The Sacrificial King..Craig Denison Ministries

The Sacrificial King

Craig Denison Ministries

Weekly Overview:

What a gift we have in the Christmas season. God himself took on flesh and dwelt among us that we might find eternal relationship in him. His coming serves as a continual reminder of his grace and pursuit of us who are lost without him. As we look to Jesus this week to celebrate who he is and what he’s done, may you find life-giving hope and foundational joy.

Scripture:

“Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” John 1:29

Devotional:

It’s impossible to separate the birth of Christ from the purpose of his coming. John 3:16 tells us, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” As we take time today to look at the heart of a God who would sacrifice his own life that we might find life through him, let’s open our hearts to receive a fresh encounter with his real, available love.

Jesus’ coming was entirely a love-motivated decision—“For God so loved the world.” So great is the depth of his love for his wayward crown of creation that he became man himself to live the life none of us ever could. So vast is his affection for us that he took the pain and shame we were due and offered up his life as a ransom for ours. Truly there is no greater love than the sacrifice of our King.

Have you stopped recently to acknowledge how intentionally God pursues you? Have you stopped to marvel at the lengths to which he will go simply to have your heart? In the hustle and bustle of this Christmas season, may we not look past the greatest gift we have. May we not skip over the reality of God’s love for us to get to the next thing on the calendar. Instead, may we take time every day to let sink in the simple truth that God became man entirely for our sakes. God himself, who has no beginning, no limit, no weakness, and deserves no pain, took on flesh in pursuit of a deeper, richer, and entirely restored relationship with you and me.

The love of Jesus we celebrate at Christmastime is a sacrificial love. He didn’t just give himself sacrificially on the cross. Every day of his life was another day given up for our sakes. Every tear, pang of hunger, and wound he suffered throughout his life he experienced not because he had to, but because he chose to out of love for us. Imagine leaving the perfection of heaven to come to earth. Imagine leaving unhindered, face-to-face connection with the heavenly Father and becoming an infant. Imagine allowing a mother and father to take care of you when you are God himself whose very existence has never known a beginning.

In this season of celebration may we take time to remember the loving, life-giving sacrifice of the King we worship. May we center our hearts and lives around him. May we give him the adoration and praise he deserves. And may this Christmas season change our lives forever as we respond to the continual pursuit of our loving God by offering him our hearts in return.

Guided Prayer:

1. Take a moment to reflect on the love of God reflected in the coming of Christ.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16

2. Ask God to reveal all the ways in which he has been pursuing you lately. Allow the coming of Jesus to build your faith that God pursues you still.

3. Take time to respond to God’s pursuit by offering him your heart. Crown him King of your life that all you are and have might be his. Commit to living today in response to God’s great love for you.

“Let us go to his dwelling place; let us worship at his footstool!” Psalm 132:7

In Philippians 3:12 Paul writes, “Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.” As a believer, Christ has made you his own. You were bought with a price only Jesus could pay. May this season be marked by the love and joy that can only come from true communion with Jesus, our sacrificial King.

Extended Reading: John 3

Cling to What Is Good ..Meg Bucher

 Cling to What Is Good

By Meg Bucher

“Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good.” - Romans 12:9 NLT

Sadness will teach us to cling to what is good for survival. In the ugly cry moments in our lives, we can hold tightly to Christ Jesus and know He absolutely understands how we feel. Paul’s words in the verse above are often the very reason we are clinging as we cry, holding tightly to the comfort Christ Jesus provides. “Don’t just pretend to love others,” he wrote to the Romans, “really love them.” When we really love others, it’s bound to get painful at times. We are all flawed human beings. Paul wrote earlier in his letter to the Roman church, “we all fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23) 

Deuteronomy 31:6 says, “So be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid and do not panic before them. For the LORD your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you.” Deuteronomy 31:6 NLT

Joshua was about to take over for Moses, and God’s people were the most fickle to lead. Always rebelling and losing faith. The Lord faithfully encouraged him through Moses. The Lord is faithful to encourage us today, too. When life gets hard, and we find ourselves clinging …turn to the only One who can mend the cracks in our armor.

Father, 
Praise You for the way You faithfully place people around us. When the hurt is so bad, and the fear of connecting with others is paralyzing, please remind us who we are in Christ Jesus. More than conquerors, Your children equip us with hearts full of encouragement. Fill us with the love we need to heal and move forward and spill onto others who are discouraged and in need of a faith-filled friend. Help us to be encouraged by the same words Moses encouraged Joshua with:

“Then Moses called for Joshua, and as all Israel watched he said to him, ‘Be strong and courageous! For you will lead these people into the land that they LORD swore to their ancestors he would give them. You are the one who will divide it among them as their grants of land. Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the LORD will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you.’” Deuteronomy 31:7-8 NLT

Intersecting Faith and Life:

There is no one person we can guarantee will love us perfectly, but You do, Father. Help us to gain a clear understanding of who we are in Christ, and allow others grace. Help us to see the good in each of us, created in Your image. Father, when we find ourselves clinging, it can cause us to fear. Remind us in those moments, You have placed people to encourage and love us, even at times when we’re having trouble loving ourselves. 

