'From the Squalor of a Borrowed Stable’
Scripture Reading — Psalm 130:1-8
But with you there is forgiveness, so that we can, with reverence, serve you.
Psalm 130 is a powerful reminder of our brokenness. We cry out from the depths, “If you, Lord, kept a record of sins, Lord, who could stand?” But there is also the powerful reminder that with the Lord there is forgiveness so that we may serve him.
“From the Squalor of a Borrowed Stable” tells of the life and work of Jesus in a moving way. It ranges from his humble birth in a stable, to his betrayal and his death on a cross, to his victory over the grave, and to his ascension to heaven and his coming again.
As we celebrate Christ’s first coming, we are reminded that we are waiting for his second coming. We live in the “already but not yet” tension of God’s salvation—Christ has already fully paid for our sins, and we are given new life; but in this world we still face sin and suffering, and the kingdom of God is not yet fully realized. So we await Jesus’ coming again.
We wait with eager expectation for Christ’s return. As the psalmist puts it, we “wait for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning.” And as we wait, we are also encouraged to “put [our] hope in the Lord, for with the Lord is unfailing love and with him is full redemption.”
In Christ we see God’s unfailing love and full redemption.
God’s people, put your hope in the Lord!
Dear God, may we put our hope in you, for we know that in you we find unfailing love and full redemption. In Christ we pray. Amen.
About the author — Brian Kuyper
Brian Kuyper is the lead pastor at a church in Taber, Alberta. He has served in two congregations in southern Alberta over the past 12 years. He is married to Brenda, and they have three school-age children.
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