Our Mission

To present Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord to business and professional men and to develop Christian business and professional men to carry out the Great Commission.

Revelation 12.13-17 records, When the Dragon saw he’d been thrown to earth, he went after the Woman who had given birth to the Man-Child. The Woman was given wings of a great eagle to fly to a place in the desert to be kept in safety and comfort for a time and times and half a time, safe and sound from the Serpent. The Serpent vomited a river of water to swamp and drown her, but earth came to her help, swallowing the water the Dragon spewed from its mouth. Helpless with rage, the Dragon raged at the Woman, then went off to make war with the rest of her children, the children who keep God’s commands and hold firm to the witness of Jesus. MSG

Where is satan now? He is on earth. What is he doing? He is waging war against the children of God. Who are the children of God? Those who obey God’s commands and share Jesus as Savior and Lord with men without fear. This explains the trials we suffer as children of God.

Because we did not faithfully make disciples when most people considered themselves Christians these past fifty years, we now must try and make disciples while most people are hostile to Christianity. This hostility hasn’t turned violent yet but it will unless we work diligently at turning people’s opinion favorably toward Jesus. Our work, if we will work, will succeed because God desires all men to be saved, He takes no delight in the death of anyone, but is near to all who call upon Him in humility, spirit and in truth.

People come to faith as they hear the gospel, and the gospel is heard when the people of God faithfully share it with others. Some must hear many times before they believe, others will never believe. These who reject the gospel turn hostile to those who share the gospel. They cause suffering in the church but are also how the saints receive their great reward for being faithful in the midst of suffering for His Name.

A disciple is an obedient follower of Jesus who makes disciples by sharing the gospel and teaching obedience to everything He has commanded. Who is the faithful disciple? Who will obey Jesus by sharing with people the gospel and teaching them to obey everything Jesus taught? This is the work of the Christian soldier who defeats satan, glorifies God, and receives great reward from the Judge of all men.

Our Opportunities

1. Beginning Wednesday January 12 CBMC is launching a new marketplace study using the bookMore Than Your Business Card: A Wake-up Call for Leaders Desiring to Follow Jesus in the Marketplace. We will review this book each week via zoom over the lunch hour. This study will help you see the value of your calling as a missionary to the marketplace. Buy the book then let mike know you will be joining him Wednesdays from noon to 12.45pm beginning January 12.
   
2. This is the last week to partner with us in 2021 for ending this year strong and beginning next year healthy: https://give.idonate.com/cbmc-inc/lansing Please give generously. 

CBMC Central Michigan 4407 W. St. Joe Hwy. Lansing 48917  / 517 481 5996 www.lansing.cbmc.com 

MONDAY MANNA

A service to the business community

A Publication of CBMC International

December 27, 2021 

Christmas – The Holiday That Cannot Be Cancelled

By Robert J. Tamasy 

What a year it has been! The coronavirus/COVID-19 news reports have been relentless, and the pandemic’s global impact has been unlike anything ever seen. It has gotten so bad, there have been warnings by top national leaders of a need to “cancel Christmas.” All in the name of “stopping the spread.” Disruptions in supply chains for transporting merchandise from one region or nation to another have created major concerns of goods wanted for gifts and holiday celebrations may not be available.

It brings to mind the classic book by Dr. Seuss, The Grinch Who Stole Christmas. The question is, can Christmas really be canceled? Can someone “steal” Christmas, regardless of their motivations or intentions? The answer, I believe, is that it all depends on to which Christmas we are referring.

If it is the Christmas that retailers anticipate year-round, the one that largely determines whether businesses end the calendar year “in the black” or “in the red,” then maybe so. Because if products are not on the store shelves or even available through online retail sites, that is bound to effect revenues and the fiscal bottom line. However, if we mean the true Christmas, as described in the Bible, no government leaders or retail supply chain could ever disrupt or eliminate that special observance.

In Luke 2:1-40, we find a description of the birth of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, telling how His earthly mother, Mary, and her betrothed husband, Joseph, went from their hometown of Nazareth to Bethlehem, where centuries earlier prophets had said the Messiah would be born. It tells how angels declared the unique, holy birth to an unlikely audience, lowly shepherds, the first eyewitnesses to the Christ child. 

We find a similar account in another gospel, starting with Matthew 1:18 and continuing through chapter 2, verse 23. It tells of the one referred to as Immanuel, which means “God with us.” In this account we find a collection of Magi, wisemen who traveled from great distances to see the fulfillment of an ancient prophecy, and an evil King Herod who feared this child would one day depose him from his throne. 

But the most compelling words about Jesus Christ’s incarnation are found in the opening chapter of the gospel of John: “In the Beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning…. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it” (John 1:1-5). 

This declaration remains as true today as it was then. During this holiday season we often hear people – from preachers to news commentators to politicians to entertainment celebrities – ruminating and giving all manner of opinions about “the true meaning of Christmas.” However, if we believe the accounts cited above, and other passages from the Scriptures, the true meaning of Christmas is not a matter of multiple choice or preference. It is simple yet profound: God becoming man, taking on human flesh to overcome the one problem that has no human cure – the problem of sin. 

As John 1:14 declares, “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” The result was the greatest gift of all: “Yet to all who received him, to those who believe in his name, he gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12). 

© 2021. Robert J. Tamasy has written Marketplace Ambassadors: CBMC’s Continuing Legacy of Evangelism and Discipleship; Business at Its Best: Timeless Wisdom from Proverbs for Today’s Workplace; Pursuing Life With a Shepherd’s Heart, coauthored with Ken Johnson; and The Heart of Mentoring, coauthored with David A. Stoddard. Bob’s biweekly blog is: www.bobtamasy.blogspot.com. 

CBMC Central Michigan 4407 W. St. Joe Hwy. Lansing 48917 / 517 481 5996  lansing.cbmc.com

MONDAY MANNA

A service to the business community

A Publication of CBMC International

December 27, 2021 

Reflection/Discussion Questions 

1. How has the pandemic affected both your plans and perceptions of Christmas this year? 

1. What are your thoughts or responses when you hear someone speaking of “canceling Christmas” in the name of public health and safety? 

1. If someone were to ask you, how would you express or define the “true meaning of Christmas”? Is it possible for it to have more than one meaning? Why or why not? 

1. Do you think there is a possibility that pandemic restrictions and the predicted scarcity of products intended for Christmas gift-giving might actually be a good thing? Explain your answer. 

NOTE: If you have a Bible and would like to read more, consider the following passages: John 3:3-8,16-18; Romans 3:23, 5-8, 6:23; Ephesians 2:8-9; 2 Timothy 3:16 

CBMC Central Michigan 4407 W. St. Joe Hwy. Lansing 48917 / 517 481 5996  lansing.cbmc.com