LLMD

EC

20

12

8 11 14history news discipleship

comingthe nd

“Why would you write about the Second

Coming at Christmastime?”

A few people were surprised to learn

this month’s theme. Isn’t this the season to indulge in a yule-

tide feast, not to discuss the mark of the beast?

I’ve been considering an end-times-themed issue since dis-

covering that some Free Methodists’ views differ significantly

from the eschatology espoused by the popular “Left Behind”

series and its precursor, the “Thief in the Night” movies of the

1970s and early ’80s. (My FM youth group watched one of

these films, which featured a leisure suit–wearing Antichrist.)

Then some colleagues unexpectedly offered an intriguing

suggestion: December would be a good issue to discuss the

Second Coming because of the speculation (in Hollywood at

least) caused by the Mayan calendar’s Dec. 21, 2012, “end

date.”

I felt peace about the topic after discovering this sermon

description from Nov. 27, 2011 on the Spring Arbor (Mich.)

FMC website: “Advent has traditionally focused on the second

coming of Christ as much as it focuses on His first coming. …

Advent is a season of anticipation and

preparing our hearts for His coming.”

As you read Scripture this Christ-

mas, don’t forget Revelation 12:5:

“She gave birth to a son, a male child,

who ‘will rule all the nations with an

iron scepter.’” [LLM]

Managing Editor Jeff FinleyLead Designer Erin EckbergWriter/Photographer Michael MettsCopy Editor Dawn McIlvain StahlInternal Communications Andrea Anibal Project Manager Julie InnesPublisher Jason ArcherBusiness/Operations Ben Weesies

Spanish TranslationEzequiel Alvarez Jazmin Angulo Janeth Bustamante Carmen HoseaJoe Castillo Karen KabandamaJennifer Flores Samuel LopezGuillermo Flores Rodrigo Lozano, Coordinator

LLM: Light & Life Magazine (ISSN 0024-3299) was established in 1868 by the Free Methodist Church. Pub-lished monthly by Light & Life Communications. © 2012 Free Methodist Church – USA, 770 N. High School Road, Indianapolis, IN 46214. Views expressed in articles do not necessarily represent the official position of the Free Methodist Church. All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations, no portion of this magazine may be reproduced in any form without written permission of the publisher. All Scripture quotations are from the New International Version unless otherwise indicated.

Whole No. 5246, Vol. 145, No. 12Printed in U.S.A.Member: Evangelical Press Association,Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability

Periodicals postage paid at Indianapolis, IN, and additional mailing offices.

Postmaster, send address changes to:Light & Life Magazine, 770 N. High School Rd., Indianapolis, IN 46214

1 [openers]

LLML I G H T & L I F E M A G A Z I N E

“In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind.” — John 1:4

D e v e l o p i n g E a r n e s t C h r i s t i a n s S i n c e 1 8 6 8

Website: www.llcomm.orgEmail us: www.llcomm.org/staffNews and submissions: jeff.finley@fmcusa.orgAdvertising: ben.weesies@fmcusa.org

Address all correspondence to:Light & Life Magazine, 770 N. High School Rd.,Indianapolis, IN 46214 (317) 244-3660

Second Advent

To receive Light & Life in Spanish, please contact our office: (800) 342-5531 or ben.weesies@fmcusa.org.

Jeff FinleyManaging Editor

i

Ten devotional e-books by former Light & Life editor Roger Schoenhals are available on Amazon.com.

Search: “Kindle Roger Schoenhals”

Price Range:$0.99-3.99

MORE ONLINEScan this box with your smartphone for online access to this issue and additional content.

B Y J I L L R I C H A R D S O N

If, like many people, you have aspirations to

write a novel, you’ll have to learn some rules.

Yes, stories have rules, and certain rules just

don’t get broken. One of the first: Authors

must never interrupt the story they’re telling.

Think about it. Imagine J.R.R. Tolkien dropping himself into “The Return

of the King” to interact with the characters and say, “Excuse me, reader,

but these guys are not handling the situation well. Aragorn and Frodo, I’m

the author. Let me explain to you how this is all supposed to go and what

the point is.” uuu

He would not do it. You would not

tolerate it. You’d throw that book

across the room and demand your

money (and years of your life) back

from all three “The Lord of the Rings”

installments. You would definitely

disappoint Peter Jackson and not go

see “The Hobbit” this month.

Authors who break into their own

stories do so for all the wrong rea-

sons. They want to make sure read-

ers get the moral. Their out-of-control

characters need to be manipulated.

