"She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins." Luke 1:21 (New International Version).
So, that is why He came, to save us from our sins. God looked out over the expanse of time and human history and chose that precise moment to send his son, to do something only he could do. Mankind was in a state of turmoil when He came. Money was tight and hope seemed rather far away. But He came. To save them.
Sometimes we wonder what that really means, "to save us." To save us from what?
There are many people who don't think they need to be saved. We are Americans after all, and we are self-sufficient and strong. We can take care of ourselves. But in recent weeks, there have been some surprising bailouts taking place in our country.
Corporations that have always been strong find themselves in a vulnerable position.
We need to be bailed out occasionally as well. We find ourselves in situations that make us feel stuck and in a place of need. We find ourselves having lives with addictions, excesses, and sometimes loneliness.
John 10:10 goes on to quote the very words of Jesus that express even further why He came. "I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of."
More and better life than we ever dreamed of?
I don't know about you, but I can dream a pretty good dream. But His word says He came to give me more than I dreamed of? The Amplified version says it this way, "I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows)."
It reminds me of a time on Christmas when my children were little, and my husband was across the world serving with the Marine Corps. As I tucked them into bed each night, they would tell me stories of Christmas wishes. They would tell me dreams of every toy in abundance, tasty foods awaiting them, stockings overflowing, and Daddy would be there.
I believe that this is the kind of overflowing life God wants us to dream of. Every good thing, not just a life of getting by, needing to be bailed out all the time, and of constant longing for more, but a life of overflowing abundance. He wants us to have a big life, and when He came to earth, He offered that to each of us.
- Connie Friend is member of the ministry team of Capital Christian Center in Carson City and a member of the Carson City Christian Ministerial Fellowship.