Reading your Bible for Today December 18

December 18: Colossians 1:12-18

KJV Key Verse: Colossians 1:17
17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.

Devotion:
This week I want to set down a few reminders of what Christmas is all about. We would not be celebrating any Christmas celebrations without Christ. God is the one who instituted a day to remember in our lives where it all started. A day that was shrouded in despondency as people all round Israel were summoned back to their places of birth so the census could be carried out and taxes could be collected. Taxes, the only certainty in life besides death. Who would want to celebrate the collection of taxes!

But on that day, a few thousand years ago, Jesus Christ was born, wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid in a manger. Just as it had been predicted by the prophets many years earlier, it came to pass. God had seen it fit to send His only begotten Son to earth to start His ministry. But this would be no ordinary child. A Human child who had a real mother, Mary, and a spiritual Father, God. God, lowered to earthly standards, having to depend on Mary for everything in the first few years as any normal human child would. Having to bow to the authority of His earthly parents whilst they brought Him up.

That single birth is celebrated the world over now. A date in history which will always be remembered – albeit for the wrong reasons nowadays! A birth which allowed us to be partakers of the inheritance God laid down. A birth that would allow us to be freed from our sin debt. A birth that would end in a death so horrible just so our sins could be forgiven. The ultimate firstborn sacrifice was born to us.

But let us never forget the firstborn was, is and forever will be our Creator, Saviour, Priest and King. All things were created by Him, all things exist through Him and all things are controlled by Him. Without Him, there is nothing. Without Him, we are nothing. With Him, we are forgiven, loved and cherished!

Points to Ponder:
What would be the best gift you could receive this year?

God has already given us His gift, all we need do is accept it!