Christmas, the day we celebrate the birth of Christ, is my favorite time of the year. During this season, the atmosphere seems to be supercharged with excitement. Not because of the gift-buying and the other things we do to ourselves to make Christmastime one of the most hectic times of the year, but because of the birth of Christ and why Jesus came.
I submit to you that one of the main reasons He came was to heal broken relationships.
First and foremost, Jesus came to heal our relationship with God. You see, before the fall of man in the Garden, we enjoyed a wholesome relationship with our heavenly Father. But sin separated us from Him so that we could no longer enjoy intimate fellowship with Him. This breach in our relationship with God was unacceptable to Him because He values our relationship with Him.
What did God do about this problem? He sent His Son that first Christmas as a means for us to be reconciled with God through faith in His Son: “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1).
Not only did God send Jesus Christ on earth so that we might be reconciled with our heavenly Father, but also Jesus came to heal our individual families. Indeed it is a blessing when we are able to enjoy the time we share with family members and loved ones. During the Thanksgiving holiday on last month, for instance, I and seven other family members drove 500 miles to Virginia to spend several days with my oldest son who is in the Navy. We shared priceless moments together just enjoying each other.
This past weekend, I went to Atlanta, GA, to preach at a church where my youngest brother serves as the senior pastor. Instead of staying at a hotel, my wife and I stayed with my brother and his family during our time there. We enjoyed our time together at his house the day before worship service, during worship at church the next day, and out to dinner that afternoon. I truly thank God for the quality of relationship I have with my wife, my children, brothers and sisters, mother, etc. And I am looking forward to enjoyable time with my family this Christmas.
I know that some of you reading this post don’t feel the same way about your family. Perhaps it’s falling apart at the seams. If so, hear me friend, Jesus came that first Christmas Day so that through Him God might heal broken families. For those who place their faith in Him, He still does that today. Accordingly, in the Old Testament, we find the following Messianic-related prophecy: “And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers….” (Malachi 4:6).
Thanks be to God for giving us His only Son. Through faith in Him, who was born of a virgin on that first Christmas day, may each of you experience peace with God and wholesome relationships with your family members and loved ones during this Yuletide.
Copyright ©2011 by Frank King. All rights reserved.
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