For Real?

In the 1930s, when my sister and I were quite young, we always looked forward to the Christmas holidays. We had no idea whether we would get gifts.

However, we made the customary wish list and gave it to our single mom.

Nuts, some candy canes, an orange for each of us, and perhaps a pair of shiny patent leather shoes we had seen in the Sears catalog. That was our list.

For real? In the four hundred years between the close of the Old Testament canon and 3 BC, the Jewish nation also had a list. They prayed for a Deliverer, someone who would rescue them from the tyrannical oppression of Roman authority.

At the end of the four hundred years, an angel appeared to a virgin and told her that she was blessed and had been chosen to be the mother of God’s Son (see Luke 1:26–38, NIV). Appearing to her betrothed, Joseph, with the same declaration, the angel said, “You shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins” (Matthew 1:20, 21, NKJV).

For real? Thirty-three years later, that promised Child was arrested and charged with healing on the Sabbath, raising the dead, threatening to overthrow the Roman government, and impersonating the Son of God. Before they killed Him, they beat Him mercilessly. He bore our sins on the cross, dying so we would not have to.

“By His stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5, NKJV).

Forever redeemed! For real? For real! It cost my mom something to sacrifice her meager earnings to fill our wish list. But she loved us. God loves us infinitely more.

Giving His Son to die for the remission of our sins was far more costly.

Because it was our sins that put Him on the cross, we need to factor into our wish list the realization that our unconfessed sins will always separate us from our God (see Isaiah 59:2). Sin is offensive to Jehovah God (see 2 Corinthians 7:1; Genesis 6:11–13).

Father, thank You. May we forever realize how abhorrent sin is to You.

Sin caused Your Son to suffer in a way no one should ever have to suffer.

But He did it because He loved us. For real!

Helen O. Byoune