Good Saturday morning. I trust you are enjoying your weekend. Next weekend will be the last one before Christmas, so I am sure a lot of you are busy going to parties and going shopping. But,most importantly, I truly hope you are spending time alone with Jesus himself as he guides you through this holiday and allows you to view it through his eyes, through his mother's eyes, his step-father's eyes, his cousin's eyes, so that this one will be different, this one you will remember as holy to the Lord. The Jesus who came to you as this baby we celebrate so that you could be a friend of God with nothing between you and Him. He saw you at this very moment in time, sitting here this day, right now, reading about him, as he decided to come to earth. He knew you even then. He knew that in 2009 this would be the year you would come to know him more dearly and deeply if you opened your heart wide to him this season.
Yesterday, Mary had hurried to Elizabeth’s home within a few days after Gabriel’s visit. And that is where we pick up today. She has traveled to Judea and entered Elizabeth’s house.
41 At the sound of Mary’s greeting, Elizabeth’s child leaped within her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.
I believe this was the point that the Holy Spirit filled John. From the time that Gabriel left her, everywhere that Mary walked, the living Son of God was residing within her womb, her body, for those 9 months. Think about it: The LIGHT of the WORLD, stepped into darkness, submitted to the darkness of a human womb, and ultimately the darkness of our humanity and our fallenness. Just that one thought fills me with such an overwhelming awe and a joy of what he gave up to come down here to me. A King becoming a shepherd. Can you see him in heaven removing the robe of the king and placing upon himself the garment of a shepherd. A Prince becoming a pauper. A Creator becoming created. A Leader becoming a servant. How could you not love him? He allowed himself to be bound as a growing fetus within a wall of darkness for 9 months. I don’t even know how a human womb would be able to hold back the power contained within it, the presence of the Living God.
When Mary spoke, it says that John leaped inside of Elizabeth. Remember, back in verse 15, when Gabriel was talking to Zechariah, he told him their baby, John, “will be filled with the Holy Spirit, EVEN BEFORE HIS BIRTH.” I wonder if Zechariah was there that moment to witness that prophecy fulfilled right before his eyes!
42 Elizabeth gave a glad cry and exclaimed to Mary, “God has blessed you above all women, and your child is blessed. 43 Why am I so honored, that the mother of my Lord should visit me? 44 When I heard your greeting, the baby in my womb jumped for joy.
Did you hear the confirmation Elizabeth spoke to Mary? She was repeating what Gabriel had told her. “...blessed above all women....the mother of my Lord... She hadn’t heard Gabriel say those words, but she heard God himself say them to her at some point during her seclusion. Surely Mary took notice of those phrases as they reached her ears and took her back to that flash of time when Gabriel stood before her saying those same things. CONFIRMATION!! How could Elizabeth have known?!! I suppose that at that moment, her faith was bolstered up another few notches. When you hear God yourself, and then he confirms it through others, that is an awesome faith-building thing. It lets you see He’s at work, confirms you really did hear him, and he is weaving himself in and out of our life and the lives of others around us.
Did you hear the humility in Elizabeth’s statement, even though she herself was carrying a child of prophecy? “Why am I so honored that the mother of my Lord should visit me?...” That could only be the statement of a woman who had spent time with the Lord, a statement of humility, despite her exalted and chosen status to carry John, as well as being old enough to be Mary’s mother, probably even her grandmother. She had a submissive, reverent heart when her Lord came into her presence. She recognized him because she had spent time alone in seclusion with him.
I want to be that humble before the Lord! I want to recognize his presence the minute he steps in. I want his presence to stop me in my tracks. Then Elizabeth said...
45 You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said.”
What a statement. Read it again. YOU are BLESSED because you BELIEVED that the LORD WOULD DO WHAT HE SAID!.” Take that one in, memorize it, make it yours, because that one verse can be the screensaver for your computer, your life verse, the one you highlight in your Bible, the verse you frame on the wall, the one God sings over you. It applies to every one of us who has ever made our heart and our life totally available to the Lord. How can we be blessed apart from belief in our Lord doing what he says he will do?
