As we close up one year and look forward to the next, a lot of questions that come up. What should we do? What should we change? How should things be different? What didn't I like about this year, or what did I like? How can I get less of the first and more of the second? While we call these "resolutions," the Bible calls this "repentance". John the Baptist challenged the people of God to repent 2,000 years ago, and the challenge is still for us today. In light of God's grace and truth, what should we do?

The Goals We Set

God With Us

Christmas Eve is a day for pretty dresses and new shoes, themed ties and bows in hair. We dress our best. Spiritually, Christmas is also about being dressed our best- dressed in the righteousness of Jesus himself. God got dressed in human flesh so that we could put on the glory of eternal life with Him forever. What a perfect reason to get dressed for Christmas!

Clothing can hide a lot of things, but it can also reveal what’s going on inside of us. The people of Nineveh stripped off all their beautiful clothing and traded it for dirty sacks. They demonstrate their hearts, that they had nothing to hide before God. Their clothing reflected their confession. We put on conviction when we come before the Lord in honesty and transparency. When we come clean, God makes us clean.

Joseph was dearly loved by his dad but hated by his brothers. All this envy was reflected in the coat he chose to wear. Putting on the sign of his father’s favor, Joseph paraded his relationship before the world. But God was at work even in the envy of Joseph’s brothers. This coat symbolized the rescue God was preparing through Joseph for the people at that time—and the gift of salvation God has for us, too. We’ve been rescued by Jesus’ salvation, and we get to show it off for all the world to see, in the hope that they may see and be rescued, too.

God created humans to be “naked and unashamed”, but sin quickly corrupted our clothing. Instead of casting people out in anger, God put together the first outfit. God made the most fashionable thing that humans can wear: forgiveness. God clothes us in His forgiveness because of what Jesus has done. Getting dressed for Christmas looks like putting on the gift of God’s forgiveness.