They must let everyone know who is

right and who is wrong. The rulebook

rightly says that shouldn’t be done.

Author as HeroOnce, however, the cosmic writer

did step into the story. He did not step

in as a moralizer, judge or manipula-

tor though He has the right to be all

of the above. He stepped in as the

hero. How unlike anything ever done

— anything in the rulebook!

“For God so loved the world that he

gave his one and only Son, that who-

ever believes in him shall not perish but

have eternal life. For God did not send

his Son into the world to condemn the

world, but to save the world through

him” (John 3:16–17).

These gospel-central verses tell

the tale. We’re anesthetized to the

words; we’ve repeated them by rote

since our first VBS. Do we realize the

impact of what they mean to the story?

No other god worshiped by anyone

else on the planet sacrificed himself

to become the hero. They gave good

examples to imitate, handed out rules

and agendas to follow, and suggested

proverbs to live by. But no one ever

did what the author of the universe

did. God so gave — and gave and gave

— so people could be saved, not just

enlightened.

Jesus broke into the story of

humankind. When it looked like the

conflict couldn’t be resolved, the char-

acters were beyond redemption, and

there would be no happily ever after

for anyone, Jesus threw down the pen

and walked into the plot.

Jesus didn’t enter the story at

Christmas to moralize or manipulate

things to His own end. He came to

offer everyone the opportunity to have

a happy ending, courtesy of His own

sacrifice. At Christmas, we sing about

a baby in a manger, but do we

remember that the baby willfully

wrote Himself into the tale and inten-

tionally became its sacrificial hero?

Sometimes, we also forget that

He plans to return to finish it Himself.

One more time, He’ll toss aside the

pen and paper (or does He use a

3 [feature]

The cosmic writer stepped in

as the hero.

How unlike

anything in the

rulebook!

computer these days?) and give us

the ending human hearts long for

in every story — beauty, justice and

eternal love.

“No One Knows”“Eschatology” is a big word that

means the study of the end. What are

the last things that will happen when the

story wraps up? Few people are betting

that end will come this December.

Some, undoubtedly, are selling their

condos and Cadillacs and sending their

money to an enterprising televangelist.

But not most. God said, “But about that

day or hour no one knows, not even

the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but

only the Father” (Matthew 24:36). We

assume the “no one” included the

Mayans, Jehovah’s Witnesses and

Harold Camping.

But when the Author does write

“The End,” we all want to know what

will happen. Who’s in, who’s out,

in what order will it all go down,

and what is that mark of the beast

anyway? These are all valid curiosi-

ties. Yet, thinking about the story, one

other question seems even more

compelling. What does God want us

to do with the plot in the middle?

God Never LeftOne thing we overlook while sing-

ing about Christmas and speculating

about the Second Coming is that

God never actually left the story. The

amazing reality is that, for Christians,

the writer of the novel lives in each

one of us and leads us to the next

page, if we let Him.

“Dear friends, now we are children

of God, and what we will be has not

yet been made known. But we know

that when Christ appears, we shall be

like him, for we shall see him as he is.”

(1 John 3:2).

How will we be like Him? We don’t

know exactly. John doesn’t either, but

there is one thing we can be sure of.

He intends for the change to be an

ongoing process.

God isn’t interested in “Extreme

Makeover”-style “big reveals.” Rather,

according to Paul, “we all, who with

unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s

glory, are being transformed into

his image with ever-increasing glory,

which comes from the Lord, who is

the Spirit” (2 Corinthians 3:18).

That’s present tense, ongoing

action. We won’t “be transformed.”

We “are being transformed” —

right now, daily. He wants us to be

getting so much more like Jesus

now that, when He returns, it will be

more like “Yes, that’s what I always

imagined” than “Whoa, that was

[feature] 4

Jesus isn’t just

the omniscient

author or

the “rode into

town and then

disappeared” hero.

He’s the writer who continues to

put His mark

on every single page of every

single person who

says, “I want my

story to be your

story. I want my life

to show who

writes it.”

some surprise ending!”

Genesis tells us we were made

in His image. Both John and Paul

insist Jesus came to restore that

image. Through His first coming, He

offered the opportunity to change

our story and return to what we

were meant to be. Through His

Holy Spirit, He gives the power to

make that change, starting now, in

“ever-increasing glory.” At His final

coming, He’ll let us see, and be, the

perfect ending.

