The New Year

What do you think about the new year? Is it something that excites you or is it something you’re not too ready for? Time is constantly moving onward; we feel it as we age and our bodies groan as our joints get older.  St. Paul tells us in Romans 13, “For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed.” Do you ever think of the passage of time like that? When you think about the future, do you only think about what you have to do? Do you have much excitement for the future?

I think that as life wears on us, we don’t really look forward to the future much. What happened to that excitement we had as kids? I remember losing sleep from excitement, and then as I got older I lost sleep from worry. But Paul tells us that we have something awesome to look forward to with great excitement. As every day passes, we get closer and closer to our salvation.

What is Salvation?

Jesus came to earth, He suffered and died, He rose, He ascended, and He’s coming back. Our salvation was won for us on the cross. The grace, forgiveness, and love of God is given to us through God’s word, our baptisms, and in the Lord’s Supper. But our salvation is not yet here. We’re all aware of this because we still fight with worries and evil. But our salvation is coming, each and every day that passes salvation is nearer.

So what do we do with that information? I hope, firstly, that it excites you like a kid before Christmas and that you pass the excitement along. Secondly, I hope that in your excitement, others realize that God is coming and bringing His salvation for all.

Time ticks ever onward, brothers and sisters in Christ, and while our bodies grown with age we are getting closer to the day of our salvation.