Merry Christmas!

 

“For a Child will be born to us, a Son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace” {Is. 9:6 NASB}.

God Was In Christ: An Advent Reading Of Luke 24

 Day 24 Luke Chapter 24

We made it through all twenty-four chapters! Thank you for walking through Luke’s wonderful Gospel with me. I pray that these little devotions blessed you and helped to make your Advent season one of reflection and dedication to the Lord Jesus Christ.

“They said to one another, ‘Were not our hearts burning within us while He was speaking to us on the road, while He was explaining the Scriptures to us?’” (v. 32 NASB).

 This is one of my favorite passages in all of Scripture. I pray this prayer every day: May my heart burn within me as you open the Scriptures to me. If I had a time machine, the road to Emmaus would be my first choice so that I could eavesdrop on the Lord’s conversation with these two disciples. 

This account is the first of three post-resurrection appearances Christ made in the New Testament. Two men are walking to Emmaus just a few days after the crucifixion of the Lord. Jesus came upon them, though they did not recognize Him through their sorrow. He came to comfort them in their grief. I love the rendering of the KJV, NKJV, and the ESV, which says that Jesus drew near to them.

Together, these three men walked, and they listened as He encouraged them that what the women reported was true. Yet another glimmer of hope that the injustice from just a few short days before could be made right. Jesus opened their spiritual eyes so they could understand all that the Scripture spoke about Christ—His sufferings, death, and resurrection. He began with the Old Testament—Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms. He was exactly who He claimed to be—the Christ, the Son of God, the promised Redeemer. No one was more worthy or qualified to explain the Scripture to them than the Prince of Peace—the very Word. His words were so full of power and life that their hearts burned within them; they were like a burning fire in them like many others who came before them who heard with joy the Words of the Lord:

My heart was hot within me, While I was musing the fire burned {Ps. 39:3 NASB}. 

“But if I say, ‘I will not remember Him Or speak anymore in His name,’ Then in my heart it becomes like a burning fire Shut up in my bones; And I am weary of holding it in, And I cannot endure it’” {Jer. 20:9 NASB}.

They tasted what John the Baptist declared about Jesus, that He would baptize with fire.

I cannot escape the language of drawing near. For that is just what God did in sending His Son. He drew near to us because we could not draw near to Him. He came to do for us what we could not do for ourselves. There was no way for us to draw close to Him because of our sin. But the Lord of Glory drew near and communed so that He could have a relationship with His fallen human creation. Jesus walked the road to Emmaus, and at their bidding, He broke bread with them. As soon as He blessed the bread and ate with them, their eyes were opened, and they recognized Him! He vanished before them, but they were witnesses to the Eleven that what the women proclaimed—that Jesus was indeed resurrected—and their hope was revived! 

In the quiet, cold night, Christ crept into the world unnoticed, except for a few lowly shepherds. While the world slept, the long-awaited promise—the Redeemer, Deliverer, and King of Glory drew near to the world that He loved so much, in a humble stable that holy night. 

He did for us what we could not do for ourselves; we now have the privilege of drawing near to Him:

“Let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water” {Heb. 10:22 NASB}.

 “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you” {Jam. 4:8 NASB}

 

 

 

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God Was In Christ: An Advent Reading Of Luke 23

 Day 23 Luke Chapter 23

“And we indeed are suffering justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong” {v.41 NASB}.

Jesus was born in a manger and died on a cross. He came to redeem mankind from our fallenness, darkness, sin, and rebellion. He was the only perfect sacrifice for sin and the only mediator we will ever need {1 Timothy 2:5-6}. He was declared innocent by seven different people that day. Seven times, Jesus was examined, judged, and found to be without sin. God is a detail-oriented God. Each sacrifice brought to the Tabernacle was to be carefully observed by the priest to ensure that the offering was without spot or blemish. Everything in the Law in Israel was observed; in Christ, they are fulfilled; in the church (believers), they are applied. Christ fulfilled every Old Testament Scripture concerning the Messiah.