Jesus isn’t just the omniscient

author or the “rode into town and

then disappeared” hero. He’s the

writer who continues to put His

mark on every single page of every

single person who says, “I want my

story to be your story. I want my life

to show who writes it.”

That’s the challenge of both

Christmas and Jesus’ future return:

to do something with the content

until He comes to finish it.

And when that happens? I hear

the sequel is going to be even

better. [LLM]

5 [feature]

www.fmfoundation.org

i Jill Richardson is a Free Method-ist pastor, wife and mother sharing God’s grace through speaking, writing (jillmarierichardson.com) and living.

Connect to

the Free

Methodist

Church on

iPhone,

iPad, or

Android.

Use your

phone or

tablet to

search the

Apple App

Store or

Google Play.

What is our body’s form after the resurrection? What is the spatial rela-

tionship between heaven and hell? Are there incontrovertible signs of

end times? Are nations and people groups today influential in bringing

about last things?

These questions only scratch the surface of what people ask about our future. We

have hints rather than rock-solid answers about how events will unfold.

It is impossible to describe timelessness in timed, sequential language. It is equally

impossible to define the kingdom of God so far removed from the societal and politi-

cal structures we know. Our kingdom context has other kingdoms involved.

Yet people in recent history have spent an inordinate amount of time attempting

to clarify the unclear — only to have their explanations unraveled by linguistic and

theological experts or changes in the political landscape. Worse than the inconve-

nience and embarrassment of missed calculations is the overshadowing of Scrip-

ture’s great certainties.

The Free Methodist Church has clearly stated articles that spell out those items

of certainty. You can find these five brief articles under “Last Things” in our “Book of

Discipline” at fmcusa.org — “The Kingdom of God,” “Return of Christ,” “Resurrection,”

“Judgment” and “Final Destiny.” In a nutshell, God reigns for eternity with His people.

Christ will return without a doubt in a manner very much unlike His first entrance.

He will do away with evil and triumph in all things. There is a bodily resurrection from

the dead in which the person is clearly identifiable. There is a judgment to which all in

history must succumb. Our destiny is neither arbitrary nor temporary. God’s grace

paves the way for those who openly and freely respond. Rejection of God’s grace and

consequent evil pave a tragic, eternal path for others.

No charts. No timelines. No temporary kingdoms. No forecasted domestic events.

We simply do not need to speculate.

Scriptural certainties give us enough to celebrate and contemplate — triumph,

eliminating the distance between God and us, knowing that God will set everything

right, understanding that the stakes are high for all humanity. These certainties make

me look forward with eager anticipation, look around with serious commitment and

gratefully look up to the God who forever has it all under control. [LLM]

A Certain Future

[bishops] 6

Bishop Matthew Thomas

To read more from Bishop Thomas, visit fmcusa.org/matthewthomas.

i

These certainties

make me look

forward with

eager anticipa-

tion, look around

with serious

commitment and

gratefully look up

to the God who

forever has it all

under control.

On a cold December’s night, we put on our best sweaters and head to the

church to see the children’s Christmas play. We’re secretly hoping one of

the shepherds uses a crook to wrangle a rowdy preschooler. Inevitably, a

heavenly host of third-graders says, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth

peace to those on whom his favor rests” (Luke 2:14).

Have you ever stopped to wonder about this peace? Is it simply a “silent night, holy

night” kind of peace or something much more?

This peace has little to do with absence of conflict or an inner disposition. This is a

different, radical peace foretold in the Old Testament about the way God moves and

acts to make everything new on earth. Isaiah 9:6–7 reveals a child “called Wonderful

Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of his

government and peace there will be no end.”

According to the Free Methodist “Book of Discipline,” the “reign

of God will be established; a total cosmic renewal which is both

material and moral shall occur; and the hope of the redeemed will

be fully realized.”

These passages remind us that the location of salvation is the

earth. Our hope is not some disembodied heaven, floating around

out there somewhere; rather, Jesus comes here to earth “for total

cosmic renewal.”

Revelation 21:3–5 provides a profound image of this: “And I

heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Look! God’s dwelling

place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They

will be his people, and God himself will be with them.’ … He who was

seated on the throne said, ‘I am making everything new!’” [LLM]

Jaymes Lackey, a Seattle Pacific Seminary student, serves at First FMC in Seattle and formerly served at Foothill Community Church in Oroville, Calif.

SCRIPTURE:

Luke 2:14

Isaiah 9:6–7

Revelation 21:3–5

Radical Peace

7 [foundation]

B Y J A Y M E S L A C K E Y

As we celebrate Christ’s coming into our world, consider Bishop Emeritus Donald N.

