"Where is Jesus in all of this?"

I was blessed by the Lord with an opportunity to speak on behalf of Him through His Word at the St. John's MTC Christmas Coffeehouse this past Friday, 12/26. God gave me such a boldness to speak for Him that day - praise Him!! I'm tellin' ya - not even six hours prior to the event, I was still unsure as to how to effectively present what I had put together. Content was coming together, but the remainder of the content, connections, and applications were still up in the air. But, God just literally told me to be quiet, focus in on Him, and let Him take care of all the details. He revealed Scripture to me in ways I had not seen before, solidifying everything. As the wise proverb says, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding" (Proverbs 3:5). How true that is! Thanks, God.

So, I've placed my notes for the message below. It might seem a little haphazard, but hopefully it'll be easy to piece together:

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Merry Christmas, NOT Happy Holidays (Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Festivus [12/23]: a holiday for the "rest of us" popularized by Seinfeld's Frank Costanza) - Be proud and attest that assertion.
Notice how Christmas seems to be starting earlier each subsequent year (near Halloween now).
COMMERCIALIZATION OF THE HOLIDAY: Vacation time, Opening gifts, Family get-togethers, Pre-Christmas sales - 2 Black Fridays & 1 Cyber Monday (which is what draws people to Festivus)
Christmas in Japan (a traditionally Buddhist/Shinto nation) -> to promote goods and sales.
On the flip side, first public Christmas in Baghdad.
Multiple movie openings on Christmas Day:

1. Bedtime Stories (Adam Sandler)
2. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
3. The Spirit
4. Marley & Me
5. Valkyrie

Also, notice in previous Christmases the opening of a horror movie, without fail!

...Jesus in all of this?

So much talk about a Savior prior to His birth (via the prophets):

1. Isaiah 9:6-7
2. Isaiah 7:14-15
3. Isaiah 11:1-9
4. Zechariah 9:9

So much "hullabaloo" in the community when Jesus ministered and walked the earth:

1. Magi travelling thousands of miles from the East to see the newborn King
2. John the Baptist's proclamation (see Luke 3:16)
   
3. Crowds in the thousands following Jesus
4. Three-year ministry (crowds, Pharisees, Teachers of the Law, rich people, poor people)

But now, absolute silence about Jesus centuries after He ascended to heaven (You may argue that we talk about Jesus all the time at coffeehouse, praise nights, Sunday mornings at church, and the such. Great, but where else?)

Questions people ask nowadays are: Who is Jesus? What was Jesus? (As can be seen in the numerous Discovery Channel specials, such as "The Mystery of Jesus," "Decoding the Bible," "Bethlehem's Star," etc.)
The question should be: Where is Jesus?
To answer this, two people in the Bible provide one convincing answer.

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Paul - Acts 17:22-28

Paul's defenses of the Gospel against Felix, Festus, King Agrippa, the Sanhedrin, the Areopagus are like the trial portions of Law & Order episodes.
Paul spoke to the Areopagus like a skilled lawyer, making his case (recall the educated background of Paul).
vv. 27-28 -> All we need to do is turn and, lo and behold, He will be right there before us (He was there the whole time, right by your side.). (see also Revelation 3:20)
We live in Him! We move in Him! We have our being in Him! Every part and facet of us is enveloped in Him and by Him.

Jesus - John 14:8-11, 15-20

v. 8 -> Jesus actually answered Philip's request in the previous two verses, but his request should be our single-greatest request.
v. 10 -> Intimate relationship between Jesus & His Father. No relationship in history can match what is seen here. This puts into perspective (vividly clear) the agony that Jesus experienced in the garden of Gethsemane and on the cross, because of the pending separation He knew He would experience from His Father. If we have an intimate relationship with our Father, being separate from Him is not where we want to be. We long for the closeness.

** vv. 8-11 -> Dynamic relationship between Jesus & His Father
** vv. 15-20 -> Man's access to that dynamic relationship!

The Holy Spirit gives us access to that relationship. The sacrifice of Jesus tore the veil and we are not separate from our Father and His Son anymore. We are in Him, and He is in us! See where Jesus is now? He never left us our side. Barriers of sin and worldly desires cause blockages of view, but Jesus will never abandon the ones He love
"And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." -Matthew 28:20

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"And the name of the city from that time on will be:
The LORD is There." -Ezekiel 48:35

Reflect on 2008, go forward confidently in 2009. Wherever you are, whatever you do, THE LORD IS THERE!

Immanuel = GOD is with us