ADVENT DEVOTIONS FOR FAMILY AND PERSONAL WORSHIP

Tuesday, December 23 Read Acts 1:6-11

The word Immanuel is second only to the word Lord in Christian worship. The Incarnation is the noblest idea of any world religion. God did not watch human despair from the safety of heaven. He clothed Himself in humanity. He ceased watching the human war and became a soldier. Oh, the things that God experienced in becoming a man:
· The blistering summer sun,
· The shivering rains of winter,
· The blight of world hunger when He fasted after His baptism,
· The desperation of bereavement when His earthly father died,
· The empathy of a mother’s tears when she stood at the cross,
· The disappearance of all friends at His arrest in Gethsemane,
· The pain of a friend’s denials when Peter quaked before the truth,
· The staggering shock of treachery by His friend Judas,
· The horror of naked judgement with no one to speak on His behalf,
· The agony of the crucifixion where He experienced the status of a convict,
· The agony of death,
· The loneliness of being forsaken by everyone.
All these things – when put together – spell IMMANUEL. These things are what the God of all mercy took upon Himself.

But why did He do it? Because these sorts of things form the fabric of all our living. We cannot live without bumps and pains, without heartache and desolation, without mosquito bites and cancer. Immanuel was God saying, “You shall not bear such pain alone.” God became flesh to redeem.

Let Jesus be incarnate in your life, and then maybe when you have stooped to serve the desperate and dying, you will hear them say the word Immanuel. When Christ becomes incarnate in your life, you will hear those you serve saying to you, “I cannot help but believe in Christ. I have seen Him in your life.”

An Additional Reading: Read 1 Corinthians 2:1-5. How much convincing does it really take to share with someone the blessings of Christmas? The world rarely responds to our profound arguments. It is rarely moved by our wise perspectives, even when we present them well. It is more often won by our thoughtfulness than our theology. It is more often drawn to God by His presence in our lives than by our persuasion. It is our Christ, not our creed, which captures people’s hearts.

Prayer: LORD, make me an instrument on Your Incarnation. Live in me until my life is so submerged in Yours that I am invisible. Wherever I go, whatever I do, may I hear those around me breathe the word ‘Immanuel’, suggesting that I am nothing and You are everything. AMEN.