Third Sunday of Advent

December 15, 2019

 

Scripture Reading

Luke 2:1-21

 

Devotional

When a Weary World Rejoiced

By Dr. Ron Jones

 

“O holy night, the stars are brightly shining. It is the night of our dear Savior's birth.” I love the lyrics to this beautiful Christmas hymn. But I’m slightly confused by what comes next, “Long lay the world in sin and error pining.” What’s an “error pining”? 

 

To “pine” means to “yearn deeply” or “suffer with longing.” It’s what the Bible has in mind when it says, “For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only creation, but we ourselves” (Romans 8:22-23). 

 

We live in a pining world broken by sin and error. But our dear Savior was born. Christmas is when the soul feels its worth and the weary world rejoices. 

 

Reflection Question

 

What about this world makes you weary? How does the arrival of the Christ Child turn your pining into rejoicing?

“Every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good.”

Romans 8:28 MSG