You Are Saved

By Commissioner Colleen Riley

“Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord.” Luke 2:11.

This time of the year is especially poignant for Christians. It is the beginning of the story as it were. Thousands of years ago, in a small town, in the most unlikely way, the Savior was born, not for His benefit, but for ours.

I imagine that it was both a frightening and amazing night for Mary and Joseph. The birth of your first child is something awe inspiring and a little scary at the same time. Picturing myself in a stable on what I assume to be a very cold night, surrounded by animals, giving birth to not just my son, but the Savior, is something I can’t quite grasp. But Mary did. Mary in those moments, was just looking at the face of her son, her first child, the one she deeply loved. Then the angel of the Lord appeared, the shepherds stopped by and gave honor to this child that they had been told about, but Mary, pondered in her heart all that she had seen and heard. The Savior had been born. The beginning of the story.

This boy would grow up with a carpenter father and a virgin mother to become a sacrifice for each of us. Luke Chapter 2:40 tells us “And the child grew and became strong; He was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon Him.” God sent His one and only Son to live as a man, to understand how you and I live, to have feelings and emotions, to be tempted, heal others, have joy, share sorrow, and to raise people from the dead. And, He was to be a living sacrifice for you and me.

It is not enough to read about Jesus. We must know Him and to accept Him as our personal Savior. John chapter 14, Jesus is speaking to His disciples, even though they were with Him and learned from Him, still did not KNOW Him. In verse 6 He answers them “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”  Jesus was born so be in relationship with you and I and to draw us closer to Himself. We are saved by the beautiful and unending grace of God in our lives when we confess our sins, and turn to Him, he is faithful and forgives us.

We can thrive and flourish in our identity in Christ. You and I, made in the image of Christ, have our identity in Him. As you celebrate the birth of Jesus this Christmas, look further than the stable. Take a deep reflection on this very beginning of the journey to our salvation. Jesus came, he grew in strength and wisdom. Jesus taught and healed and was loved and put to death on a cross for you and for me. There is joy in our celebration not just because of the birth, but where this birth took Jesus, for our sake. It is the greatest gift of all – salvation!                                                                                                                               
I pray that you will accept this gift, if you haven’t already. It will change your life. And if you have a relationship with Him, that this year will be another reminder of His perfect and sacrificial love for you. God bless you!