December 3 Christmas Devotions
This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham:
Mathew 1:1
Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is for people who live in a dark world, for people living in the gray days of discouragement. He is the hope of Christmas.
When Adam and Eve rejected God’s rule through sin and rebellion, God made a promise (Genesis 3:15). In this promise, Satan (who had previously rebelled) was judged, “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.” This promise declares that one day a descendant of the woman (that is, a human being) will crush the head of the serpent, Satan. But which descendant would be the promised one?
God narrows the promise of a descendant to the family of Abraham (Gen. 12:1-3). Here God told Abraham that he would make his descendants a great nation and that through Abraham’s offspring all the nations of the earth would be blessed. Is Abraham the one? It becomes clear to the reader that he is not the promised one. The search for the promise one continued. But which person of all Abraham’s descendants would be the promised one? As the storyline of the Bible continues, the promise is narrowed down again to Judah and a ruler (Gen. 49:10), “the scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, until tribute comes to him; and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.”
The ruler (symbolized by the scepter) will receive tribute and obedience from the peoples of the earth. Hundreds of years later, this promise narrows to a descendant of Judah named David. God chose David to be king. Is David the promised Messiah? Soon, it becomes clear that David will not fulfill the original messianic promise. Like Abraham, Jacob, and Judah before him, David’s life is marked by sin.
During David’s kingly reign, God sends the prophet Nathan to give David the following promise: “And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever” (2 Sam. 7:16). A descendant of David will rule on his throne and over his kingdom forever. The Old Testament ends with this messianic promise unfulfilled.
Following the end of the Old Testament, hundreds of years go by, and still no promised Messiah. This intertestamental period, the approximately 400-year gap between the Old and New Testaments, begins with the end of the prophet Malachi's ministry (around 420 BC) and ends with the birth of Jesus and the ministry of John the Baptist (around 30 AD). This period was also known as the "silent years" because no biblical prophecies were recorded.
The wait continued for over 400 years until we read the opening words of Matthew’s Gospel with informed eyes: “The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham” (Matt. 1:1). Matthew begins by declaring Jesus to be the Son of David, the Son of Abraham, the long-awaited Messiah! This is tidings of comfort and joy.
Jesus came to save his people from their sins (1:21). Hope is bound up in the person of Jesus the Messiah. He is the promised one. May this bring tidings of comfort and joy this Christmas.
JOIN US FOR OUR CHRISTMAS SERIES THROUGHOUT DECEMBER AS WE DISCOVER GOOD TIDINGS OF COMFORT AND JOY:
December 7: Good Tidings...According to Matthew
December 14: Good Tidings...According to Luke
December 21: Good Tidings...According to John
Join us for our Christmas Eve Candlelight Service (December 24) at 6:00 pm.
The Sunday Worship Service begins at 10:00 am. Join us!