That Whoever Believes in Him [Christmas]

Parents who send a son off to the army are afraid, even though they know he will come home. In the same way, we celebrate the birth of Jesus while knowing that the cross lies ahead of him. Just as God had promised when he spoke to Satan, the offspring of the woman was born in a manger.

Immanuel means that God is with us. Mary could have lost her life by becoming pregnant, yet she answered that she wanted it to be done to her according to God’s word. She knew her son would bear the cross, and still she raised him to the very end. Her sorrow was greater than the joy of fulfilling her calling, but she embraced it because it brought God’s promise to pass.

God sent his Son into the world not to condemn it but to save it. Whoever believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. Christmas is not a festival of the world. It belongs to God’s people, who believe this truth.