Jesus came to earth to give us the gifts of acceptance, peace, healing, and forgiveness, but those gifts were not cheap. We could never afford what Jesus came to provide, and gratefully, we don’t have to. God now accepts us, not because of our own good behavior, but because Jesus paid the price by experiencing the greatest rejection on our behalf. Jesus chose to die to cover our sin, conquer death, and bring us life. The prophet Isaiah called our sins “transgressions” and “iniquities” – essentially our crimes and our wickedness. Those sins created a debt we could never repay, but Jesus, in His perfection, could. As Jesus chose to be born into a world where He would be bruised and crushed, He brought us peace and healing.
The prophecy in Isaiah 53 portrays God’s great exchange: Jesus’ life for all of ours. Jesus knew the cost of Christmas, and He embraced it so we could embrace Him and the eternal life He made available for us. As you celebrate this season, don’t forget: We can only be forgiven, healed, and set free because Jesus chose Christmas.
Prayer: Jesus, I can never thank You enough for paying the price that covered my debt. I would truly be lost without You. I worship You as my Peace, my Healer, and my Savior! Thank You for choosing Christmas. Help me to receive all You came to give me, and help me then share those gifts with the world around me.
Isaiah 53:3-5 He was despised and rejected—a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief. We turned our backs on him and looked the other way. He was despised, and we did not care. Yet it was our weaknesses he carried; it was our sorrows that weighed him down. And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God, a punishment for his own sins! But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed.