Advent Devotion-December 1

1 Timothy 4:10 CSB

10 For this reason we labor and strive, because we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe.

Hope is truly powerful! There have been countless stories of those who have been lost in the wilderness without basic supplies and unbelievable hardships staying alive on hope alone until they were rescued.

Or how about that small child that is normally sound asleep by eight o’clock and is somehow able to defy all the laws of nature and creation. So much so, on Christmas eve he/she visits your room once an hour for 8 hours straight, asking is it time to open presents yet. All for the hope of what might be under the tree.

However, the “hope” mentioned by Paul in writing to Timothy is not of this type. This type of hope is not a excitement in what might be, but rather a confidence in what actually is. This type of hope more closely resembles our word ‘trust” than it does and excitement or faith in the possibilities of the unknown.

In this scripture, Paul gives Timothy a reminder of why he should continue to labor and strive in the ministry because of these two realities.

God is living 2. He is the savior of all.

God is living- This statement is more than meets the eye. It speaks of His eternal existence. He is living, always has been, and always will be, but also we see glimpses of His incarnation(God in the flesh) in which death itself had no effect on His eternal nature. He died when He offered himself as a sacrifice for the sins of the world, yet through His resurrection(power over death) He lives. Only an eternal God could have power over death.

It was in His death and resurrection that we find this next statement to be true. He is the savior of all people. Think about that for a minute (really, take a few minutes and mediate on this thought).

Anyone at anytime no matter the depth of their depravity can come to the savior and be made clean. The serial killer, the child trafficker, the warlord and even you can be made clean. Do you see it? Do you now see more clearly why Paul said, “for this reason we labor and strive? It is not a hope in what may be, but a trust in a the reality of what is. We strive because God became a baby. We labor because He became our sacrifice. In this we find the hope for all humanity! May this Advent season reinvigorate your heart! Keep going! Keep Striving! Keep Laboring! We have the hope!