Jesus’ innocence was so apparent that even a thief dying on the cross next to Him could see the truth. Though Luke’s Gospel gives the impression that one thief mocked Him and one did not, Matthew and Mark’s Gospels provide the full account. Matthew 27:44 and Mark 15:32 reveal that both criminals mocked Jesus.

Though both mocked Him, hours spent being crucified next to the King of kings taught him to think better. He began to see Jesus for who He was and put his faith and trust in the Jewish carpenter from Nazareth. The condemned thief and criminal who was a rebel against God became a child of God. What a difference one moment can make in one life. He was no longer on his way to hell but rather on his way to paradise. In a moment, he was a criminal who did not deserve mercy but was welcomed into the Lord’s bosom that very day. What mercy. What grace. What a price Christ paid to bridge that gulf between God and man, life and death.

That is what the innocent babe in the manger came for; to seek and save the lost {Lk. 19:10}. The same mercy and grace He extended to that dying, repentant thief is available to you and me. He was innocent of sin at His birth; He was innocent of sin at His death. That is what He took on His shoulders for you and me.

I know I have made much use of Bonhoeffer in my Advent musings, but he says it so eloquently:

The Great Turning Point Of All Things

What kings and leaders of nations, philosophers and artists, founders of religion and teachers of morals have tried in vain to do—that now happens through a newborn child. Putting to shame the most powerful human efforts and accomplishments, a child is placed here at the midpoint of world history—a child born of human beings, a Son given by God {Is. 9:6}. That is the mystery of the redemption of the world; everything past and everything future is encompassed here. The infinite mercy of the Almighty God comes to us, descends to us in the form of a child, his Son. That this child is born for us, this son is given to us, that this human child and Son of God belongs to me, that I know him, have him, love him, that I am his and he is mine—on this alone my life now depends. A child has our life in his hands.[1]

 

 

 

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[1] Dietrich Bonhoeffer, God Is In The Manger (Westminster: John Knox Press., 2010), 56.

God Was In Christ: An Advent Reading Of Luke 22

 Day 22 Luke Chapter 22

“And being in agony He was praying very fervently; and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down upon the ground. When He rose from prayer, He came to the disciples and found them sleeping from sorrow, and said to them, ‘Why are you sleeping? Get up and pray that you may not enter into temptation’” {vv.44-46 NASB}.

This verse touches me. It causes me to ponder the humanness of Jesus. He was truly God, but He was also truly man. You cannot diminish Jesus’ humanity, or you will never fully grasp the depths of Gethsemane or your own humanity when faced with trials. Jesus could have gone His own way and followed His own will. But thankfully, He chose to follow hard after God and to fulfill the will of the Father. Our salvation was on the cusp as He cried out in anguished prayer, “Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Yours be done” {v. 42 NAS}. He obeyed the Father—sealing our salvation. The curse that came on Adam in the garden to toil by the sweat of his brow is broken by the Redeemer of the world in a garden by the blood sweat from His brow.

In His love for real human beings, Jesus becomes the one burdened by guilt – indeed, the one upon whom all human guilt ultimately falls and the one who does not turn it away but bears it humbly and in eternal love… As the human being who has entered reality, Jesus becomes guilty. But because His historical existence, His incarnation, has its sole basis in God’s love for human beings, it is the love of God that makes Jesus become guilty. Out of selfless love for human beings, Jesus leaves His state as the one without sin and enters into the guilt of human beings. He takes it upon Himself.[1]

Each of us will face our own hard trials. Though we do not bear the salvation of the world on our shoulders, we each must choose in the hard places who we will follow…our fleshly desires or the will of the Father.

Advent is about Jesus’ birth in a manger, that Holy crèche on that Holy night, but will we make room for Him? Not just as our Savior but also our Lord in the hard places—the hard choices—in this fallen world.

