A Fulfilled Hope
Genesis 3:15
15 And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise him on the heel.
In the garden, after the serpent caused Adam and Eve to sin, God cursed them. When He cursed the serpent, the promise was made that the seed of the woman would crush the serpent’s head. Thousands of years later, this prophesy is affirmed by another prophesy which says, “Behold, the virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14). The woman’s seed will be the Immanuel, who will be born through a virgin. Another 700 years later and an angel appears to Mary to tell her that she will bear this child. A short amount of time passes, and the promise was fulfilled in the birth of Jesus.
“Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.”
To understand what is so special about hope and the coming of Christ, it is necessary to understand why hope was needed. Because of the fall, every human is a sinner, and sinners love sin. Sin is so deep in the human nature that a man cannot change. This is a hopeless situation because just as it is impossible for a camel to go through the eye of a needle (Matthew 19:24), it is impossible for a man to be saved by his own efforts. It is a chain of bondage that cannot be broken. That is the effect of the Fall. However, the promise was made that the evil one would be destroyed by the seed, and even though it was impossible for man, nothing is impossible for God.
“Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”
Eventually, the time came and Jesus was born in Bethlehem. He lived a perfect life. He walked among us with grace and truth. He crushed the head of the serpent, and in doing so, His heel was bruised on that cross. He was resurrected on the third day, which means that we too, when we place our hope in Him, are brought to life. Though we died in Adam, we are alive in Christ. Christmas celebrates the coming of Jesus, the one in whom our hope is in. May we remember that as we celebrate this season!
