“The Christmas Story”


© 2021 Don Pinson | [Download]
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Ladies and gentlemen, the following story is why we have Christmas:

The Christmas Story1 “Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man, and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away [privately]. But when he thought on these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, ‘Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she shall bring forth a son; and thou shalt call his name JESUS; for…he…shall save his people from their sins.’ Now all this is come to pass, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, ‘Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel; which is, being interpreted, God with us.’ And Joseph arose from his sleep, and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took unto him his wife; and knew her not till she had brought forth a son: and he called his name JESUS.” Continue reading

“Born to Raise the Sons of Earth”

Born to Raise the Sons of Earth 1


© 2021 Don Pinson | [Download]
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At this time of year we probably hear the Name of Jesus spoken more often than at any other time.  We thrill to the story of His miraculous birth and the way He arose out of very humble surroundings to become a Man who helped so many hurting people.  But there, most people’s thoughts of Him stop.  And we miss the reason for all His background and upbringing.  We miss what the great hymn written by Charles Wesley captured so well when he wrote in the 1700s that Jesus was:

“…born to raise the sons of earth; born to give them second birth.” (Hark the Herald Angels Sing)

So how does Jesus raise the sons of earth?  Well, He starts by bringing us into what the next phrase of the hymn calls the “second birth.”  He has the Holy Spirit convince us that we have rebelled against God and His order for our lives; thus, the Bible reveals to us that we are each sinners.  Then the Holy Spirit convinces us that Jesus has Continue reading

“God Was Taking Care of America”


© 2021 Don Pinson | [Download]
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god-was-taking-care-of-america1The date was December 7th, 1941. The time was 7:55am. To the complete surprise of American forces in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, Japanese planes began to sweep down and drop devastating bombs onto our fleet and also our planes on the ground. When the attack was done, eighteen of our ships were sunk or sinking and nearly all of our planes were destroyed. Over 3,500 of our servicemen were dead. We were shocked at such a bold and devastating attack on our U.S Navy. Many wondered if the Navy would ever recover. Even worse, we wondered if our liberty would shortly be ended and we would be required to worship the Emperor of Japan as god.

In the midst of this despair, President Franklin Roosevelt replaced the commander of our Pacific fleet with an Admiral named Chester Nimitz. Nimitz arrived at Pearl Harbor on Christmas Eve, 1941. He immediately went for an inspection of the harbor. Sunken ships and twisted metal were everywhere. Once Nimitz had inspected the whole harbor, the young seaman at the helm of his boat asked him, “Well, Admiral, what do you think after seeing all this destruction?” Nimitz’ reply shocked everyone listening. He said Continue reading