Luke 2:6-7 "While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger. . . ."
Hallelujah! Jesus is born.
This is the season of parties and presents and special services and family get-togethers, and those are great ways to celebrate. But to me, the very best way to mark the season is with lights. I'm partial to white ones, or candle light, but light is what it's all about.
My favorite Christmas verse is Isaiah 9:2 "The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned."
Only Jesus knows the darkness of my heart, and the dark places my wayward feet have taken me. Only He sees the dark smears all over my soul. And the amazing thing is that He not only cared so much that He endured that miserable manger, but He also cares less than anyone else. He loves me anyway.
So on Christmas morning, I'll be in church singing "Joy to the World," but I'll be looking at the Advent candles and thinking, as I do every year, that a Light has dawned.
And then I think about what the angel (hmmm . . . could it possibly have been Gabriel?) showed the apostle John about our ultimate destination: "I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there." (Revelation 21:22-25).
Come, Lord Jesus. Come quickly. I see the light dawning, and I can't wait for full noon.
No comments:
Post a Comment