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[1] Dietrich Bonhoeffer, God Is In The Manger (Westminster: John Knox Press., 2010), 34.

God Was In Christ: An Advent Reading Of Luke 21

 Day 21 Luke Chapter 21

“Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. But when these things begin to take place, straighten up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near” {vv. 27-28}.

I love it when the Old Testament meets the New. Jesus speaks of yet another fulfillment of God’s Word that He poured into His prophets concerning things to come. And Jesus, the Son of Man, stands before them in fulfillment of the prophet Daniel’s words given by God. Jesus came to save the world and to offer salvation to those who will receive the precious gift. Those who choose Him become citizens of the glorious, universal Kingdom of which Daniel foretold. The Jews have been harassing Jesus for a sign that He is who He says He is, and He answers their demand. 

“I kept looking in the night visions, And behold, with the clouds of heaven One like a Son of Man was coming, And He came up to the Ancient of Days And was presented before Him” {Daniel 7:13 NASB}.

“Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen” {Revelation 1:7 NASB}.

We must remember that though Christ came as a baby, He is a grown, real person who grew in wisdom and stature before the Lord {Lk. 2:52}. Christianity does not follow a certain set of rules but a real faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. He came to us and now lives in us through His Spirit. He lived and died and rose again to redeem you and me. At the Second Advent, He will judge our mortal lives, our decisions, and whether or not we lived for Him. This is a time to reflect on our lives and consider whether any part of our life does not please Him. The One True God is holy and hates sin, but He loves us immensely, so much that He sent His Son to redeem the world. Because we are living for Him His Second Advent need not be a terror in the night. Only those who persist in their wickedness need fear His coming. If we submit our lives to Him now, we will be accepted when He appears on that Great Day.

His message is urgent: We believers on earth must be ready. The tribulation and tumult of the earth will not last forever. Just when it looks as though the anguish and despair can only worsen, Christ will be revealed in the heavens, and every eye shall see Him. And the old prophet Zechariah’s words concerning His appearance will come to pass, “they will say where did you get those marks in your hands? And he will say, ‘in the house of my friends’” {see Zech. 13:6}. Then, according to the Apostle Paul, the Jewish nation will be born in a day, and all of Israel will be saved.

Jesus will also place His precious, nail-pierced feet on the Mount of Olives. The prophet Zechariah tells us that Christ, accompanied by His raptured saints, will enter the great city of Jerusalem. The returning saints, along with believers on earth, will gather to crown Him King of kings and Lord of lords, and Christ will begin His millennial and eternal reign.

Are you ready for His return? What part of you are withholding from Him that you may offer Him as a gift this Advent season? Is there room in the inn of your heart for this precious gift of the promised Redeemer?

Let’s not deceive ourselves. “Your redemption is drawing near” {Luke 21:28}, whether we know it or not, and the only question is: are we going to let it come to us too, or are we going to resist it? Are we going to join in this movement that comes down from heaven to earth or are we going to close ourselves off? Christmas is coming—whether it is with us or without us depends on each and every one of us. Such a true event happening now creates something different from the anxious, petty, depressed, feeble Christian spirit that we see again and again, and that again and again, wants to make Christianity contemptible… Advent creates people, new people. We too are supposed to become new people in advent.[1]

 

 

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[1] Dietrich Bonhoeffer, God Is In The Manger (Westminster: John Knox Press., 2010), 40.

Sabbath Sanctuary God Was In Christ: An Advent Reading Of Luke 20

 Day 20 Luke Chapter 20

“How is it that they say the Christ is David’s son? For David himself says in the book of Psalms,‘The Lord said to my Lord, ‘Sit at My right hand, Until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet. Therefore David calls Him ‘Lord,’ and how is He his son?’” (vv.41-44 NASB).

I love this exchange between Jesus and the religious leaders. Once again, wisdom is vindicated by all her children {Luke 7:35}. This speaks to the dual nature of Jesus, which the Jewish religious leaders never understood, though the Old Testament told them to look for these signs in the Redeemer. Jesus validates this by quoting from the verse in which the Lord gives dominion to the King. He solidifies the inspiration of the Old Testament Scriptures.

