The Reason for the Season

Matthew 1:18-25

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By Adrianna Steele

She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.

One year in elementary school, I remember an older saint asking me what I wanted for Christmas. I could barely get what I wanted out of my mouth before she exclaimed,

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“You know, Jesus is the reason for the season!” 

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To which I replied:

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“Yes, He is . . . but do I still get my easy-bake oven?”

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Looking back, I see I missed the point. Now as an adult, I can go to God’s Word for wisdom and instruction but take the Gospel for granted. I can recite “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness” and fail to remember how I became a part of God’s Kingdom in the first place. Admittedly even as a worship leader, songs that tell the story of Christ’s coming can become repetitive in my mind with the reality of the lyrics never hitting my heart. I can still miss the point.

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In the hustle and bustle of the holiday season and the myriad of preparations we make for it, how much do we miss? How many times do we sing songs of Christ’s first coming without letting the reality of the lyrics revive our souls? 

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My prayer for you and me this season is that we would never take the miraculous story of Advent for granted. The truth is we all have inherited our forefather’s and mother’s sin nature. Without Christ, we are bound to sin and destined for destruction. But God, in his unending love, sent His Son to live the life we couldn’t live and die the death we deserved so we could be adopted as His sons and daughters. Because of Jesus, we are heirs to an everlasting Kingdom we could never earn. He left His throne above and put on flesh to save us from our sins. Not only that, He is coming back again! Every tear will be wiped from our eyes. We will enjoy perfect communion with God forever. 

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Let us find joy in our present and future realities. Let us sing boldly of the hope that is to come, and let us never tire of the Gospel. 

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REFLECT:

• Where do you see evidence of the fall in the world? 
• Where do you see evidence of the fall in your heart? 
• How does the reality of God’s love shed light on those areas?