The Messiah Has Come

Luke 1:26-45, Luke 2:1-24

The people of Israel had been waiting for hundreds of years for the promised Messiah. God graciously gave humanity the law that revealed our sins, but we needed someone to fulfill the law. We could not do it on our own. Jesus’ birth was the beginning of that, restoring humanity with the Father!

The way that Jesus came down to earth is so fitting. Many thought that the Messiah would come down and reign on a throne and deliver Israel from their enemies. Jesus came the opposite way. As a baby born to a virgin, in a stable next to the animals.

This is no way for a Savior and a King to come into the world. But Jesus came to redefine what ruling on this earth looked like. We have an example of Jesus serving, not being served, ruling on this earth by giving his time to those that society said were outcasts. From the beginning of his life, the story of Jesus turned on it is head of humanity's expectations of what a savior would be, and that's exactly what we needed.

With the amazing ministry of Jesus, it is easy to overlook his birth. In his birth, he relates to each and every one of us. Jesus is fully man and fully God. He was tempted in the same ways that we are tempted, yet he followed God’s design for humanity exactly! Jesus is a savior worth following for many reasons, but I am always blown away at the humility of Jesus coming down to earth in a normal family, with normal parents, in a normal community. We don't have to be special to follow Jesus; we just have to be willing to submit to the design of our creator.

What a blessing we have an example to look towards that relates to us in many ways. God uses unexpected situations in our lives to reveal his character to us and to those around us.

Take the next few minutes to pray and thank God for sending his Son down to us! Rejoice in the good news that the promised Messiah is finally here!