CONTENTS
December 1 Genesis 3:14–21 December 2 Genesis 21:1–7 December 3 Exodus 4:1–17 December 4 Ruth 4:13–22 December 5 2 Kings 23:1–14 December 6 Esther 4:1–17 December 7 Job 33:12–33 December 8 Psalm 42:1–11 December 9 Psalm 89:1–18 December 10 Isaiah 9:1–7 December 11 Jeremiah 23:1–8 December 12 Ezekiel 25:1–17 December 13 Ezekiel 34:11–31 December 14 Daniel 7:1–18 December 15 Matthew 2:1–12 December 16 Matthew 3:1–17 December 17 Matthew 20:20–28 December 18 Luke 1:26–55 December 19 Luke 2:22–38 December 20 John 1:1–18 December 21 John 3:1–21 December 22 John 20:24–31 December 23 Philippians 2:1–18 December 24 Hebrews 1:1–14 December 25 Revelation 12:1–17
INTRODUCTION
I
love Christmas. You would struggle to find someone as enthu- siastic as Paul Tripp about all the festivities that fill a typical December calendar. I love baking Christmas cookies, decorating Christmas trees (we have three!), attending Christmas concerts, and shopping for Christmas gifts for loved ones. Yet simultaneously this season makes me sad. The chaotic cul- tural emphasis on Christmas has flipped the true meaning of Ad- vent upside down. What should be a celebratory and reflective season, in which we rejoice in the incarnation of the Creator and surrender worshipfully to his lordship, has become a frenzied pur- suit of manufactured delights. We have “exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator” (Rom. 1:25). Particularly for our children, the lie being actively promoted is how their lives will be made infinitely better by possessing a particular manufactured item. For families seeking to focus the wonder of their kids away from the next trinket or toy and toward the wonder of the coming of our great Lord and Savior, Christmas has become a parent’s nightmare and a retailer’s dream. So I humbly present to you this resource that may help in the battle for your family’s attention. The Everyday Gospel Christmas Devotional is a twenty-five-day Bible reading plan with my com- mentary that will take you from December 1 through Christmas morning. My prayer is that the glory of the incarnation of the Creator would become far more attractive than the manufactured delights of Christmas so that we truly come and adore Christ the Lord, as the classic hymn we sing declares. Why don’t you and your family and your church journey with me for the first twenty-five days of December, walking through the garden of wisdom, truth, and grace that God prepared for us when
he guided the recording and preservation of his word? As you read each of these Christmas entries, remember that the Bible is a story with a singular focus: to celebrate Jesus. Nothing could be more important this December than spending daily time in the word, rejoicing that the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us (John 1:14). He is our hope and the reason for this Advent season!
PAUL DAVID TRIPP
DECEMBER 1 GENESIS 3:14–21
God doesn’t wait too long to reveal the biblical narrative. The whole story is in compressed form in the first three chapters of Genesis.
G
enesis begins with the most brilliant, mind-bending, and heart-engaging introduction to a book ever written. God knows how much we need the creation-to-destiny themes of the biblical narrative in order to make sense of our lives, so he lovingly gives us those dominant themes right up front. The beginning of the Bible is wonderful, awe-inspiring, heartbreaking, caution- ary, and hope-instilling all at once. Since God created us to be meaning-makers, he immediately presents us with the wonderful and awful realities that we need to understand in order to make proper sense of who we are and what life is really all about. The opening chapters of Genesis have three foundational themes. 1. In the center of all that is, there is a God of incalculable glory. The first four words of Genesis say it all: “In the beginning, God.” Here is the ultimate fact through which every other fact of life is properly understood. There is a God. He is the Creator of everything that exists. He is glorious in power, authority, wisdom, sovereignty, and love. Since we are his creatures, knowing him, loving him, wor- shiping him, and obeying him define our identity, meaning, and purpose as human beings. 2. Sin is the ultimate human tragedy. Its legacy is destruction and death. Genesis 3 is the most horrible, saddest chapter ever writ- ten. In an act of outrageous rebellion, Adam and Eve stepped over God’s wise and holy boundaries, ushering in a horrible plague of iniquity that would infect every human heart. Because sin is a mat- ter of the heart, we are confronted in this narrative with the fact
that our greatest problem in life is us, and because it is, we have no power to escape it on our own. 3. A Savior will come, crush the power of evil, and provide redemp- tion for his people. The first three chapters of the Bible end with glorious hope. We are encouraged to understand that sin is not ultimate—God is. And he had already set a plan in motion to do for us, through the Son to come, what we could not do for our- selves. A second Adam would come, defeat temptation, crush the evil one, and restore us to God. As soon as sin rears its ugly face, redemption is promised. What grace! It really is true that three themes course through God’s amazing word: creation , fall , and redemption. They form the lens through which we can look at and understand everything in our lives. What a sweet grace it is that immediately in his word God makes himself known, alerts us to the tragedy of sin, and welcomes us into the hope of the saving grace to be found in the seed of the woman, his Son, the Lord Jesus. We are left with the riches of a single truth that is the core of everything the Bible has to say: Because God is a God of grace, mercy really will triumph over judgment.
