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December 8
“Unto Us” by Matthew West
Who are we that a King would trade Heaven’s riches
For a stable and a manager low
Can it be, Great I am bending down to reach us
Morning star, let this dark world know
Here is our promised one
Jesus, our hope has come
Unto us, unto us
A child is born
Unto us, unto us
A son is given
Glory to God in the highest
Wonderful, Prince of Peace
Emmanuel, has come to set captives free
And with the angels we sing
“Glory to God in the highest…”
He has brought this great love
Unto us
Who are we that a King would still walk among us
Knowing He would only live to die
Cross of shame, crown of thorns He still chose to carry
Beauty broken, breathing us new life
Here is our promised one
Jesus, our hope has come
Unto us, unto us
A child is born
Unto us, unto us
A son is given
Glory to God in the highest
Wonderful, Prince of Peace
Emmanuel, has come to set captives free
And with the angels we sing
“Glory to God in the highest…”
He has brought this great love
Unto us
Emmanuel, Emmanuel, Emmanuel
Love has come
Unto us, unto us
A child is born
Unto us, unto us
A son is given
Glory to God in the highest
Wonderful, Prince of Peace
Emmanuel, has come to set captives free
And with the angels we sing
“Glory to God in the highest….”
He has brought this great love
Unto us
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Today’s Devotion
With Christmas approaching, many of us have gifts on the mind. We’re thinking about the gifts we are purchasing or making for others, and perhaps gifts we might receive ourselves!
What makes for a great gift? Although getting exactly what you want is wonderful, isn’t it also great to receive an unexpected gift from someone that is personal and thoughtful – as though they knew exactly what you wanted and needed, even though you had no idea yourself this particular item even existed?
A couple years ago, my wife, Alexis, made a canvas rucksack-style backpack for me. She intended for it to be a pack I could carry on hiking and camping trips, but I loved and cherished it so much that I can’t bear the thought of it getting dirty in the wilderness! I use it instead as a very rugged-looking duffle bag for far more domestic purposes than it was intended.
Surprise gifts are fantastic, especially when they are so unexpectedly perfect for us!
Repeated throughout this song is the refrain of its title,
“Unto us, unto us
A child is born
Unto us, unto us
A son is given”
These lyrics speak to the unfathomably perfect gift and blessing of Jesus’ life upon our world.
God’s gift to humanity – freely given – the perfect gift.
Himself.
Paul writes in Romans 5:6-8
“When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.”
Jesus’ life, and death was a profound gift that humanity had no real idea that it needed. “Utterly helpless,” unable to rectify ourselves to God alone – the divide between people and God could not be bridged by human beings, no matter how hard they tried to do good, follow The Law, give animal sacrifices, and all manner of other attempts.
The Christ child was born bearing the greatest gift. The opportunity for reconciliation with God, only achievable through God’s grace and extension of himself.
“Unto us, a son is given.”
The more that we can recognize and appreciate the gift of Jesus, the deeper our faith grows and the unbelievable love of God becomes more prominent in our lives.
Take some time today to reflect on God’s gift to the world – Jesus. Do you feel the magnitude of that gift? Nothing has ever been given like God’s gift of himself to us. We pray that thought impresses deeply on you this season.
Prayer
God,
The reason we give gifts in the first place is because you gave us the best gift we could ever dream of, a gift we desperately needed, you. The only thing that could reconcile us back to you, was in fact you. We don’t fully understand how this all works, but we trust you that you have given us everything we need to thrive in this world being your light. Lord, help me to embrace more deeply the gift you have given me, the gift of your presence with me at all times. Oh how my life would change if I could only realize this more, help me step deeper and deeper into the reality that you are the best gift and are always with me. Amen.
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