“… I bring you good tidings …” – 
from Luke 2:10

Christmas is about good news. It
is the gospel message delivered by God’s messenger to all who will hear.

There was nothing frightening or
negative about the message the angel brought to these shepherds Nor was there
any indication that they received the word because of any particular merit or
worthiness on their part. It came to them by grace and God knew that they would
respond with spontaneous, childlike faith, and inquisitive wonder.

God knew that they would receive
the message as good tidings.

How do we receive words from God?
To be more specific: How do we receive the Word of God that comes to us with
great regularity and is always available to our eyes, ears, and hearts? Have we
grown cold, indifferent, and spiritually grumpy in our familiarity with the
good news?

It is no mere concession to
secularity that we should say, “Merry Christmas!” It is the ancient wisdom of
the Word of God that says,”a merry heart doeth good like a medicine …”
(Proverbs 17:22) God has
diagnosed the essential disease of humankind and has sent forth His healing
balm in the person of His only begotten Son.

The very presence of Jesus is good
news. It is cause for celebration, merriment, and singing. It dispels fear and
brings smiles to the faces of all that honestly and openly receive the news. It
is good tidings in that it overshadows all the bad news of the day. It
crucifies the curmudgeon inside each of us and wipes out our negativity. Even
the Ebenezer Scrooges of the world have to confess that we live in the day that
the Lord has made.

Receive God’s Word today as good
tidings to your soul. Even if it brings correction, rebuke, and conviction, His
good news is sent to bring you healing and grace.