Merry Christmas!
Christmas
God, your God, is not to be trifled with—he’s a consuming fire, a jealous God. ~ Deuteronomy 4:24 (MSG)
This is the kind of love we are talking about—not that we once upon a time loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to clear away our sins and the damage they’ve done to our relationship with God. ~ 1 John 4:10 (MSG)
KEY IDEA:
God's love for us is so great that he has set aside his anger, and sacrificed his Son in order to restore our relationship with him.
PRAYER:
Gracious Father, thank you for sending your Son into the world to fix our relationship with you.
That is the best Christmas present imaginable. Unfortunately, we, including me, have reduced that gift to a nice holiday that doesn't really change the way I am. So, my goal this year is to see that change. With your help, I'm going to let Christmas change the way that I think and live. You are so generous. Amen.
TRANSLATIONS
ABP = Authorized Boydston Paraphrase — my own freestyle biblical adaptation — somewhere between paraphrase, commentary, and sermon
CEB = Common English Bible (©2011, the Common English Bible)
CEV = Contemporary English Version (©1995, American Bible Society)
MSG = The Message (©1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson)
NIRV = New International Reader's Version (©1996, 1998, Biblica)
NIV = New International Version (©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011, Biblica)
NLT = New Living Translation (©1996, 2004, 2007, 2013, Tyndale House Foundation)