It was only a few days after her visit, long before she would ever “feel” pregnant, but these words Elizabeth spoke to Mary rang true in her spirit. God was encouraging Mary through another human being and would continue to do so for the next few months she spent there with Elizabeth. The unborn John was in the presence of Jesus himself daily for those three months before either of them was ever born. Two believing, submitting women, one a teen and one an old woman, and two unborn boy babies, one the Son of God, the other, the one would be point the way to him, both divinely sent by God. What a wonderful three months it was going to be. And God purposely appointed Mary’s trip to see Elizabeth. Along our journey, encouragement and confirmation is vital in our walk. That’s why God puts us in community with other believers, that is why he will plan for our path to cross the paths of others to whom he has spoken.
And to these words from Elizabeth.... 46 Mary responded, (I ask you to read or whisper the blue words below out loud as if they are your own prayer, as you read through Mary’s response....read it with the overwhelming awe of the Lord she must have had at that moment as he cared enough to confirm in her and build her faith further...read it with the knowledge and belief that these truths apply to you as his child as much as they did to Mary that day...read it out loud so the devil will hear you profess these truths before God...)
“Oh, how my soul praises the Lord.
47 How my spirit rejoices in God my Savior! (Does your very soul and spirit want to cry out in praise to God?)
48 For he took notice of his lowly servant,
and from now on all generations will call me blessed. (He has taken notice of you, and when he enters your life, you will be known as blessed.)
49 For the Mighty One is holy,
and he has done great things for me. (Think of the great things he does for you, for you, yet for his glory, to bring him honor, and show that we could never attain these things on our own.)
50 He shows mercy from generation to generation
to all who fear him. (He showed mercy to our generation before it ever existed, and will show it to those who come after us. He shows me his mercy every day.)
51 His mighty arm has done tremendous things!
He has scattered the proud and haughty ones. (He has used us for his purposes as we submit and humble ourselves before him. He has no use for pride and haughtiness.)
52 He has brought down princes from their thrones
and exalted the humble. (He exalts the humble, the greatest Prince of all brought down from his throne to be exalted above all again in due time.)
53 He has filled the hungry with good things
and sent the rich away with empty hands. (When we hunger after Him, He fills us up with good things from his hands. If we are too “rich” to need him, we come away empty handed.)
54 He has helped his servant Israel
and remembered to be merciful. (There is no greater mercy than sending a son as your sacrifice because God wanted you as his friend.)
55 For he made this promise to our ancestors,
to Abraham and his children forever.” (We have all spiritually become a “chosen generation”, God’s people, Jews and Gentiles alike, because of the birth, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.)
Why would God of the universe, creator of everything that exists, with a mind no one can begin to fathom, creator of time and space yet outside of the realm of time and space, past present and future, King over everything that is, total omniscience and omnipotence, the beginning of all things and the end of all things, and the beauty of everything in between, lower himself to our place, the Light of the world confining himself in darkness, the Most High God humble himself among the lowest of us, become one of us? There is only one answer that it could possibly be ... LOVE, pure and undefiled, sacrificing love of a rescuer that came to where we are drowning in a sea of darkness because he knew we couldn't get to him..
Let that love sink deep into your heart today, and enough that it spills over onto everyone you see this weekend. You have a light in you that the darkness could not have a hold over, but only for his brief submission to this dark place, so he could come to us and the light would shine brighter and brighter. I believe as these truths take hold in us, we will begin to have a glow about us that others will notice, and it won’t be us, it will be his light. Light of the World, you stepped down into darkness, even the darkness of my own heart.
He wants to Shine in YOU today!
Teresa
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Friday, December 11, 2009
Day 10, The Christmas Story, Gabriel and Mary
Good morning. Yesterday, we stopped at the place where Gabriel had come to Mary, and told her she was favored and what God was going to do in her by bringing Jesus our Messiah through her. After her confusion over how a virgin could have a child, Gabriel graciously explained further how it would happen. He even told her about Elizabeth, her relative, being six months pregnant in her old age. So, now, we wait for Mary’s response. What she is asked to do will alter the course of her life forever. If she had made any plans for the future, this would certainly change them. If she was worried about her reputation and harming the name of her family, this might be a big problem. If she was worried about the betrothal to Joseph and how in the world he would take this, this also would be a big problem. If she was planning on a house with a white picket fence and 2.3 children, this might affect the plan a little bit. If acceptance of the people around her is really high on her list, then this would be a problem. Everything she could think of in her life would be dramatically altered if she agreed to this. So... what was her response going to be?
