The Birth of Jesus Foretold

26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27 to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” 29 Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 30 But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. 31 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.” 34 “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” 35 The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. 36 Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. 37 For no word from God will ever fail.” 38 “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.

Reflection:
Gabriel makes a second appearance today, this time to the Virgin Mary who was engaged to Joseph. In those days the rules surrounding engagement were very tight so the news that Gabriel shared with her would have been most disturbing to young Mary. Most would she was in her teens, so quite a young age for such a pronouncement. Here are some other observations surrounding the birth narrative of our Lord:

1. Two times the angel says she is favored or found favor with God. Note her favor is accompanied by the statement, The Lord is with you. Favor comes when God is with us. We today have favor as a result of the Holy Spirit being with us and in us.

2. You are to call him "Jesus". This name means "God saves", and is a derivative of Joshua.

3. Jesus is given the throne of his descendant David thus fulfilling the royal covenant given to King David in 1 Samuel. The only difference is Jesus is the last king and will rule forever in God's eternal kingdom.

4. Jacob's descendants are mentioned thus fulfilling the covenant with his grandfather Abraham, that through his line all nations would be blessed. Also this shows us that Jesus' salvation is retroactive to the people of the promise in the Old Testament.

5. When Mary asks how she will do this the angel says, "the Holy Spirit will overshadow you!" This is a good reminder to us that if we are to do anything for God it will be by the Holy Spirit overshadowing our own natural limitations.

6. "For no word from God will ever fail!" It's good to know that though sometimes our words fail, God's never will. So if we are hearing God right and acting on it, we can never fail. That's why when we step out in faith we can see whether something is of God or not. Either it will fail or be successful, depending on if it is in alignment with God's Word. God may have to re-align us sometimes to a proper understanding of His Word.

7. Finally, these are some of the greatest words ever uttered in history. "I am the Lord's servant. May Your word to me be fulfilled." Mary is in the best possible place to be used by God. First she says, "I am the Lord's servant!"
She is ready to do anything necessary to have God's word fulfilled in her. She is not seeking what God can bring her but what she brings to God, her heart and will.

What would it mean for us each day to start out each day and say, "I am the Lord's servant, may Your Word be fulfilled in me today!"? This puts us in the best possible position for the Holy Spirit to overshadow us and bring in Jesus to our world today.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Acts 22 - Paul Sees the Light

Image
6  “About noon as I came near Damascus, suddenly a bright light from heaven flashed around me.   7  I fell to the ground and heard a voice say to me,  ‘Saul! Saul! Why do you persecute me?’  8  “‘Who are you, Lord?’ I asked.  “  ‘I am Jesus of Nazareth,  whom you are persecuting,’  he replied.   9  My companions saw the light,  but they did not understand the voice  of him who was speaking to me.  10  “‘What shall I do, Lord?’ I asked. “  ‘Get up,’  the Lord said,  ‘and go into Damascus. There you will be told all that you have been assigned to do. This is the famous story of the apostle Paul's conversion on the road to Damascus.  Paul was going there to persecute Jewish Christians and throw them into prison and he meets Jesus is a spectacular way.  Not only is he blinded by a briliant light, but he hears the Lord's voice audibly.  And the Lord asks him, "Lord, Lord why are you persecuting me!"  Paul thought he was serving the Lord, but he was persecuting him b
Read more

Hebrews 6 - Have You Graduated From Elementary School of Faith Yet?

Click Here to Read or Listen to Hebrews 6 6 Therefore let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and be taken forward to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God, 2 instruction about cleansing rites, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. 3 And God permitting, we will do so. The author once again picks up with the theme of moving on to Christian maturity.  He teaches them to move on from the "elementary" teachings about Christ. What does he mean by that?  He gives clues by citing repentance, faith, cleansing rites, the laying on of hands, and teaching on the judgment and resurrection from the dead. We might call these the basics of the Christian faith. If you read through the Apostle's Creed, which our church confesses in our 8am service, it contains many of these core doctrines.  Click here to see the Apostle's Creed Written Around “When we consider the
Read more

2 Timothy 4 - Fight the Good Fight! Finish the Race!

Click Here to Read or Listen to 2 Timothy 4 4 In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: 2 Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction. 3 For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4 They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. 5 But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry. Paul gives a closing charge to Timothy. First of all, he is to preach the word. God's Word speaks to all situations and seasons. The Word of God will sometimes correct us. Our lives can get of out alignment with God's will as outlined in
Read more