“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” —John 3:16

It was a little after midnight, December 25, 1970.  A teenage girl gave birth to a baby boy at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. I have no idea how scared or alone my mother must’ve felt that night, not to mention all the physical pain. For many years, I had a front row seat watching that single mother raise my sister and me while working a fulltime job by day and continuing her education by night. Though I had a gazillion questions growing up, never once did I ever have to question my mother’s love for me. It was proven over and over again through the repeated sacrifices she made to take care of us.

In Romanas 5:6-11, Paul uses these words to express the loving sacrifice Jesus has made for us:

You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. ⁷ Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. ⁸ But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. ⁹ Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! ¹⁰ For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! ¹¹ Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

Depending on the context, the Greek word for “demonstrates” in verse 8 has been translated “to stand near in approval,” “to show, prove, establish, exhibit.” It was also used in a legal sense, such as a defense lawyer exhibiting evidence that might exonerate his client. In another context, it is translated “to put together by way of composition,” as in how a musical composer might take many scores or sequences and put them all together in one beautiful arrangement or melodious blend.

All these meanings point to a loving Savior, sacrificing His life for the “powerless” and the “ungodly,” standing in their place of judgment and paying the penalty for their sins at just the right time in history. Who are these sinners in desperate need of the Savior? Paul spent the first two-and-a-half chapters of the Book of Romans telling us that we all are those people. Yet God has demonstrated and proven in a heavenly court of law His love for us in that “while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

God’s love has been exhibited best when we have been at our worst. His approval resounded the loudest when shame tried to silence us. He has “stood near” when suffering threatened to break us. Like my neighbor, you might be facing your first Christmas after the passing of a loved one. Despite all the glitter and tinsel on the outside, you might be battling depression, loneliness, or feelings of failure on the inside. Maybe financial hardship has left you with no gifts under the tree. The beauty of this passage as it relates to Christmas is that God always shows up for the powerless… and its always at the right time.

Like a great composer, God is masterfully working all things “for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28). This Christmas, you can trust the Great Composer of your life, because Jesus was born into a broken and bleeding world to orchestrate God’s redemption in and through all things. He’s proven His love over and over again in your life, and I assure you He has no plans to stop showing up now. He is still composing today! Think about that as you seek to abide in Him this Christmas.

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, thank you for demonstrating your love to me while I was weak, powerless, and sinful. Jesus, you stood near as you took my punishment on the cross. You stood near as you were raised back to life for my justification. And you stand near today when the stuff of this life tries to hijack my peace. Holy Spirit, You have never left me alone. Empower me to trust the composition you are writing today through all the good and bad. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Questions for Personal Reflection or Group Discussion:

1. What is one of your favorite Christmas memories?
2. When has God demonstrated His love to you in a difficult time?
3. What does this passage in Romans 5 teach us about the character of God?
4. What has been afforded to us through Jesus’ sacrifice (Romans 5:9-11)?
5. In what areas of your life do you need to trust the Great Composer to work out for good?

The post Advent Week 4: Trusting the Great Composer appeared first on Jimmy Larche.

“And the angel said to them, ‘Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.’” —Luke 2:10

It was at nighttime, when things were darkest, that the shepherds had their typically mundane routine hijacked by the angelic host from heaven, heralding the glorious news about the birth of a Savior. Have you ever wondered why lowly shepherds were chosen as the first on earth to hear the glad tidings, or “good news,” of Jesus’ arrival?

Shepherding is one of the world’s oldest occupations. By trade, their lifestyle would’ve been one of humble and meager means. In some regards, they were marginalized people held in low estimation by others in society. For example, in the Talmud, we read that shepherds were not allowed to be considered witnesses in the legal system of that time. If you were brought before the courts on a criminal charge and your only alibi happened to be a shepherd, you were in trouble. Your witness wouldn’t be acceptable.

Shepherds were not only seen as unreliable, but as unclean nomads. And yet God looked down on a people whose word wasn’t treated as reliable and entrusted them with the amazing news of Christ’s birth—the hope of the world. They weren’t exactly the most influential of their day. They weren’t the power brokers, the politicians, or the change-makers. They were just keepers of the sheep. In the great adventure of fleshing out God’s missional mandate, He chose the weak, the not yet, and those on the outside, to further His kingdom. As Paul would later write, “God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are.”

Luke 2:10-14 records it this way:

And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”

Three verses later we see that God was pleased to use these men, the bottom of the social class in Israel, to be the very first human preachers of the newborn King. The original text in verse 17 has been translated: they “spread the word,” “told everyone,” “made known abroad,” “publicized widely,” and “spread the message.”

As you read this passage, consider how God is calling you to be His messenger in a world that needs the hope of Jesus. How can you join God on His mission in the coming new year? Maybe you feel unqualified to make a difference. Think about those shepherds. They were so overcome with the consciousness of the Good News that they didn’t have any room left to be self-conscious about their doubters and haters. They were so lit up about the message that they didn’t consider the world thought of them as unworthy or uninfluential messengers. They made a difference anyway!

Perhaps you feel like your world is too dark to make a difference. Remember that the glorious invasion of the Gospel came to those shepherds at night, when things were the darkest. When the hour is the darkest, the light is the greatest! Advent reminds us that the light has invaded the darkness and hope has come. Peace has come. Joy has come. And we have been tasked with the Great Commission of heralding the Gospel in this hour. God has a mission that needs you. Never let the haters marginalize that truth! Go, and “spread His message” to those around you.

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, thank you for invading the darkness of my sin with the light of your salvation. Thank you for the Good News of Jesus, that all who put their faith in Christ have been born again to a new and living hope. Expose any fears I have, or any areas where I am too preoccupied with self to make a difference in the world. Empower me to live on mission with you, being your messenger in the places where you are pleased to use me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.   

Questions for Personal Reflection or Group Discussion:

1. What typically comes to mind when you think about shepherds?
2. When has God invaded a dark time in your life?
3. In what ways have you felt unqualified or unworthy to share the Good News of Jesus with others?
4. What can we learn about God from this passage in Luke 2?
5. What does obedience to God’s mission look like in your life right now?

The post Advent Week 3: Good News Came at the Darkest Time appeared first on Jimmy Larche.