Jesus was born to die so we can have life

​12-27-22

As we continue to celebrate Jesus' birth while waiting for his Second Coming, my devotion for today is based on John 1:4,12,13: "In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind . . . to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God."
As ordinary as the circumstances of Jesus' birth, he was no ordinary child. The child who took his first breath that night was the one who breathed life into the first people created and who gave life to you and me.
"In him was life," the Bible says. That doesn't just mean that he was alive. It means that life belongs to him. He gives life and gives you life. If you have children or grandchildren, he gave them life too.
But through Jesus, we also receive a more profound and vital life. "To those who believed in his name," the Bible says, "he gave the right to become children of God." As God leads you to see and trust that Jesus is your Savior, you are born again as a child of God, set free from guilt, shame, and death. You have new life—eternal life—in Jesus. What a gift!
Please pray with me, Jesus; thank you for giving me the faith so that I have become a child of God. Because of your birth, I am born again. Help me live as your child. Amen.