around. ‘Risk‘ is a strategy board game where the aim is to occupy as many territories on a political map of the Earth (divided into 42 territories) as possible, where players control ‘armies’ with which they attempt to capture territories from other players (with results determined by dice rolls.)

The game can last a very long time and fortunes fluctuate frequently. Our friend chose yellow as his colour, and early on in the game, was doing really well:

However, by the end of the game, there were no yellow armies on the board at all:

Nicky Gumbel, in his commentary on readings for today in the ‘Bible In One Year’ reading programme, writes “In an interview in Time Magazine, the great Swiss theologian Karl Barth recounted that he advised young theologians to ‘take your Bible and take your newspaper and read both. But interpret newspapers from your Bible.’ When we read, watch or listen to the news it could be easy to get depressed. It sometimes seems that evil is triumphing over good. The plans of ‘the wicked’ seem to succeed, while others are subject to the ravages of terrorism, war, poverty and injustice. This is why we desperately need to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit and listen to the word of God. As we study the Scriptures, we see the triumph of good over evil.”

We may well lose battles as we journey through life, but we can be confident because we know that God has won the war. God is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. We know that every setback and failure can be turned into victory. We need to take a long-term perspective and realise that our confidence is in God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Cor 15:57, see also Ps 60:12, Ps 118:15, Is 63:1, 1 Jn 5:4) No matter what battles we face, we can trust in God.

More photos have been sent to me from the Christmas Market yesterday. Here are the volunteers with the raffle prizes:

People in the activities’ corner:

The lollipop game:

Not many cakes left now!

Full house, with Gemma from CRT looking after the egg game:

Kitchen activity:

All in all, a great day!

Goldthorpe recently featured in a TV programme about benefits and was portrayed pretty negatively. The view from many people is that this area is not a good place to live and is full of cheats, liars, scroungers and people with addictions and problems who don’t have any future (a little bit like the view in Bible times that Cretans were all liars, evil brutes and lazy gluttons, perhaps!) Whilst we are not blind to the many problems in our area, we absolutely refute the view that this is not a good place to place. We love where we live!

Love Where You Live Barnsley, Goldthorpe Development Group, Dearne Area Team and the Big Local groups in Goldthorpe, Bolton-on-Dearne, Highgate and Thurnscoe do an amazing job in promoting community spirit, and our local businesses also work tirelessly at helping the local community. Most of all, the vast majority of people who live in our area want this to be a good place to live and so many are involved in volunteering initiatives (like the Dearne hOurbank) which significantly affect the quality of living in this area. Volunteers in local churches (the Parish church on Lockwood Road, Furlong Road Methodist Church, the Salvation Army, GPCC and many others) put in countless hours of unpaid work to support the local community. There are lots of people here whose community spirit reflects God’s interest in and love for our community.

Our church has recently had someone move into the area from ‘down south’ and one of her recurring comments is ‘the community spirit in Yorkshire is phenomenal!’ Sometimes, those of us who have always lived in this area don’t realise how amazing this is. Sister Carmel had a nun visit from London recently, and her car broke down. When local people pushed her car off the junction she was blocking to safety, the nun said in astonishment, ‘that would never have happened in London!’ We can’t comprehend that, for to us, it is simply normal to offer a helping hand to those in need.

The Goldthorpe Christmas Market is a great community event and we are pleased to be involved with that event and grateful for the community in which we live. We count it a privilege to work together with other local churches and make a difference to local families through our giving – whether that is through craft activities, organising games, serving refreshments, baking cakes, giving time or singing carols. Most of all, we know that such working together reflects God’s generous, giving heart and we want to be lights in our local community: ‘with God in the community, with God for the community.’ Christmas demonstrates God’s giving heart to the world, for He gave His only Son to rescue us from the mess that sin brings. Our community may well look a mess to outsiders at time, but with God’s help and people’s goodwill, we can make a difference.

It’s time to believe truth, not lies, and to speak well of where we live, for God loves Goldthorpe and hasn’t given up on us!

The Christmas Market started early:

… and got busier…

We probably had over 400 people throughout the afternoon and evening (certainly the 300 goody bags we had prepared all went, and these were often given out to a family, not necessarily to an individual), and it was great to see so many in, enjoying the atmosphere and participating in the activities.

We were overwhelmed at the end to count up the money and discover that we had raised £725.56 for the Salvation Army Christmas Appeal. Last year, we raised £500, which was an amazing amount, so this year’s total is even more mind-blowing! We are so grateful for all your support and know that Alison and the Salvation Army will work hard to make Christmas truly memorable for needy families in our local area. If you want to help further, come along to wrap presents at the Salvation Army on Tuesday 20th December from 9 a.m. until 12 noon.

Back inside, things were now really ready!

A lollipop game:

Craft items to buy:

A teddy bear to win:

A donkey to beat:

Craft activities to do:

Tombola prizes to win, manned by the fantastic hOurbank team, led by Gill, with Emma a great helper:

Food to munch:

Helpers to serve:

Now we just need to get going!