A Word of Encouragement from Elizabeth Rice Handford
When you stop to think about it, the whole Christmas story is incredible, almost too good to be true. But it’s so familiar, we may forget how very wonderful it is.
Just think! The eternal, almighty God, who has vast power, who is holy beyond our imagination, who is infinite in wisdom, decided to create a beautiful world and fill it with human beings made just like Him. He wanted to wrap them in His dazzling gifts of love. He wanted them to love Him back. He could have created them so they would automatically love Him, but that wouldn’t be real love, would it? He wanted them to voluntarily choose to love Him.
But giving them that choice meant they could choose not to love Him, to choose instead to go their own selfish, evil ways. And that’s exactly what those human beings did. They didn’t reckon on the terrible consequences of their sin. The people God created with such joy were doomed to the awful punishment of eternal Hell.
But God wasn’t surprised at their choices, and before He even created them, He’d made a way so His uncompromising justice amd His passionate love could both be satisfied. Revelation 13:8 says Jesus was slain before the foundation of the world.
But how could He do this? By that Christmas story, so familiar that we may forget to realize how awesome it really is.
God Himself, Jesus, would take on flesh-and-blood so He could die to pay for our sins. He would be born a vulnerable, fragile baby, grow up without ever making even one bad choice. And then, because He’d never sinned, and because he had a human body, He could die in place of us silly, sinful human beings. Then He could bring us all to Heaven to be with Him forever, to share His glory, His gifts, His eternal love. All they would have to do to receive it is to accept that free, unbelievably precious Christmas gift.
But God shows His love for us in that
while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Since, therefore, we have now been justified by His blood,
much more shall we be saved by Him from the wrath of God.
For if while we were enemies
we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son,
Much more, now that we are reconciled,
shall we be saved by His life. Romans 5:8-10 (esv)
And that’s the old, Christmas story, so familiar, but so very dear. May it never lose its power to move us to love the Lord Jesus with all our hearts