For God so loved the world.
Love is the very heart of God, and when He created humanity, He made us in His image to have His heart of love.
That he sent his only Son.
Because sin entered into the heart of man and pushed out God’s love, He sent Jesus to live on earth as a man to suffer and die, taking on our sins.
That whosoever believes in him.
God gives us a choice to accept or reject His love. He will never make us believe or trust Him, but will always be close to us, ready for our cry for salvation.
Should not perish, but have eternal life.
If we accept God’s gift of love, we will not be condemned to eternal judgment and separated from Him. Instead, we can have an eternal life of abundant joy, blessing, and God’s presence forever. As a bonus of accepting God’s gift, we not only receive eternal life but also enjoy God’s abundance and blessings here on earth.
From the very beginning, God has had a plan for salvation for His children. Everything he does has a purpose. We may not understand what He is doing, but we can trust Him to finish whatever He begins.
With the birth of Jesus, we see God’s sovereignty over all things. He unfolded His divine plan with perfect timing and purpose.
When life doesn’t go as planned, we can trust God’s sovereignty and know His plans are perfect and for our good.
Join me in the throne room again.
Father speaking to the Son:
Jesus, are you ready? It’s time to implement our plan. Then, the Holy Spirit comes to Mary and overshadows her. God’s plan to redeem His people is now in motion.
The birth of Jesus brings the blessing of salvation to all humanity. It is the greatest gift and will transform our lives.
When Jesus left the glory of heaven to dwell among us, it was a sacrifice of love. He didn’t have to do it, but because He loved us so much, He willingly gave up His glory to walk with us and then willingly took our shame and sin upon Him to defeat death and give us life with Him forever.
What was Mary thinking when Joseph told her the only place available to them was a stable? Everything she had learned from Elizabeth, and maybe her mother, didn’t include giving birth in a stable.
She didn’t have time to think about it too much as the pains were getting closer and stronger. Jesus would be here soon, so she needed to focus on what she could do.
Joseph would have gotten some water, or maybe some was already inside. Then he stacked bales of straw to make a bed for Mary and laid their coats on top.
Then Mary gathered the strips of cloth she would use to wrap Jesus in. In between pains, she cleaned out the manger. Through it all, Mary pondered each moment in her heart, not understanding why God chose this little stable, but giving thanks that He had provided everything she needed to bring Jesus, His Son, into the world.
On that holy night 2000 years ago, God stepped down from his divine throne to become one of us and live among us. He chose a small stable and an animal manager to teach us about His love.
The manager shows us that God is approachable and desires to meet us where we are. It reminds us that Jesus came to serve, not be served. From the beginning, Jesus’s life was marked by humility, as evidenced by the simplicity of his birthplace.
https://www.bible.com/bible/111/JHN.3.16
