The Christmas Mission

December 23rd, 2024

The Christmas Mission

Psalm 40

1 I waited patiently for the Lord;
he inclined to me and heard my cry.
2 He drew me up from the pit of destruction,
out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock,
making my steps secure.
3 He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear, and put their trust in the Lord.

4 Blessed is the man who makes the Lord his trust,
who does not turn to the proud,
to those who go astray after a lie!
5 You have multiplied, O Lord my God,
your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us;
none can compare with you!
I will proclaim and tell of them, yet they are more than can be told.

6 In sacrifice and offering you have not delighted,
but you have given me an open ear.
Burnt offering and sin offering you have not required.
7 Then I said, “Behold, I have come;
in the scroll of the book it is written of me:
8 I delight to do your will, O my God;
your law is within my heart.”

9 I have told the glad news of deliverance in the great congregation;
behold, I have not restrained my lips, as you know, O Lord.
10 I have not hidden your deliverance within my heart;
I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation;
I have not concealed your steadfast love and your faithfulness
from the great congregation.

11 As for you, O Lord, you will not restrain
your mercy from me;
your steadfast love and your faithfulness will
ever preserve me!
12 For evils have encompassed me beyond number;
my iniquities have overtaken me, and I cannot see;
they are more than the hairs of my head; my heart fails me.

13 Be pleased, O Lord, to deliver me!
O Lord, make haste to help me!
14 Let those be put to shame and disappointed altogether
who seek to snatch away my life;
let those be turned back and brought to dishonor
who delight in my hurt!
15 Let those be appalled because of their shame
who say to me, “Aha, Aha!”

16 But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you;
may those who love your salvation
say continually, “Great is the Lord!”
17 As for me, I am poor and needy,
but the Lord takes thought for me.
You are my help and my deliverer;
do not delay, O my God!

One of My Favorite Christmas Stories

It had poured rain all week, which meant no one could cross the creek to get to their cabin in Indian Territory for Christmas—including Santa Claus. The Ingalls girls were resigned that there would be no presents this year. Until Mr. Edwards, their bachelor neighbor, burst through the door. He was frozen to the bone, but had gifts for each of the girls: a peppermint stick, a little sugar cake, a bright tin cup, and a shiny new penny apiece. Edwards said he had run into Santa Claus in Independence. He swam the icy creek, carrying the gifts and his clothes over his head, to make the delivery. “It’s too much, Edwards,” Pa said, fighting back tears. It’s one of my favorite Christmas stories.

Self-Sacrifice

As much as I love Little House on the Prairie, today’s reading takes us to an even more important, self-sacrificing Christmas mission. First, we need to understand what is happening with David in the original Psalm 40. He is remembering a time in the past when God pulled him out of a miry bog and put a new song in his mouth (1–3). That rescue experience led David to proclaim God’s salvation among his people, and to dedicate his life to serving God (4–10). Yet now it seems that David is back in trouble, and asking the Lord to save him all over again, and so inspire more praise (11–17).

But as the writer of Hebrews reads Psalm 40, he discovers a remarkable prophecy about Jesus at Christmas. You can read about it in Hebrews 10:1–4. In Psalm 40:6–8, David seems to be reflecting on the error of Saul, who made external sacrifices to God without a heart of obedience to God. David realizes that in God’s eyes this kind of worship is worthless. Sacrifices should represent the worshiper’s attitude of offering himself, or herself, to God. The Lord desires a worshiper who holds nothing back: ears open to his Word, body devoted to his service, heart eager to bring him glory. David says that’s the kind of king he wants to be. It is a beautiful prayer, even if we know how imperfectly David would go on to live it out, and how the same is true for us.

Jesus Stepped Forward

Now the writer of Hebrews thinks about what this prayer means on the lips of Jesus, the perfect king. Psalm 40:6–8 perfectly expresses the attitude of God’s Eternal Son, just before he came into the world for us! He knew that all those decades of sacrifices offered up by God’s people were not dealing with the problem of our sin. The people had to keep offering them again and again, but the repetition only reminded them how dirty they still were. So God’s Son stepped forward for his Christmas mission.

The Last Sacrifice

The fullness of time had come, the one written about in the scroll of the book. The Father had prepared for his Eternal Son a body: he would become one of us in every way except for sin, born of a virgin as a tiny baby. As he grew, Jesus would day by day listen to God with an open ear, delight to do his will from the heart, and use his body for his service. Finally, Jesus would offer the last sacrifice God would ever require for sin: himself. That God-glorifying human body, nailed to a cross, laid on the altar before God, bearing our sin. In his death for us, Jesus would offer for all time a single offering for sins (see Heb 10:12). By faith in him, not only would our guilt be removed, but we would receive credit for his perfect, beautiful life. This was the great plan of the Trinity, the death-defying mission Jesus accepted, on Christmas Eve. Next stop, Bethlehem!

Surely, God has multiplied his wondrous deeds and thoughts toward us (40:5)!

FOR THE NEXT INSTALLMENT, SEE:

Christmas Eve According to Jesus