What they did not understand is that Jesus was telling them that this implies both the future existence of David’s throne and the authority of the Messiah over all that has been given Him by the Father, His spiritual authority as King over the nations.

The Sadducees were silenced once again by Jesus, who as fully God {the preexistent Christ} was David’s Lord, and as fully man was David’s son. This same account in Matthew’s Gospel tells us that He so confounded them that “No one was able to answer Him a word, nor did anyone dare from that day on to ask Him another question” {Matt. 22:46 NASB}. Jesus again bewildered His adversaries.

In God’s holy promise of the coming Savior into the world, it was imperative that the prophecies reveal both the true God and true man nature of the Holy Savior. The revelation of the coming Redeemer of man-kind—this holy truth—caused the Old Testament prophecies to declare of Him, “And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, and Prince of Peace,” as well as being the man of sorrows and acquainted with grief {Is. 9:6; Is. 53: 1-12}. 

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God Was In Christ: An Advent Reading Of Luke 18

Day 18 Luke Chapter 18

“‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Those who led the way were sternly telling him to be quiet; but he kept crying out all the more, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’” (vv. 38-39 NASB).

These two chapters of Luke speak volumes to the pain and suffering in the world. Two accounts of hurting and sick people crying out for the mercy of God. If He does not see their pain and intervene, they have no hope.

Bartimaeus has lived in a blind existence. His world was dark and lonely. Jesus said that while He is in the world, He is the Light of the World {Jn. 4:5}. Isaiah prophesied of the coming Child that He came to give Zion a happy future;

“Say to those with anxious heart, ‘Take courage, fear not. Behold, your God will come with vengeance; The recompense of God will come, But He will save you.’ Then the eyes of the blind will be opened And the ears of the deaf will be unstopped. Then the lame will leap like a deer, And the tongue of the mute will shout for joy’” (Is. 35:4-5 NASB).  

Mary did you know that your baby boy would give sight to a blind man?
Mary did you know that your baby boy would calm a storm with his hand?
Did you know that your baby boy has walked where angels trod?
When you kiss your little baby, you kiss the face of God…

The blind will see, the deaf will hear, the dead will live again
The lame will leap, the dumb will speak, the praises of the Lamb

Mary did you know that your baby boy is Lord of all creation?
Mary did you know that your baby boy would one day rule the nations?
Did you know that your baby boy is heaven's perfect Lamb?
That sleeping child you're holding is the Great I Am.

(Mary Did You Know? Mark Lowery, 1984)

How often have we faced trials and circumstances that have brought us to our knees and caused us to cry out with anguished desperation, “Jesus, have mercy on me!?” The darkness, the sickness; this lost, dark, evil world gives many an opportunity. I have been brought to cry out on many occasions. 

“God doesn’t miss a single sigh that escapes our lips. But historically, God’s people most often cried out in spoken words that sprang from the depths of their being. 

Remember this Advent that He came to set the captives free—giving sight to the blind and opening deaf ears to hear the Good News of His coming Kingdom and to see Him when He arrives. Keep your eyes open. He will be arriving soon. 

 

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God Was In Christ: An Advent Reading Of Luke 17

Day 17 Luke Chapter 17

“Now one of them, when he saw that he had been healed, turned back, glorifying God with a loud voice, and he fell on his face at His feet, giving thanks to Him. And he was a Samaritan” {vv. 15-16 NASB}.

Leprosy was a horrible disease. There was no treatment and no cure. It was a brutal disease that met with a horrific death. Their cry, “Have mercy on us” is heart-wrenching. Such a cry of anguish that echoes through human history.
The ten lepers cry to Jesus for mercy because He is their only hope to be delivered from this agonizing existence. One with the curse of leprosy was marked as someone God Himself had cursed. There was no way out from this deadly mark. They desire to be healed because they know that only their healing can lift the pain and ostracism, allow them to enter society, and give them hope that life can return to normal life like it was before.

