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Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he said, "Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired, but a body you have prepared for me; in burnt offerings and sin offerings you have taken no pleasure. Then I said, "See, God, I have come to do your will, O God' (in the scroll of the book it is written of me)." When he said above, "You have neither desired nor taken pleasure in sacrifices and offerings and burnt offerings and sin offerings" (these are offered according to the law), then he added, "See, I have come to do your will." He abolishes the first in order to establish the second. And it is by God's will that we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. (Hebrews 10: 5-10)
I have come to know the universal face of kids during this season is the angry frown. It doesn't matter what store I'm in, I see it everywhere, even Sam's Club. I had to chuckle as I saw it on a boy, about 4 or 5 years old. He was trailing his mom and his face said it all: I am mad at you! You don't love me enough to buy me that toy! I NEED THAT TOY! It is also saying, "I did not get my way."
The passage today is all about God getting His way. Jesus' entrance into the world was about fulfilling God's plan for humanity, not humanity's plan for God. The world, at least the religious one, knew that sins were deadly, and so an animal would be sacrificed, debt paid, sin gone. But as the saying goes, it was really, "no skin off of our back." The animal paid it all. Unless that animal was a pet, or you have a strong feeling towards the suffering and treatment of animals, most people just saw it as complying with what was expected. Sacrifice over. Go home.
Jesus said, "I have come to do Your will." He said this to God so that God's will of being reconciled with us could take place with the ultimate sacrifice; the death of God's only begotten Son. That death paid the final price for sin. Every time we see the cross we should remember that on that instrument of death came our life, and that in abundance. We cannot celebrate Christmas without thinking of Easter. The two, thank God, go hand in hand with what was needed for our sake. The question remains, what are we going to do about it, to glorify God?
PRAYER: Loving God, thank You for Jesus. Thank You for Your love that insisted on Your way for us. It cost a great price, the death of Jesus, but that only demonstrates the great love You have for us. Help us receive it, help us ask forgiveness of our sins, and help us be the people You called us to be. In Christ Jesus our Lord, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!
Eradio Valverde