Bastian’s observation: “The doctrine of Christ’s second appearing is as pro-

nounced in the New Testament as the announcement of His first appearance.”

The 18th century witnessed the birth of Methodism and heightened attention to

eschatology (“last things”) ignited by such events as the French Revolution and a series of

earthquakes in England. John Wesley was reluctant to be drawn into speculation about

the end, focusing rather on the urgency of evangelizing the unconverted. A “desire to flee

from the wrath to come” was the only condition for joining a Methodist society.

Widespread interest in “last things” continued into the 19th century, in which the

Free Methodist Church emerged. William Miller and the Seventh-Day Adventists pre-

dicted Christ would return in October 1844, based largely on their interpretation of

the book of Daniel. Early Free Methodists, following Wesley’s lead, wisely chose to avoid

millennial predictions and focused instead on the urgency of extending Christ’s earthly

kingdom.

B.T. Roberts, a principal FM founder, felt such speculation contributed little to car-

ing for the sick or converting the lost. Roberts affirmed God’s sovereignty over history

and the urgency of preaching the gospel to all nations (Matthew 24:14) to hasten

Christ’s return. The FMC broadened its “Last Things” statement in 1974 by inserting

a “Kingdom of God” section prior to the “Return of Christ” section.

Dispensationalism has been popularized by the fictional “Left Behind” books. This

approach, largely unheard of before the 19th century, divides history into seven dis-

tinct dispensations and hinges on an elaborate scheme for understanding last things.

The challenge for Free Methodists today is to focus on our tradition’s rich and

biblical commitment to evangelizing the lost, preaching the gospel to the poor and

living a holy life while affirming: “Christ has died. Christ has risen. Christ will come

again.” [LLM]

Seattle resident Joe Culumber recently retired from Greenville College’s philosophy-religion department.

Affirming Without Speculating

[history] 8

B Y J O E C U L U M B E R

Early Free Methodists

chose to avoid

millennial predictions

and focused instead on

the urgency of

extending Christ’s

earthly kingdom.

p Historical icon of the Return of Christ

Chris Carlyle is a busy pastor,

husband and father with another

important role — chaplain.

Within a year of arriving as pastor of the

Irvine (Ky.) FMC, Carlyle became chaplain

of the Irvine and Ravenna police

departments, uuu

B Y J E F F F I N L E Y

pastor/chaplain

helpspeople

heal

a local fire department, Marcum &

Wallace Memorial Hospital and the

Estill County emergency services. He

coordinates a network of local pas-

tors who help civilians in crisis situa-

tions while he serves the emergency

responders.

While in the Navy, Carlyle was

inspired by a chaplain. In college, he

took a clinical pastoral education

course that also increased his inter-

est in chaplain service. Despite previ-

ous experience, however, Carlyle’s

Irvine-area chaplaincy opportunities

came unexpectedly.

prayers for a house“There was a house in the neigh-

borhood that had a great deal of

drug traffic going on,” Carlyle said. “I

brought it up on a Wednesday night

service that we should pray for this

house because of that. By that Thurs-

day morning, a significant change had

come to that house.”

A resident of the house died, and

the drug trafficking slowed.

“The police department had

heard about us praying for the

house,” said Carlyle. He received a

visit from the police chief, who asked

if Carlyle “would pray for some of his

men and some of the other troubled

spots in town.”

A captain later asked Carlyle if he

would consider becoming the police

chaplain. After approval by the city

council, Carlyle received police acad-

emy training.

changing attitudesCarlyle has his own police uniform

and is considered an officer although

he is not a sworn member of the

force. The uniform notes he is a chap-

lain, but that label is often overlooked.

Many people assume he is a regular

police officer.

“The general attitude of the public

toward the police is often negative,”

Carlyle said. “Nobody makes eye con-

tact with you.”

He tries to change attitudes

about the police, and he encourages

people to be friendly with officers

instead of only approaching them

with complaints.

“Look at the policeman with grati-

tude, but look at him and say, ‘Good to

see you today,’” he said. “They’re not

used to that kind of thing.”

healing and cleansing Along with sharing the gospel, Car-

lyle helps people open themselves to

God as they deal with issues in their

past such as abuse, addiction and

divorce. He said the same philoso-

phy of ministry applies to his roles as

pastor and chaplain.