The narrative of the ten lepers is a lesson for us. Before entering this Advent season, we were focused on being thankful and not complaining and murmuring about what we didn’t have or want. God responds to gratefulness, not grumbling at our circumstances. These ten lepers all had faith in Jesus. They knew He was the only one to deliver them and make things right again. Every hope they had clung to who Jesus was and the power of God within Him. Jesus delivered. They cried out for mercy, and He granted it to them. He told them to show themselves to the priest {according to the Law of Moses} to declare them clean. They all went away healed!

This account is not one of a lack of faith but of a lack of gratefulness. Only one returned to worship the Lord for what He had done for them. They were in utter despair in a crisis moment in their lives, yet how quickly they forgot. As soon as the crisis was over, they went their separate ways. What they received was not taken from them. But the one who returned left with more blessings than the others who did not return to worship. Jesus told him that not only was he healed from this crippling disease, but because he came back and worshiped the Lord for the miracle, he would also be made whole. All that he had lost would be restored to him.

That is Mercy’s pen writing a new chapter for each of them. But special prose was written for the one who worshiped in gratefulness to the divine Physician. He took the time to return and let Jesus know what it meant to him to be healed.


Reflect in this season of waiting for the Christ Child upon everything the Lord has done for you. Let us remember what He has so mercifully delivered us from, how He has healed us and made us whole. Let the Lord know how His mercy has marked your life with deliverance and wholeness.

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God Was In Christ: An Advent Reading Of Luke 16

Day 16 Luke Chapter 16

“The Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John; since that time the gospel of the kingdom of God has been preached, and everyone is forcing his way into it. But it is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one stroke of a letter of the Law to fail” {vv.16-17}.

In chapter sixteen, Jesus continually rebukes the Pharisees, who believed they were more righteous. In v.v. 16-17, Jesus speaks about John the Baptist and says that the culmination of redemptive history is marked by his ministry. Jesus once again reveals the hearts of the Pharisees when He explains the Law to them. With the arrival of John the Baptist as Jesus’ forerunner came the arrival of God’s Kingdom. The Pharisees thought of themselves as the experts in the Law and the Prophets, yet they were dense and missed the very One to whom the Law and the Prophets spoke. Many people, including the Pharisees, were trying to force their way into the kingdom by other means than what John and Jesus were teaching. While the Pharisees were busy scheming and plotting against Jesus and opposing His teaching, multitudes of sinners were entering the Kingdom. The “by violent force” probably describes the zeal with which sinners sought to enter the Kingdom.[1]

Regardless of their self-justification, they were not living according to God’s Law. The fulfillment of the Law does not mean an end to the Law. Because of Jesus’ sinless, perfect, once-and-for-all sacrifice, the sacrificial requirements of the Law were no longer needed. However, the principle of the Law did not conclude, and they (and we) are required to live by the principle of the Law, to be written in our hearts (Rom. 2:15). Paul later rebukes the religious leaders for the same heart issue:

“Which one of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? They killed those who had previously announced the coming of the Righteous One, whose betrayers and murderers you have now become; you who received the law as ordained by angels, and yet did not keep it” {Acts 7:52–53 NASB}.

God’s eternal laws and principles did not cease. We must still live out love, faith, hope, loving our neighbors, and putting God first by seeking His Kingdom. 

Let’s purpose through this Advent to continue to live out the principles of God’s Law, which Christ declared should now be written on our hearts. Let’s put God first in our lives—this Advent—and beyond and give Him our very best.

 

 

[1] John F. MacArthur, ed., “Luke 16: 16–17,” The John MacArthur Study Bible: English Standard Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2021), 1409.

