Our Sacred Roots: The Priesthood of All Believers

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T he C elebration of C hristmas

Second Sunday after Christmas Day January 2 - 8, 2022

WEEK 6

Christmas celebrates the birth of Messiah, Jesus, who is the incarnation of the Son of God, Mary’s child. He is the Wordmade flesh, the conqueror who enters this fallen world to reveal to us the Father’s love, to destroy the devil’s work, and to redeem his people from their sins. THIS WEEK’S THEME To the Praise of His Glorious Grace, Ephesians 1.3-14 Paul begins his letter to the Ephesians with a single sentence of praise – a sentence 202 words long in the Greek. We are to bless the Father for his incredible plan of salvation. We praise him for his choice to adopt us into his family as his own children. We praise him for the redemption and forgiveness we have received through the blood of Christ. We praise him because he has revealed the mystery of his salvation plan to us in the fullness of time. We praise him because we have been chosen to live for the praise of God’s glory. We praise him because we have received and been sealed with the promised Holy Spirit. In the midst of this exuberant praise, Paul repeats a phrase three times. He explains that we have been called to live “to the praise of his grace/glory.” Father, Son, and Holy Spirit each receive glory in Paul’s song of praise. Here is the purpose of the Church: we are a redeemed people who have received life so that we may live for the praise of his glory.

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