He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end. Ecclesiastes 3:11
For thus says the High and Lofty One Who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “I dwell in the high and holy place, With him who has a contrite and humble spirit, To revive the spirit of the humble, And to revive the heart of the contrite ones. Isaiah 57:15
Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come,
Your Will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread, Matthew 6:9-11
“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. John 3:16
The Creator of the Universe loved His creation, even though this creation rebelled against Him, even though the man and woman said they would rather taste the forbidden fruit than trust that their Creator wanted what was best for them.
The Everlasting Father gave us a gift. He had already given us the earth to take care of, and we botched it. We did the one thing that Father told us not to do; we ate the fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. We learned what sin was.
Father is giving us another gift!
Father had only one of these, and He’s giving it to you and me! He must love us greatly.
Jesus! Father’s giving us Jesus, not an object! God’s Son left His glory with God in heaven and entered Mary’s womb to become a baby. He lived in a poor carpenter’s family. He taught the people about the kingdom of heaven. He healed the lame, touched the leper, gave sight to the blind, brought sound to the deaf, raised the dead, fed the 5,000, calmed the sea, taught the multitudes, and loved the unlovely.
Jesus, the One we nailed to the cross, took our sins upon Himself. He paid the penalty for our sins.
Jesus died on the cross.
Jesus rose from the dead.
Jesus sits at the right hand of God, saying, “I paid the price for her, for him. They are my sister and brother.”
Jesus loves you and me.
Anyone? Yes, anyone who reaches out and unwraps the gift. That means a murderer, a liar, an adultress, a thief … anyone.
Anyone who trusts in Jesus, God’s gift to the world, anyone who clings to Jesus.
The person who clings to Jesus will not suffer spiritual death, a separation from God that would result in great suffering in hell.
The gift is the fullness of life without an end … walks with God in the cool of the garden … life basking upon the glory of God … life wrapped in the color-filled quilt washed with the precious blood of Jesus.
Father in heaven, cause Your great and precious promise to seep into every cell of our being. Cause us to understand Your incomprehensible love, a love that would give Your most precious gift to an unloving and rebellious people. We want to press into You and possess Your promise in all its depth, height, and width. Help us, Lord. Thank You, Jesus!
“You will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” Luke 1:31-33
Keith and I just returned from Rome. The Pieta is my favorite piece of art. While tourists are pointing and snapping photos, I work my way through the crowd to stand next to the barrier that separates us from Michelangelo’s meditation in marble. Each year that I’ve returned, I’ve cried or I’ve hugged another woman who could not control the tears.
Mary’s grief became our grief.
I wonder if she was thinking about Gabriel’s proclamation about her son, the One who would be the Son of the Most High, Jesus who would reign on David’s throne.
From a mother’s eyes, I saw a woman who had experienced everything miraculous about her Son, her Savior, her Lord … from His birth, to the turning of water into wine, from raising the dead, to healing the lepers, restoring sight to the blind and song to the deaf. This was the Man who was slated to save Israel. In her lap was her Messiah. Here was all her hope, all her love, all her dreams. Beaten beyond recognition. Dead.
As she holds her Savior, her hand asks “Why?”
Why?
You and I are sinners.
Why?
The cost of our sin is death – complete separation from our Holy God.
Why?
Jesus paid the cost of our sin by living a perfect life and dying in our place – the perfect sacrifice.
Why?
Jesus’ death on the cross cleansed us from our sins and made it possible to live forever with Him – if we become His followers.
Why?
Jesus rose from the dead, conquering death.
Why?
Jesus now sits in heaven at the right hand of God speaking on our behalf when Satan accuses us of sin.
Why?
Jesus loves me. Jesus loves you.
Why?
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16
Father, thank You for Jesus. Thank You for giving Jesus to the world as our Savior. I pray that You will fill readers with a deeper knowledge and appreciation of Your sacrifice and bring those who do not know You to a saving belief in Jesus. I love You, Lord.