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God Was In Christ: An Advent Reading Of Luke 15

Day 15 Luke Chapter 15

“What man among you, if he has a hundred sheep and has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open pasture and go after the one which is lost until he finds it? When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing” {vv.4-5 NASB}.

The care our magnificent Creator of the universe takes in reaching the poor, lost, and wandering sinners. His sheep are important to Him. He cares so much for His sheep that even though He has one hundred, should one stray away, He will search until He finds that one lost sheep.

I find it so beautiful (and no accident) that today is the third Sunday in Advent, in which we focus on joy. {If you would like to read more on joy in Advent, I wrote several posts a few years back for Advent; you can find them here, here, here, here, here, and here}. Jesus continues within this verse to say, “I tell you…there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance” {v.7 NASB}. When one sinner comes to Him, there is JOY in heaven. There is joy in the presence of the angels of God! Imagine how wonderful that is, that though they cannot fathom salvation {1 Pet. 1:12}, they rejoice when one of God’s human creations receives salvation. Our salvation is one of joy; the psalmist prays, “Restore to me the joy of Your salvation And sustain me with a willing spirit” {Ps. 51:12}.
I heard a minister of the Word once say that most Christians look more like they are on their way to hell rather than heaven. We should be the most joyous people on earth. Our salvation should sparkle in our eyes, exude joy on our faces, and joy in our walk; we should not cause the loss to long for what we have. If our Messiah has this much joy over finding us, should we not have joy when we find Him and walk with Him for the rest of our lives?

In chapter fifteen, Jesus teaches parables throughout on the importance of finding those who are lost. The righteous ninety-nine should take care lest they think themselves more virtuous than the lost one. We need to share the heart of the Shepherd and search for those who are lost. Pray daily for the lost—those you know and those you don’t. Jesus came to seek and save the lost. Let’s search for them this Advent season and bring them into the care of the Good Shepherd. 

 

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God Was In Christ: An Advent Reading Of Luke 14

Day 14 Luke Chapter 14

“Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple”

 {v. 27 NASB}.

Discipleship. It is the most important call Christians receive. The disciples have been following Jesus for some time now. Yet, He continues to speak to them in parables so that perhaps they will begin to understand what He has been teaching them—what He is teaching us—that we are to give God first place in our lives. The disciples are traveling with Him and are caught up in all the needs of the ministry, yet, Jesus still needs them to understand exactly what it means to be a disciple. To be a disciple is an act of obedience, not a declaration of faith. 

For the mighty ones, for the great ones of the world, there are only two places where their courage deserts them, which they fear in the depths of their souls, which they dodge and avoid; the manger and the cross of Jesus Christ.[1]

The Father gave us the most incredible gift that one could give—His only Son because of His love for us:

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him” {Jn. 3:16-17 NASB}.

The Father gave us a wonder beyond all comprehension to our finite understanding. He endured a long path to the cross to restore all that was lost. Can we not give Him back our best? Can we not follow Him with our whole hearts? Can we move beyond a confession of faith and follow Him in obedience? In this season, it is so easy to be caught up in the busyness of preparing for the holidays, just as the disciples were so busy with work that they—and we—forget about what Jesus is endeavoring to teach us; discipleship is the call, and it's going to cost us.

“Discipleship means adherence to Christ, and, because Christ is the object of the adherence, it must take the form of discipleship. An abstract Christology, a doctrinal system, a general religious knowledge on the subject of grace or on the forgiveness of sins, render discipleship superfluous.”[2]

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[1] Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Mystery Of Holy Night (New York: Crossroad Publishing Company, 1996), 16.

[2] Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost Of Discipleship (New York: Touchstone, 1959), 58.

Sabbath Sanctuary: God Was In Christ: An Advent Reading Of Luke 13

Day 13 Luke Chapter 13

“Now Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. And there was a woman who for eighteen years had had a sickness caused by a spirit; and she was bent over double, and could not straighten up at all. When Jesus saw her, He called her over and said to her, ‘Woman, you are freed from your sickness.’ And He laid His hands on her; and immediately she was made erect again and began glorifying God” (vv. 10-13 NASB).