38 Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.”
WOW! Do you realize the significance of what she said? I don’t think Mary was superhuman. I believe she honestly at some point had all those things mentioned above flash through her mind. It is our human nature. And I believe God understands that. Mary was just as human as any of us. In Psalms 103 it says he knows us, knows our frame, knows we are only dust. He knows our human tendencies because he created them. There is no sin in that. The sin or blessing would be in the RESPONSE to what was asked of her. In the choice of whether to serve doubt or serve truth. And her response was, in essence, “I am your servant, Lord. Even with all these other questions coming at me right now, I am going to choose to believe you, I am going to choose to trust you, I choose to allow you my life, my body, all of me, for your plan and your purpose for this world. You, Most High, who will birth in me the Son of the Most High, are the Name above all Names, and you are over any name I will be labeled with, over any name of any person that doesn’t believe and ridicules and gossips about me, and you are the Name above the name of Doubt. ”
That, in itself, is a lesson that we could study and ponder for days and days! When God approaches us with his plan, his purpose, and it will dramatically (or even slightly) alter our plan, our purpose, what is our response? ? ? Moses complained that he couldn’t speak well, Sarah laughed because she was too old to have a baby, Zechariah doubted and needed proof. But Mary said, whatever you want, God, make it happen in me. God will never require this particular task of anyone again, but he will ask you to join him in his purpose in an area he has designed just for you to fit in as a piece of his puzzle. And you can laugh, start pointing out your weaknesses, doubt, ask for proof, say pick somebody else, or whatever response you choose. Or you can willingly bow in the presence of the Name above ALL names and allow him to place on you your garment of divine purpose!
“And then the angel left her.” So, Gabriel left. I am sure Mary was in awe and couldn’t do much at that point but have the angel’s words continually repeating in her head. Maybe it was now that the whole impact of what he said began to settle in. Maybe it was now that her mind started recalling scriptures taught to her from Isaiah about the Messiah coming to his people. You know how when anything really big or dramatic or traumatic or overwhelming happens, you spend the time that follows sorting through it, thinking about it over and over, playing it like a tape recorder again and again? I know I do. Maybe it was like when we read a Bible verse. The more you read it, then the more it says to you, the more the words become alive, the more you are reminded of other verses that correspond to it. The more it takes root in your heart.
39 A few days later Mary hurried to the hill country of Judea, to the town 40 where Zechariah lived. She entered the house and greeted Elizabeth.
She left Nazareth a few days later and hurried to see Elizabeth in Judea. Maybe she told Joseph her experience before she left. We’ll look at Joseph tomorrow. But, regardless of whether she told anybody before she left, one thing is for sure. She wanted to go see Elizabeth, she needed to see her. Gabriel had mentioned her. She must talk to Elizabeth. Elizabeth would understand. Elizabeth would believe her. She needed this support. Don’t we all need the support of our Christian brothers and sisters, who we can confide in what the Lord is showing us and they confirm it, encourage us and believe us and pray for us? One of the best things you can do for your walk is to surround yourself with those who truly believe in and seek God, those people that will build up and not cast doubt and fear. Those that have a personal experience with God himself. Those that set themselves apart with the Lord, secluded with him and spending time with him to learn more of him. Those that will rejoice with you when God does something miraculous.
If you’ve ever done the monthly walk through Proverbs, you are aware of just how many verses allude to the importance of who we surround ourselves with. Today’s verse is another picture of that. We need our brothers and sisters. I believe God will even bring to mind for you the people that you need to align yourself with for support and growth and encouragement, and will also bring to mind those that will not do those things, that you should guard your heart from. Ask him to show you today who those people are. Ask him to show you if your walk is being effected by those you align yourself with. Do they bring doubt and negativity to your walk, or do they bring faith and encouragement and build you up? Now ... ask that same question of yourself? What is your influence on the people you are around? Are you the one that comes to mind when they need encouragement, need somebody to believe in them? Or are you the one they avoid and distance themselves from because they find in you negativity, discouragement, and unbelief?
I really want to be one that believes, that encourages and lifts up, that believes WITH GOD, EVERYTHING IS POSSIBLE. That rejoices with them. That partners with them. I believe that if we know the Lord, that deep within our spirit, we all want to be that kind of person. That “Elizabeth” that is there and available, that has spent time alone with the Lord, that has experienced God’s provision and blessing in her own life in seemingly impossible circumstances, and is excited to pour herself into another life.
