[Dailydevo] Daily Devotion Friday December 3, 2005

[Barry Ludwig]

Daily Devotion Friday December 23, 2005

The devotions this week are written by Pastor Ludwig. He explores the
message of the angels who announced to the shepherds that the world's Savior
has just been born.

 

 Luke 2:8-14

And in that region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping  watch
over their flock by night.  And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and
the glory of the Lord  shone around them, and they were filled with fear.
And the angel said to them, "Be not afraid; for behold, I bring you  good
news of a great joy which will come to all the people;  for to you is born
this day in the city of David a Savior, who is  Christ the Lord.  And this
will be a sign for you: you will find a babe wrapped in  swaddling cloths
and lying in a manger."  And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude
of the heavenly host  praising God and saying,  "Glory to God in the
highest, and on earth peace among humanity."  

 

Glory and Peace

In our world the coexistence of glory and peace seem irreconcilable. Glory
is most often gained at the expense of the loser, which never makes for an
environment of peace. One need look no farther than the annual Michigan OSU
contest for confirmation of this reality.

But somehow God manages to pull off the combination. His angel-warriors sing
of glory to God and at the same time peace on earth for humanity. How does
he do it? His solution is elegantly simple; the incarnation. He glories in
the sending of his Son who takes on human flesh in order to bring peace to
our troubled, anxious and jealous hearts. God is not glorified by "lording
it over us" but by pouring himself out in the form of a servant (Philippians
2). He is glorified by lifting us up! No more winners and losers, just
glory! God's glory is to bring us deliverance and restoration through his
Son Jesus. Praise God, Jesus is born!

 

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