What is Christmas?!- more importantly what does it mean to believe?!
There's a journey in life we all take and there's a destination to be reached!
That destination...is life with our Heavenly Father!! Now, that's something exciting!
The movie, The Polar Express starts out not believing with many doubts. Our doubts take us on a journey of a life to be lived!
First- we need to get on the train! "ALL ABOARD!" Now, in the movie the boy did not want to get on right away- it takes some courage and with that feeling of searching and wanting something more- he jumped on just in time! We can get on the salvation train too!-
John 3:11 "I assure you, we tell you what we know and have seen, and yet you won't believe our testimony".
Second- Endure the journey of life! There are experiences that happen for a reason and the people that come along with you on the journey is ultimately for the kingdom of God!
1 Peter 1:6-7 " So be truly glad. There is wonderful Joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while. These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold- though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world".
There are many types of life experiences that help us realize who God is as our Savior, Prince of Peace, Almighty God, and many more names!
The journey of life on the train takes us to many places! We visit places where we need to grow and understand the truth of our Lord! We battle good and evil everyday- it's all about the choices we make! There are battles where our health is at stake, whether it is ourselves or a loved one. There are battles where family is a stake, where we wonder how a marriage or family is going to hold together. There are battles where friendships are at stake, and we ask "God, Where are you?" There are battles where we are tempted to be selfish and think only of ourselves. Battles where we think- "What is life? Is there really a purpose?"
Every single one of our earthly battles are overcome! That is the Good News! God is here and he cares about you! He loves you, he forgives you, he knows you, he just wants to be your friend! He loves you so much that he sacrificed his life so that we could have life! Not only that- He AROSE!
John 16:33 " I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world".
I think about the song "My Savior Lives" by Chris Tomlin at one point it says-
"Living, He loved me.
Dying, He saved me.
Buried, He carried my sins far away.
Rising, He justified- freely, forever-
ONE DAY HE'S COMING- OH, GLORIOUS DAY!"
Romans 3:23 "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
Romans 6:23 "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord".
Romans 5:8 "But God demonstrates his own love for us, while we were still sinners Christ died for us".
John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that he gave is one and only son, that whoever believes in him, shall not perish but have everlasting life".
Now, that's the Gospel message if that does not get your heart pumping or give you a hope- then you better be ready to be amazed as to who the Almighty God is!
2 Timothy 3:16-17 " All scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach on what is true and to make is realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepare and equip his people to so every good work"
Our life experiences happen for a reason. The way we grow up, who is a part of our childhood, the friends we make, the choices we make, the person we marry, the job we have, the people we work with, it all happens for a reason, whether it is good or bad!
God is still by our side through it all! We just need to trust in Him and Believe in the truth! He will lead us and guide us every step of the way on the journey! We just need to accept his gift of salvation!
Proverbs 3:5-6 "Trust in The Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him and he shall make your path straight.
Third- there are different types of people in life! Every person is a part of the body of Christ! We all have a specific purpose to be fulfilled for the kingdom of God!
1-The person who thinks they have it all planned out and have a sense of control. This personality is like the know-it-all-boy in the movie. We sometimes feel we have it all figured out- when God is still teaching us a life lesson about all that is yet to come!
John 3:12 "But if you don't believe me when I tell you about earthly things, how can you possibly believe if I tell you about heavenly things?"
2-The person who does not have enough confidence in their own faith. This personality is the girl in the movie. It's the person who has the faith to believe but, has not made it their own! Wow, when this person makes it their own, there is so much joy in the moment and a purpose to what God has in store with that kind of faith!
3-The person who doubts! This is the main character boy in the movie. It sometimes takes time to truly believe in the one who saves- yes this person wants to believe but is looking for the truth to prove itself! The truth is there, and it will set you free!
Isaiah 55:6 "Seek The Lord while you can find him, call on him now while he is near". It takes some life experiences to get to the point to trust in The Lord wholeheartedly!
4-The person who chooses not to believe! This is the last boy who got on the train in the movie. He almost did not get on the train but, the emergency stop was pulled for him to get on! There are some people that we need to pull the emergency stop for to get them on the "Salvation Train!" They may not want to but they know that it is the truth!