Father, when the hurts are too big to talk about, we know the Holy Spirit takes them to you in prayer, and You meet us right where we are at. We confess our disobedient tendency to quit and run on people, God. It’s hard, and You don’t shame or blame us for our feelings of fear. But help us to stick it out more, God. To stay with people, and learn the remarkable relationships which grow from forgiveness, mercy, grace, and compassion.

Mature us to be strong and courageous and to cling to the good. Allow us to see people the way You do, Father, fearfully and wonderfully made. 
In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

Further Reading: 

• Romans 12
• Deuteronomy 31

The Amazing Reality of Who We Are Now Because of Jesus..Mark Altrogge

 The Amazing Reality of Who We Are Now Because of Jesus

by Mark Altrogge

BIBLE VERSE OF THE DAY: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” - 2 Corinthians 5:17

One of the incredible results of Jesus’ resurrection is that God makes believers into completely brand new creations.

The Bible says we are completely new creations – we aren’t simply reformed or refurbished. We’re brand new.

We aren’t just the same old people who have now made resolutions to change or improve. It’s not like Jesus bought an old piece of beat up dirty furniture in a junkyard, washed it off, and is now beginning to sand it and polish it up.

No. That decrepit rotten piece of junk is gone. It no longer exists. Now there is a brand spanking new, beautiful creation in its place. God tells us in 2 Corinthians 5:17:

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

When God saves us, he not only washes all our sins away, but he joins us to Christ. He makes us one with Christ. When God looks at us he sees Christ. When he looks at Christ, he sees us in him.

We aren’t just refurbished old creations – we are completely NEW.

We are nothing like we were before. We are NEW creations in Christ. We have to remember this – the old has passed away. It’s gone. The new has come.

But we don’t always feel like new creations. When I first prayed to receive Christ, I expected fireworks or goosebumps, but didn’t feel any different. I still felt like the old me. I still felt tempted to sin. I didn’t realize that for right now, while we are still in these earthly bodies, we can still be tempted to sin. We will still have desires and cravings from what remains of our sin nature in our bodies.

But we ARE new. Whether we feel like it or not.

We must believe God’s word. Early in my Christian life, I felt like it would be impossible for me not to sin. Then I heard someone teach that believers are no longer slaves of sin. As it says in Romans 6:12-14:

“Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.”

Did you catch that? Sin will have NO DOMINION OVER YOU!

And why not? Because we are no longer under law but under a whole new system – we are under grace. We are new creations, no longer enslaved to sin, no longer under its dominion. We don’t have to sin. We don’t have to obey it’s urges, no matter how strong they feel.

God isn’t simply refurbishing the old us. He has created us anew and is shaping us more and more into the likeness of his Son:

“And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.”-2 Cor 3:18

We are new creations, and God is taking us from one degree of Christ’s glory to another. We are one with Christ, and God makes us more and more like him every day.

This is incredible! Even the highest seraphim in heaven can’t claim to be new creations.

The angels around the throne aren’t being transformed into the likeness of Christ. The most glorious angels have not been adopted by God as sons and daughters. They can’t call God “Father” like we can. And they are not one with Christ the way we are.

When God gave Isaiah a glimpse of his glory, he saw the seraphim:

“Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew.”- Isaiah 6:2

These glorious heavenly beings who had never sinned had to cover their faces – they could not look upon the infinite glory of God.

Yet look what God says we will experience:

“Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.”- 1John 3:2

We are now God’s children, and someday, we shall be like Jesus – clothed in his glory, and we shall see him as he is!

We shall gaze directly upon the face of Jesus Christ in all his infinite radiant glory.

And we will never grow tired of taking in his beauty, because his beauty is infinite. For all eternity he will show us new, amazing, astounding, breathtaking, mind-blowing, vistas of his glory and majesty.

Why? Because Jesus died for us, then rose from the dead to make us who believe in him into new creations.

Someday we all will die unless Jesus comes back first. But because Jesus rose from the dead, believers will rise from the dead. We will have new glorious heavenly bodies. We will be like Jesus and see him as he is. In the meantime, though we live in this dying world, WE are right now, new creations. We have imperishable, everlasting life. The old is gone, the new has come. Jesus isn’t just sanding and polishing up the old you. You are a brand new you.

An Advent Prayer for Joy..Emma Danzey

 An Advent Prayer for Joy

By Emma Danzey

Luke 2:10-11 says, “And the angel said to them, ‘Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.'”

