Peace Lutheran San Diego

"Holding Jesus in Your Arms" Luke 2:27-28a - And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the Child Jesus, to do for Him according to the custom of the Law, he took Him up in his arms and blessed God ... Have you ever thought how strange it would be to hold the baby Jesus in your arms, like Simeon did? As you cradled that tiny, swaddled-up baby, you would be holding the Creator of heaven and earthyour Saviorthe One who will one day judge all pe...ople. You would be holding the very One who holds you safely in His nail-marked hands (John 10:28). How strange is that? But that is the paradox of the incarnation. God came to earth as a helpless, tiny baby, so that He could grow up to help us all who are caught under the power of evil. Jesus needed His mother to feed Him, so that some day He would be the bread of life that feeds us. Jesus' parents clothed and sheltered Him, so that one day He would give all of us the clean, holy robes of His righteousness to wear, and shelter all of us in His presence (Revelation 7:13-15). And now that you trust in Jesus, He invites you to carry Him once againevery day of your life, as you live and serve in the world that does not know Him. As a believer, you are a Christ-bearer; Jesus Himself dwells in you. He never leaves you alone. You carry Him into the world as you share the Gospel with others. You carry Him as others watch your life, seeing how a Christian acts and chooses and speaks. And He carries youthrough hard times and good times, through temptation and danger and even death itselfto Himself, in heaven. THE PRAYER: Lord Jesus, thank You for carrying me as Your own. Help me to carry You to others who will also believe in You. Amen. Advent Devotions were written by Dr. Kari Vo. REFLECTION QUESTIONS: Are you comfortable holding tiny babies? Why or why not? What is the most valuable thing you have ever held (besides a baby)? How did you feel about holding it, whatever it was? What does it mean to you that Christ carries you? What images come to mind?

"One Wish" Luke 2:25-26 - Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ. Simeon loved the Lord, and he had one wish, which God knew about: he wanted to see God's Messiah come before he died. The Holy Spirit promised him he would. ... How exciting that must have been! Simeon would see Jesus, God in the flesh, guaranteed. He must have wondered every day, "Is today the day I'll see Him?" And every night he knew he'd wake up in the morning, because God hadn't kept His promise yet; and God always keeps His promises. Jesus would come before his death. And then came the glorious day when he went to the temple at the impulse of the Holy Spirit and saw a poor young couple with a newborn in their arms. That was the One! He took up Jesus in his arms and praised God. Simeon's life wish was fulfilled. Now he could die, go home to the Lord, in peace. This is true for us, too, isn't it? We too have seen God's Christnot with the eyes of the body, but with the eyes of faith. God's Holy Spirit has revealed Him to us. We have seen Him in the Bible. We have eaten and drunk His body and blood at Communion. For us too, it is "Jesus before death." We don't have to wait. We have Him now. Jesus promised His disciples, "I am with you always, to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:20). We will not go through death alone. The One who has already been through death and back again, this One, Jesus, will be our guide. We will not stay in death, either; Jesus, our risen Savior, promises to raise us from the dead as well. Christ before death; that's the right order. And that is the way God has given Jesus to us as well. THE PRAYER: Father, thank You that You have given us Your Son now, in this life, so we don't need to be afraid of death. Amen. Advent Devotions were written by Dr. Kari Vo. REFLECTION QUESTIONS: What is on your "bucket list" of things to do before your death? Are you afraid of dying? Why or why not? How do you find strength and comfort when you think about death? Be as specific as you can.

