God Provided a Savior – Born of a Woman
December 13, 2011 at 7:55 am livinghopeomaha
So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife. Then he went to her, and the LORD enabled her to conceive, and she gave birth to a son. ~ Ruth 4:13
God could have delivered the wondrous Christmas gift of his Son in whatever manner he decided. From eternity, though, God chose to send Jesus to earth as a helpless baby—in a cold barn—in the little town of Bethlehem. What’s more, God handpicked a young virgin of humble background to be the Savior’s mother.
The book of Ruth in the Old Testament reminds us that the happenings of this first Christmas didn’t occur by chance. More than a millennium before the miracle at Bethlehem, God’s hand was already at work there.
God had big plans for Ruth—to be an ancestor of Christ. God initiated his plan for Ruth by bringing a famine to Bethlehem. This caused a woman named Naomi and her family to move from Bethlehem to Moab. While there, one of Naomi’s sons married the foreigner Ruth. Then Naomi’s husband and sons died in Moab. Saddened, Naomi decided to return to her home city of Bethlehem. Ruth insisted that she would leave her native land to go to Bethlehem with her mother-in-law. She said, “Where you go I will go. . . . Your people will be my people and your God my God” (Ruth 1:16).
Ruth went with Naomi to Bethlehem. There she married Boaz. They became the great-grandparents of King David. A thousand years later, in the same town of Bethlehem, God’s eternal plan of redemption continued when his eternal Son condescended to leave his throne above to be born in a manger below. In a once-in-all-history event, the Holy Spirit conceived in Mary’s womb the Savior of the world.
In Bethlehem we view God’s grace in action. Mary’s son is born. God’s Son is born. Our Savior is born. Glory to God in the highest!
Prayer: Dear God, you were faithful to fulfill your plan of sending a Savior to us. I praise you for Jesus who was born in lowliness that I might be exalted with the riches of your amazing love. Amen.
Today’s Devotion is brought to you by WELS and www.WhatAboutJesus.com
