God promised Adam and Eve a Savior when they fell into sin (Genesis 3:15). Ever since then, many human beings around the globe have hoped for a “chosen one,” whether they thought about it in terms of following Christ or not. The stories we’re reading this month tell us that the chosen one—the one called the Messiah, or the Christ—has come.

Christ, the chosen one, has come to this earth and is saving us. His name is Jesus. But Jesus doesn’t save us in the expected way by conquering oppressive governments and tearing down unjust systems. Instead, Jesus suffered and died to pay for our sins, and he came back to life to conquer death itself so that we can have eternal life.

Even the disciples who lived with Jesus while he was on earth had a hard time trusting this at first. Their friends who first saw the resurrected Jesus couldn’t convince them. They were only convinced by meeting Jesus.

Jesus now sits at God the Father’s right hand, and he and the Father have sent the Holy Spirit to live in us and guide us here on earth. The Spirit introduces us to Jesus, and we begin a relationship with him that—although it’s a spiritual relationship—is powerful and amazingly real. If you haven’t met Jesus yet, pray that the Spirit of God will begin to show him to you today.