What is the Depth of Redemption?

 This week for Christmas in July, I am sharing an excerpt from my book, Redemption, the Heartbeat of Christmas, What the Birth of Christ Means to the World. The book is available on Amazon. I hope this reminder of what Jesus did for us will speak to your heart, as God did to mine. 

What is the Depth of Redemption? by Barbara Latta @barbaralatta

In church, we hear a lot about redemption. Sometimes we hear the word so much we lose the depth of its meaning.

What is the depth of redemption? We can better understand how deep Jesus’ sacrifice was for us by thinking about a person in prison.

Those of us who have not experienced the despair of imprisonment can’t fully understand the feelings of this punishment. My husband and I were confined to two weeks of quarantine when a we arrived in a foreign country during the Covid pandemic.

We lived for two weeks in an Army barracks with only thirty minutes of fresh outside air per day.

Days dragged on minute by minute, hour by hour.

We walked ten feet from one wall to the other to stretch our legs.

We looked out the window at the scenic air conditioner unit below our floor.

Packaged food appeared at mealtime.

The next day repeated the same boredom, the same meals, the same hard mattresses. As bad as this felt, we were released after our required time ended. The day we left with our luggage blessed us with a small taste of freedom.

Our experience had no comparison to life in a penitentiary.

The Pre-Incarnate Christ and His Body's Eternal Change

 

The Pre-Incarnate Christ and His Body's Eternal Change

by Barbara Latta

This is a chapter from my book, Redemption, the Heartbeat of Christmas, What the Birth of Christ Means to the World. This book is not only about Christmas, it is about why Jesus appeared as He did.  Jesus was born so He could die and rise from the dead. He was born so we could have Easter.

The Word of God became flesh for us, but that change also affected Him. 

Age changes us. Because of our Eden ancestors our bodies degenerate. We do all we can to physically young. Nips and tucks, creams and lotions, hair dyes and make-up provide temporary fixes. 

But we can also change for the better mentally and emotionally when we learn from our youthful experiences. We can grow in wisdom.

Every day after we are born our bodies start to deteriorate. We don’t see the effects of this change right away because babies and children’s bodies don’t reflect wrinkles and sags. 

The result of sin is in our DNA. Thankfully these aging physical changes are not eternal. One day we will receive an immortal, age-immune body but for now we must live with the fallen flesh we inherited.

What about the physical body of Jesus? He exchanged His heavenly form for a limited physical body, yet His had no fallen nature. His substance altered when He left the presence of the Father to live on earth.

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth (John 1:14).

Jesus existed in eternity past as the Word of God (John 1:1). He was there at the creation of the world. In the Old Testament, He showed up as the Angel of the Lord. He visited Abraham and Sarah, Hagar talked with Him in the desert, He wrestled with Jacob, and He stood before Joshua with a drawn sword.

He was forever with God and is God, yet He was willing to lay aside the benefits of deity to become a human.

Why is Jesus Called the Only Begotten Son of God?

 by Barbara Latta @barbaralatta

Why is Jesus called the only begotten Son of God? Because He is the only one who was born from a miraculous conception to a virgin. He was begotten from God, His parent, and formed in the womb of Mary by the Holy Spirit. No one else has ever been or ever will be born in this way. 

Jesus was born as the only begotten Son of God so He could be our redeemer. No one else could pay for our sin.

He came as the heartbeat, the central theme, of Christmas.

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)

These Scriptures also tell us that Jesus was and is the Begotten Son of God:

Announcing the book launch of Redemption, the Heartbeat of Christmas

 by Barbara Latta @barbaralatta

Hi friends,

This is a special blog post to inform you of the launch of my book, Redemption, the Heartbeat of Christmas: What the Birth of Christ Means to the World. The book will release on October 21, and I am seeking help to get the word out.

If you would be willing to join my launch team, please fill out the google form at this link:

https://forms.gle/BU7h4xwkzEKVxZrUA 

You will receive a link on joining the Facebook page and how to share information. Also a digital copy of the book will be provided to those who sign up.  

It's not difficult. All you need to do is share a meme or two once or twice a week to your social media followers. I will be conducting drawings for prizes and we will have fun getting to know each other better. 

I appreciate your help as we get ready to spread the word about our Savior's birth.

Blessings to all of you, Barbara Latta