A WORD FOR TODAY, December 22, 2025
Peggy Hoppes
We pray you have been blessed by this daily devotion. If you received it from a friend, you can see other devotions and studies by visiting our website at www.awordfortoday.org.
Blessings. Peg
A WORD FOR TODAY, December 22, 2025
“He showed me a river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb, in the middle of its street. On this side of the river and on that was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruits, yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. There will be no curse any more. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will serve him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. There will be no night, and they need no lamp light or sun light; for the Lord God will illuminate them. They will reign forever and ever.” Revelation 22:1-5, WEB
In the midst of the glitz and glitter of the holidays, we are reminded that the reason for the season is to celebrate a most extraordinary event: Jesus Christ was born. We celebrate His birthday with parties and give gifts to one another. We also share the message of hope an love that He brought to this earth. Most of our celebrations don’t look much like religious experiences. We drink in excess and spend too much on presents out of duty rather than love. It is a time when many people face depression and anger. Families argue over trivial matters. Divorce is rampant. Sadly, too many people suffer illness and die, making it a hard time of year for others. This time that should be devoted to worship is a time when human frailty is most pronounced.
Jesus has a way of revealing our weakness. We’ve been counting down the weeks to Christmas with an Advent wreath. We begin the season in darkness and light a candle each Sunday. The light grows week by week, filling the world with light. That light, however, makes us see the reality of our human failures. We time we spend reading devotions, hearing the scriptures from the lectionary reminds us that we are sinners in need of the Savior. We humble ourselves before the throne of mercy and grace and ask for God to forgive our sins and make us new again.
A baby was born in humble circumstances two thousand years ago to show us the truth. The truth is that we are focused on self when we should be worshipping God. The truth is our human nature is imperfect. The truth is that we will die because of our sin. However, that baby was more than we could ever hope for or expect. He was the perfect Lamb of God, the perfect sacrifice for our sin. Jesus taught us how to live, but He knew we could never live according to God’s will. In the stable on that first Christmas day, Jesus humbled Himself and became man. About thirty years later, He humbled Himself again by dying on the cross. We rejoice during Christmas because our Savior was born, but that was not the end of the story. It is in the death and resurrection that we find the grace, hope, peace, joy, reconciliation, forgiveness, and life God promised ever since the moment we fell from grace in the Garden.
Each Christmas, we linger for a moment over the infant Jesus in the manger. We sing a few carols, say a few prayers, and spend a few moments honoring the God who came to save us. In our celebrations and gift giving w shine the light of God’s gift with the world. Sadly, during those celebrations we also act in ways that are not worthy before the Lord. As Christmas Day quickly approaches, remember to spend some time with the One who came to die for your sin. We focus this week on the manger, but it is the cross where we see the true purpose of His life. It is wonderful to look forward to our holiday celebrations but now is the time to also look forward to the future hope that came wrapped in swaddling clothes on the first Christmas Day. Someday there will be no more darkness, but only light and life as God and the Lamb will reign forever and ever. Now is the time to join John and all the hosts of heaven in worship of that baby who came to be our King.
A WORD FOR TODAY is posted five days a week – Monday through Friday. The devotional on Wednesday takes a look at the scripture from the Revised Common Lectionary for the upcoming Sunday. A WORD FOR TODAY is posted on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pages/A-Word-for-Today-Devotional/339428839418276. Like the page to receive the devotion through Facebook. For information and to access our archives, visit http://www.awordfortoday.org.