Why Jesus Came Advent Series

A 2016 Advent Series of Sorts
By Glenn Deering

“Why Jesus Came” Day 1:
Here's my advent calendar of sorts.
Each day from now until Christmas I will
be posting all the glorious reasons Jesus
came to be with us. Today, perhaps the
highest reason of all.
http://bit.ly/1IKVslJ
© 2016 Glenn Deering

I tend to think the relativism of truth is
a modern problem, but ever since
Adam & Eve, man has made truth
conform to his desires. Jesus came as
the living embodiment of truth;
testifying there is one truth and one
author of truth—God. And those who
humble themselves to repentance and
belief in Him will know the truth and be
set free. http://bit.ly/2fT07t2

We May Have
We can have life abundant because
He laid his life down for us—making a
way for us to have a wonderfully right
relationship with God today and for all
of eternity. Today, as a Christ follower, I
get to experience this abundance in so
many ways. In fact, I’m experiencing it
right now as I get to share this post
with you. If I think this is abundance, I
can only imagine what awaits me in
eternity.
http://bit.ly/2g4EDgi

day four
Set Free
Oppressed.
the
Luke 4:18
By far, fear has been my greatest
oppressor; fear of rejection, fear of
failing, fear of being alone, fear of
looking stupid… Faith in Jesus has
liberated me greatly from these fears. I
wouldn’t be going public with my faith if
fear still oppressed me like it did. Oh, I
still fear, but that’s when I seek to be in
His will and lean on His promise he’ll
never leave or forsake me.
http://bit.ly/2goQB26

day five
Adopt Us
Children.
as his
Galatians 4:4-7
to
The Creator of all longs to adopt us
and make us rightful heirs to His
kingdom. What a gift!
http://bit.ly/2gJ8bRn

day six
Serve,
Served.
not to be
Mark 10:45
to
This is the true model of leadership.
Those who seek to be first must put
themselves last. Jesus took His
leadership all the way to the cross.
http://bit.ly/2h3YTQk

day seven
Matthew 10:27-37
Not to Bring
Sword.
But A
Peace,
Always in love, but never
compromising, Jesus did not care
about offending others with the truth of
God and of his advancing kingdom. He
calls all of His followers not to be
concerned with offending others—
especially those close to us—when
standing firm for Jesus. And today that
is more challenging than ever. Like
Jesus, we need to speak in truth and in
love; being confident that God has our
back. http://bit.ly/2gWWzKM

day eight
John 12:46
To
Dark.
The
Light
Jesus came so those who believe will
never have to fear darkness again.
Whether it be the darkness that lurks in
the world or the darkness that lurks in
our own hearts. His light frees the
believer from the grip of the darkness
forever. http://bit.ly/2hldS91

day nine
Luke 19:10
Lost
Seek
Save
to
and
the
Looking back, I can see so many ways
Jesus sought me out. But I didn’t want
to be found—preferring the comfort of
my own lies. He never stopped
pursuing me. It wasn’t until after the
“crash” was I broken enough to be
found. In that low place He guarded
me, showed me mercy and lavished
love on me. I’m still prone to
wandering, but He has never let me
out of His sight. http://bit.ly/2gujD2O

day ten
1 John 3:8
Devil
Destroy
Works
to
the
of the
The devil is real. Not myth or
metaphor. In the Bible he is referred to
as the Tempter and the Father of Lies.
I’ve readily succumbed to his
temptation and willingly believed his
lies. The devil’s works have lived in
me. Faith in Jesus has destroyed all of
that. Through His sacrifice, He has
defeated the devil and destroyed all of
his works for all of eternity.
http://bit.ly/2hiLdPo

day eleven
Isaiah 61:1
Hearted
Bind Up
Broken-
to
the
Hope heals! The promises of God
have time and time again healed me of
a broken heart or a crushed spirit.
Trusting God, and not working to
manipulate outcomes, has freed me
from harmful stress and given me the
rest I need to heal. Over these many
years, He has proven so faithful to me
and will forever be.
http://bit.ly/2hs4Ozt

day twelve
John 6:38
The Will
Father
to do
of the
The ultimate will of the Father is to
bring to people an eternity-saving
knowledge of the Son. This same will
applies to all believers in Jesus Christ.
I know I've been too self-conscious
and timid in living out the Father’s will.
I pray, in some small way, this series
changes that.
http://bit.ly/2gw54xa

day thirteen
1 Timothy 1:15
To Save
Sinners
To Save
Sinners
“Sinner” is a distasteful title to many.
But what a beautiful moment when I
realized I am one—when I let go of my
pride, my facade and my way, and
admitted I am a sinner in need of
saving. It’s made all the difference.
http://bit.ly/2hKbOnt

day fourteen
Hebrews 2:14-17
to be
Like His
People
The God of the Bible is so very
personal. So much so, in the person of
the Son, He came to Earth and took in
the full human experience. He’s felt
what it is like to be a child, a son, a
man, a worker and a leader. He knows
what it’s like to be lonely, hungry, tired,
disappointed, homeless, tempted,
angry, jealous, in mourning, lied to,
betrayed and assaulted. And what it’s
like to face death. He’s been through it
all. He gets us. I believe it’s because
he walked in our skin he was able to
make the most astounding request
known to man, “forgive them Father for
they know not what they are doing.”
What grace!
http://bit.ly/2hPbILn

day fifteen
Luke 4:18
The Poor
Proclaim
Good News
to
to
News flash, all of us are poor in some
way—spiritually, financially, relationally,
morally, etc. The good news is God
loved you and me so much that he
gave his Son, in whom if we believe,
we will gain eternal life with Him—a life
not of stark poverty, but of loving
abundance. Good news in deed.
http://bit.ly/2gOl65W