“For me, it’s all about helping heal

people,” Carlyle said. “I’m trying to

help people be healed in their spirit.

Their spirit is dead to God until they

find Jesus Christ.”

After a spirit comes to life, a

cleansing process may still be needed.

“Sin is the root issue that the

gospel has to address, but sometimes

the cleansing takes a while,” Carlyle

said. “In the old terms, we would call it

‘sanctification’ or ‘entire sanctification.’

I simply call it ‘soul cleansing.’” [LLM]

[action] 10

pastor/chaplain

helpspeople

heal

“I’m trying to help people be healed in their spirit. Their spirit is dead to God until they find Jesus Christ.”

11 [news]

More than 1 million people

are now members of the

Free Methodist Church.

“The Free Methodist Church is

growing substantially in some places

around the world,” Bishop Matthew

Thomas told the Free Methodist

Church – USA Board of Administra-

tion (BOA) on Oct. 18. “I would like to

note that since 1995, statistically,

we’ve grown by almost a thousand

percent — tenfold — in the continent

of Asia, and that’s due in large part to

our national leaders overseas.”

The denomination took more than

150 years to reach 1 million members

worldwide, but much of the growth has

occurred place in the last 10 years.

“Could we believe and pray for

3 million people in five years?”

Thomas asked.

International Child Care Ministries

Director Linda Adams noted

the work of FM missionar-

ies — some of whom became

martyrs — to spread the

gospel globally.

“A great forest has been

raised up from those seeds,”

Adams said.

Delia Nüesch-Olver, Latin America

area director for Free Methodist

World Missions, credited international

Free Methodists for their commit-

ment to sharing the gospel.

“In Venezuela, they apologize

because they only grew 32 percent

this past year,” said Nüesch-Olver, who

added the desire for growth is “not for

numbers’ sake but for Jesus’ sake.”

BOA members celebrated the

news of the global growth.

“I think this 1 million is the

answer to many people who have

been praying and working,” BOA

member Guillermo Flores said.

“The real exciting part is that we’re

shooting for 3 million in the next five

years. God is on the move,” BOA

Chairman Hal Conklin said.

At a worship service the next

day, Thomas directed participants’

attention to three one-word banners

that together stated “Celebrating

One Million.” He said it’s important to

celebrate each person, and the mes-

sage would still be appropriate if the

“million” banner fell down. [LLM]

FM Membership Passes 1 Million B Y J E F F F I N L E Y

Free Methodist churches around the world are one of the major forces behind growing membership numbers.

For expanded coverage, go to fmcusa.org/ ?p=493756.

[news] 12

FM NONPROFIT MINISTERS TO LOUISIANANS Shreveport, La.

Takin’ It to the Streets Inc., a community outreach ministry coordinated by Pastor

Ron Hampton, sponsored a July 21 event at Centenary College’s Gold Dome.

More than 100 salvations were reported and 4,000 people were served by more

than 100 agencies. To read more, visit fmcusa.org/blog/stories/takin-it-to-the-streets.

GREVE NAMED ALUMNUS OF YEAR Spring Arbor, Mich.

Spring Arbor University honored Wayne Greve of Noblesville, Ind., as

alumnus of the year Oct. 6. Greve, the son of Free Methodist Pas-

tors William and Leeta Greve, served as an educator for more than

50 years, simultaneously serving as a pastor for 13 of those years.

He and his wife, Marilyn, fund two endowed scholarships at SAU.

RIVER HIRES NEW OPERATIONS DIRECTORCaldwell, Idaho

Jason Lohse — the associate pastor of Journey Church in Centennial, Colo.,

and the author of the “Expresso” devotional book — became the new director of

operations for the River Conference on Oct. 1. Lohse takes over the business and

administration position from Tom Greco, who now works for Central Christian

College of Kansas.

ELI FOUNDER HONORED BY APUAzusa, Calif.

Free Methodist missionary and Empowering Lives International

founder Don Rogers had the opportunity to tell more than 800 people

about ELI’s work in Africa during an October banquet at Azusa Pacific

University. Rogers was honored as APU’s alumnus of the year. The

university’s video about Rogers can be viewed at bit.ly/apurogers.

The Rest of the Story

Want to find in-depth stories of remarkable Free Methodists? Visit fmcusa.org.

We want to hear from you!

