Good morning, Church Family and Friends,
This year, when you read or hear the Christmas story from the gospel of Luke, chapter 2, I want to ask you to focus on just one word, one life-changing word. You know the word; you’ve sung it, but when you read the word, you go right over it and don’t even pause, it doesn’t even register. But this one word defines our relationship with God.
At Christmas, God decided to do something altogether new — and if we could capture this one word, and if this one word could become the lens through which we view our relationship with God, and our approach to God, it would take all the “ought to’s” and all the “have to’s” out of religion. It would take all the “oh yeah, I know” out of religion. It would take all the guilt out of religion. Because this one word defines a completely different kind of relationship.
Let me share part of the Christmas story with you, as it includes this one word. “I bring you good news of great joy which shall be for all the people. Today in the town of David, a Savior (not a king, not a coach, not a helper), a Savior has been born to you, and he is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11-12).
The word is “Savior.” When God looked down and saw us, he said, “You know what? They don’t need a life coach; they don’t need a silent partner with deep pockets to help facilitate their relationship with me; they don’t need a financial advisor; they don’t need someone to teach them how to do good things — it’s beyond all that. They need a Savior.
If there has never been a time in your life when you’ve been overwhelmed with the thought, “Oh my gosh, I don’t need help, I don’t need a second chance, I need saving! I need deliverance! I need rescuing!” — until you get there, the idea of a savior is just a word. But the moment you throw your hands up and say, “Oh, I need a Savior!” God says, “I’ll be there.” And at that moment, the Savior, who is Christ the Lord, will intersect with your life.
You don’t need a Savior because you might die tonight. You need a Savior because you have to live tomorrow. Isn’t that it?
In the name of our Savior,
Bruce Jones, Pastor Imagine Church