"Off to a Good Start" Luke 2:21-24 - And at the end of eight days, when He was circumcised, He was called Jesus, the Name given by the angel before He was conceived in the womb. And when the time came for their purification according to the Law of Moses, they brought Him up to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, "Every male who first opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord") and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said ...in the Law of the Lord, "a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons." It was a strange feeling, the day after I gave birth to our son, when the nurse brought in the official paperwork. "This is for his birth certificate," she said. "Fill it out. He will also get a Social Security number that will be sent to you very soon." It felt odd to know that my brand-new baby already had a legal identity of his own as a citizenhad paperworkwas already under the law of the United States. Jesus' family went through something similar with Him, though even more important. On the eighth day He was circumcised, His official entry into the people of God living under the laws of Moses. Then, when He was 40 days old, came the trip to the temple in Jerusalem to fulfill the rules of Leviticus 12 and Exodus 13. Jesus would be presented to the Lord as every firstborn boy had to be. Then Jesus would be "redeemed," bought back from the Lord (Numbers 18), so He could go home and grow up in His family like any child. For the next thirty-some years of His life, Jesus would go on living under the law of Moses, keeping its commandments perfectly. That was absolutely necessary if He was going to make Himself an offering for our sin on the cross. Even as a baby, Jesus was already getting ready for the cross. Does that surprise you? Even as a baby, Jesus had His own legal identity already "Savior of the world." From the very beginning He would do whatever it took to save us, the people God loves. And because He loves us, He had no time to waste. He got started right away. See how much He loves you! THE PRAYER: Father, thank You for giving us Your Son to be our Savior and sin offering. Keep us close to Him. Amen. Advent Devotions were written by Dr. Kari Vo. REFLECTION QUESTIONS: If you have children, do you remember doing their first legal paperwork? How did that experience feel? What similarities and differences do you see between citizenship in your country and citizenship in the kingdom of God? You are a citizen of God's kingdom. What do you see as the best part about your citizenship?

"Back to the Sheep" Luke 2:20 - And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them. What did the shepherds do after they saw the baby Jesus and His parents? Luke tells us that "they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this Child" (Luke 2:17). That is, they talked to peopleMary and Joseph, the neighbors, people in the street, who knows? But then they went home. There were sheep waiting. ... Sometimes God kindly gives us those wonderful moments too, doesn't He? Perhaps it's at the Baptism of a baby in your family, or maybe it's a special moment at communion. Maybe it's just a second when you're washing dishes or changing the oil in the car and then suddenly your heart thinks of Jesus and His love. Those moments are precious. We're right to be grateful for them. But the sheep are still waiting. And so we pick ourselves up, pull our thoughts back to the work that lies in front of us, and dig in. That's the way it goes. Except for one thing. Luke says that "And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen" (verse 20). We can do that, too. We can go about our ordinary lives, not forgetting the great things that God has done, but praising God for them. We can do it silently, in our hearts, or we can do it when we talk to other peopleto friends, family, or coworkers. We may be back in our ordinary lives, but the great things God has done for usJesus' life, death, and resurrectionare still with us. Jesus' love and work for us undergird everything we do. How great it is that we can praise Him for those things, even when we're minding the sheep! THE PRAYER: Lord, help me to love and glorify You during all the ordinary moments of my life. Amen. Advent Devotions were written by Dr. Kari Vo. REFLECTION QUESTIONS: What do you think the shepherds felt like when they got home to their sheep? If you are willing, describe one extraordinary moment or experience you have had with God. How do you stay mindful of God's presence and love in your ordinary life?

"Brotherly" Luke 2:13-14 - And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom He is pleased!" Just imagine, all those angels, spread out across the sky, praising God. That's some kind of celebration! Clearly something wonderful is happening, and they just have to get in on itnot just one angel, not two, but a multitude of them. ... And what are they praising God for? Some angelic reason? They're celebrating "good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord" (Luke 2:10-11). Think about that for a moment. These angels are celebrating a uniquely human joythat God Himself has come into the human race, been born among us as a baby, has come to save the children of Adam and Eve. The primary beneficiaries of this great miracle aren't angels, but human. The angels are celebrating on our behalfpraising the God we share for coming to redeem the fallen human race. Now I call that brotherly of them. It's the kind of joy a sister or brother shows when a good thing happens to someone else in the family. If we have a good relationship with our siblings, their happiness is our happiness; their joy is our joy. And the angels treat us in just this way. But it's not surprising when you think of whom they are imitating. God Himself loved us enough to be born among us as a human being, our brother and Savior, Jesus. Through His death and resurrection, He brought us back into the family of God as dearly loved children. We are not lost and estranged from God's family anymorewe are home again. And now we too can celebrate "with angels and archangels and all the company of heaven, evermore praising God and singing!" THE PRAYER: Thank You, Father, for the angels You created and the kind concern they have for us. Help us to echo Your love by loving one another in Jesus. Amen. Advent Devotions were written by Dr. Kari Vo. REFLECTION QUESTIONS: Do you have brothers and sisters? If so, how many? Are they older or younger than you? When have you rejoiced over the good news of a brother, sister, or someone else you feel close to? Now that Jesus has been born into the human race, God is your relative. What comes to your mind when you consider that fact?