Tell us what your church is doing to impact lives in the United States and around the world. Submit your story at fmcusa.org/ yourstory.

i

13 [world]

B Y J E F F F I N L E Y

“God so loved the world that He gave… ”

These words from John 3:16 are how

Linda Adams, director of International

Child Care Ministries, and David and Rose Brewer,

co-directors of SEED Livelihood Network, begin the ICCM

and SEED Christmas 2012 Catalog. Along with the quoted

scriptures, the leaders’ suggestion to “boycott excess”

reveals this is no ordinary holiday catalog.

“ICCM and SEED share a passion for doing justice, foster-

ing sustainable development and an unwavering commit-

ment to assist the Free Methodist Church in its local/global

mission and church planting,” said John Franklin Hay, ICCM’s

director of advancement. “We conceived the catalog as a

way to help Free Methodists, sponsors and friends learn

more and participate directly in the ministries of empower-

ment we share globally with and through them.”

The first-ever Christmas catalog offers details of ICCM

child sponsorship, projects and special-giving funds plus

information about Free Methodist World Missions and VISA

Ministries. For $50, a person can buy a water filter for a

household in desperate need. For $10, a person can buy a

Bible or a songbook for an ICCM child. The catalog also con-

tains information about buying animals for families and gifts

that provide education and prevent child trafficking.

The catalog offers opportunities to donate to develop-

ment projects through SEED, which empowers holistic

livelihood groups doing microenterprise projects that

make sense in their communities. Jewelry, bags, T-shirts,

decorations and other merchandise created by these

livelihood groups can also be purchased.

“Alternative giving is a way to enter into partnership with

communities, families and individuals in remembrance of

God’s gift to us at Christmas,” David Brewer said.

The catalog can be used throughout 2013 and will be

sent to FM congregations, ICCM sponsors, SEED patrons

and FMWM supporters. Copies can be requested from

ICCM at (800) 342-5531 or at www.childcareministries.org under “contact us.” A PDF version is available at

bit.ly/iccmseed. [LLM]

A Catalog for Better Giving

We tend to transfer our nostalgic heart-warmth onto the birth of

Jesus, but the Messiah was born into chaos.

Israel was in military crackdown. Bethlehem was packed

tightly under the decree of Caesar and the strong arm of King Herod. This

first Herod of the New Testament was also called “the Great.” In reality, he

was a psychopath willing to commit any crime — including murdering his

family — to stay in power, according to the Jewish Encyclopedia. Violent

uprisings pushed back. Herod desired to please the Roman Empire at any

cost.

“Son of Man,” a movie set in modern Africa, paints a portrait of unrest

around Jesus’ birth. In one scene (which can be viewed at bit.ly/llmson),

Mary hides from a group of armed militia — among the dead bodies of

children in an abandoned school building. After the militia passes and as she

rises to leave, an angel appears and proclaims, “Hark thou that art highly

favored, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou. Fear not, thou hast found

favor with God.”

She is stunned by the contrast of these words to her situation. The angel

explains how she will give birth to Jesus, the Son of God. She sings: “My soul

doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced, in God my savior.”

Hope is found in the person of Jesus, not in Christmas. Some Christmas

Day will be the last Dec. 25 — not because of the Mayan calendar, politi-

cians’ decisions, terrorists, economic crashes or environmental disas-

ters. God will call the due date and Jesus will return. Until then, let’s sing of

hope for all mankind to hear. [LLM]

Jason Paul Johnston is a musician, ordained FM pastor and teacher at Oakdale Christian Academy, Jackson, Ky.

GROUP DISCUSSION:

[1] What challenge or

encouragement can we

take from Mary’s response

(Luke 1:26–55)?

[2] What fears must we

surrender to receive Christ

this Christmas?

The Last Christmas

[discipleship] 14

B Y J A S O N P A U L J O H N S T O N

Did you know a new disciple-ship article is posted to our website each week? The four monthly arti-cles are perfect for use in your small group or as a weekly supplement to individual study.

CREATION HEALEDHoward A. Snyder and Joel Scandrett

explain why “Salvation Means Creation

Healed”: bit.ly/creationhealed.

“BOOK OF DISCIPLINE”Order the “2011 Book of Discipline”

and read the “Last Things” section

(Pages 24–25):

fmcusa.org/bookofdiscipline.

1

2

Explore the perspectives of Free Methodists and other Wesleyans about the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.

“REVELATION” Richard Eckley looks at the Bible’s final

book and its promise of a new world:

bit.ly/eckleyrev.

LISTENING TO GOD The “Lectio Divina” Bible study series

presents “Listening to God Through

Revelation”: bit.ly/ldrevelation.

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