December 17, 2023
Greetings and blessings to all of you. There is a beautiful song that we sing every year during the Advent season…O come O come Emmanuel. God told us in the Bible “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold the virgin shall conceive and bear a son and shall call his name Immanuel.” Isaiah 7:14) This prophecy has been fulfilled. We read all about it in Luke Chapter I. The baby’s name would be Jesus. In Greek it means the Lord saves. He would be the Son of the Highest or the Son of God; the second person of the Trinity. As the Messiah and a descendant of King David He would be given the throne of David. And once again the Holy Spirit is presenting Christ to us. In Isaiah 11:2 “And the Spirit of Lord shall rest upon Him; the Spirit of wisdom and understanding. The Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. “This season we once again reflect on why Jesus came into this world. Jesus is called The Prince of Peace. The word peace in Hebrew means well-being, wholeness. Sin had made us enemies of God. Christ made possible peace with God. Sin had broken human relationships but Christ has made possible peace with others. God’s favor or grace rests on those who trust in the name of His Son for salvation. On our own- true peace is unattainable. That’s why Christ came and that is why He will come again. When He return, the whole earth will enjoy peace and worship Him alone. We will all sing another wonderful sing...Joy to the world the Lord has come. Let earth receive her King. We praise Christ today as the Messiah of Israel the one whom the prophets of the OT were waiting for, and now as people living on this side of the Cross, we want to live our life worthy of our Messiah in anticipation of His Second Coming. How do you see Jesus and all His Holiness? Do you see Him still in the manger? Do you see Him getting disrespected by the rulers of that day; the Romans/Pharisees; in the three years that He was with the Disciples? When we know Jesus, we know God the Father as well, for the Son is the Father’s final, complete, and perfect revelation of Himself (John 14:7-10) In the first chapter of the book of Hebrews, we are told that “in the past God spoke” through prophets but in these last days he has spoken to us by His Son. Who is His Son? Jesus. “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.” John 1:14
With the Love of Christ
First Lady Vivian C. Currie
Pastor ALC