Reflection
How might reflecting on the three themes of creation, fall, and redemption help to prepare you for the celebration of Christ’s first advent and to fill you with anticipation of his second coming?
Prayer
Creator God, I praise you for the glory and beauty of this world that you have made. And I praise you for the glory and beauty of your Son, who has come to rescue us from our sin, which has so marred this world. Thank you that he has accomplished all that the first Adam could not. In Jesus’s name, amen.
DECEMBER 10 ISAIAH 9:1–7
Jesus is the grace of God come to earth.
O
nce on a speaking trip, I stayed at the home of a wealthy family. One room featured a wall full of portraits of past generations of family members. My host explained to me that, in the days before the camera, itinerant painters would travel from city to city in search of well-to-do clients to sit for a portrait. Since painting a portrait takes time, the painter would typically live with the family, in a guesthouse or room, until the painting was complete. In so doing, the painter would get to know the family, particularly the person he was paint- ing. Good painters were known for their ability to capture the essence of the lifestyle, personality, position, and work of their subjects. If you were to “paint” a verbal picture of Jesus, what words would you use to capture who he is, what he came to do, and what he continues to do in and for those who put their trust in him? It may surprise you, but one of the most beautiful and best-known verbal portraits of Jesus is found not in the New Testament Gospels or Epistles, but rather in the beginning of one of the Old Testament Prophets. For generations, students of the Bible have wondered at, meditated on, and attempted to understand the meaning and impli- cation of the words of this portrait. Perhaps you have already figured out that I am referring to the picture of Jesus painted by Isaiah:
To us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this. (Isa. 9:6–7)
Jesus is everything Isaiah depicted. Jesus is our source of wisdom, the power by which sin is defeated, the one who adopts us into the family of God forever, and the means by which we have peace with God and with one another. And his kingdom of peace and righteousness will never end. He is the hero at the center of God’s plan of redeeming grace, and nothing will impede God’s zeal to complete his plan. It is right to say that in Jesus you find everything you need in order to be what you were meant to be, to do what God designed you to do, and to enjoy life as God meant for you to enjoy it. Jesus is life. Jesus is hope. Jesus is the grace of God. We will spend eter- nity worshiping and celebrating him. Why not start now?
Reflection
Does your celebration of Christmas fill you with anticipation of Jesus’s future kingdom of peace and righteousness? Why or why not?
Prayer
Dear Jesus, I bow in humble adoration of you, my Savior and King. You are indeed a Wonderful Counselor and the Prince of Peace. And you are Mighty God and Everlasting Father! I praise your justice and your righteousness. Your rule is perfect and will extend forever. Thank you for subduing me to yourself and granting me a place in your eternal kingdom. In your name, amen.
DECEMBER 23 PHILIPPIANS 2:1–18
Our hope in this life and the one to come rests on the humiliation and exaltation of the Son.
I
t’s important to confess that we love being exalted and dislike being humbled. None of us enjoys moments when we are proven to be less than others, and we revel in situations where we are elevated. Acclaim, respect, appreciation, power, control, and position are seductive idols for us all. We hate to be embarrassed
or shown to be weak. Being humbled is hard for us. Philippians 2 makes it clear that Jesus is not like us:
Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Phil. 2:5–11) As the apostle Paul calls the Philippian believers to live a life of humility, he encourages them to have the mind of Christ. Jesus, equal with the Father and the Holy Spirit in divine majesty, sov- ereignty, holiness, and power, willingly humbled himself. Paul assures us that Jesus wasn’t humbled, but rather willingly humbled himself. What did his willing humiliation look like?
He emptied himself. He took on the form of a servant. He took on human likeness. He became obedient, even to death on a cross.