As we pray through the third advent candle, the candle of joy, may our hearts reflect on the beautiful message from the angel given to the Shepherds in the fields. The angel brought good news of great joy. This is what we have in Jesus; we have the good news of the gospel that God came down from heaven to us in the form of man and lived the perfect life and died a sinner's death and rose so that we might be saved. This baby, this long-anticipated Messiah whom the Jewish people prayed and waited many years for, had finally come. This leads to great joy in the lives of all who put their faith in Him.

Let's Pray:

Dear Savior,
You are the giver of joy and new life. We celebrate You and honor You today. Thank You for your constant care for us. Thank You that we are able to access the fruit of the Spirit's joy because You came down to us. Thank You that at this time of year, we are able to rejoice and be grateful for Your precious presence with us. We praise You for coming to earth in humility as a newborn child. God, we cannot begin to comprehend all that You have done for us.

Just like the shepherds were simple people, Lord, we are just regular individuals living life, but You have called us to greater things in Your name. You have given us a purpose, a calling, and a mission to be part of Your kingdom and to share that kingdom with others. May we not neglect the greatest joy of being your children and sharing Your good news of great joy with others. Forgive us when we hide this joy, and we keep it away from telling the world.

You tell us in Romans 15:13 that You are the God of hope who fills us with joy and peace. You say in Philippians 4:4 to always rejoice. You tell us in Psalm 16:11 that You make known the path of life, and in your presence, there is fullness of joy. You remind us that joy comes through gratitude, so Jesus, we thank You today. We are grateful for the life that you have given to us, for creating air, water, shelter, and food, for Your love, for our families, friends, mentors, and community, for our jobs, for our churches, for the sun, for the moon, for the perfectly established world to exist, for talents, and for Your great sacrifice on the cross. You are the Creator, so we praise You for making joy.

Lord, for those of us who feel down and discouraged right now. When we are overwhelmed, tired, or frustrated, help us not to sit in these states of mind but to press into the gift of gratitude to do battle with the enemy and truly see even the smallest things in life as a blessing. Help us not miss the wonderful gifts from You because of hurts, losses, and discouragement. Guides us by Your strength to choose joy and to fight for it each and every day.

You say in Psalm 30:11, “You have turned my mourning into dancing; you have loosed my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness.” You tell us in Romans 12:12, “Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.” Lord, move me into a joy that leads to singing. There is such beauty in getting to voice Your praises and especially with others. Even though our happiness comes and goes, may Your joy be an anchor for our souls.

As we anticipate this new Christmas season, whether we are easily joyful or having to fight for it with Your help, may we look back at Your birth to help point us towards Your second coming to fill us with great joy. Amen.

Do You Believe in Christmas Miracles?.. Lynette Kittle

 Do You Believe in Christmas Miracles?

By Lynette Kittle

“The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call Him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”). — Matthew 1:23

Have you noticed how many Christmas movies focus on receiving a Christmas miracle?

Although many center on Santa Claus making things happen, still Christmas is portrayed as a time for long-awaited hopes and dreams to be fulfilled.

Rightly so, too, because Christmas is all about miracles!

It’s a celebration of the miraculous virgin birth of Jesus, God come to earth in human form, to live among mankind and save people from their sins. What could be more miraculous than that?

So how do you approach Christmas? Are you hoping for God to do the impossible in your life? Do you believe what Jesus said, that all things are possible with God? (Mark 10:27)

If you aren’t expecting God to do the impossible at Christmas or any other time of the year, perhaps it’s because of past disappointments, of times where you had great hope and anticipation but didn’t see your prayers answered?

If so, ask God to renew your expectancy in Him, to revive your faith despite your disappointments. Choose to base what you believe about God on what Scripture says about Him, rather on past discouraging experiences.

If former letdowns are holding you back from having faith in God, James 1:6 encourages you to believe with all your heart and not doubt God because doubt inhibits the impossible.

Scripture explains what happened when Jesus visited His hometown and the residents doubted Him. Their disbelief effected what they were able to receive from Jesus. As Matthew 13:58 explains, “And He did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith.”

If you’re lacking faith in believing God is able to do the impossible, ask Him to increase your faith. Hebrews 11:1 explains, “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”

Consider how everything you see created was once impossible without God. As John 1:3 explains, “Through Him all things were made; without Him nothing was made that has been made.”

As Jeremiah 32:17 describes, “Ah, Sovereign Lord, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for You.”

Colossians 1:16 further describes, “For in Him all things were created; things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through Him and for Him.”

At Christmas and all year long, choose to believe that nothing is too difficult for God to bring about in your life by stepping out in faith and asking Him to transform your impossibilities into possibilities.