And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch
over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the
glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them,
“Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the
people. 11 Today
in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.
Luke 2: 8-11
Luke 2: 8-11
This is probably not “A Christmas Story” you were expecting. After all, each year, WTBS plays the movie, “A
Christmas Story” ad infinitum. No, this
is the “real” Christmas story. This is
the story of the birth of our Savior, Jesus the Christ.
First, who was this young girl, chosen by God to give birth to our
Savior? This passage shows us Mary’s
heart --
“…My soul glorifies the Lord
47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
48 for he has been mindful
of the humble state of his servant.
From now on all generations will call me blessed,
49 for the Mighty One has done great things for me—
holy is his name.
50 His mercy extends to those who fear him,
from generation to generation.
51 He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;
he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
52 He has brought down rulers from their thrones
but has lifted up the humble.
53 He has filled the hungry with good things
but has sent the rich away empty.
54 He has helped his servant Israel,
remembering to be merciful
55 to Abraham and his descendants forever,
just as he promised our ancestors.” Luke 1:46-55
47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
48 for he has been mindful
of the humble state of his servant.
From now on all generations will call me blessed,
49 for the Mighty One has done great things for me—
holy is his name.
50 His mercy extends to those who fear him,
from generation to generation.
51 He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;
he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
52 He has brought down rulers from their thrones
but has lifted up the humble.
53 He has filled the hungry with good things
but has sent the rich away empty.
54 He has helped his servant Israel,
remembering to be merciful
55 to Abraham and his descendants forever,
just as he promised our ancestors.” Luke 1:46-55
You can see
why Mary was chosen. She had a heart for
God. Yet, she was probably just little
over a child herself. So, let’s look at
the birth of Jesus just a little closer to see how her “journey” with God
continued.
We can only imagine how Mary must’ve
felt that night. She and Joseph had travelled
a distance, only to find there was nowhere to have this child. They ended up in a stable. Imagine the smell and the filth. Is that where you would want your child to be
born? And yet, that is EXACTLY where our
Messiah was to be born!
“…they went on their way, and the
star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the
place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed.
11 On coming to the
house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and
worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of
gold, frankincense and myrrh.” Matthew 2:9-12
Three wise men showed up, each with a very special gift. The brought gold, frankincense and myrrh –
interesting choice of baby gifts, wouldn’t you say? The
gold was a gift for a king. For Jesus
was to become our King; not of this kingdom but His heavenly Father’s kingdom. Frankincense is a type of incense used in
religious ceremonies. Bringing this indicated
that this was a divine individual. The
last gift was myrrh. This was usually
used on a deceased person’s body. Quite
an unusual choice for a baby gift.
However, this had special meaning; it served to foreshadow the death of
this child.
Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
14 “Glory to
God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
15 When the
angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another,
“Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has
told us about.” Luke 2:14-15
And so, the shepherds went to visit this holy child. And afterwards, they did as they were told – spread the news of His birth.
And what about Mary? What did she think of all of this?
“But Mary
treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.” Matthew 2:19
As a mother,
it must have been hard for Mary to fathom all this attention her Son was
getting. Imagine – giving birth in a stable,
only to be followed by visits from the Magi and shepherds. Who was this child she gave birth to? I have attached a link to one of my very
favorite Christmas songs, “Mary Did You Know?”
Enjoy as you celebrate Christmas!
And let’s not forget what this holiday truly represents to millions
across the globe.
“The
virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”
(which means “God with us”). Matthew 1:23
http://youtu.be/Faz9MTs8JOY
No comments:
Post a Comment