God Wants You to Return to Him and Receive His Pardon -Advent 8 (2019)

God wants nothing more on God’s Christmas List than for you to return to Him and receive His pardon. It’s why He sent Jesus and the Word became flesh. It’s the reason for a pregnant virgin and O Little Town of Bethlehem with a manger.

It’s too hard for us, indeed impossible, for us as unforgiven sinners to be acceptable to God. We needed a Savior named Jesus, the One and Only Son of God.

Think about it:

Years ago, I wrote something that I’m convinced was a profundity arrow from God, straight to my heart. “God could have given us a million pregnant virgins without once giving us Himself.”
Do you see how the miracle of Christmas was not that Mary was pregnant as a virgin, but the miracle of love was the One her womb contained?
Is it too much to ask that we return to our Father who loved us this much? He’s ready to pardon us. Are you ready to receive it?
If not, what stands in the way?
Read Proverbs 6:16-19. Some of them are listed there.

What God wants for Christmas is…you to return to Him and receive His pardon.

Dear Lord, I praise You for the immense love You have for us. I’m sorry that I’ve grieved You as my Father in heaven. I know I have done this. Even if unintentionally, I’ve grieved You. I’ve hurt You and like the story of the “prodigal son,” I know Your forgiveness is waiting for me at home with You. Help me to see that home with You is the only place I need to be this Christmas. Stir my heart this day with the true Miracle of Christmas: Jesus. Amen.

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Join me beginning December 1, 2019 by signing up on the sidebar of my Home Page to receive these daily devotionals. Let’s enjoy exploring what might be on God’s Christmas list.

Acknowledging inquiries about an entire season’s devotionals for your study group’s planning purposes, Seminary Gal’s prior seasons’ Advent devotionals can be accessed via the archives to the right and are as follows:

Last year’s Advent Devotional Series (2018) Storyteller began December 2, 2018 and entered into the Christmas story through its telling.
The 2017 series Still Christmas, began December 3, 2017 and was the Advent complement to the Lenten series, Be Still and Know that I AM God.
The 2016 season devotionals were called “Timeless: The Message of Christmas for All Ages” and explored how the message of Christmas is timeless truth, for all ages of people, and for all ages at all times. Timeless hope, encouragement, grace, peace, and love as we looked into the Word, saw the face of our Lord Jesus, and experienced restoration in His presence. His goodness and His Gospel are truly Timeless. The 2016 devotionals began November 27, 2016.
The 2015 season devotionals were titled Incarnation and involved digging deep–and yes, I mean deep– in this important mystery of Christian theology. They began November 29, 2015.
Carol Me, Christmas! remains one of my most popular offerings and tells the Christmas story through our most beloved Christmas hymns and carols. You can access all of the numbered devotionals from 2014 via the archives. They began November 30, 2014.
The 2013 series was Emmanuel: When LOVE Showed Up in Person and examined the Prologue to the Gospel of John. It began December 1, 2013.
The 2012 series focused on Expecting the Unexpected…the unexpected, unlikely, and uniquely divine qualities of God’s perfect plan outlined in Luke’s account of the Christmas story. It began December 1, 2012.