Discovering a New You by Discovering Jesus
Thank you for joining us for the Advent season!
In this season of resolutions and "becoming a new person," we invite you to join us on a journey in the seven weeks leading to Lent. Come and discover more about the baby we celebrated in the manger.
Just like you, this baby is more than what he seems. And as mysterious as that sounds, it is all explained and laid out for us in God's Word.
You can become a new person this year - a child of God and a citizen of His Kingdom, dedicated to seeking His will every day and in every action.
Read:
Luke 24:13-27
Psalms 139:14
Matthew 19:29
The best detective stories are full of twists and turns that leave you surprised and hungry for more.
Did you know that God’s story in the Bible is actually a series of clues? These clues slowly reveal and then solve one of the most mind-boggling mysteries of all time.
You see, with God nothing is random. Every detail is ordered with purpose. So His clues aren’t haphazard or left behind accidentally. They are purposeful and perfectly orchestrated. The same goes for you. Your life and your future are not a series of randowm days, but days that lead us to the glory that awaits us in Heaven, and we are to pick up others to bring with us on our way.
In the Old Testament, written hundreds and even thousands of years before Jesus was born, God used the lives of real people to tell the world who Jesus would be. The events in these lives were living clues. God was carefully, brilliantly giving the world directions to find Jesus. Like a long, red ribbon that we can follow through the years, these signs lead us to God’s Son. The clues seem to say, Here’s what He will look like. Here’s what He will do. Watch for Him. Pay attention. The Messiah is coming.
The story of Jesus started at the very beginning of the Bible. We don’t learn Christ’s name until Gabriel visits Mary. Yet the entire Bible—in fact, all of human history—is like an arrow pointing to Jesus. And Jesus points to God.
Now that we, as Christians, know Jesus as our Savior, we are called to point the world to Christ. Our mission is to continue Jesus' mission, bringing people to God's throne.
God's Word explains (some of) the mysteries of His ultimate plan to reunite the world with Himself. At times, we lose sight of God's plan, and it can feel as though there is no greater mystery than God's will for our lives, but He has a plan for each of us and has put us where we are for His purpose-the salvation of the world.
Jesus was not born as a normal baby. He had no limitations. You also were not born with limitations. The Bible tells us we can do all things through Christ.
Likewise, Jesus was not born to stay in Nazareth. Neither were you born to stay where you are, and you were not born to sit on the sidelines. You were born to multiply the gifts and talents that are inside you. And you were born to shine God's light to the world for His glory.
When you begin to do small tasks for God, He will open the door to bigger things. We want to do big, astonishing things, but we have to start with the small, unglamorous tasks first. Your purpose is on the other side of your faithfulness and obedience. Your careful obedience in the seemingly insignificant is what will open the door to the miraculous blessings that God has in store for you.
In the next six weeks, we will discover who Jesus is based on the clues God has left us in the Bible, and from that we will begin to understand who we are in Christ and what God is expecting of us.
Read Week 2: The First Glimpse
This devotion is based on "The Messiah Mystery" Devotions by Barbara Rainey and "Born for More" Devotions by Paul Daugherty