Advent Devotional: Intro to Love

Nothing shows us the love of God has for us like the life of Christ. God sent His Son to us and for us.  He came to us in the most vulnerable way possible: an innocent baby.  He grew up knowing His mission to the point of teaching in the temple at a young age.  He called twelve men to help Him with the gospel teachings, teaching them first so they could teach us later.  These men are who we relate to in the understanding, and lack of understanding, of who Jesus was.  They watched in awe as He performed miracles, then they too performed miracles.  They were His family, a brotherhood around Him.  They had a front row seat to His triumphant entry, and just three days later his arrest and death.  Three short days later, in the midst of their grief, they found an empty tomb.  Then they saw Him standing in front of them, holes in His hands and feet.  All because the Father loved us, He sent His Son to die for us.

Because this week is about love, which is manifested in the life of Christ, we are not going to stop at the birth.  We are going to highlight parts of His birth, His ministry, and His death. By only focusing on His birth, we would miss how much God loves us. Jesus showed compassion to all He encountered. He revealed emotions which were given to us by God and showed it was okay to express them. Jesus showed us how to pray, then prayed for us before His death.  He showed us in that prayer how to surrender our wills to God’s will. Then He showed us His true love by taking on the cross.

It is impossible to only use one scripture after the first two days, so please know you will get two emails on one day (like the introductions to the coming week).

The week of love prepares us for Joy.  Hope leads us to Peace, Peace shows us how to Love, and Love is Joy.