Monday, December 26, 2011

December 26, 2011 - Believe the Hype! Share the Hype!

The past few weeks have been filled with the hype of the coming day… And now it has come and gone. Today we are left with the question of “Was it all it was cracked up to be?”

Yes the NBA schedule tipped off yesterday with 5 games; and to be honest it was for the most part some ugly basketball. Obviously the teams have had little time to work together in the shortened pre-season so we were left with seeing great athletes make periodic spectacular plays in the middle of many plays full of miscommunication and chaos. It was alley-oops and air-balls throughout the day. (Yet honestly I see the same sloppy play early in every NBA season, even when the pre-season is not shortened.)

Basically what we see is that seldom does the product live up to its hype.

Isn’t life that way? We get excited and hyped up for so many things only to be reminded that we live in a fallen world where things break, people disappoint, and dreams don’t always come true.

No, this is not going to be a negative devotion – quite the contrary. There was some other hype going on for the last few weeks concerning yesterday… Oh yeah, it was CHRISTmas Day!

This was an event that had centuries of hype from the prophets and angels as well. Think of the promises made to all men about the birth of Jesus. He would be a Savior. He would bring peace. He would be Immanuel (God with us.) He would be Wonderul, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

And what we find is that the hype was real. Jesus lived (lives) up to all of it. From the time He was a boy He has continued to fulfill the promises.

When He was a boy His parents found Him in the temple with the scholars…

Luke 2: 46 Now so it was that after three days they found Him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers, both listening to them and asking them questions. 47 And all who heard Him were astonished at His understanding and answers.

From that time on He went on to be the greatest humanitarian, greatest advocate, greatest liberator, greatest teacher, etc. that the world has ever seen. While doing this He played a perfect game of life and qualified to earn ultimate victory through laying His life down as a sacrifice (substitute) for us and then rising from the dead!
 
Opening day of the NBA didn’t quite live up to the hype; but Jesus fully lived up to His… I know, He has changed my life!

Believe the hype!
Share the hype!

Luke 2: 20 Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told them.

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