In the season of Advent, we remember and meditate on the time of waiting for the promised Messiah. In that season, we acknowledge the key spiritual discipline of waiting for God, and of trusting that God's timing is best, just as God's ways are best.

At Christmas, we remember and delight in the inconceivable blessing of God With Us, the Creator of the universe choosing to come to earth as a baby. In that celebration, we rejoice that God wanted to be so close to us that Jesus would become one of us. Just as the Eternal lived in a child's form, we marvel that God has come to live in each of us--that though we are mortal, sinful, and weak, we have in us the Eternal, the Holy, the Perfect Love.

On Good Friday, we remember and grieve that it took the crucifixion to redeem us from our sins. The only One who was perfect gave Himself up to be ridiculed, beaten, and executed as a common criminal. We have Life because of His sacrifice, and "by his wounds we are healed."

On Easter, we remember and rejoice that the worst that can happen to mortal flesh is no match for the Holy Power of God! In the resurrection, we see in physical form the miracle of the defeat both of Death and of Sin, and the evidence of the promise to us of Eternal Life in God's presence. We are set free, just as Jesus was set free from the tomb!

The story of the Messiah doesn't stop with the Resurrection, as Psalm 2 foretells. Jesus, the Anointed, is victorious over everything, and all creation will acknowledge that "Jesus is Lord!" That Victory is certain!

Just like that victory will come at the End Time, that victory is with us today. The same principle holds for this last chapter in the story of the Messiah as for all the other chapters--what was at a point in history is with us today! The infant was born, and we are reborn. Jesus taught, and we learn at his feet. Jesus died 2000 years ago for us today. Jesus conquered Sin and Death, and we are set free. Jesus will win the ultimate victory, and Jesus is winning victories in our lives right now.

Listen to the psalmist, writing a millennium before the shepherd first heard the angels message! This psalm decrees the certainty of the victory that has already been won. Those who are mighty on earth are warned to become servants of the King, and those who serve the King are already receiving the blessings of this victory. What was true for the psalmist was true for the apostles and is true for us today.

The Gift that God sent to earth at Christmas didn't end at the manger. The sacrifice of the Crucifixion did not stop until Sin and Death were defeated at the Resurrection. In the very same way, our response to the Christmas story is not complete until we live in joyful anticipation and confidence of what the triumphant God is doing now in us!