"My friend, if all is silent and dark in your life now, and you feel
like you have been left out in the cold, just know that Jesus came to be
your Savior at such a time as this.
He was not born in the
comfort of a warm, cozy room, but in a cold manger. There was no room
for Him in the inn (Luke 2:7), so that there will always be room at the
cross for your healing, deliverance, wholeness and provision, and a
mansion in heaven waiting for you!
Jesus was born very quietly, so
quietly that the Bible says that only a group of shepherds came to Him,
while the rest of Bethlehem slept. (Luke 2:8–9) Like manna falling
quietly from heaven in the Old Testament, the true bread from heaven
came quietly. It was a silent night, but that was not all.
Jesus
was also born during the darkest time in Israel’s history. Israel was
under the tyrannical rule of the Romans. It was during this time, when
everything was so dark, that Jesus was born. Beloved, He will come to
you in the darkest period of your life.
On that cold and silent
night, the shepherds were afraid when the angel of the Lord stood before
them. But the angel said, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you
good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born
to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”
Beloved,
it was not a judge or lawgiver who was born. It was a mighty Savior. He
came to save His people. He came to save you and me. So even if you are
in a cold, dark period of your life, don’t be afraid—the Savior has
come and He will save you to the uttermost!" -Joseph Prince
"You are probably familiar with the story of Jesus’ birth in
Bethlehem. The Bible says that when the time had come, Mary “brought
forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid
Him in a manger”. (Luke 2:6–7) But have you ever wondered why the angel
told the shepherds that the Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying
in a manger was a “sign”?
A manger is actually a feeding trough
for livestock. Do you know what a feeding trough in those days looks
like? I have seen a similar one at Solomon’s stables in Meggido, Israel.
It is basically a big rectangular block of stone with the trough hewn
out of it. So baby Jesus, who was wrapped in swaddling cloths, was
placed in such a stone trough.
But why was that a sign? Because if
you have seen the empty tomb of Jesus at a place called The Garden Tomb
in Jerusalem, you would have noticed that the place where His body was
laid, inside a tomb hewn out of rock, resembles a stone trough. The
Bible says that after Jesus’ crucifixion and death, Joseph of Arimathea
took Jesus’ body, wrapped it in linen and laid it in a tomb hewn out of a
rock. (Mark 15:43–46)
Can you see the similarities? Wrapped in
swaddling cloths and laid in a manger, baby Jesus would one day be
wrapped in linen and laid in a tomb. That was the sign the angel was
referring to. It pointed to Jesus’ death.
Jesus was the only child
in all of humanity born to die. Once you realize that, you will realize
how much God loves you. You will realize that He gave up His Son for
that one purpose, and that His Son willingly came for that one
purpose—to die for your sins and mine.
Beloved, can you imagine
living your life knowing that you are just qualifying yourself to die on
the cross to save the world? That was the life that Jesus lived. He
lived to die, so that we might live and enjoy life abundantly today!" -Joseph Prince
"The merriest of Christmases to you all! God bless you, and a wonderful New Year! Each and every one of you be blessed to rest in the perfect love and finished work of my Lord Jesus, the Christ, son of the living God! MERRY CHRISTMAS!" -Rock Baker
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