Latest / Jessi Morgan Devotions for the Christian Heart Podcast / Jesus is the Word - Day 18

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Jesus is the Word - Day 18 · Jessi Morgan Devotions for the Christian Heart Podcast

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: Hello, hello.
• 0:01
  SPEAKER_00: This is Jesse Morgan Devotions for the Christian Heart Podcast.
• 0:04
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome, welcome.
• 0:05
  SPEAKER_00: This year I'm bringing my 25-day Christmas devotional to life in a new way.
• 0:10
  SPEAKER_00: Beginning on day 11 through day 25, each devotional entry now has a matching mini podcast episode, a simple 8 to 10 minute reflection designed to help you slow down and truly sit with the story of Jesus' birth.
• 0:23
  SPEAKER_00: Each episode clearly follows the same day as the written devotional, so day 11 in the book is day 11 on the podcast and so forth.
• 0:31
  SPEAKER_00: My hope is that these daily audio reflections make the journey to Christmas feel even more personal, peaceful, and meaningful.
• 0:38
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for being here.
• 0:40
  SPEAKER_00: Let's go.
• 0:45
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus is the Word.
• 0:47
  SPEAKER_00: Word Episode 85, Day 18.
• 0:52
  SPEAKER_00: Key passage, John 1, 1 through 5.
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  SPEAKER_00: And it says, In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
• 1:00
  SPEAKER_00: He was with God in the beginning.
• 1:02
  SPEAKER_00: Through him all things were made.
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_00: Without him nothing was made that has been made.
• 1:07
  SPEAKER_00: In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind.
• 1:11
  SPEAKER_00: The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
• 1:16
  SPEAKER_00: Today we're looking at John 1, 1 through 5.
• 1:19
  SPEAKER_00: And yes, we could you can probably tell I'm jumping from gospel to gospel to give you more a chronological picture of the birth of Jesus Christ and just key passages that really shape the story.
• 1:31
  SPEAKER_00: I've always felt that John 1, 1 through 5 is such an important passage because it really sets the tone of who Jesus Christ is and what he's going to be.
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  SPEAKER_00: If we look at it from the very beginning, it says, in the beginning was the word.
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  SPEAKER_00: We can separate that and say the word represents Jesus Christ.
• 1:48
  SPEAKER_00: God has always been here, and Jesus symbolizes that truth when he was born in Bethlehem.
• 1:54
  SPEAKER_00: We know that as Jesus grows, he becomes the flesh, the sacrifice that allows us to be saved.
• 2:01
  SPEAKER_00: So then the question becomes, what does the word actually mean?
• 2:05
  SPEAKER_00: If you look it up in the dictionary, word is a noun, and it means a decl declaration or a promise.
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  SPEAKER_00: And that is exactly what the birth of Jesus represents.
• 2:17
  SPEAKER_00: Throughout the Old Testament, God made declarations and promises.
• 2:21
  SPEAKER_00: Scripture tells us that a virgin would give birth to a savior, Isaiah 7 14, for example.
• 2:26
  SPEAKER_00: It says, Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign, the virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Emmanuel.
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_00: That was a promise.
• 2:36
  SPEAKER_00: That was a declaration planted by God long before Jesus was born.
• 2:40
  SPEAKER_00: There was also a declaration that Abraham would be the father of many nations.
• 2:43
  SPEAKER_00: There was a promise that the Savior would come through the line of David.
• 2:47
  SPEAKER_00: And we know Jesus was a descendant.
• 2:49
  SPEAKER_00: We know that Joseph was a descendant of David.
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  SPEAKER_00: All of this shows us that God keeps his promises.
• 2:55
  SPEAKER_00: When God declares something, he means it.
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  SPEAKER_00: As Christians, we call, we are called to uphold the word, to uphold Jesus.
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  SPEAKER_00: Baby Jesus is the beginning.
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  SPEAKER_00: And well, he's also the end.
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  SPEAKER_00: Right now, we are celebrating the beginning, the beginning of the word, the beginning of the promise, the beginning of the that declaration.
• 3:16
  SPEAKER_00: And if we really sit in this mindset during this season, we should also ask ourselves, what is the promise?
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  SPEAKER_00: What is the declaration?
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  SPEAKER_00: What does it represent for us today?
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  SPEAKER_00: And obviously, it represents our relationship with Jesus Christ as our Savior.
• 3:32
  SPEAKER_00: It represents salvation.
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_00: But to me, it also represents our responsibility as children of God, as Christians.
• 3:39
  SPEAKER_00: We are upholding, are we upholding that promise?
• 3:42
  SPEAKER_00: Are we accepting Jesus as our Savior?
• 3:45
  SPEAKER_00: And are we sharing the good news with others?
• 3:48
  SPEAKER_00: Are we living in a way that reflects Jesus, walking in the Holy Spirit, declaring that we will stand for Him and for His story no matter what?
• 3:56
  SPEAKER_00: Are we guarding our hearts so commercial things don't just take over the season?
• 4:03
  SPEAKER_00: And don't we and don't get me wrong, I love Christmas.
• 4:06
  SPEAKER_00: I love Christmas trees and gifts, I enjoy it.
• 4:09
  SPEAKER_00: But the older I get, the more I realize how important it is to make sure my focus, my declaration, and my promise stay centered on Jesus and the birth of baby Jesus.
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  SPEAKER_00: So as you reflect on this first on these first five verses of John, remember this.
• 4:25
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus is the word.
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  SPEAKER_00: Jesus was here before, he is here now, and everything will end with him.
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  SPEAKER_00: The baby born of a virgin is a promise and the declaration that God will always take care of his people.
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  SPEAKER_00: I mean, you know, if you really think about that, what a blessing it is to serve a Lord who fulfills his promises always.
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  SPEAKER_00: How blessed are we?
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  SPEAKER_00: Amen.
• 4:49
  SPEAKER_00: Let's pray.
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  SPEAKER_00: Heavenly Father, thank you so much for your word.
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  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for the birth of Jesus Christ.
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  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for the lessons and revelations that come from studying his life and the beautiful gospels.
• 5:00
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for the different perspective and the people you placed in this story.
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  SPEAKER_00: And thank you, Father, for giving your son so that he could be born and he could and we could celebrate his birth.
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  SPEAKER_00: We love you, Lord, and we praise you in Jesus' name.
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  SPEAKER_00: Amen.
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  SPEAKER_00: God bless everyone.
• 5:17
  SPEAKER_00: Till next time.
• 5:21
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you for listening.
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_00: This episode is part of my Christmas devotional series inspired by my written devotional, 25 Days Till Christmas, a scriptured-filled journey preparing our hearts to celebrate the birth of Jesus.
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  SPEAKER_00: I invite you to read along and reflect on his story in a deeper way.
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  SPEAKER_00: Details in the show notes for the written devotional.
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  SPEAKER_00: And it also says in Scripture, glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace, goodwill towards men.
• 5:45
  SPEAKER_00: Luke 2.14.
• 5:46
  SPEAKER_00: And don't miss the next reflection in this Christmas series by subscribing to the podcast to continue walking through God's Word this season.
• 5:54
  SPEAKER_00: And a little bit about me and Jesse Morgan, wife, mom, and devotional writer and podcaster who loves sharing biblical encouragement and the hope we find in Jesus.
• 6:04
  SPEAKER_00: Till next time, Jesse Morgan signing off.