Some weeks ago I started a series on “Expecting The Promised Messiah.” Today, I am taking the concluding part titled, “At Last, God’s Promised Saviour Arrives”. We saw through the scriptures that this promise was made hundreds of years before its actual fulfilment. We also saw that God created us to enjoy relationship with Him originally. The negative things we are experiencing today are as a result of the rebellion of Adam and Eve, which brought about sin in the world.  One of the things that continue to amaze me is the magnitude of God’s love for humanity; for the Almighty God to decide to go through the process of being born like a baby to redeem us from Satan’s grip.  Why did He do that, couldn’t He have saved us another way?  The Bible says that God exalts His word above His name [Psalm 138: 2b]. In the same vein, the Bible did admonish that, ^“The soul that sinneth, it shall die” [Ezekiel 18: 20].  God will not undermine His word because He is faithful. That is why He took our place and died for us.

The birth of Jesus Christ was a part of that process of becoming a human being to save mankind. This was the price He had to pay for our redemption. What this tells me is that, God loves humanity passionately. The Bible says that God is not willing that any should die but that all should come to repentance [2 Peter 3: 9].  If God did this for us, what is that He can’t do for us? What does this teach us? Whatever God is determined to do, no matter how complex the situation may seem or how long it takes, He would do what He has promised to do. If you look at the account of how God brought His promises to pass in time past, you will see that God works through the ordinary activities and events of life.

In Luke chapter 2, God stirred the heart of the king to conduct a census because He intended for Joseph to go to Bethlehem. God orchestrated these events to work out His divine agenda.  Eventually, baby Jesus was born where God wanted Him to be born, in a manger in Bethlehem. Indeed God’s ways are not our ways;  “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.” [Isaiah 55: 9].

When God wants to do something spectacular He doesn’t deploy the ways of men. In fact, He does His things in ways we could never have imagined possible. Not only was Jesus born in a manger, the angels did not announce the birth of the Messiah to the high and mighty in the society like King Herod but rather it was to the shepherds in the bush. Reading through many great things God did with remarkable personalities and events in the Bible, we can see that God often used things that were despised to achieve His goal. The lesson here is to remind us of the nature of the God whom we serve.  If you are a child of God living at the centre of His will, don’t expect He will go to the high and mighty in order to fulfil His divine plan and purpose for your life. He will take care of you in any given situation.

With this understanding, outside of God therefore, there is no solution to the problems of our nation. But because He is Almighty, He will intervene and turn things around for good in a way we can never imagine.  If God makes up His mind that the time to liberate Nigeria has come, no man can stop it! So, do not be frightened by the boastings of arrogant men and women who parade themselves as the high and mighty in the nation. With God all things are possible. I believe that the time for the redemption of our nation has come.

I encourage you to put your hands in God’s hands. Make up your mind to live at the centre of God’s will for your life. Do not allow problems to drive you away from God but rather to drive you closer to God. God will turn things around for you when you do.  As we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, we need to know that although its God’s desire for every man to be saved, salvation is not automatic. Yes, Jesus Christ came to save us from our sins but accepting this salvation is our choice to make. If men and women do not personally receive Jesus as their Lord and personal saviour, they cannot benefit from this free gift of eternal life. So, we must come before God in humility and accept that we are sinners and invite Him into our lives. As Christians, our number one assignment is to take the gospel to the ends of the earth. Where ever we are, we are to recognize ourselves as the extension of the life and ministry of Christ, so that men and women would have the opportunity of hearing the word of God and decide whether to accept it or not.

Christmas offers individual hope. God will not force salvation on us. We have to make up our minds. As we rejoice over the birth of Jesus Christ for our salvation, may God help us to examine our lives to make sure that we are qualified to benefit from His birth. Christ did not bring peace to the whole world but to those who will please Him [Luke 2: 1]. These are the people who will benefit from His peace that surpasses all human understanding. May God help us not to be carried away by the merriment of the season but to reflect on the true essence of the season, which is the hope of eternal life Christ brought to us.  If your relationship with Him is what it’s supposed to be, God will bring to pass His divine plan for your life here in this life and in eternity.

QUOTE:

“God will not undermine His word because He is faithful. That is why He took our place and died for us.”

“When God wants to do something spectacular He doesn’t deploy the ways of men. In fact, He does His things in ways we could never have imagined possible.”