Dec 11, 2025 Jesus: God’s Greatest and Gracious Gift – Words of Grace Blog – December 12, 2025
What comes to mind when you think of the Christmas season?
For me, the word that comes to mind is anticipation. A simple definition of ‘anticipate’ is to believe that something will occur in the future.
We live in a state of anticipation every day. We anticipate waking up, going to work, interacting with those closest to us, eating, sleeping, and so on. Yet, at different times and seasons, our anticipation will vary in intensity and emotion.
Advent is a season of heightened anticipation. As the Church, we anticipate the celebration of the Messiah’s coming to earth. But, as a society, we also anticipate time with family, friends, food, and festivities. As our calendars fill up with celebrations, we remember the year that has passed and anticipate what is to come. In anticipation of what is to come, we may feel eagerness or dread, excitement or anxiety, joy or sadness, or sometimes even a mix of all of these emotions.
In these moments, when we are struck with the weight of our circumstances and feel as though life is moving a million miles an hour, it is advantageous for us to stop and remember the historical birth of Jesus. Not just as a story to tag alongside our favorite Christmas movies, but as a real event, in real time, with real people with genuine thoughts, feelings, and emotions.
If we take a moment to look at the Christmas story through the eyes of its characters, we begin to see cracks in our “rose-colored glasses” view of the Messiah’s birth. Through the eyes of the characters in the Christmas story, we see the unfolding anticipation of God’s miraculous work, weighed down by conflicting thoughts and emotions and enduring hardship.
- Zechariah struggled to believe God’s promise of a son (Luke 1:18)
- Elizabeth endured years of barrenness and a late-life pregnancy (Luke 1:7, 25)
- Joseph faced the weight and social implications of Mary’s pregnancy (Matt. 1:18-19)
- Mary desired to obey God but struggled to comprehend the particulars of the promise (Luke 1:34)
The Christmas story is a meeting of God and man; a moment when omniscience meets uncertainty, and another scene in the unfolding story of God calling His people to respond in faith.
This week’s passage shows God’s heart for His people as He steps into the glorious and chaotic anticipation of the promised Messiah. God reveals Himself to the characters of the Christmas story and provides what they need to respond in faith.
In Luke 1:39-45, God affirms His promise to Mary through the grace of relationships, circumstances, and His word, providing what she needed to respond in faith.
Then, in Luke 1:46-56, Mary breaks out into a song of worship, reflecting on all that God had done in her life and on all that she anticipated He would do in the future.
The Christmas story is a reminder that God meets us in our anticipation and provides what we need to respond to Him in faith. God sent the Savior to the world in Christ and promised to sustain us to the end. So wherever we are on the anticipation spectrum this season, I pray that we take the time to pause, reflect, and anticipate with joyful hearts the gift of God’s promises and His loving care for us.
– Ben Chally
Today’s post is written by Ben Chally, Pastor of Adult Ministries, Membership, & Missions. Ben will be preaching this Sunday, December 14.