Drawing nearer toward Christmas, Olivet Assembly of Southeast Asia (OA SEA) churches continue to work on the final preparations of their respective Christmas retreats with the desire to proclaim the Good News of the Lord’s coming deeply, especially among many newcomers that are anticipated to join their retreats.
More than any time in the year, Christmas presents a precious opportunity for OA SEA churches to give an answer to everyone who asks of them to give the reason for the hope that they have (1 Peter 3:15), as Christmas is the most commonly known celebration even by non-believers to be associated with the Christian faith.
With the awareness, OA SEA churches are encouraged to carefully prepare their Christmas retreats to explain deeply why did the Lord come, and how does His humble coming relate to our lives today.
For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son to bring salvation to everyone to the world. Without the coming of the Lord who was born in a lowly manger more than 2,000 years ago, the world would have remained in the pitch darkness facing ultimate reality of death as the wages of their sins. It was only through Jesus Christ, and only by faith in Him will anyone in the world gain salvation that is possible only by the overflowing grace of the Lord.
It is thus with great anticipation that Christmas retreats that are to be held across OA SEA churches will be a turning point for many when they experience a deep immersion in the Word of God and the grace of the Holy Spirit in their desire to understand the deep meaning of the coming of the Lord during the first Christmas.