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Daily Devotions for the Advent and Christmas Seasons
Tuesday, December 15
Galatians 3:15-22
by Shellee Leong
God made a promise to Abraham that Christ would come, and God gave his people the law to follow until Christ came. Obeying the law is important, but the promise through faith is more important, for the purpose of the law was to lead us to Christ.
We often get so caught up in following the rules that we lose sight of why the rules were created in the first place. This was the case for the Pharisees and teachers of the law, who paid too much attention to following the detailed traditions and customs of the law. They did not understand the spirit of the law and missed its overall message when Jesus came.
As a kid, I grew up learning Bible stories and praying before meals. I could recite a lot of stories and identify the characters but couldn’t put the stories into context. In high school and even some of college, I did not spend a lot of time reading the Bible on my own, so my understanding of the Bible did not improve much. My faith was not very strong, and I didn’t really feel like I knew God.
That changed in recent years when I began reading the Bible more and participating in adult Bible studies. I slowly was able to take the familiar pieces and fit them into the puzzle. I could put into context all the things I learned as a kid and started getting much more out of my Bible readings.
I have a better understanding of what God calls us to do, of how to trust him and put my faith in Jesus. Let us all engage with God daily through prayer and study and through our conversations with fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.
Prayer
Dear God, thank you for your promise to us. Help us to stay in touch with what matters and not get distracted by the tiny details of life. You are faithful and loving, and for this we thank you. Amen.