From the beginning, He created everything and declared it good. The people He first created ate the forbidden fruit, despite His command not to. In doing so, they brought into existence what would come to be known as a sin-cursed world. You, I, and everyone else are now born and shaped in iniquity from our mother’s womb, bound and cursed by sin. Sin, sin, and more sin began to overtake the world. God sent His prophets to warn the people to turn from their wicked ways, but they refused. The people continued in their sinful ways, and God, at His wit’s end, was ready to destroy the world. For years, Noah urged the people to repent, but they ignored him. And when the rain began to fall, “bam!” the ark door was shut. For forty days and forty nights, the pouring rain wiped away the world. The people who had mocked and laughed at Noah were no more.
After the flood, one might think the people would turn their hearts back to God, but instead, they returned to their old ways, forgetting the lessons they should have learned. And so, the cycle of sin continued.
Once again, God was ready to destroy the world, but this time, He sent a solution—a sacrifice to save us all. Jesus, His Son, offered Himself to redeem our sin-cursed world, so that you, I, and everyone else could be free again. No longer bound—free indeed! But now, with Jesus in heaven, how would He come down to save us? God sent angels to search the earth, and there, among all the people, was Mary—a young girl who found favor with God to bring forth the Savior of the world. Mary? The virgin? Engaged to be married? How could this be? What would Joseph think? “Joseph,” said the angel, “Take Mary as your wife. What you see happening is a God thing; do not worry.”
It was night, and Mary began to feel the weight of carrying the Savior within her. Above, a star shone brightly, signifying this special blessing. This moment marked the beginning of God’s plan for ultimate redemption, the moment when the Savior of the world came to earth.
A son of the King, even a King Himself, humbly lay in a manger filled with hay, a sacrifice born in the most humble of places. What a glorious night! This moment set the course for the journey of our freedom. This entire story is wrapped up in John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
All Hail King Jesus! All Hail Emmanuel!
He is the reason we are here! He is the reason we celebrate!
Raphael R. Roker 