Read: Luke 1:5-25
"And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb."
Luke 1:14-15
God calls us all to different vocations, goals, focuses, and life situations. Though we are all called to point others to Christ, just as John the Baptist did, none of us are called to live the austere and demanding life he lived. God’s purpose for John was set before he was born. The Spirit of God “filled” him when he was still in “his mother’s womb.” (Notice that John was seen as a human person when he was in his mother’s womb. He did not become a person later. A child in the womb is a human being in the early stages of development, and deserves the same protection as a child outside the womb.)
Though you don’t have the same call as John, God does have a specific purpose for your life. In other words, your life has purpose and meaning. You are valuable in the eyes of God. Why? You are valuable in the eyes of God because every human being (from conception until death) is made in the image of God. We are image-bearers. This doesn’t mean that we physically look like God, but we do have some traits, characteristics, and qualities that mirror those of God’s. For example, God is an Intelligent Being. Granted, He is of infinite intelligence; however, as image-bearers, we too are intelligent beings–though our intelligence is very much finite.
As image-bearers, we have eternal value to God. And, thus, Immanuel came so that we image-bearers might be saved. Have you ever wondered why God would send His Son? Have you ever wondered why Jesus took on a human nature, walked among us, and died for us? The answer is quite profound, yet simple: He died for humanity because we bear His image. He died for us because we are of eternal value to Him.
This advent season, remember we worship and praise a God that specially created us for His good purpose. And He has a plan for us; however, to experience the fullness of the abundance He offers, one must follow Him.
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Prayer: Thank you, Father, for sending your Son to take on a human nature, die for us, and save us from our sin. In the advent season, help us to better understand your good purpose and plan for us.