6
Isaiah reminds us of what Jesus is doing for us if we let Him—He
has come to set us free. Paul also voices his response: “It is for free-
dom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let
yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery” (Gal. 5:1).*
What changes does Jesus want to bring about in you? What do
you need for God to do for you today? Ask Him.
TUESDAY—Isa. 40:1-8
What a glorious passage! This passage refers to the coming of a
King. In biblical times, before a king would come, everyone would
prepare for him. Everything was cleaned, refurbished, painted, and so
on, and even crooked roads were straightened and fixed.
The theme of this week has been “prepare.” In the midst of the
huff and puff of Christmas we need to stop long enough to open our
hearts to Jesus. We should not give Him the leftovers but should fo-
cus our attention upon His coming. What a tragedy if we spend,
spend, spend and find that it was all for nothing; that we were in
such a frenzy that we missed the real point and the great joy and con-
tentment of Christmas.
What are you doing to prepare for Jesus’ coming? Do others see
the preparation in your life?
WEDNESDAY—Isa. 7:14; Matt. 1:23
When this message of Isaiah’s was given to Joseph, he was living
in Nazareth. Nazareth was not the type of town you would expect a
king to call home. In John 1:46, Nathaniel asks, “Nazareth! Can
anything good come from there?” “‘Come and see,’ said Philip.”
Nazareth, to Nathaniel, was just another drab, quiet, little, country
town. But unexpectedly, out of Nazareth came the greatest good the
*All Scripture quotations not otherwise designated are from the Holy BIble,
New International Version
®
(NIV
®
). Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International
Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights re-
served.