Matthew 1:22-25 All this took place to fulfill what
the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 “The virgin will conceive and give
birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).
24 When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and
took Mary home as his wife. 25 But he did not consummate their marriage until
she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.
This passage is a very moving revelation of important
truths of God’s plan for the world. Even though He is King of Kings, and all
will bow in His honor, he was born in a stable, not a palace. Jesus came to
show God’s love for people who feel they have nothing. God has known the same
sadness.
Jesus alone can bring hope and light in to a dark
world.
If you want to give your loved ones a great Christmas
present this year, give them the gift of Christian Hope. On page after page of
the New Testament we find it: the Good News that God will win, that nothing can
defeat Him; that ultimately God and goodness will have the victory and that
when we put our hope in Him, nothing, not even death, can separate us from His
watch care and His love and His triumph. Once each year, Christmas comes along
to renew our hope and to remind us that the darkness of this world cannot
overcome the light of the world.