“The Church is... where the Lord is acknowledged, and where the Word is.” - The New Jerusalem and Its Heavenly Doctrine §242
Kempton New Church

Christmas 2011

Dear Neighbor,

You are invited to come to a special Christmas service on Sunday, December 18, at 4:30 and at 6:00 p.m. While the Gospel is being read, people in costume will reverently present the Christmas stories. This can help us picture what happened when the Lord was born. Adults and children are welcome.

Good news: the kingdom of God is at hand! We need only to repent, and we can receive heaven today.

This Christmas, let us reflect on what it means to believe the good news of the Lord's advent, and that we too can welcome the Lord into our lives. The coming of the Lord was predicted in prophecy, and with it came a command to prepare. For example, we read in Isaiah:

“In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord. Make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low. The uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain.” (Isaiah 40:3-4)

As the Lord explained while on earth, all of His Word is a parable, and these prophecies have a deeper meaning. Indeed, the Lord Himself described His coming in terms of “the time being fulfilled.” For example, we read in Mark:

“The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.” (Mark 1:15)

In these few simple words, the Lord has explained the purpose of His coming and why we should “prepare the way of the Lord.” The good news is that the kingdom of God is at hand. It is not in some far distant future, or far away from us. It is right here, right now, in our hand, ready to be grasped. All we need to do is to repent, shun evils as sins against the Lord, and accept the good news that heaven is near and accessible.

This Christmas, as we celebrate again the coming of the Lord into our lives, we can believe the good news, that the Kingdom of God is at hand, and we need only to repent to receive it.

Rev. Pearse Frazier, Assistant to the Pastor