Enjoy your Friday as you seek to be both an open, available, trusting, believing “Mary”, and an encouraging, supportive, believing “Elizabeth”. And then watch how God works through you.
Teresa
38 Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.”
WOW! Do you realize the significance of what she said? I don’t think Mary was superhuman. I believe she honestly at some point had all those things mentioned above flash through her mind. It is our human nature. And I believe God understands that. Mary was just as human as any of us. In Psalms 103 it says he knows us, knows our frame, knows we are only dust. He knows our human tendencies because he created them. There is no sin in that. The sin or blessing would be in the RESPONSE to what was asked of her. In the choice of whether to serve doubt or serve truth. And her response was, in essence, “I am your servant, Lord. Even with all these other questions coming at me right now, I am going to choose to believe you, I am going to choose to trust you, I choose to allow you my life, my body, all of me, for your plan and your purpose for this world. You, Most High, who will birth in me the Son of the Most High, are the Name above all Names, and you are over any name I will be labeled with, over any name of any person that doesn’t believe and ridicules and gossips about me, and you are the Name above the name of Doubt. ”
That, in itself, is a lesson that we could study and ponder for days and days! When God approaches us with his plan, his purpose, and it will dramatically (or even slightly) alter our plan, our purpose, what is our response? ? ? Moses complained that he couldn’t speak well, Sarah laughed because she was too old to have a baby, Zechariah doubted and needed proof. But Mary said, whatever you want, God, make it happen in me. God will never require this particular task of anyone again, but he will ask you to join him in his purpose in an area he has designed just for you to fit in as a piece of his puzzle. And you can laugh, start pointing out your weaknesses, doubt, ask for proof, say pick somebody else, or whatever response you choose. Or you can willingly bow in the presence of the Name above ALL names and allow him to place on you your garment of divine purpose!
“And then the angel left her.” So, Gabriel left. I am sure Mary was in awe and couldn’t do much at that point but have the angel’s words continually repeating in her head. Maybe it was now that the whole impact of what he said began to settle in. Maybe it was now that her mind started recalling scriptures taught to her from Isaiah about the Messiah coming to his people. You know how when anything really big or dramatic or traumatic or overwhelming happens, you spend the time that follows sorting through it, thinking about it over and over, playing it like a tape recorder again and again? I know I do. Maybe it was like when we read a Bible verse. The more you read it, then the more it says to you, the more the words become alive, the more you are reminded of other verses that correspond to it. The more it takes root in your heart.
39 A few days later Mary hurried to the hill country of Judea, to the town 40 where Zechariah lived. She entered the house and greeted Elizabeth.
She left Nazareth a few days later and hurried to see Elizabeth in Judea. Maybe she told Joseph her experience before she left. We’ll look at Joseph tomorrow. But, regardless of whether she told anybody before she left, one thing is for sure. She wanted to go see Elizabeth, she needed to see her. Gabriel had mentioned her. She must talk to Elizabeth. Elizabeth would understand. Elizabeth would believe her. She needed this support. Don’t we all need the support of our Christian brothers and sisters, who we can confide in what the Lord is showing us and they confirm it, encourage us and believe us and pray for us? One of the best things you can do for your walk is to surround yourself with those who truly believe in and seek God, those people that will build up and not cast doubt and fear. Those that have a personal experience with God himself. Those that set themselves apart with the Lord, secluded with him and spending time with him to learn more of him. Those that will rejoice with you when God does something miraculous.
If you’ve ever done the monthly walk through Proverbs, you are aware of just how many verses allude to the importance of who we surround ourselves with. Today’s verse is another picture of that. We need our brothers and sisters. I believe God will even bring to mind for you the people that you need to align yourself with for support and growth and encouragement, and will also bring to mind those that will not do those things, that you should guard your heart from. Ask him to show you today who those people are. Ask him to show you if your walk is being effected by those you align yourself with. Do they bring doubt and negativity to your walk, or do they bring faith and encouragement and build you up? Now ... ask that same question of yourself? What is your influence on the people you are around? Are you the one that comes to mind when they need encouragement, need somebody to believe in them? Or are you the one they avoid and distance themselves from because they find in you negativity, discouragement, and unbelief?
