MESSAGE DECEMBER 13, 2014: THE THREE CHARACTERS OF CHRISTMAS PART THREE…MARY youtu.be/VXK50lsrdq4 Good morning Saints! May The Lord Bless with the explication of His Holy Word. Amen. We are well into the final hustle of preparation for Jesus’ birthday celebration, and I am here to help! If you have a person on your Christmas list that you have no idea what to buy them, I recommend two books by Jim Bishop: “The Day Christ Died” made into a movie in 1980, and “The Day Christ Was Born”, a smaller book but one full of meditative material on the events leading up to the birth of Jesus. Bishop takes these two events from an historical perspective, and while we all know how these stories end up, Bishop gives us cause to think about how truly hard the pregnancy of Mary was. With all the cozy pictures of Jesus, Mary and Joseph on Christmas cards, the manger scene appears much more serene than it must have been. Joseph was a poor man, and that 70 mile trip from Nazareth to Bethlehem (Luke 2:4) with only one donkey to carry his pregnant bride was a frightening journey on roads full of robbers and not at all a comfortable trip. Being nine months pregnant today with our modern conveniences must be difficult enough, but traveling on roads populated by bandits in darkness surely could strike fear into Mary. She was only a teenager at the time, and this certainly would not seem to be the way a child called Son of God would be brought into the world. Yet Mary: uneducated, youthful, faith filled Mary, had no doubt this was God’s plan for her, and therefore for salvation. She was to be the mother of the baby Jesus, and as Jesus as our brother, we could refer to her as the first to receive the Messiah. That alone makes her an integral character of Christmas. In that long journey, she must have had time to reflect on two major life events that brought her to this moment, both recorded in Scripture. First we look at the encounter with the Angel Gabriel. Gabriel appeared to Mary and told her to “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you..” (Luke 1:28) Gabriel is met with stunned silence. Mary was ‘considering’ his words. (Luke 1:29) She did not panic from fear, she did not draw any conclusions about how she saw an angel in her bedroom, she waited for further details from the messenger, in other words, further details from God. Are you guilty? I am. My sister spoke to me just a few days ago, a wonderful woman of God, who reminded me that I am guilty of trying to ‘figure everything out’ and not let God be God and do His work in my life. Do you do what I often do, look for reasons why things are happening instead of waiting for God to fully disclose His plan in your life? He will instruct us everything we need to know in His good time, amen? Mary waited and therefore listened for what the angel had to say. The news changed the world. “And Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus.” (Luke 1:31) Trusting, virginal, young Mary, from a tiny town in Israel, not one among the notarized people, not at all a person of power in the community, will have a child. Mary waited for the revelation of the full message, but then asked a very legitimate question: “How can this be, since I do not know a man?” (Luke 1:34) We ask that a lot, amen? God speaks to us about favor that will be coming our way, or good news that He has for us, and we respond ‘How can this be?’ The answer: only God knows! Isaiah 55:8 reads “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord. What He will do to get us to our Blessing, what He will use to make our breakthrough happen, who He will use to bring His favor to us, we can guess, but only God knows for certain. Last week we read about John the Baptist who said God can make sons and daughters of His out of the very stones of the ground. He can make anything happen that is His will and pleasure for you, at any time, in His way. If you question how that can be, and do not get an answer, know that just because you cannot understand His plan by no means does that mean He does not have one for you, amen?? The Angel Gabriel will inform Mary of The Plan for her, and for our salvation. “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you, therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God…for with God nothing will be impossible.” (Luke 1:35, 37). Mary will not only have a boy, but she will give birth to the Son of God. The Son of God! There is a famous denomination which I will not mention because I will not broadcast their ignorance, who released an internal poll of their ordained clergy in 2002, that stated only 73 percent of their ministers believed Jesus was God. Pray for these blind guides saints. The Bible states clearly that Jesus is the Son of God. Period. He is Lord! Take a minute and praise Him!! For nothing is impossible with God. That verse of Scripture has a special meaning to me, and it should be of great comfort to you as well. If God did everything to create this universe, and all that populates it, one baby boy God in reality, human child in form, should be an easy task for Him. By faith, Mary knew this. Zechariah with his intellectual brilliance still questioned the Angel Gabriel and was struck dumb. Mary in her youthful, childlike faith asked a question of the angel, got a detailed explanation, and received and believed. “Behold the handmaid of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” (Luke 1:38). Mary declared: I am a willing servant of God, act through me as you will. That’s a beautiful few words to start our day with. Before we get out of bed, tell God: I am your servant, operate in me as you will. Amen. This is an act of perfect faith. Mary received the message and was willing to operate in faith. And I go back to the trip with Joseph: with every uncomfortable stride of the donkey she was riding, for mile after mile after mile, and when there appeared nowhere for them to spend the night when Mary’s time to give birth was moments away, she stayed faithful to being the handmaid of the Lord. It did not look good in the natural sense, but Mary knew: the Angel told me, I believe it, it will work out for the Glory of God, and He will take care of me. Why? How? Because nothing is impossible with Him. That is as true today as it was then, and always will be so. Perhaps in the midst of her labor in giving birth, Mary recalled months earlier her visit to her cousin Elizabeth. Elizabeth Blessed Mary, and Elizabeth’s child in her womb, John the Baptist, leapt for joy. Filled with the Holy Spirit, Mary offered a declaration of praise to God: “My soul magnifies the Lord, And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior, For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant.” (Luke 1:46-48). Mary’s response to God was obedience, and she dedicated her soul to be the ‘magnifier’ of God. Oh for us to be magnifiers of God! So that when people see us they will not see our ego, or our pride, but they will see God. Her spirit rejoiced in God her Savior. Pray that our spirits will be in a constant state of rejoicing over the truth that God is our Savior. While Mary carried Him for nine months in her body, we have the Blessing of carrying Him in our hearts every day. God looks with favor on His lowly servants. As we surrender ourselves to Him in servitude, He is prepared, and able, to bring us every good thing we need to serve Him completely. Our life is found in God, our favor will come from God. Mary rejoiced with her cousin Elizabeth over this, and yet gives us another instruction on how to live for God: rejoice in the victories He has achieved for you with your family, your community, the world. Mary took risks, and made an ultimate act of faith in God who promised her a favor no one had received before or will ever receive again. God can do the ‘impossible’ for you. Listen for the fullness of revelation, accept His instruction for your life, watch Him perform great things for your life and the lives of those around you. The manger scene on our Christmas cards looks a lot different than it probably was, but the one thing the first manger scene had was total peace: for the Prince of Peace was there. One thing you may wonder about is the fact there are many depictions of Mary in art. Almost all of them have her cloaked in a blue robe. Artists from centuries ago knew that the dyes for making cloth turn blue were very rare and expensive in the time that Mary lived. Artists painted her in blue garments to give her the robes of royalty. She is a mentor of true faith, and her simple ‘yes’ opened the door of God’s favor to bring His son into the world. And may the Lord of Glory who gave this Blessing to Mary Bless us likewise with a special touch from Him this Christmas season upcoming, and keep us faithful to Him always who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit: amen. Happy Lord’s Day and enjoy the music links as well. youtu.be/XiaZYZor6vI youtu.be/pOiBilQPlzo youtu.be/eGT8NJ3OlGo
Posted on: Sat, 13 Dec 2014 16:51:54 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015