Arrival Devotions Week 3 (With Scripture)
Monday, December 16, 2024, Read Luke 2:8-11“8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.”
Christmas is an occasion for GREAT JOY! It’s not natural joy, but supernatural joy. God has come to earth in the person of His Son. The Word that created the universe and sustains all that exists became flesh and made His dwelling among us. In a world full of normal joys, God has given us GREAT JOY in the birth of His Son and our Savior, Jesus Christ. God gave us a world of joys so that Christmas JOY could surpass it.
Tuesday, December 17, 2024, Read Luke 2:15-20 -“15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” 16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. . . . 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.”
Eager to see this thing the angel told them about, the shepherds hurried off and found baby Jesus lying in a manger. Everything they had heard was now seen and they could not help but tell others. What response does Jesus’ ARRIVAL evoke in you? Are you excited to tell others about who He is and what He came to do? Are you eager to lift His name in words and song? Does your JOY bring glory to God and cause others to bow down and worship the newborn king?
Wednesday, December 18, 2024, Read Matthew 2:9-11 – “9 After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. 11 On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.”
While the shepherds were nearby the wise men were far off when they saw the star that signified the birth of Jesus. After traveling many miles, they once again “saw the star” and “were overjoyed.” What joy and relief they must have felt when, after traveling so far and so long, their hopes and dreams were reconfirmed in the appearance of the star. They were finally able to worship Jesus and leave their gifts at the foot of the King of kings. How far and how long are you willing to travel this Christmas to be in the presence of Jesus?
Thursday, December 19, 2024, Read Psalm 118:15-17 - “Shouts of joy and victory resound in the tents of the righteous:16 ’The Lord’s right hand has done mighty things! The Lord’s right hand is lifted high; the Lord’s right hand has done mighty things!’17 I will not die but live, and will proclaim what the Lord has done.”
Jesus’ birth means nothing without the cross and the empty tomb. Jesus was born to die for your sins and mine. The “good news of GREAT JOY” of which the angel spoke is the victory you and I can have over sin and death through faith in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. “Shouts of joy and victory resound in the tents of the righteous” because Jesus has given us the victory over sin and death. Let us rejoice in the victory we have in Jesus this Christmas.
Friday, December 20, 2024, Read 1 Peter 1:8-9 – “8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9 for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”
Through Jesus our sins are forgiven, our relationship with God is restored, and we have the assurance of life abundant and eternal. As we celebrate His birth this Christmas may our hearts be “filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy,” knowing that through Him we are even now receiving the goal of our faith – THE SALVATION OF OUR SOULS. Now that’s a reason for GREAT JOY and it all started with Jesus’ ARRIVAL as a baby in Bethlehem.
Monday, December 16, 2024, Read Luke 2:8-11“8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.”
Christmas is an occasion for GREAT JOY! It’s not natural joy, but supernatural joy. God has come to earth in the person of His Son. The Word that created the universe and sustains all that exists became flesh and made His dwelling among us. In a world full of normal joys, God has given us GREAT JOY in the birth of His Son and our Savior, Jesus Christ. God gave us a world of joys so that Christmas JOY could surpass it.
Tuesday, December 17, 2024, Read Luke 2:15-20 -“15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” 16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. . . . 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.”
Eager to see this thing the angel told them about, the shepherds hurried off and found baby Jesus lying in a manger. Everything they had heard was now seen and they could not help but tell others. What response does Jesus’ ARRIVAL evoke in you? Are you excited to tell others about who He is and what He came to do? Are you eager to lift His name in words and song? Does your JOY bring glory to God and cause others to bow down and worship the newborn king?
Wednesday, December 18, 2024, Read Matthew 2:9-11 – “9 After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. 11 On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.”
While the shepherds were nearby the wise men were far off when they saw the star that signified the birth of Jesus. After traveling many miles, they once again “saw the star” and “were overjoyed.” What joy and relief they must have felt when, after traveling so far and so long, their hopes and dreams were reconfirmed in the appearance of the star. They were finally able to worship Jesus and leave their gifts at the foot of the King of kings. How far and how long are you willing to travel this Christmas to be in the presence of Jesus?
Thursday, December 19, 2024, Read Psalm 118:15-17 - “Shouts of joy and victory resound in the tents of the righteous:16 ’The Lord’s right hand has done mighty things! The Lord’s right hand is lifted high; the Lord’s right hand has done mighty things!’17 I will not die but live, and will proclaim what the Lord has done.”
Jesus’ birth means nothing without the cross and the empty tomb. Jesus was born to die for your sins and mine. The “good news of GREAT JOY” of which the angel spoke is the victory you and I can have over sin and death through faith in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. “Shouts of joy and victory resound in the tents of the righteous” because Jesus has given us the victory over sin and death. Let us rejoice in the victory we have in Jesus this Christmas.
Friday, December 20, 2024, Read 1 Peter 1:8-9 – “8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9 for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”
Through Jesus our sins are forgiven, our relationship with God is restored, and we have the assurance of life abundant and eternal. As we celebrate His birth this Christmas may our hearts be “filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy,” knowing that through Him we are even now receiving the goal of our faith – THE SALVATION OF OUR SOULS. Now that’s a reason for GREAT JOY and it all started with Jesus’ ARRIVAL as a baby in Bethlehem.