day sixteen
Matthew 5:17
Fulfill It
Abolish
The Law
not to
but to
Jesus came to rightly live out the
Father’s loving law. The people
must’ve thought Jesus was changing
everything because His way—the right
way— was in such stark contrast to the
self-serving and self-righteous way of
the ruling religious leadership. Then as
now, Jesus is always the model for
rightly applying God’s commands. That
is why we are called to believe in Him
only, and ultimately follow Him and not
any other man or woman.
http://bit.ly/2gTWqqT

day seventeen
Luke 3:16
a n d Fire
Baptize
Holy Spirit
to
with the
Fire purifies. Jesus’ baptism purifies
our hearts and indwells it with the Holy
Spirit. Baptism is a choice. It’s
choosing to die to one’s self and be
raised again in the belief Jesus is Lord
and Savior. And forever be in the
presence of God.
http://bit.ly/2hT1o8X

day eighteen
John 12:26-27
Name
Glorify
God’s
to
As a brand strategist I counsel clients
that a name doesn’t give meaning to a
brand, it’s the experience as had by
customers, employees and the public
that imbue meaning into a name.
Jesus came in the name of God. And
the Jesus experience was one of
power and humility, truth and grace,
service and leadership, compassion
and healing, love and sacrifice. His
was a life of complete obedience in the
name of God. All the way to the cross,
Jesus held the name of God to the
highest glory. And it’s that glory that
points us to Him and eternal
life. http://bit.ly/2hfP5Qi

day nineteen
Blind
Recover
Sight
to
for the
Luke 4:18
“Recover” is the key word for me in this
scripture reference. It implies we are all
created with perfect spiritual sight--but
something causes us to go blind. In my
case, I know it was my own selfish desires,
the wounds I’ve suffered and my many
fears which formed thick cataracts
clouding my vision of God. Over these last
9 years, I feel my belief in Jesus and in the
word of God has been gradually restoring
my vision so I can rightly see how I am
loved, and how I am to love others. It’s not
quite 20/20 yet, but it’s getting
better. http://bit.ly/2goQB26

day twenty
Acts 3:26
Wicked Ways
To Bless Us
Turning Us
by
from our
Before Christ, I’d often try to change
some patterns of not-so-good behavior,
but never could seem to make it stick.
And with each failure, self-loathing would
reign, often perpetuating more bad
behavior. This cycle continued until
others—aware of the depths of their own
wickedness—shared Jesus with me.
Upon accepting Christ, I unburdened
myself to Him. Being filled with the Holy
Spirit, some wickedness was taken away
with little effort, other, more deeper
seeded wickedness has taken more time
to address, and some is still in process.
If I may, For the men reading this post,
I’d like to recommend a ministry that has
been impactful for me in addressing my
wickedness—Marked Men for Christ. If
you’d like, I’d be happy to tell you
more. http://bit.ly/2icTfbP © 2016 Glenn Deering

day twenty-one
Matthew 16:18
Church
Build His
to
I so admire how Jesus built His
Church—one relationship at a time. He
loved and invested in Peter and the
other disciples, and in that same spirit
(and guided by the Spirit) they went on
to build the first century Church into a
movement that is still going strong
today. I’m blessed to say that my home
church—Plymouth Covenant Church—
strives to stay true to that same model.
Like Jesus with Peter, PCC relationally
invested in me over these nine years—
discipling me towards spiritual maturity.
I am so grateful to them. Relationships
can be awkward, messy and a lot of
hard work. Thank you PCC for striving
to love like
Jesus. http://bit.ly/2hsWw6w

day twenty-two
Luke 4:18
Captives
Proclaim
Release
to
To the
Encountering Jesus showed me it was
my own brokenness that was holding
me captive in a prison cell I built for
myself. And it was the truth of God's
love and grace, in the person of Jesus,
that set me free. http://bit.ly/2hYayhP

day twenty-three
Ephesians 2:17
All
Preach
Peace
to
to
Earlier in the series I referenced
Matthew 10 in which Jesus said he did
not come to bring peace, but a sword.
Today I reference the apostle Paul who
testified Jesus came to preach peace
to all. Which one is it? I say both. Like
a coin, on one side God’s truth will
divide people. And on the other side,
God’s truth brings people together. It’s
this side of the coin I’d like to focus on.
Truth is the foundation of peace. If we
all recognize one truth—God’s Truth—
peace will reign among us all and it will
be Heaven. And that’s what I think
Heaven is—a holy society of people
submitting themselves to the truth of
God. One truth known to all means
one peace known by all.
http://bit.ly/2hh34aX © 2016 Glenn Deering

day twenty-four
Mark 10:45
Ransom
Give His
Life
to
as a
I am an armchair theologian at best. I
don’t fully grasp substitutionary
atonement and why Jesus had to
suffer and die. But this I do
understand; sacrifice is at the heart of
love. And God is love. In John 15,
Jesus shares the greatest expression
of love is giving one’s life for another.
What does that tell me about love?
That it isn’t love unless I freely give
without concern for myself. It tells me
“Sacrificial Love” is a redundant
phrase. Remove sacrifice from love
and you get lust. Love gives where lust
takes. Jesus died for you and me
because that is what love
does. http://bit.ly/2iqNUO0

day twenty-five
John 3:16
Eternal
So You
Life
Can Have
It all comes down to this; Jesus came
to be with us for a short time on Earth,
so we can be with Him forever in
Heaven. Be with Him.
http://bit.ly/1IKVslJ

Why Jesus Came Advent Series

Recommended

Recommended

More Related Content

What's hot

What's hot (19)

Viewers also liked

Viewers also liked (17)

Similar to Why Jesus Came Advent Series

Similar to Why Jesus Came Advent Series (20)

Recently uploaded

Recently uploaded (20)

Why Jesus Came Advent Series