Today's Scripture
One Year Bible Daily Reading – Joshua 19-21; Luke 18:1-23
Scripture: Matthew 2:13-18
13 When the magi had departed, an angel from the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up. Take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod will soon search for the child in order to kill him.” 14 Joseph got up and, during the night, took the child and his mother to Egypt. 15 He stayed there until Herod died. This fulfilled what the Lord had spoken through the prophet: I have called my son out of Egypt.[a]
16 When Herod knew the magi had fooled him, he grew very angry. He sent soldiers to kill all the children in Bethlehem and in all the surrounding territory who were two years old and younger, according to the time that he had learned from the magi. 17 This fulfilled the word spoken through Jeremiah the prophet:
18 A voice was heard in Ramah,
weeping and much grieving.
Rachel weeping for her children,
and she did not want to be comforted,
because they were no more.
What does this passage mean to me/us?
Contributed by Rich McGimsey
Even though Jesus was marked for death from the beginning, God would be the one to choose when. So an Angel is sent to warn Joseph to hide the family from Herod. The family flees to Egypt and avoids the slaughter of all children two years old in the Bethlehem area. Herod’s evil act causes much pain and suffering for the families who lost children.
God sent Christ as the sacrifice that would release us from our sins. This ultimate gift was to bring humanity to God not through good works or following rules, but from love and grace. However, from the beginning just as in existence today, there is evil that wants to destroy this relationship. And just like from the beginning, God is always with us. He remains steadfast in his love as shown by the offering of his only son for our sins to be forgiven.
Prayer
Dear heavenly Father, we give thanks for the unbelievable gift of love and grace You gave to us. We pray that we love You with all our hearts and live our lives giving back this love and grace to others for the transformation of the world. Through Christ, you son, we pray, Amen.
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