Christmas – Be Still…

Christmas 📖 John 1:1-14 – Word

Read John 1:1-14

Our Christmas reading selections would not be complete without this passage from John’s gospel. There are no smelly stables or glowing angels in this story, only powerful messages about who Jesus is! We often forget that Jesus played an instrumental role in creation. He is also the Word bringing light to everyone.

Jesus is the “true light” available to all. Yet there are many people who reject the light of Christ in their lives. Either they don’t know the joy of Jesus’ saving grace, have never heard about Jesus, or have decided they don’t need Jesus because everything is “good.” How do you get across to this dark world that life can be so much better than “good” with Jesus in it?

Christmas 🆓 Galatians 4:4-7 – Freedom

Read Galatians 4:4-7

The Christmas season continues as we celebrate Jesus’ coming into this world. We have been reflecting on how this little baby brought truth, wisdom, and faith. Paul is describing for us how our inheritance of faith works in today’s reading. Paul had been talking about how until Jesus, people had been like slaves to the law. Jesus’ coming changed that for us when he brought freedom.

There are some great nuggets we don’t want to miss in this reading. The first one is that Jesus came at just the right time. God’s timing is always perfect. We may wish for things to happen on our timeline, but when we can let go and let God, that’s when the miracles happen. Is there something you need to let go of so God can step in without you being in the way?

Christmas 📜 Isaiah 7:14 – Immanuel

“All right then, the Lord himself will give you the sign. Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel
(which means ‘God is with us’). “ (Isaiah 7:14)

I love that the name Immanuel means “God is with us.” What a perfect name for Jesus. He came into the dark world he loved so much to be with us, to be one of us. Knowing Jesus is with us gives us hope for tomorrow and makes the world a little brighter.

It’s interesting to know the back story of this prophecy from Isaiah. Right before this, Isaiah had been speaking with King Ahaz. You may recall Ahaz was one of those wicked kings that did detestable things. (2 Kings 16) It was during his 16-year reign that Ahaz feared a takeover by Israel and it’s ally, Assyria. God’s message through Isaiah had been that no invasion would take place.

Christmas 🕍 Luke 2:25-35 – Faith

Read Luke 2:25-35

Can you imagine having received the message Simeon had, giving him the assurance he would see the Messiah before he died? Many had been waiting for the Messiah to come rescue them. It had been hundreds of years since the prophets had foretold a Messiah would come. In Simeon’s day, the Roman oppression was so great the people were anxiously awaiting the day their Messiah king would powerfully come to save them.

Simeon’s faith is commendable. Amidst the struggles of life under Roman control, and the natural aging process our bodies go through, Simeon never lost hope. He had faith in God’s promise. It seems as if his faith was the fuel that sustained Simeon through each day of waiting.

Christmas 🌟 Matthew 2:1-12 – Wisdom

Read Matthew 2:1-12

These men were expecting a Jewish king to be born from prophecy. They must have been elated when they finally saw the star. We don’t know much about these men, other than they were wise. The text doesn’t say where they came from, how long they had traveled, or how many of them there were. Have we assumed three because there were three special gifts? (Fun fact: the Eastern church recognizes there were twelve wise men!)

Their wisdom had prepared them for this moment. You can imagine many people had seen that glorious star in the sky, but they had no idea what it meant. Somehow, these men knew it signified the birth of a future Jewish king, even greater than King Herod, the then current king on the throne.