Matthew 1-2
Luke 1-2
John 1

Welcome to the New Testament. A “testament” is a proclamation that serves as evidence to something. The Old Testament was the first evidence of God’s sovereignty and love for His creation and his people. The New Testament is the second evidence of God’s Love for all people through one special person.

Over the first half of the Bible, we’ve seen writings about God’s love for His people and talk of someone special to come. This person would bridge the gap between man and God, freeing them from their sins. Until this point, we had no idea who it would be, but there were small hints along the way. Those hits can be found in the Psalms, prophetic writings like Isaiah, and all the way back in the creation story when God promised to send someone to crush the head of the snake in the garden.

Pause right here and read John 1:1-5 and 9-13.

John begins his writing by setting the stage for what is about to happen next. He points us back to the beginning of time itself, the moment where God created the entire world. It’s here that the savior that we’ve been talking about can be seen. He was with God in the beginning! 

The Savior was a part of breathing life into creation, he is the Light that shines in the darkness, and He will always defeat sin! This is Such a great truth!

Then John continues on: “The true light that gives life to everyone was coming into the world.” (John 1:9) After all those years of silence and the promise of a savior, it was finally time for someone to come and save Israel! But who is it? 

Take some time to read Matthew 2:1-21.

While you read, think about these questions: First, what is the name of the savior from this passage? Second, can you recall any other names given to this person in the Bible?

At the end of this reading we see that this child born to Jospeh and the virgin Mary is the Savior. His name is Jesus. Isaiah, the Prophet, wrote about this hundreds of years before it ever happened.  He prophesied that “a virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and his name will be called Emmanuel.” (Isaiah 7:14) Jesus is Emmanuel. The name Emmanuel means “God with us”.

GOD IS WITH US!

John wrote this, Isaiah spoke about it, and the whole old testament points towards this moment. This is the turning point in the story. God is here and all people will experience God’s presence and his love in a new, life giving way.

What does this mean for you? God kept His word. Over many hundreds of years, He promised a way out of sin and death for His people, and it happened through Jesus Christ.