“This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
LUKE 2:12 NASB
Steve Brown tells a story about the ugliest car he had ever seen. It had a large gash down one side; one of the doors was barely hanging on with bailing wire; large patches of metal were rusted out. The muffler was dangling down to street level. The car had been painted over so many times with so many colors it was impossible to tell the original color. But the most fascinating thing about the car was the bumper sticker. It read “This is not an abandoned car.”
We live in a rusty world. It can be ugly and depressing. Hurt and heartache abound. A new shot of paint here and there can make things looks brighter temporarily, but the daily Niagara of bad news jolts us back to reality. On top of that, our own personal sorrows and sin can sometimes leave us feeling guilty, isolated, and fearful. At times we can wonder if God really cares. But a long time ago, a baby was born and laid in a manger. He was born for us. He was a sign to us. His sign read “This is not an abandoned world.”
When God visited our planet in human flesh, He gave us the assurance that He had not abandoned us or our world. What the angel said to the shepherds is the same thing God is saying to us today—a Savior has come. Even though we’re often shocked and saddened by events in our world or our own lives, we can know that He has not abandoned us. God cares, and God is in control. You have not been deserted or forsaken. The best news is that someday Jesus will come again, and all the ugliness of sin will be removed forever. He will make all things new. His coming again will be His final sign to us that “This is not an abandoned world.”