May the hope, joy, peace, and love of the Lord penetrate even the deepest parts of your heart and find a permanent home there. That it might be so is, after all, the reason Jesus came.
“I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” John 10:10b (NASB).
There’s nothing wrong with asking and answering a very basic question: Why did Jesus come? Fortunately, Jesus Himself answered this question, and in His answer we can find our greatest reason to live life in a celebratory fashion. He came that we may have abundant life. Let’s explore what Jesus did tomake this abundant life possible.
Jesus’ story doesn’t begin with His birth. In fact, Jesus’ story has no beginning or end. Jesus has, for all eternity, been together with God (John 1:1). He left this position of utmost abundance in heaven to be born into the world in human form. In so doing, he entered into a situation opposite from the one He left. He was born in a stable because there was not a more suitable place available in Bethlehem (Luke 2:7). His earthly family was so poor that they offered two turtle doves — the offering specified for those who could not afford a lamb — when they went to the Temple after He was born (Luke 2:24, Leviticus 5:11). Soon after He was born, His family had to seek refuge in a land unfamiliar to them (Matthew 2:13).
When they returned to Israel, they settled in Nazareth in Galilee, which was widely considered a place of second-class status (John 1:46). What a contrast from Jesus’ heavenly abundance!
As for us, we are born into an earthly life that contains sin and its deadly effects: pain, suffering, despair, illness, and death. But Jesus made a different life possible by His saving work, of
which His birth is just a part (See“Jesus Was Born For You”).
Thanks to Jesus, our lives can include much different attributes:
Hope: an eternity spent with God is assured (Titus 3:7).
Joy: an everlasting happiness that can penetrate even the toughest of times (Isaiah 61:7).
Peace: hearts free from anxiety and filled with gratitude (Philippians 4:7).
Love: the eternal, unconditional love of God that will never change (Psalm 136:2).
From the highest abundance, Jesus was born into this world in the lowliest of ways. Because of this, we can also exchange the “un-abundant,” cheap imitation of life that exists in this world for an abundant life filled with hope, joy, peace, and love.
That’s why He came.
That’s the truth.
Jesus came that you may have a life filled with hope; that you may have a life filled with joy; that you may have a life filled with peace; that you may have a life filled with love; Jesus came that you may
have a truly abundant life!
Excerpted from YouTruth – A Collection of “Go Deeper” Devotionals available here.
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