Jesus didn’t come to earth in a display of divine splendor. From the manger to homelessness, mockery, rejection, and public cru- cifixion, Jesus’s life was a portrait of humility. He came to be not an earthly monarch but a sacrificial Lamb. Our justification and adoption as the children of God rest on the willing humiliation of the Son. We should be his humble and willing children. But, thankfully, our hope rests not on our willingness but on his. Paul doesn’t stop with Jesus’s willing humiliation; he also points us to Christ’s exaltation. Humble Jesus now sits at the right hand of the Father as the reigning King. The final defeat of sin and death and the delivery of the final kingdom of peace and righteousness rest on the exaltation of the Son. There will be a day when every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus is, in fact, Lord. Be thankful for the willing humiliation and great exaltation of the Son. The sacrificial Lamb is now a reigning King. Hallelujah!
Reflection
What difference does it make that the same Jesus humbled at the cross is now exalted on high?
Prayer
Lord, even now I bow before the throne of Jesus. Even now I confess that he is Lord, master and ruler of all things, king of the universe. And yet what humility he has displayed! What tender love to stoop so low, even to die on behalf of me and all his chosen people. May I display that same sort of humility in all that I do. In Jesus’s name, amen.
DECEMBER 24 HEBREWS 1:1–14
How would you describe Jesus, the one on whom you have hung your hope in this life and the one to come?
N
o book of the Bible begins as Hebrews does. It’s as though the writer of Hebrews invites you into the divine theater and ushers you to a great seat. As the orchestra swells, he pulls back the curtain, and a bright and shining light of glory bursts forth from the stage. He says, “Here is your Savior”: Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs. For to which of the angels did God ever say,
“You are my Son,
today I have begotten you”? . . .
But of the Son he says,
“Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, the scepter of uprightness is the scepter of your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness;
therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness beyond your companions.” (Heb. 1:1–5, 8–9)
This portrait of the Savior is majestic and multifaceted. It is meant not only to deepen and clarify your understanding of the second person of the Trinity, but to change you, to deepen your un- derstanding of who you are as God’s child. Sometimes such glory prompts you to stop, be silent, behold, and worship. Hebrews 1 offers us an account of this kind of glory. So, who is Jesus? He is God’s final revelation to us. In him we see the full radiance of God’s glory, because he shares God’s exact nature. Jesus not only created the world, but he is the one who holds the creation together by his infinite power. Jesus is the only one who has the power to purify us from sin. He is God the Fa- ther’s beloved Son, who now sits at his right hand. Jesus is majestic in glory and brimming with redeeming grace. He reigns over his creation for the sake of his own. There is no one more worthy of your hope. There is no one more worthy of your trust. There is no one more deserving of your worship. Today, and all the days that follow, we bow before the majesty of our Savior King and offer our whole hearts and lives to him.
Reflection
How can your celebration of this Christmas season lead to greater worship of and devotion to King Jesus?
Prayer
Jesus, I am stunned by your glory. You created the world and now hold it together. You use your purifying power to cleanse your people from sin. You rule in gladness and righteousness. You are majestic and gracious. All I can do is worship you with all that I am. In your name I do so, amen.
DECEMBER 25 REVELATION 12:1–17
Your hope in this life and the one to come was secured in the ultimate battle that took place at the birth of Jesus.
A
ll of history marched toward one decisive event. The entire plan of God, the entire hope of humanity, and the entire work of redemption balanced on this moment. It had been prophesied. It had been promised. The reputation of the Almighty rested on whether it would happen or not. Could the Lord of lords fulfill his promise of the birth of his Son? If the Son would not be born, there could be no righteous life lived in our place, no death to free us from sin’s penalty, no victorious resurrection, and no ascension to the Father to reign and intercede on our behalf. There could be no redemption and no hope. Revelation 12 captures the battle that occurred at this pivotal moment in history: And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth. And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven diadems. His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it. She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne, and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, in which she is to be nourished for 1,260 days. (Rev. 12:1–6)
This is a picture of the great spiritual battle that began with the birth of Jesus. Israel is the pregnant woman, Jesus is the male child, and Satan is the great red dragon. Satan and the forces of darkness would have done anything to end the life of the promised Son. The end of the reign of evil on earth began with the birth of Jesus. Later Satan would be defeated at Christ’s temptation, he would be defeated on the cross, and he would be defeated by the empty tomb. Jesus was victorious on our behalf and now reigns in glory. His reign guarantees the end of sin and death and an eter- nity of peace and righteousness for all who believe. The dragon is defeated. The Son reigns. Hallelujah!
Reflection
Why did Jesus need to be born as a human in order to defeat the dragon?
Prayer
Lord God, I rest in the mighty victory of your Son, Jesus Christ! I praise you for your great power in defeating sin and Satan at the cross, and with hope I look forward to the day when Satan will be banished forever. I delight in the reign of Christ, which guarantees an eternity of peace and righteousness. I pray in his name, amen.
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