Fifth- Let the angel armies do the work! There are times where our battles are bigger than human understanding! There are angels around us- they are in the saving business- working for the one who saved us all! The movie shows this by the man on top of the train- he helped out in the times of dire need- where there was more need than human strength! When we call out to God, he is there ready to redeem us!
I think of the song "Whom Shall I Fear" by Chris Tomlin
The chorus: "I know who goes before me, I know who stands behind, the God of angel armies is always by my side. The one who reigns forever, he is a friend of mine, the God of angel armies is always by my side"
God is here with us! We can choose to believe or we can choose to doubt and wonder what this life is about!
Philippians 1:25 "Grow and experience the Joy of your faith". There is so much joy in believing in the one who saved us!
Sixth-We all need to be saved!! The last boy on the train represents this- toward the end of the movie he did not want to join the rest of the group still-the girl had built the confidence in her faith and told the main boy character to come with her to get him.
We have the choice to believe in the truth or not. Yet, this is where the body of believers step in. We are called to save the lost! We need to listen, be obedient, and discern what God is laying on our hearts to seek and save the lost!
Luke 19:10 "For the son of man came to seek and to save the lost".
2 Thessalonians 2:13-14 "...We are always thankful that God chose you to be among the first to experience salvation- a salvation that came through the spirit who makes you holy and through your belief in the truth. He called you to salvation when we told you the good news; now you can share the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ".
Seventh-In our lives we may go on different journeys, but we are still on the same train- the train where God is the engineer and Jesus is the conductor! There are different tracks that lead to the same destination- sometimes we may get derailed but, God is still faithful! Jesus is with us along the journey and allowing the Holy Spirit to challenge and move us through the life experiences we have!
The boy, girl, and main boy in the movie all went on a new adventure together- this was an experience that was going to change everything!
We must continue in life on our journey with faith and never give up! There is a destination to be reached and we need to persevere with the great strength and courage that The Lord gives us!
Hebrews 10:35-36 "So do not throw away this confident trust in The Lord. Remember the great reward it brings you! Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God's will. Then you will receive all that he has promised".
1-May we have the confidence to speak boldly about the truth just as the girl was sure about the way to the destination!
Hebrews 11:1 "Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen: it gives us assurance about things we cannot see".
2-May we feel the strong conviction of the Holy Spirit tugging on our hearts to believe! Just like the last boy in the train who did not want to believe but, through the confidence of the girl, he was led to the destination!
Romans 10:9 "Bur if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is lord and believe in your heart that God raised you from the dead you will be saved".
3-May we be patient and learn about humility! Just as the know-it-all boy had learned about waiting! We need to wait upon The Lord for his perfect timing in everything!
4-May we believe! Just as the main character boy learned through his journey on the train! We have our life experiences and they each lead us to the destination we are looking for if we just choose to believe!
Eighth-The time is NOW! Our journey of life may seem like we have a lot of time- but, JESUS IS COMING! There is no time to wait! Why waste our time doubting and trying to prove that there is no God to believe in! He is the Truth!
John 14:6 "I am the way,the truth, and the life. No one comes to the father except through me".
It is a joy of a ride with Jesus! Come and welcome!
Ephesians 2:4-5 "But God is so rich in mercy and he loved us so much, that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by Gods grace you have been saved!)"
Go ahead and just read all of Ephesians 2 or all of Ephesians!! :)
Ninth- Share! Share! Share!
2 Timothy 1:8-9 "So never be ashamed to tell others about our Lord. And don't be ashamed of me, either, even though I am in prison for him. With the strength God gives you, be ready to suffer with me for the sake of the good news. For God saved us and called us to live a holy life. He did this, not because we deserved it, but because that was his plan from before the beginning of time - to show us his grace through Christ Jesus".
Hear the bells! God is calling you! The spirit of Christmas is in you! The spirit of The Lord Jesus Christ is In your heart!
In the movie the main character boy lost the gift given to him- but, he knew in his heart! That's all that matters when we have the faith to believe in our heart that Jesus is Lord-we will be saved. (Romans 10:9)
IT IS AMAZING! Who God is and what he teaches us!
Quote from the movie:
"One thing about trains: It doesn't matter where you are going, what matters is deciding to get on it."
AMEN! Get on the SALVATION TRAIN AND BE READY FOR A FOREVER CHAGED LIFE!
We are Redeemed! All who truly believe! Come to Jesus!


