December 4, 2023 - Good Morning! It’s Monday, December 4. This past weekend, our choir and bells got to be in a parade! Each year, on the first Saturday of December, our town has a nighttime lighted Christmas parade. Once again, hundreds of friends from the community gathered at our historic courthouse square to kick off the holidays. It was fun!
Did you know that there’s a verse in the New Testament about a parade? Paul, who often used cultural events and traditions as metaphors for the Christian life, describes it in 2 Corinthians 2:14 - “But thanks be to God, who always leads us as captives in Christ’s triumphal procession and uses us to spread the aroma of the knowledge of Him everywhere.”
In Roman times, victorious generals were given a parade to celebrate their triumphs. These processions were actually called “triumphs” and entered the great capital city through the Triumphant Gate, a portal used only for this purpose. The general would ride in a huge chariot pulled by four majestic horses. And marching behind the conquering hero would be those who had been conquered - the captives, the slaves. In Paul’s metaphor we are the captives of Christ, who is eternally victorious. These Roman spectacles would often have religious overtones and many of the participants would be carrying incense. And so, we, the slaves of Christ, spread the aroma, the knowledge, of who He Is wherever we go.
Now that’s a parade!
Meet you back here tomorrow,
Bro. David
dmathis@fbccenter.org
Journey to Bethlehem, First Baptist Center's Community Christmas event, is just five days away. Free tickets can be reserved online at fbccenter.org. Come to Old Bethlehem, December 8-10, 6-8pm, it's going to be fun!