I have had my share of physical sickness and hurt in my life. When I read this verse, it fills me with such hope. I have rested on this Scripture more times than I can count. Jesus was teaching in the synagogue, and in the midst of His important teaching, He saw a woman who was so sick she was bent over and could not stand upright. Christ sees us in our pain and misery. 

“For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin” (Heb. 4:15 KJV).

Jesus came to seek and save the lost. He came to heal the hurting. When you feel you are alone in your suffering, He sees you. Reach out to Him in faith, and He will touch you. He will give you peace, strength, and endurance as you trust the Holy Spirit to help you endure the struggle. 

This is part of the hope of Advent. Hope is a part of the 

promise of the coming Messiah. Those awaiting the Christ 

Child longed—hoped for deliverance. Have hope this 

Advent season that Christ came to deliver you from the 

power of sin in your life and give you hope. 

 

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Sabbath Sanctuary God Was In Christ: An Advent Reading Of Luke 12

Day 12 Luke Chapter 12

“Be dressed in readiness, and keep your lamps lit. Be like men who are waiting for their master when he returns from the wedding feast, so that they may immediately open the door to him when he comes and knocks” (vv. 35-36).

Jesus is coming again, and He warns us to be ready. I spoke about this on Day 3. It is imperative to remember that the One is coming again, a time for which we still must prepare. A time for which we must be ready. Through the parable, He taught us that He will come when we least expect Him. Several servants were waiting for their master and grew tired, weary from the wait. They lost hope that He would return. I know that many of us—myself included—have grown tired of waiting for miracles to appear and breakthroughs to come. I have grown weary of the cold, dark, lost world that seems to grow darker by the day.

We must remain constantly waiting. We must be vigilant so that we can open up to Him when He arrives. If we wait diligently for Him and are awake and ready, Jesus said that the master will serve those He finds waiting.

Be thankful for Christmas, for without Christ’s coming, we would not have Christmas. All the traditions celebrated at this time of year, Santa and the like, all find their root in the birth of the Christ child. This is a beautiful and wonderful time of year, and I am thankful for the glorious Incarnation. But another time is coming for which we must be ready. Let us reflect on the hush within and focus on the wonderful truth that Christ has come into our world, but let us continue to look forward to the day that He will come again as our triumphant King of kings and Lord of lords.

 

 

 

 

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God Was In Christ: An Advent Reading Of Luke 9

 Day 9 Luke Chapter 9

Who is this Jesus?

“And He said to them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ And Peter answered and said, ‘The Christ of God’” (Lk. 9: 20 NASB).

There are many different beliefs concerning Jesus. Many believe that He was a good teacher. Some hold that He was a prophet deserving of great honor. The pages of the Holy Writ declares who Jesus is through the Old and New Testaments. Peter utters such words of truth in answering Jesus’ question, you are “The Christ of God.” One would think that Jesus would have them announce this revelation on every mountain top! Jesus knew however, that His time had not come. His identification would be well known—after His resurrection.

Though far removed from the loaves and fishes it seemed the provision and sufficiency that Jesus provided sealed the revelation of who He was in Peter’s mind. Though later in a separate Gospel, we see that this revelation came directly from the Father. 

“I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: ‘I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God.’ That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic—on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg—or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.”

~C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

Jesus asked this question of the Twelve because throughout Israel many different reports exited of Him throughout, that He desired to make it clear to them who they were following. He is the Christ, sent by God; the Incarnate Son of God.

During this time of Advent—the season of waiting on Christ—reflection on the person of Christ is imperative. Who is Jesus to you? Is He just an idea that you see at Christmas time and passively give thought to? Is He a great prophet, a Rabbi, or a teacher? Or is He the Son of the Living God; the Messiah who left the glory of heaven, became a man—the perfect, spotless Lamb of God, to redeem you? Who do you say that He is? 

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