St. Paul writes, " When the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!" So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God. (Galatians 4:4-7)
When we examine our lives, it can be difficult to believe that Almighty God sees us this way. But He does. He declares to us: You are My beloved child. He sent His own Son to bear all our failures, brokenness, and sin - to take the punishment we deserved - so that we might receive adoption as the redeemed, forgiven, and beloved children of God. It is through the eternally begotten Son of God that we are now the children of God.
And, it is entirely by God’s grace. It is entirely His work. This is what our Advent Midweek series is all about. It’s; called, “This is My Son”; In this series, the lives of Cain, Ishmael, and Absalom are set in contrast to the life of our Lord Jesus Christ. In the lives of Cain, Ishmael, and Absalom, we can recognize our failures and sins; our brokenness and inability to be the perfect child of God by our own efforts and strength. But, thanks be to God, He has broken through the darkness of this world and our lives with the glorious light of the Gospel - that God sent forth HisSon to wash away all our sin and give us new and everlasting life. God doesn’t want us to wallow in past failure and sin.
He wants us to truly believe that He does in fact forgive us all of our sins for the sake of His beloved Son, Jesus. And, that, through Jesus, by His grace, He has made us His beloved children forever. This is why He sent His Son to be born in Bethlehem.
Holy Bible (NIV)
Hebrews 12: 2
Because of Jesus, our Father in heaven looks at us and sees the righteousness of His beloved Son, Jesus Christ, and says, “You are My Son. With you I am well pleased.” At this time of year, the days grow darker. It gets colder. But, our sure confidence and hope for the future, and strength for each day, is in the One who is the Light of the World. No matter how dark things seem to be, no matter how hopeless things may appear, there is true and abiding hope in Jesus Christ. No matter how chaotic the world around us is, in terms of broken relationships, violence in our country and around the world, there is true peace in the One who is the Prince of Peace.
No matter how saddened we are by the struggles of daily life, the loss of loved ones, and the pain we experience physically, mentally, and emotionally, there is true joy in the One "who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God" (Hebrews 12:2). The One who is Love in the flesh has come to us and has put an end to our sin, sorrow, and shame on the cross. And, by rising from the dead He has given us everlasting victory over the grave. Because He lives, we too shall live. Nothing will ever separate us from the Love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord, the Son of God, who did it all for us.
All glory be to Him, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever!
