Leading The Way - Week of November 29
More Than a Babe in a Manger
By Michael Youssef, Ph.D.
Read Psalm 2:1-12 and 110:1-7.
Despite appearances, Jesus’ coming was hardly unscheduled—His was an arrival promised and planned since the beginning (see Genesis 3:15). Throughout the Old Testament, God continuously reminded His people that His Anointed One would come and save them from the curse of sin and death. His Son would reign and rule over all the nations of the earth forever. In particular, the Psalms contain many passages that prophesy about the coming Messiah—passages that the New Testament reveals are fulfilled in Jesus.
In Psalm 2, we read, “The kings of the earth rise up and the rulers band together against the LORD and against his anointed” (v. 2). As Acts 4:25-28 declares, God’s anointed is Jesus, and the Truth of Psalm 2 is on full display today as people choose to set themselves up as their own kings, rejecting the idea that they are beholden to their Creator, King Jesus. They hate His teachings, and they strive to silence His followers because they believe that God’s moral absolutes are a chain around their necks. They want to be free to pursue the pleasure that their flesh demands, so they suppress the Truth and ignore Jesus’ offer of eternal, abundant life to all who will take refuge in Him (see Psalm 2:12).
Likewise, the New Testament is very clear that Jesus is the resurrected, ascended, glorified, soon-coming judge depicted in Psalm 110 (see Hebrews 7:11-28, Acts 2:29-36, Mark 12:35-37, et al.). He is reigning and ruling at the right hand of God the Father today. Jesus even applied this psalm to Himself in Matthew 22:41-46, indicating that, after He had paid for the wages of our sins on the cross, He would be enthroned in heaven. And this is where Jesus is right now. He is King over all, and every human being on the face of the earth will either know Jesus as Lord, Savior, and friend or become His footstool.
At Christmas we celebrate more than the babe in the manger. We worship the glorious, eternal King who reigns. Out of His infinite love, God sent His Son to earth two thousand years ago, and still He invites His enemies to believe in Jesus Christ and be saved. Let us pray that many who now shake their fists at heaven would have ears to hear the Gospel message, receive the Lord Jesus as King, and be transformed by the gift of His divine presence forever this Christmas.
Prayer: Lord, I praise You for Your wondrous love displayed in the gift of Your one and only Son. Thank You for the wonder of Christmas. Give me eyes to see ways I can share Your gift of salvation with those around me. I pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.
“Kiss his son, or he will be angry and your way will lead to your destruction, for his wrath can flare up in a moment. Blessed are all who take refuge in him” (Psalm 2:12).
Learn more in Dr. Michael Youssef’s sermon series The Messianic Psalms: LISTEN NOW
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