Advent at Ararat 2025 Day 19: The BEST NEWS ever is that we have a Savior!

“Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”

‭‭Luke‬ ‭2‬:‭10‬-‭11‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

God, in His limitless mercy and love, made good on the promise to send a Messiah to His people.

But here’s the problem, it seems that the religious leaders, were afraid of losing their arrangement with Rome if they allowed Jesus to continue doing mighty works. And, they certainly couldn’t allow themselves to recognize Who He really was.

“Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen what he did, believed in him, but some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. So the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered the council and said, “What are we to do? For this man performs many signs. If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.” But one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, “You know nothing at all. Nor do you understand that it is better for you that one man should die for the people, not that the whole nation should perish.””

‭‭John‬ ‭11‬:‭45‬-‭50‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Ironically, the “name and nation” they were afraid of losing, was given to them by the Lord. He chose them out, and kept them, against all odds, time and time again. Rome was not their source. God was (and still is).

God’s people somehow forgot that they needed the Lord to deliver them out as He had so many times before. In fact, it was always their disobedience that led to their persecution by other nations. They desperately needed a savior; They desperately needed their Savior.

Several years ago the Lord spoke to me—calling me by name—saying, “You have to know you need a Savior to have One.” Now, the fact is, as long as I can remember, I had thought of the Lord as being my Savior; I didn’t know any other way of thinking. But the problem was, I was somehow still trying to prove my worth to the Lord. And, God sees that as pride.

Now, on the surface, I would never have thought that I was being prideful. But I was inadvertently trying to prove that I didn’t need a Savior, treating my salvation as a reward for being a good girl.

Oh, I don’t know how we develop such convoluted ways of thinking and doing; but the Lord cut through all that mess, opening my eyes to the fact that I was helpless to save myself. As well, there was nothing I could do about that helplessness, nothing I need do, except to accept the free gift of God through Jesus Christ. Only in doing so, could I find freedom from my sinful nature.

Oddly enough, as I come to more and more see my need for a Savior, I am more and more able to relax into His arms. Yes, when I admit my weakness, He shows His strength on my behalf.

For today, let us meditate on whether or not we are somehow trying to prove our worth to God, trying to cover, or offer excuses, for our weaknesses.

Additionally, if you are feeling like a naughty toddler sitting with a bowl of spaghetti on top of your head, now fearing the glaring eye of your mother, understand that the Lord is the One Who came to clean you up, and He won’t even fuss about what you’ve done!

Again, we need a Savior and we have One! Now, that’s the best news ever!

Peace to you.

Jesus is coming! Get ready for Him!