ing about this situation he realized that the only way he could really communicate to the birds was if he himself was to become a bird. Just then the church bell rang. The thought struck him that this was exactly what Christmas was all about. God had been trying to re veal Himself to men and men had had a difficult time grasping it. This is why God had become a Man. He dropped to his knees and placed his faith in Christ. This is what Christmas is all about. "And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father), full of grace and truth" (John 1:14). Rev. Thune is Pastor of Evangelical Free Church of Huntington Beach, California. Marvel O f Christ By REV. LEE TOMS Probably most everyone has very happy and exciting memories of a childhood Christmas at home. Our family always had a marvelous time in sharing our mutual joys. These occasions always brought us closer together. You can under stand why Christmas means to me the blessing of being with family, friends and loved ones. I can re member thinking as a boy how terrible it would be if I died at an early age and could not enjoy fu ture similar seasons. It is easy at that, or any age, to get very self- centered. It is easy, too, to senti mentalize Christmas, moving away Page 55
We think in pictures and so to see the truth we must look at Jesus. Ever since man began to think about God, he has been trying to define just who and what God is. Still, his puny mind gets no nearer a definition. We can look at Jesus and say, "This is what God is like!" He did not come just to talk about God; He came to show us what God is really like. Jesus, being full of truth, liberated us. He explained, "And you shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free." My wife and I had the privilege of traveling with the Biola College drama team to the Orient. While we were in India she became quite sick. When we got back in the United States we sought to find some doctors who could adequate ly diagnose tropical diseases. We wanted to find out whether she still had any of the germs in her body. It took us a while to find a doctor who assured us that there was nothing to worry about. What a liberated feeling that was! Paul Harvey, the reknown news com mentator, tells the story of a man who at Christmas time was urged by his wife to accompany her and the children to church. He refused, declaring he had no use for relig ion. While they went on their way he was reclining in his living room beside the fireplace. He noticed some birds out in his front yard. They had been left behind from the winter's migration and now were captives to the cold blasts. Seeing the fire in the fireplace they wanted to get near the warmth. They tried to fly toward the flames but simply crashed into the win dow. Feeling sorry for them, the man went to let them in. They did not realize what he wanted. Think
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