Matthew 1:21
21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus,[a]because he will save his people from their sins.”
The angel was speaking to Joseph who was pretty much in shock that he would be the father to the Son of God. Thankfully the angel at least helped him to know what to name the Messiah. Can you imagine if they had to try to come up with a name. In this one name the world would come to know the purpose of Jesus coming. Jesus simply means, God our Savior.
He did not come to save them from the Roman government and their oppression. He did not come to save them from the pain of life. He came to defeat sin in their lives because sin divided them and us from our Holy God. Sin is the stumbling block between eternal life with Jesus and an eternity without him.
John 3:16 reminds us,16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."
Why would we perish? the answer is simple. Our sins.
You know It is easy to talk about Jesus coming to earth to show us the way to live and to love. Which he did but He did more! We can also talk about Jesus the revolutionary, standing up for the rights of the oppressed and showing them dignity. Which he did but he did more! It is easy to think about how Jesus loved us so much that he would go to the cross as a misunderstood pacifist. it is true that he would not raise a hand to another but there is so much more!
If it was only a gift of love that Jesus offered to us then it would be appropriate to mourn his death as a victim of love. If that would be the case the appropriate headline would read, "Loving, misunderstood healer and teacher dies on the cross a cruel death." But because he came to die to save his people from their sins another headline seems more fitting. "Savior dies for the sins of the World, through faith we are saved!"
If he came to save us from the Romans... he surely failed. If he came to save us from pain and struggles... again Jesus mission seemed incomplete. But If Jesus came to save his people from their sins...Mission accomplished!
Prayer: Dear Jesus thank you for humbling yourself to come to this earth to die on the cross because of our sins. We thank you that you took away our sins. That you died in our place to atone for our sins so we could live forever. Through faith we are saved! Lord help us to now walk a life that is worth of such a great gift! Amen
To ponder: There is so much to be said about this wonderful, loving, miracle working teacher who stood up for the rights of the oppressed and we should follow in His example. But shouldn't we spend just as much if not more time focusing on Jesus who saves people from their sins. How can we make sure we keep that balance?
To ponder: There is so much to be said about this wonderful, loving, miracle working teacher who stood up for the rights of the oppressed and we should follow in His example. But shouldn't we spend just as much if not more time focusing on Jesus who saves people from their sins. How can we make sure we keep that balance?
