Thankful for God's Son
Luke 1:26-33
We sinned against Him, yet He gave Himself for us.
Mary was a simple Jewish girl. She respected her parents, willingly completed her work around the house, and sought to honor God through her life. She was entering a joyful time of her life. She was planning a wedding to Joseph, the carpenter. She had much preparing to do, yet in the midst of what surely was a busy time, God interrupted her plans. He had another path for her to take.
Mary's cousin Elizabeth was pregnant. What joy! Despite their old age and years of barrenness, Elizabeth and her husband Zacharias were finally going to welcome a child into the world. Surely Mary was excited for Elizabeth and perhaps dreamed of one day having her own child.
In Elizabeth's sixth month of pregnancy, Mary was visited by the angel Gabriel. Gabriel greeted Mary with a high compliment, "Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women." God had noticed Mary's dedication to Him and favored her. Although this was an exciting revelation, Mary feared the angel's presence.
Gabriel assured Mary and then revealed God's master plan to her: "And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end." The time for God to send the Messiah into the world had come, and He was going to use Mary to do so.
Take a minute right now and realize that Christ's entrance into this world didn't have to occur. Jesus could have simply disregarded the need for a Saviour and remained in Heaven. Yet because of His love for us, He gave up His throne, left Heaven's glory, departed from His Father's presence, assumed the body of a man, lived in this imperfect world, suffered the temptations of society, and died a criminal's death to provide eternal salvation for you and me.
Never get over the fact that Jesus came to earth voluntarily. When our sin needed a sacrifice, He offered Himself. What a loving and merciful God we serve! We sinned against Him, yet He gave Himself for us.
As we end our month of thanksgiving, remember the greatest reason to be thankful-Jesus' sacrifice on Calvary. Without Jesus' sacrifice, we would be forever lost. Without His willingness to be offered, we would have no hope. He is our life, our hope, and our joy.
You've had many things to be thankful for this month; don't let the thanksgiving month end without taking time to thank God for sending His Son to die for your sins. Though Jesus was powerful enough to command the worlds, He made Himself human enough to die for your sins. Thank and praise Him for His wonderful sacrifice!
Daily Bible Reading
Ezekiel 37-39 | 2 Peter 2
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