A Christmas Message – What God Has Done For Us

A Christmas Message – What God Has Done For Us MESSAGE SUMMARY: The people in and around Jesus’ birth were just ordinary people like us. In our celebration of Jesus’ birth on this Christmas, we celebrate the event that transformed world history and many of our lives. The birth of Jesus was a supernatural birth and was God’s intervention into the Universe’s natural order. This birth was foretold hundreds of years before Jesus’ birth, and these prophesies were written and recorded, for us, in the Bible. Jesus’ birth was the birth, of a child, that did for the human race what the human race could not do for itself. Jesus was born for all people. This baby, Jesus, was born to be a Savior for all humankind. The birth of Jesus was the birth of God as both human and divine – the Incarnation, as the Angels told the Shepherds on the first Christmas Eve in Luke 2:9-11: “And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear. And the angel said to them, ‘Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.’". In Isaiah 53:4-6, Jesus, birth, death, and Resurrection, as our means for our Salvation, were foretold more than five-hundred years before Jesus birth: “Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.". God, through His Grace, gave of Himself what we could not do for ourselves, thereby, providing, through the birth of Jesus, us with the means for our Salvation from our sins and for our Eternal Life. This Gift of and by God is what Christmas and Christianity are all about.  Is Jesus your Savior? God has given you the greatest Christmas gift that you will ever receive. Have you accepted His Gift and opened His gift into your life? If not, then why not? With your hands open, you can accept God’s Christmas gift by saying: “I am sorry; thank you; and please”.   TODAY’S PRAYER: Keeping the Sabbath, Lord, will require a lot of changes in the way I am living life. Teach me, Lord, how to take the next step with this in a way that fits my unique personality and situation. Help me to trust you with all that will remain unfinished and to enjoy my humble place in your very large world. In Jesus’ name, amen. Scazzero, Peter. Emotionally Healthy Spirituality Day by Day (p. 129). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. TODAY’S AFFIRMATION: I affirm that because of what God has done for me in His Son, Jesus, I AM FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT. If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him! (Luke 11:13). SCRIPTURE REFERENCE (ESV): Luke 2:9-11; Matthew 1:21; Isaiah 53:4-6; Colossians 1:15-19; Hebrews 1-3; John 1:4; John10:30; John 14:8-11; John 3:16-17. (Click the blue below to read the full Bible text for these scripture references in BOLD.). A WORD FROM THE LORD WEBSITE LINK: www.awordfromthelord.org WEBSITE LINK TO DR. BEACH’S DAILY DEVOTIONAL – “Jesus Followers Are the Enemy’s {devil’s} Target to Mess You Up and To Destroy Your Relationship with God”: https://awordfromthelord.org/devotional/ DONATE TO AWFTL: https://mygiving.secure.force.com/GXDonateNow?id=a0Ui000000DglsqEAB