"Unto You" Luke 2:10-12 - And the angel said to them, "Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger." Have you ever been left out of anything? Remember back in your school daysthe classmates who would gather together, whispering and laughing, bu...t when you came close, suddenly the conversation ended. Or maybe there was a party you didn't get invited to. Even now you may be facing adult versions of thisand it hurts. It hurts a lot. The shepherds would have known about that. Their status was low, and religious people often looked down on them. Taking care of sheep made it difficult to get to worship or Bible study! But suddenly here comes an angel, a messenger of God, and he says to them, "I bring you good news ... for all the people ... unto you is born a Savior." Unto you! Unto you, poor shepherd, smelly and ignored and uneducated as you are. Unto you, disabled or shut-in or aging or living with chronic pain. Unto you, you with the bad reputation, whether you earned it or not. Unto you, you with the outwardly wonderful life, but inside you still feel lonely and troubled and wonder if anyone would want you if they knew the full truth about you. And unto me, even me, too. Jesus is born to us as our Savior. What does that mean? It means that God wants youwants you so much that He is willing to come into this world as a tiny baby lying in a manger. It means that God wants you personally, you yourself, just as you arebecause this baby will grow up to suffer and die for you, you yourself. It means that God wants you forever, because this baby Jesus will one day rise from the dead, and for what? To share that everlasting life with you, you whom He loves, so that you can be His forever. Unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior. Praise God! THE PRAYER: Lord Jesus, thank You that You want me. I want and love You too. Keep me with You. Amen. Advent Devotions were written by Dr. Kari Vo. REFLECTION QUESTIONS: What groups tend to be looked down on and excluded in our world today? What experiences have you had with being an outsider, unwanted and alone? How do you know when someone wants you? What does it mean to you to know that God really wants you, now and forever?

"Startling" Luke 2:8-9 - And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. It was probably a quiet night. Not much excitement unless something startled the sheep. The biggest problem was likely to be staying awake. ... And then the glorious wake-up call, with an angel surrounded by the glory of God, and the shepherds are on their feet, blinking, shaking. Something to startle the sheep? Oh, yes indeed. Something to startle God's sheep, to wake them up and bring them to their feet, rubbing their eyes. A newborn baby, lying in a manger. A Savior. God Himself, come down to earth, come to save us. Because it is startling, isn't it? People going about their everyday lives, working or sleeping, sitting, walking, eatingand then God. God in the middle of us all, sleeping and crying and nursing. God in a manger, the center of a humble family in a little village in a conquered country. God-with-us, Immanuel. But sheep don't stay startled. Soon enough they calm down and go back to their grazing. And we, God's sheep, also calm down and go back to our everyday lives. But not alone, this time. Now we have Jesus. The God who was born for us, who lived and served and suffered and died for us, the Lord who rose from the dead for usHe has become our Shepherd. He keeps us in His care forever. THE PRAYER: Lord Jesus, thank You for coming to live and to die and to rise again as our Good Shepherd who loves us. Amen. Advent Devotions were written by Dr. Kari Vo. REFLECTION QUESTIONS: What do you know about sheep, and how do you know it? How do you most resemble a sheep? What does Jesus do for you as your Shepherd?

