Love Came Down (A Christmas Devotional)
By: Kristen L. McNulty
Reprint rights available on request. Email the author at kristenmcnulty@hotmail.com.
I have a tradition with my nephews and niece. Whenever I put them to bed or say goodbye, I say to them "how much do I love you? Do I love you this much?", while putting my fingers an inch apart and they say "no". I then repeat the question "do I love you this much?" as I hold my hands about a foot from each other and they say "no". Then I put my hands as far apart as I can manage and I ask the question "do I love you this much?" and they once again answer "no". Until finally I say "do I love you all the way to the stars and back?" and to that question they reply "yes" and then I say "yes, because that’s how much I love you, all the way to the stars and back."
Not too long ago I said it to one of my nephews as I was putting him to bed and immediately afterwards, he said I know you love me this much, but not when I was a baby. I asked him what he meant and he said you couldn’t have loved me that much when I was a baby because you didn’t really know me then. To which I replied, "Buddy I’ve loved you since the moment you were placed in my arms, right after you were born. In fact, I think I started loving you since I heard you were coming, even though I hadn’t even met you yet."
Driving home that night I started thinking about our conversation and how it’s possible to love someone who at the time doesn’t really understand what love means and who isn’t even fully aware of you and your presence in their lives. We are very quick to acknowledge this reality when it comes to a parent / child relationship or a child and an aunt or an uncle or a grandparent, but have you ever stopped and thought of it in the context of you and God? That just because you weren’t aware of it at the time or aren’t aware of it now, that doesn’t mean His love for you is any less?
A Mind-Blowing Truth
The Bible tells us a mind-blowing truth: that before we were even born, before our world was ever created, God loved us.
"All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins." Ephesians 1:3-7
This right here is the reason for the very season that we are celebrating. That the creator of heaven and the earth loved you before you were even created and sent His Son into the world on that cold Bethlehem night so that one day you too, could be welcomed into His family. You might have experienced a whole lot of life before you were ever told that God loves you or maybe you’re hearing it for the first time right now, but that doesn’t change the fact that God has loved you since before you took your first breath or your first step. He has loved you as He watched you grow as a child. And He loves you right here and right now.
The Message Of Christmas
The message of Christmas is of a Creator God who loved His creation so much that He sent His own Son into the world He created to build a bridge between heaven and us here on earth. A bridge paved by the sacrifice Jesus made for us when He died on the cross. And a bridge you can cross over if you believe and will accept Him.
Let me repeat again verse five:
"God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure." Ephesians 1:5
The invitation to enter God's family is there for each one of us. The question we all have to ask ourselves is do we want in? Just like any child can choose to reject the love of a parent, we too can accept or reject the love that God has for us and how He expressed it by sending His son into the world on the very first Christmas morning.
So will you accept Him? Will you stop in this place right here and right now and recognize that He loves you? That His Son died for you so that no matter what mistakes you’ve made, large or small, would be wiped off your slate and wash you clean and pure as snow? And that not only does this invitation to be part of God's family happen in the here and now, but also in heaven for all of eternity?
If the answer to the invitation of love is yes, then why don’t you stop with me in this moment and start down this path that will change your life. We're told in Romans chapter 10, verse 9 that if we confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in our hearts that God raised Him from the dead, we will be saved.
If you want to confess and believe, pray with me.
Jesus,
I know you are Lord and God. I believe you lived, died on the cross and were raised from the grave three days later. I know you love me and I want to live my life knowing you and the great love you have for me. I invite you to come into my life and change it in a way that only you can. Thank you for the incredible gift that your love is. Amen.
If you would like to learn more about God, Jesus and this incredible love story or you have any questions, please reach out. I'd love to chat with you. Email
madradioshow@hotmail.com or find me on the mad facebook page.
The Greatest Love Story Ever Written
Remember that Christmas is a chapter in a great love story that was written before time as we know it. And this Christmas is another invitation for you and I to get caught up in it. So whether today you’ve prayed for the first time or you’ve been a believer for quite some time, let this Christmas be a chance for you to recognize the love that God has for you and to share that same love with those around you.
Because the love that God has for you is so much greater than the love displayed in the movies, greater than the love written out in a hallmark card and greater than any emoji could ever express.
His love was expressed when Jesus came down to our earth on that very first Christmas and His love and His presence has never left. Even if this is the first time we’ve only been able to start to understand what it means.
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