“She will give birth to a son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins.” Matthew 1:21
There is a name above all names. Jesus. At the name of Jesus, all knees will bow and tongues confess He is Lord. At the name of Jesus, angels bow and demons quake. At the name of Jesus, strongholds break. At the name of Jesus, forgiveness flows. At the name of Jesus, shame loses its hold and death has no sting. At the name of Jesus, I find my peace and purpose.
Hallelujah that we have a God who saw our needs and provided a solution. Hallelujah that we have a God who cared about the little wretches, so small and so distant. Hallelujah that God doesn’t leave us wallowing, whimpering, and wasting. He has provided a cleansing balm, Jesus. He has provided a calming peace, Jesus. He has promised and provided provision, Jesus.
This time of year, when we celebrate Jesus’ birth, we might feel unworthy. We might feel small and meager. We might feel shame-faced and broken. We might feel lonely and lost. We might feel bitter and berating. But we don’t have to feel this way. That’s the miracle of Christmas. The only gift that truly matters was swaddled in a Bethlehem manger, and He brought with Him freedom, grace, mercy, hope, joy, and victory.
The reason Jesus came was to save us from our sins. To save us from the Devil and his wicked schemes. He came to save us from ourselves and our destructive patterns. He came to save us from the deadly wiles of the world.
Bob Kauflin and Lisa Clow wrote a song called “O Come All You Unfaithful” written to the melody of “O Come All Ye Faithful”. I invite you to read over the lyrics and believe and truly taste that Jesus came into the mess and into the darkness to be our great light. (Punctuation added for readability)
“O come, all you unfaithful. Come, weak and unstable. Come, know you are not alone. O come, barren and waiting ones, Weary of praying, come. See what your God has done. Christ is born. Christ is born for you.
O come, bitter and broken. Come with fears unspoken. Come, taste of His perfect love. O come, guilty and hiding ones. There is no need to run. See what your God has done. Christ is born, Christ is born. Christ is born for you.
He’s the Lamb who was given, slain for our pardon. His promise is peace, for those who believe… So come, though you have nothing. Come, He is the offering. Come, see what your God has done. Christ is born…Christ is born for you”
We are human which means we are messy and broken. God loves us broken vessels and can use us in His loving and tender hands. Sometimes it takes us extending extra grace upon ourselves to allow His mastery to flow. Jesus came for us. He came for you, and He came for me. Our hair undone and clothes with stains, He came. Our minds a crazy race and our heart set on other things, He came. Our past a wreck and our future in chains, He came. Because He came, He changed everything.
I wonder if Jesus knew the depth of suffering He would endure on the cross. All the sin that ever was or would be hung upon Jesus on that tree. And all the shame that accompanies sin, clung to Jesus that day, forcing His Father to look away. All the sickness and pain we develop seeped into his body to bring our deliverance. The punishment and death our sin deserves was sentenced on Jesus while He bled on the cross of Calvary. The place of righteous standing in God’s eye, the place that
belongs to Jesus alone, was transferred to us when the price for our sins was paid. And all because on one cold day a wee, holy baby in a manger was laid.
The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call Him Immanuel (which means “God with us”).” Matthew 1:23