“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:14
God the Son, the creator of all, took on human flesh and blood and was born into this world of the Virgin Mary to be our Savior. The Apostle John and his fellow disciples saw the glory of Christ Jesus — the same glory possessed by God the Father — in Jesus’ mighty works and in His transfiguration, resurrection, and ascension. Jesus brings us God’s undeserved love and mercy, and He brings God’s truth, which reveals our sins but also forgiveness and life through faith alone in Christ Jesus.
Grant, dear Jesus, that we recognize You as the only-begotten Son of the Father come into this world a true man that You might atone for our sins and grant to all who trust in You eternal salvation. Amen.
“While he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.’” Matthew 1:20-21
As the angel of the Lord told Joseph, Jesus was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. Jesus is the promised Messiah and Savior, true God, the only-begotten Son of the Father, and true man, born of Mary. This occurred because Mary, Joseph’s betrothed wife but yet a virgin, conceived by the miraculous working of the Holy Spirit and gave birth to a Son who would save His people from their sins by making atonement for the sins of all when He died on the cross.
O Holy Spirit, grant that I understand Your Word and trust that Jesus is the Son of God and the Son of man, who came into this world to redeem me from sin and death and to give me eternal life in His kingdom. Amen.
“And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.” Luke 1:31-33
An angel of God appeared to the Virgin Mary and told her that she would conceive in her womb and give birth to a Son she was to name Jesus, meaning Jehovah (or Yahweh) saves. He would be called the Son of the Highest because He is the eternal Son of God, and he would reign on the throne of His father David because he is a true man, descended from King David through the Virgin Mary. The kingdom of Jesus is the eternal kingdom made without hands, prophesied in Daniel 2:44.
Jesus — true God, Son of the Highest, and true man, born of the Virgin Mary — You came into this world to be my Savior by taking my place under the law and suffering the just punishment for my sins. Grant that I look to You and Your atoning sacrifice on the cross in faith and be pardoned and spared in the coming judgment. Amen.
“For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well. My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them.” Psalm 139:13-16
Though God created the first man from the dust of the ground and the first woman from the man’s rib, He formed each of us in our mother’s womb. We were no accident. God created and intricately formed each of our bodies and gave us life. Not only did He give us life, but the days of our earthly lives were already known by Him and written in His book before a single one of them existed.
You knew me, O God, and formed me in my mother’s womb. Your intricate creative work is amazing! Even the days of my life were known and determined by You before I lived a single day. Grant me the wisdom to use my body and the time You have given me in this world to worship and honor You and look to You for my salvation. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.
“And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place. Then the rib which the LORD God had taken from man He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man. And Adam said: ‘This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.’” Genesis 2:21-23
The LORD God created Adam from the dust of the ground. He made woman from a rib of Adam and brought her to Adam to be his wife — “a helper comparable to him” (Gen. 2:18). As Adam stated, “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh” (Gen. 2:24) — one new family unit — and this remains God’s purpose and design to this day.
We praise You, O God, for creating woman to be a helper and partner to man and for instituting marriage as the life-long union of a man and a woman. Amen.