"According to Plan?" Luke 2:6-7 - And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn Son and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths and laid Him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn. How distressed Joseph must have been! He could get no decent place for his wife to lie down, even though she was plainly about to give birth. There was no room in the inn. Whatever relatives they might have had in Bethlehem could no...t give them a bed. By this point, Mary no doubt wanted nothing but a place to lie downany place, so long as it was horizontal; but her husband wanted better for his wife and her baby. I wonder what Joseph thought of God's planning at that moment. It surely didn't resemble the kind of planning Joseph wanted! Was he angry? Frightened? Worried? We don't know. But in God's eyes, everything was going according to plan. Jesus was about to be born in the city of David, in Bethlehem, as God had promised so many years ago: "But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for Me One who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days" (Micah 5:2). God came into our world as a human baby between the thighs of a woman in temporary housing. We don't even know if Joseph managed to find a midwife to help. Instead of a cedar cradle, Jesus had a manger to sleep in. Instead of silk and cloth of gold, Jesus was wrapped in homely swaddling clothes. This is the birth God planned for Himself as He set in motion His great planthe plan to redeem us all from the power of death and the devil. Like Joseph, we too are often distressed when our plans aren't working outespecially when we see our loved ones suffer as a result. But we can take comfort in knowing that God cares for them as He cares for us, and He is working out His plans to save us allthrough Jesus, our Savior. THE PRAYER: Lord, when my plans go wrong, help me to rest in You, trusting that You will see us through. Amen. Advent Devotions were written by Dr. Kari Vo. REFLECTION QUESTIONS: What plans are you making right now? Tell about a time when your best-laid plans all went awry. What glimpses have you had of God's plan for your own life over the years?

"Don't You Know Me?" Luke 2:6-7 - And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn Son and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths and laid Him in a manger ... If you have children, do you remember the first time you were completely responsible for them, with no doctors or nurses or grandparents around? I remember walking up the steps to our house with my newborn son in my arms thinking, "Where are the grown-ups? Who's going to take ...care of this baby?" It didn't seem right that somebodyGod? had trusted me to keep safe a tiny scrap of a human being not three days old. Didn't God know me? Caring for a dog was about as far as I'd gone before! But for Mary and Joseph, it must have been worse. This was God's own Son. How could two sinful people raise the holy Son of God? No doubt they felt totally inadequate. After all, didn't God know them? How could He trust His Son to them? However they felt, they had to go forward. Joseph made his new family as comfortable as possible under the circumstances, and no doubt he arranged food and looked for better housing. Mary unpacked the baby things and wrapped Jesus up warmly, and then found Him a safe place to sleep in a manger. With the help of God, Jesus' new parents got on with the job, trusting God to mend whatever mistakes they made. That's what we have to do too, isn't it? Perhaps you are facing some challenge right now that makes you, too, look around, wondering where the grownups are who ought to be dealing with your situation. You know your own weaknesses all too well. But to you Jesus says the same thing He said to Paul: "My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness." And with Paul we can answer, "Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me" (2 Corinthians 12:9). Our Savior Jesus died and rose for us. He will not leave us alone in any of our challenges. THE PRAYER: Father, when I don't know what to do, give me Your Holy Spirit to guide me and direct me. Amen. Advent Devotions were written by Dr. Kari Vo. REFLECTION QUESTIONS: How do you feel about caring for newborn babies? Pets? Sick people? Is this comfortable for you, or not? Have you ever felt like a "real adult" ought to be handling your responsibilities instead of you? If you're willing, tell the story. When has God helped you face a challenging situation?

