“I will wait for the LORD, who is hiding his face from the house of Jacob. I will put my trust in him.”
Isaiah 8:17
After 400 years of silence, God’s redemption plan began to unfold in the most well-known story ever. And it is a story which shows us that Christmas is more than just sentiment and gifts and family gatherings. The Christmas story provides more than good feelings and carols sung by heart.
Jesus didn’t end God’s seeming silence by being born in a Roman palace or Herod’s court. The Holy Spirit didn’t choose aristocrats or princes to bear, announce, and celebrate the coming of the long-promised Messiah. There is something wonderfully ordinary about each of the people of the nativity story.
But this baby in the manger was no ordinary child. He was both God and man in the flesh. And He would be the Light not only for the Jewish people, but for everyone. The world is depressingly dark these days—as it was that first Christmas. In Jesus, we see the light that dawned and has overcome the darkness.
Let’s look afresh at the story of Jesus as told through the lives of those who found their way to the manger, pointing us to the One who came to save us.
Jesus didn’t end God’s seeming silence by being born in a Roman palace or Herod’s court. The Holy Spirit didn’t choose aristocrats or princes to bear, announce, and celebrate the coming of the long-promised Messiah. There is something wonderfully ordinary about each of the people of the nativity story.
But this baby in the manger was no ordinary child. He was both God and man in the flesh. And He would be the Light not only for the Jewish people, but for everyone. The world is depressingly dark these days—as it was that first Christmas. In Jesus, we see the light that dawned and has overcome the darkness.
Let’s look afresh at the story of Jesus as told through the lives of those who found their way to the manger, pointing us to the One who came to save us.
Scripture Focus
Isaiah 9:6-7
Insight
Martin Luther said the great news was proclaimed while “the great lords in Jerusalem, who do not accept it, go on sleeping” (1530).
Bible In A Year
- Ezekiel 45-46
- Proverbs 3
- Hebrews 1-2
