December 30 Daily Devotional

Bible Reading

Devotional

Ask the crowds that have just celebrated Christmas why Jesus came into the world. Or stop a worship service and have every person there write one short sentence about why Jesus came into the world.

What answers would we get? Some, I'm sure, would be way off the mark.

It's also possible that some answers would be correct but different from each other. The New Testament has different ways of stating the mission of Jesus. It describes that mission as announcing the kingdom, as destroying the works of the devil, as doing the Father's will, and as glorifying God.

But there is one basic answer we should all know: Christ came to seek and save people who are lost. He came to save sinners.

Why is it so important for us to know this purpose of Jesus' mission?

First, for our own comfort. Because all of us are lost, all of us need to be saved. Jesus said, "I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance." When he told the scribes and Pharisees, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick," he wasn't giving them a clean bill of health. He was telling them that they needed to realize their need for him. There is not a person who does not need Jesus.

We must also know this purpose of Jesus' mission as members of his church. If our Master came to seek and to save those who are lost, we are compelled to follow his example. We have to go out of our way to find those who are "lost" in order to "seek and to save" them.

Only the lost can be found. Only sinners can be saved. Candidates for salvation are always those who are least likely. Those who are "not good enough" can be saved. But those who are self-satisfied do not know they need Jesus.

REFLECTIONS

What would "going out of your way" to share the good news look like in your life? Are you willing and able to do that, if given the opportunity?

Andrew Kuyvenhoven's Daylight, a modern devotional classic, was originally published by Paideia Press in 1977. This updated edition is copyright 2009 by Faith Alive Christian Resources. You can order a copy of this revised version of the book directly from the publisher.

A man of many accomplishments, Andrew Kuyvenhoven is probably best known for his contributions to Today (formerly The Family Altar), a widely-used monthly devotional booklet associated with the Back to God Hour. Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations for this updated edition of Daylight are from the Holy Bible: Today's New International Version copyright 2001, 2005 by the International Bible Society.