You were bought at a price.
1 Corinthians 6:20; 7:23
In this time warp that is 2020, it’s astounding to me that Christmas is just around the corner. Wasn’t it just the 4th of July last week? Or, wait, maybe that was 17 years ago. The nation’s response to this virus has turned every day since March into Blursday—can I get a witness?
But it is definitely December and, ready or not, Christmas is here. Some of you have, no doubt, been cranking up the carols since early November. (Dare I say, September?) Others of you (like a certain sister-in-law of mine) have had all your Christmas gifts purchased or handmade by August 1. And although it looked a bit different this year, Black Friday may have been that hallowed day you awaited to get most of your presents purchased.
No matter the Christmas-gifting style, we’re all on the hunt for a bargain—we never want to pay full price. In stores or online, we hit the sales section/tab and assess the markdown amount, getting giddy at the denoted percentage saved. This is especially exciting at Christmas, when there’s a high quantity of items needing to be purchased, so the cheaper, the better!
But, friends, I want to challenge us this Christmas to focus on another price tag, one paid at the full price—in full.
When we sing carols celebrating Emmanuel, God with us, and how Jesus came to earth to live among us, let’s not stop at the manger scene. He was born to die. That baby, fully human and fully God, grew to make a way—to BE the Way—for our salvation. To take our sins (past, present, and future) and make them His own, taking on the penalty—death—so we could live. His blood, shed on the cross, cleansed us of our unrighteousness (1 John 1:9), so we can stand before God perfectly righteous and holy.
Sin has a hefty price tag, one that cannot be marked down by good works or big church donations. And this great debt has grave consequences if not paid: eternal separation from God, full of suffering. But Jesus Christ, the Baby we celebrate on Christmas, arrived to earth, proverbial pen in hand, to one day pay the bill. And He did. He paid the price on the cross and then defeated death, rising again to finish the purchase on our behalf. He gave us the priceless gift of eternal life in His presence.
So, with every sale price we pursue this Christmas—and all year long—let’s pause to give thanks to the One who paid it all for us.
Lord, thank You doing what I could not, for giving everything—Your life for mine—so I could live in Your presence for eternity.
encouraged by grace 