Father, thank You for your blessed presence in our services today. May You be at work in each of our hearts and lives. Amen.

Matthew 1:20-25 (<<click here to read the passage)

From a very early age, most of us don’t like being told that we cannot do something. It gets us into all kinds of trouble, either doing (or trying to do) it anyway or throwing a fit because we can’t. For that matter, that’s what got Adam and Eve into trouble at the outset of time. They were told they could eat from every tree…except one. And, of course, which tree did they eat from? The one from which they were forbidden, bringing condemnation on humanity for the rest of time.

Yet today, we fight against being told we can’t do certain things. We continue to be ravaged by sin – it is a constant battle for us all. But one thing we can’t do? We cannot save ourselves from the onslaught of sin and its repercussions.

Romans 6:23 tells us, “the wages of sin is death…” We cannot save ourselves from the ramifications of sin. We are condemned to death. We, in and of ourselves, can do absolutely nothing about it. We can try all sorts of things to conquer sin, but all of them fail. We are doomed.

But…that is where God steps in. In our passage today, the angel of the Lord explains to Joseph all that is going on with Mary. The son she carried “was conceived by the Holy Spirit,” and Joseph was to “name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” The name Jesus means “The Lord saves”.

Romans 6:23 begins with, “For the wages of sin is death…” but the last portion of the verse exclaims, “but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.” NIV

I love the phrase in my Life Application Study Bible that says, “Jesus didn’t come to help people save themselves; he came to be their Savior from the power and penalty of sin.” (emphasis mine)

Thank You, Lord, for the salvation You freely extend to us all. We may not like to hear it, but we cannot save ourselves. As the meaning of Your name proclaims, “The Lord saves.” I am so grateful that You do, for I surely cannot.

(Sept 12th, 2017, Tues, 6:44 am)
Apr 28th, 2024, Sun, 3:25 pm