“Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” – Luke 2:11-12
This is the essence, the core message, the most important truth for each of us to grasp this Christmas...a Savior has been born to us!
But do we know that we need to be saved? The criminal on death row knows, the drug addict knows, the man whose wife just walked out on him because she found him cheating on her knows, the student just caught shop-lifting knows, but what about you, what about me?
It's easy and it's human nature to look at those around us and compare ourselves to them...I'm not as bad as the next person; I would never do that; I would never say that. I think that's why some reality shows have become so popular...they make us feel better about ourselves. But the bare truth is that we have all messed up. Not one of us can get through the day without sinning in some way, without hurting someone else, without breaking one of our own rules and God's rules.
When we finally realize that we do mess up and don't get it right, we start to wonder what the consequences will be, in the long run. And humanity has made up religions in order to try to compensate for their sins. Whether it's weighing sin on the scales and hoping our good deeds outweigh our bad, or spinning prayer wheels, or doing some sort of penance, the fact is we have no way to pay for our sins, to really wipe the slate clean in the eyes of God.
Only one can wipe the slate clean...only one can declare us free from the consequences of our actions...and that is the Judge Himself. And our Judge is our Creator...the Lord God.
His love for us is beyond anything we can imagine. Knowing that we would sin and not be able to pay for those sins ourselves, He made the most selfless, loving decision that could be made. He took the penalty for our sins upon Himself. He saved us by offering Himself on the sacrificial altar. His blood and broken body compensated for our sins...wiped the slate clean.
He is the Savior, the only Savior, for all mankind.
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