His Love Saves

This Advent season, we take a closer look at the birth of Jesus so we can experience the wonder of Immanuel in a fresh way.

“Look! The virgin will conceive a child… they will call him Immanuel, which means ‘God is with us.’”
—Matthew 1:23 (NLT)

We talk about “being with” people every day. Even in a world changed by Zoom calls and working remotely, most of us still experience human presence so regularly that we hardly think about it. No one applauds when we walk into the kitchen in the morning. The grocery clerk doesn’t gasp because we entered their line. Being with people is normal — so normal that it’s lost its sparkle.

But every now and then, being with someone really matters — meeting a hero, spotting a celebrity, saying “I do,” holding your baby for the first time, or saying goodbye to someone you love. Moments like these stay with us.

And this is what makes Christmas so astonishing:
God chose to be with us.

Perfect Heaven stepped into imperfect earth. The Creator put on fragile newborn skin. As John puts it, “The Word became flesh and moved into the neighborhood.” God didn’t stay distant — He came close.

And even more stunning than His arrival… is His motive.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son…”
—John 3:16–17 (NIV)

His motive was—and still is—love.

Love came down. In the form of a baby named Jesus, whose very name means “God saves.”

When Joseph struggled to understand Mary’s pregnancy, an angel told him:

“You are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”
—Matthew 1:21 (NIV)

That’s why Jesus came. Not just for a sweet nativity scene, or sentimental holiday moments — but to save us. His birth is the beginning of our new beginning.

And yes, sin is a heavy word. We prefer softer versions — mistakes, flaws, shortcomings. But whatever we call it, we all deal with it. And no amount of achievements, good deeds, or self-improvement can fix the problem at its root.

We all need saving.
None of us graduate from that need.

That’s why Christmas is worth celebrating. God doesn’t wait for us to clean up our mess. He steps into it. He rescues. He restores. He invites us to run to Him — not away — when we feel stuck, ashamed, tempted, or tangled up in sin.

So…

• Where do you need saving right now?
• What hidden weight is wearing you down?
• What habits or temptations are you ready to surrender?
• What “manageable” sin is quietly stunting your spiritual growth?
  
  

This Advent, let’s invite God into the murky, painful, complicated places of our lives.
Let’s run to the One who came down to save us.
Let’s allow His love to free us — again and again.

Because He is still Immanuel.
He is still with us.
And His love still rescues.

 

Scriptures to know God’s love this Advent:

🌟 God’s Love Revealed in Jesus

John 3:16 (NIV)
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

1 John 4:9–10 (NIV)
“This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him… not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.”

Romans 5:8 (NIV)
“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

Titus 3:4–5 (NIV)
“But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us…”

✨ Prophecies of God’s Loving Promise

Isaiah 54:10 (NIV)
“Though the mountains be shaken… yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken…”

Jeremiah 31:3 (NIV)
“I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness.”

❤️ Jesus’ Teaching on Love

John 13:34–35 (NIV)
“A new command I give you: Love one another… By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

Matthew 22:37–39 (NIV)
“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart…’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”

John 15:9–12 (NIV)
“As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you… My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.”

🔥 The Love of God Poured Into Us

Romans 5:5 (NIV)
“…God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit…”

Ephesians 3:17–19 (NIV)
“…how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ…”

1 John 4:16 (NIV)
“And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love.”

🌿 Love in Action

Colossians 3:14 (NIV)
“And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.”

1 Corinthians 13:4–7 (NIV)
“Love is patient, love is kind… It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.”

1 Peter 4:8 (NIV)
“Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.”

🌅 God’s Love as Our Hope

Romans 8:38–39 (NIV)
“Nothing… will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Zephaniah 3:17 (NIV)
“…He will rejoice over you with singing.”