Category: Church Calendar

MATTHEW 2:7-8

⁷Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared. ⁸And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also.”

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

Important men from the east have come into Herod’s territory bearing tribute—lavish gifts for a powerful ruler. Thus Herod hears that there is a rightful son of David to rule over Israel’s throne, and so he claims he wishes to do obeisance to the newly born king.  Continue reading “Eleventh Day of Christmas”

MATTHEW 2:4-6

⁴And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. ⁵So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet:

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

One of the most famous passages in Scripture, and the center or hinge of Matthew’s gospel comes when Jesus asks His disciples: “Who do you say that I am?” Peter responded with the good confession given from above: “Thou art the Christ; the Son of the Living God” (Mt 16:13-17). “Christ” means “anointed one.” The Christ was the long-expected ruler/deliverer of Israel. We learn from Colossians 2 that in Christ “are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” The Father loves to hide things for His children to find and bring forth with delight, and so the concept of the Christ is deep and wide. Jesus often was met with a partial, incomplete, or distorted view of who and what the Christ would be. Matthew records Peter’s rebuking of Jesus right after the good confession; Peter couldn’t fathom that the long-awaited Christ would suffer and be put to death. Continue reading “Tenth Day of Christmas”

MATTHEW 2:1-3

¹Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, ²saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.” ³When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

It might seem a little ironic that at a time like this when most of this season is filled with so much joy, peace and festivities—especially among the believing—that the news of Jesus’ birth brought so much trouble to people’s lives in Jesus’ day. The text says that when Herod the King heard that a baby was born who was being proclaimed as the king of the Jews that not only was his heart troubled, but all of Jerusalem was troubled with him. Continue reading “Ninth Day of Christmas”

ROMANS 9:33

As it is written:

“Behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and rock of offense,

And whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.”

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

According to our calendars, we stand at the beginning of another new year. What should we be thinking? Almost unavoidably we pause to think about what has transpired since last January and begin to craft and hone new resolutions for the months ahead. And yet, if we’re really honest, all of the years past have never really gone according to our plans. We aim to put in at Phoenix for the winter and instead we get shipwrecked on Malta. Today we forever swear off second helpings of fudge and cookies only to be named honorary “Keebler elf” by the twelfth day of Christmas. The fact that resolutions even exist simply points back to a long record of our failures. Happy New Year indeed! Continue reading “Eighth Day of Christmas”

GALATIANS 4:4-5

⁴But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, ⁵to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

So often, we look at the law of God as something bad, something to be juxtaposed with grace. The problem is that the law is presented as something good in the Scriptures. We are the problem. Mankind, indeed the whole of creation, was groaning and still groans because of the Fall. The apostle Paul refers to the “futility” that the entire world was subjected to because of the Fall of the human race in Adam. But God’s law is holy and gives a pattern for how a perfect man should live. No one had lived the law perfectly until the promised deliverer, born of a woman, had come in the fullness of time. Jesus lived perfectly to the law’s standards and fulfilled the law in His life and death. And now, in Him, the perfect Son, we also stand like perfect law abiders, because of Him who came in the fullness of time. In Him, we have been adopted as sons of the living God.  Continue reading “Seventh Day of Christmas”

2 CORINTHIANS 8:9

For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

During Advent we read through Christ’s birth narrative in Luke. In the King James translation, it is some of the most beautiful writing in the world. It has a little bit of almost everything: surprise…faithful obedience…pathos… suspense…sheep. And it’s got glory. Full throttle, wide-eyed, Oh Wow!-type GLORY!!!!Those who would usually be in heaven singing “Holy…Holy…Holy!” were down below singing “Glory be to God in the Highest, and on earth Peace, goodwill toward men.” The text tells us that a multitude of the heavenly host joined the first angel, praising God. They were down here celebrating Christ’s…humiliation. Continue reading “Sixth Day of Christmas”

JOHN 3:16-17:

¹⁶For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. ¹⁷For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

Without a doubt John 3:16 is the most famous verse of the Bible. Placarded in all sorts of interesting places for the sake of witness and evangelism, this verse is used to declare the message of the Gospel in a single sentence. You can probably recite this verse from memory without hesitation, but what is John 3:16 really about?  Continue reading “Fifth Day of Christmas”

1 PETER 1:10-12

¹⁰Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you,¹¹searching what, or what manner of time, the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. ¹²To them it was revealed that, not to themselves, but to us they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—things which angels desire to look into.

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

Imagine yourself reading through a great story, and you sense that the climax is approaching. But before you have a chance to finish it you lose the book, or your dog uses it as a chew toy. Old Testament prophets didn’t know the whole story they were writing either. The Spirit had given them much, but there were still many unanswered questions. They did know that the Christ would come and that He would suffer. And Peter tells us that this is because Christ Himself (“the Spirit of Christ”) was in them, predicting His own sufferings through them. But there were many unanswered questions. How would the Christ come and accomplish all these things. How will he defeat sin and death? And what about the glories which would follow? What would that be like? And when will all this happen? When they weren’t writing down or delivering God’s message, Peter tells us that they were searching and sifting it…looking for clues or unnoticed details that might tell them more about the Christ. But we have the completed story. That which prophets and angels longed for has been delivered to us. And what is better, we are included in it. It is the story of what our Savior did for us in His sufferings and the glories we now share with him. That which prophets and angels long for is ours. It is the good news that we have believed and that the nations now must hear. Continue reading “Fourth Day of Christmas”

JOHN 8:56-58

⁵⁶ “Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad.” ⁵⁷Then the Jews said to Him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?” ⁵⁸Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.”

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

In today’s reading, Jesus was responding to the accusations of the Jews that He was possessed by a demon. In this response, He declares to them that He is the fulfillment of the promises made to Abraham in the book of Genesis. How did Abraham rejoice to see His day? He rejoiced when he believed God. He laughed with joy when the promises of God were declared to him. He rejoiced when a barren womb delivered the promised heir. He rejoiced when God provided for Himself the sacrificial ram in the place of Isaac. He saw, played out right before his eyes, what was actually far off; Jehovah-Jireh (the God-who-provides) providing the sacrificial Lamb for His people in the Incarnate Christ. Continue reading “Third Day of Christmas”

JOHN 1:9-10

⁹That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world. ¹⁰He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him.

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT

In the verses before this, the Gospel-writing John has been describing that other John. The camel-hair wearing, brood-of-vipers preaching, wilderness baptizing John. But that John wasn’t the light; he only pointed us to the true light, who has now come into the world that He made. But, wonder of wonders, the world He made didn’t recognize Him when He came to them. Continue reading “Second Day of Christmas”