Galatians 4:4-5

New International Version (NIV)

But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship.

For Meditation

Nothing warms the heart and refreshes the soul more than assurance and affirmation of the Lord in times of distress and uncertainty. It is like a glass of cold water on a sun-scorched day.

This man tells about his struggle in prayer one night. Many things were on his mind, and he determined to take them to the Lord. Was he saved? He travailed through 2 Corinthians 13:5 and imagined his condition in the rapture (1 Thess. 4:13-18).

“Am I yours, Lord? I need your assurance. Affirm me, Jesus, and if I am not, show me. What else must I do to be saved; for I have done all you’ve said I should do to be saved. You know I live for you and you alone,” he prayed through his sobs. He felt dry after drifting off for a while. Then he sat up for his devotion. To his delight, the scripture for the day was:

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations” (Jeremiah 1:5).

Isn’t God good? It was as if the Lord was saying to him, “I thought about you today in Grand Rapids when I gave this scripture for encouragement to my children all over the world. You are mine and I am yours. Continue to walk uprightly before me and rejoice in your salvation.”

What a message of encouragement for Christmas! It puts the season in proper perspective—that Christmas is a remembrance of how, in love, God gave the world His Son to save us from our sins (Jn. 3:16-17; 1 Jn. 4:9). He is the manger child the angels sang about (Luke 2:13-14), and the shepherds went to worship (16-18)—the child the Magi from the east came with gifts to adore (Matthew 2:11)

Paul reminds us about it in this way. “When the time had fully come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship” (Gal. 4:4-5).

Have you received this Christmas Gift from God (Jn. 1:12-13; Rm. 10:9-10)? Are you thankful for your adoption into God’s family by grace through faith in Christ Jesus? (Eph. 2:8-9).

God thought about you before Christmas. Can you share this Good News with someone by your side during this Christmas season?