I really want to be one that believes, that encourages and lifts up, that believes WITH GOD, EVERYTHING IS POSSIBLE. That rejoices with them. That partners with them. I believe that if we know the Lord, that deep within our spirit, we all want to be that kind of person. That “Elizabeth” that is there and available, that has spent time alone with the Lord, that has experienced God’s provision and blessing in her own life in seemingly impossible circumstances, and is excited to pour herself into another life.
Enjoy your Friday as you seek to be both an open, available, trusting, believing “Mary”, and an encouraging, supportive, believing “Elizabeth”. And then watch how God works through you.
Teresa
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Day 9, The Christmas Story, Logic or Faith
Good morning. It is Thursday, December 10. I hope you had time yesterday to place your hand on the scripture and remind yourself that your name is written in the palm of God’s hand and that he calls us by name. We continue with Mary’s visit with Gabriel today...
30 “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God! 31 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. 32 He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. 33 And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!”
I find the pattern here interesting, because it is so very much like Gabriel’s encounter with Zechariah. Gabriel shows up, the person is startled and even afraid. Gabriel calls them by name and tells them not to be afraid. He then proceeds to tell what God is going to do, and even the details to follow. He tells Mary that she will have a baby, a boy, and tells her what to name him (Jesus, meaning “The Lord Saves”), that he will be given the throne of his ancestor, David, he will reign over Israel forever, etc. (A fulfillment of the prophecy in 2 Samuel 7:16) A mind-boggling string of announcements, enough to cause one to stagger. And what does she do? Exactly what Zechariah did. She heard the first thing he said and probably was in shock over it and couldn’t move past it yet to get the full effect of the rest of the announcement.
34 Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.”
Just as had happened to Zechariah, her finite mind stopped at the point she heard “you are going to conceive and give birth to a son”. Which would be the obvious place it would screech to a halt for any human, since she was a virgin. She may have been young and naive, but she was smart enough to know virgins don’t have babies! And the old friend Logic showed up and asked, How can this happen? Zechariah asked “how can I KNOW this will happen”, but Mary only asked “how can this happen”. Zechariah, a priest, a man up in years, a man who was a leader, who ministered in the temple, wanted proof that he could know it would happen. Mary, young and naive, was not asking for proof. I believe she was innocently wondering how you could have a baby if you are a virgin. So Gabriel proceeded to explain it to her.
35 The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God.
Remember, in the last verse, Gabriel said Jesus would be called the “Son of the Most High”. Here, he reiterates that phrase by explaining to her that the “power of the Most High” would overshadow her. Gabriel explains that the reason she will have a baby in a humanly impossible way is that the power of the Most High will overshadow her. The child will be holy. Her son will be called the Son of God. (Among others, Peter’s pronouncement comes to mind from Matthew 16:16, when he said “You are the Messiah, the son of the Living God.”) So, Gabriel took the care to explain to Mary further. Then he gives another announcement to Mary...
36 What’s more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she’s now in her sixth month. 37 For nothing is impossible with God.”
I believe he was fueling her faith. He told her what was going to happen. He then explained it further. Then, he added to his pronouncement the fact that her relative, Elizabeth was pregnant in her old age (Zechariah wasn’t quite so blunt – he said she was “well along in years” – smart man). Not only was she going to have a humanly impossible baby, her relative Elizabeth, who had been wanting a child for years, but was old and barren, was now six months pregnant. There was somebody else out there to talk to, who would believe her story, who could encourage her, who had also experienced a divine intervention that could not have occurred apart from the Most High God.
“FOR NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE WITH GOD!”
Do you really believe that? Do you honestly believe that is still a true statement today? Are you truly able in your mind and heart and spirit to look back those few years ago and believe this actually happened? We say yes, we are a Christian, of course we believe it happened just like it is written. We say, yes, we believe that God’s timing was impeccable. After years of praying for a Messiah, we believe God had chosen that time to come to answer the prayers of his people. Yes, we believe Zechariah was in the Holy Place burning incense that day by divine providence. Of course, we believe Mary was a virgin and yes, we believe Gabriel was burning up the highway between heaven and earth. And yes, even though we can’t physically explain it, we believe Jesus was actually God’s son. And yes, we believe God delights in impossible situations. And yes, we believe old barren Elizabeth had a baby. And yes, we believe the impossible situation is really the truest way for Him and Him alone to receive glory. And yes, he uses finite, frail, logical humans, so his power can be show-cased in our weakness. We believe he used that pattern over and over and over in the stories we read in the Bible. Maybe, by now, you even say you believe that God calls you, personally, by name and writes your name in the palm of his hand.