"An Ordinary World" Luke 2:1-5- In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria. And all went to be registered, each to his own town. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with C...hild. Luke starts the story of Jesus' birth by dating it to a tax registrationthe one when Quirinius was governor, he says. Of all the things to use to date the birth of the Son of God! Luke could have picked something more exciting, more interestingperhaps the death of a famous person, or the date of a battle, or the invention or discovery of some important object. But he doesn't do this. Luke goes for the old, eternal standbybecause as the proverb tells us, two things are guaranteed in life: death and taxes. In some moods this strikes me as funny. Could Luke have possibly picked something more boring? And yet it's wholly appropriate, isn't it? Because Jesus was coming into a humdrum, everyday worlda world filled with ordinary, boring, and occasionally painful things like taxes. His life would be filled with ordinary meals, ordinary activities like waking, sleeping, walking, talking to friends, and so on. His public ministry didn't even start until He was about 30 years old. Before that, what? Probably the weekly round of work, worship, and caring for a familyordinary things. So ordinary that Luke doesn't even bother to write them down. But it's appropriate that our Savior should have had this sort of life for so long. Because these were the kind of people He was coming to savepeople like us, with work to do and taxes to pay and dinner to cook. Few of us are rich or famous. Our lives are not all excitement, all the time. But our need for a Savior who loves us and understands us is truly all the time. We will never not need Jesus, not for a single moment. And because of God's love for us, we have Himmore sure and certain than anythingeven death or taxes. THE PRAYER: Father, thank You for sending Your Son to us in our ordinary world, to be our Savior. Amen. Advent Devotions were written by Dr. Kari Vo. REFLECTION QUESTIONS: What is the most boring part of your day? Many fictional so-called "gospels" make up exciting stories about miracles in Jesus' childhood. Why do you think they do this? What does it mean to you that God is with you in the middle of taxes, paperwork, or cooking dinner?

"Obedience" Matthew 1:24-25 - When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, but knew her not until she had given birth to a Son. And he called His Name Jesus. Joseph did exactly what he was told to do: when he woke up, he took Mary home as his wife, and when the baby was born, he named Him Jesus. Simple. Or as my son would say with a laugh, "Simple-not-simple." ... Because obedience usually isn't that simple, is it? We may know exactly what to do, but actually doing itah, that's another matter. Something comes in between our knowledge and our actionssomething that tends to skew the result, so there are times it doesn't even faintly resemble what God told us to do. We call that "sin." I'm glad Joseph managed to get obedience right this time. I, too, get it right sometimesbut not always. And that's a problem. But it's a problem Joseph's foster-son was coming into the world to deal withas the angel said, "He will save His people from their sins" (Matthew 1:21). He came to do exactly what His Name promised, for Jesus means "the Lord is salvation." He is the One "who, though He was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the Name that is above every name, so that at the Name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father" (Philippians 2:6-11). Jesus' obedience has become our life. Thank God for our wonderful Savior! THE PRAYER: Father, thank You for sending Your Son Jesus to be our salvation. Amen. Advent Devotions were written by Dr. Kari Vo. REFLECTION QUESTIONS: Does your name have a meaning you know? If so, what? When do you find obedience easiest? When is it hardest for you, and why? People tend to look down on obedience as a virtue. How is Jesus' obedience different from the way most people think of obedience?

"Fearing the Future" Matthew 1:20-23 - But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a Son, and you shall call His Name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins." All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: "Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a... Son, and they shall call His Name Immanuel" (which means, God with us). What if? What if I lose my job and I can't make the house payment? What if my husband gets cancer? What if I fail the test? All you have to say is "What if?" and my mind is off and running, constructing elaborate nightmares of all the bad things that might happen, could happen, if only ... Joseph probably went through some of this after the angel told him to take Mary home as his wife. What if I do marry herwill people blame me for the too-early pregnancy? Will the gossip in the village hurt my wife, my family, our business? Will the baby even love me, since I'm not His real dad? And how in the world could I possibly help raise the Son of God? But to all of this, the angel says simply, "Fear not." Don't be afraid to take Mary as your wife. God's hand is in this situation. God knows the answer to all your questions, and He is in control. When you need to know something, He will let you know. In the meantime, just trust Him. It will be okay. God says that to us, too, when we are afraid of the future. "I am with you always," He says (Matthew 28:20). "Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand" (Isaiah 41:10). "Even to your old age I am He, and to gray hairs I will carry you. I have made, and I will bear; I will carry and will save" (Isaiah 46:4). When we are afraid, we can turn to Jesus, our Immanuel, God-with-us. He will never fail us. THE PRAYER: Lord, when I fear the future, draw me close to You and help me to trust in You. Amen. Advent Devotions were written by Dr. Kari Vo. REFLECTION QUESTIONS: When you were little, what did you imagine your life would be like someday? How is your life different than what you imagined as a child? Is it better or worse, and why? When you look to the future, what concerns you? How do you keep your faith strong in God?