We say we believe, but ... we worry over the smallest, most insignificant things. Things that, in the end, make absolutely no difference in eternity. Things that won’t matter by next week or next year. Things that are material and temporal. We believe our situation is beyond help, beyond saving. Let me just tell you, you can’t believe both ways. And, believe me, I’m preaching to myself too! One is going to win out, no matter what you profess. The one that wins out will be the one you truly believe, and it will be the one you base your life and actions on. It will be the one everybody sees when they watch you. Only one belief is true. Whether it is 0 A.D. or 2009 A.D.,did God change? Does he still have a perfect timetable? How would we, in our culture, today, accept these events? With skepticism? With doubt? Asking for proof? How do you accept the own impossibilities in your life? What would your answer be to Gabriel if he showed up while you were reading this email and told you God wanted to do something unexplainable and miraculous in your life? Would you rely on logic? Would your first reaction be to doubt? If you are like me, you fit the above description. I don’t like that, but I must admit that is how I often live and act.
Today let God convict you in the dark corners of your heart that harbor unbelief in his ways, his timing, his miracles, his provision, his answers. And tomorrow, we will see what Mary’s response was to Gabriel.
Isaiah 41: (9) "I have called you back from the ends of the earth so you can serve me. For I have chosen you and will not throw you away. (10) Don't be afraid, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you. I will help you. I will uphold you with my victorious right hand. (13) "I am holding you by your right hand - I, the Lord your God. And I say to you, 'Do not be afraid. I am here to help you." (20) Everyone will see this miracle and understand that it is the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, who did it."
Praying that God helps us all in our personal areas of worry and doubt and unbelief before we go any further in this story...
Teresa
30 “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God! 31 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. 32 He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. 33 And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!”
I find the pattern here interesting, because it is so very much like Gabriel’s encounter with Zechariah. Gabriel shows up, the person is startled and even afraid. Gabriel calls them by name and tells them not to be afraid. He then proceeds to tell what God is going to do, and even the details to follow. He tells Mary that she will have a baby, a boy, and tells her what to name him (Jesus, meaning “The Lord Saves”), that he will be given the throne of his ancestor, David, he will reign over Israel forever, etc. (A fulfillment of the prophecy in 2 Samuel 7:16) A mind-boggling string of announcements, enough to cause one to stagger. And what does she do? Exactly what Zechariah did. She heard the first thing he said and probably was in shock over it and couldn’t move past it yet to get the full effect of the rest of the announcement.
34 Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.”
Just as had happened to Zechariah, her finite mind stopped at the point she heard “you are going to conceive and give birth to a son”. Which would be the obvious place it would screech to a halt for any human, since she was a virgin. She may have been young and naive, but she was smart enough to know virgins don’t have babies! And the old friend Logic showed up and asked, How can this happen? Zechariah asked “how can I KNOW this will happen”, but Mary only asked “how can this happen”. Zechariah, a priest, a man up in years, a man who was a leader, who ministered in the temple, wanted proof that he could know it would happen. Mary, young and naive, was not asking for proof. I believe she was innocently wondering how you could have a baby if you are a virgin. So Gabriel proceeded to explain it to her.
35 The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God.
Remember, in the last verse, Gabriel said Jesus would be called the “Son of the Most High”. Here, he reiterates that phrase by explaining to her that the “power of the Most High” would overshadow her. Gabriel explains that the reason she will have a baby in a humanly impossible way is that the power of the Most High will overshadow her. The child will be holy. Her son will be called the Son of God. (Among others, Peter’s pronouncement comes to mind from Matthew 16:16, when he said “You are the Messiah, the son of the Living God.”) So, Gabriel took the care to explain to Mary further. Then he gives another announcement to Mary...
36 What’s more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she’s now in her sixth month. 37 For nothing is impossible with God.”
I believe he was fueling her faith. He told her what was going to happen. He then explained it further. Then, he added to his pronouncement the fact that her relative, Elizabeth was pregnant in her old age (Zechariah wasn’t quite so blunt – he said she was “well along in years” – smart man). Not only was she going to have a humanly impossible baby, her relative Elizabeth, who had been wanting a child for years, but was old and barren, was now six months pregnant. There was somebody else out there to talk to, who would believe her story, who could encourage her, who had also experienced a divine intervention that could not have occurred apart from the Most High God.
“FOR NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE WITH GOD!”
Do you really believe that? Do you honestly believe that is still a true statement today? Are you truly able in your mind and heart and spirit to look back those few years ago and believe this actually happened? We say yes, we are a Christian, of course we believe it happened just like it is written. We say, yes, we believe that God’s timing was impeccable. After years of praying for a Messiah, we believe God had chosen that time to come to answer the prayers of his people. Yes, we believe Zechariah was in the Holy Place burning incense that day by divine providence. Of course, we believe Mary was a virgin and yes, we believe Gabriel was burning up the highway between heaven and earth. And yes, even though we can’t physically explain it, we believe Jesus was actually God’s son. And yes, we believe God delights in impossible situations. And yes, we believe old barren Elizabeth had a baby. And yes, we believe the impossible situation is really the truest way for Him and Him alone to receive glory. And yes, he uses finite, frail, logical humans, so his power can be show-cased in our weakness. We believe he used that pattern over and over and over in the stories we read in the Bible. Maybe, by now, you even say you believe that God calls you, personally, by name and writes your name in the palm of his hand.
We say we believe, but ... we worry over the smallest, most insignificant things. Things that, in the end, make absolutely no difference in eternity. Things that won’t matter by next week or next year. Things that are material and temporal. We believe our situation is beyond help, beyond saving. Let me just tell you, you can’t believe both ways. And, believe me, I’m preaching to myself too! One is going to win out, no matter what you profess. The one that wins out will be the one you truly believe, and it will be the one you base your life and actions on. It will be the one everybody sees when they watch you. Only one belief is true. Whether it is 0 A.D. or 2009 A.D.,did God change? Does he still have a perfect timetable? How would we, in our culture, today, accept these events? With skepticism? With doubt? Asking for proof? How do you accept the own impossibilities in your life? What would your answer be to Gabriel if he showed up while you were reading this email and told you God wanted to do something unexplainable and miraculous in your life? Would you rely on logic? Would your first reaction be to doubt? If you are like me, you fit the above description. I don’t like that, but I must admit that is how I often live and act.
Today let God convict you in the dark corners of your heart that harbor unbelief in his ways, his timing, his miracles, his provision, his answers. And tomorrow, we will see what Mary’s response was to Gabriel.
Isaiah 41: (9) "I have called you back from the ends of the earth so you can serve me. For I have chosen you and will not throw you away. (10) Don't be afraid, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you. I will help you. I will uphold you with my victorious right hand. (13) "I am holding you by your right hand - I, the Lord your God. And I say to you, 'Do not be afraid. I am here to help you." (20) Everyone will see this miracle and understand that it is the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, who did it."
Praying that God helps us all in our personal areas of worry and doubt and unbelief before we go any further in this story...
Teresa
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Day 8, The Christmas Story, He Knows My Name
Good morning. It is Wednesday the 9th of December. I must add a disclaimer here. I was sitting on the couch this morning, thinking, hmmm... it’s two weeks till Christmas Eve. Today, we’re just getting to the Annunciation. Will I even get to the birth of Jesus in this study by the 24th, Christmas Eve? See, I don’t know, because every morning when I sit down, I don’t know what I’m going to say or how far in the scripture passage I will go, so hey, who knows? I don’t even know what I am fixing to write below this paragraph. I was thinking “I need to make sure we have Jesus being born on Christmas Eve”, and in my analytical mind thought I might need to count off the scriptures remaining and divide them by days, so the outcome would be just right. BUT God reminded me that this story should be told as HE gives understanding, and not to meet a schedule, and that, as in all things, perfect timing is his. Otherwise, in my own hands of planning and scheduling, I and all of you would just become the victim of another hurried, rushed, meaningless Christmas destroyed in the hands of humans. So, it will be interesting to see what day Jesus is born on in our study this month!
26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, 27 to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. 28 Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you![d]”
Yesterday, we pondered Mary, and the day before learned about her hometown, Nazareth. We learned what their engagement/betrothal customs were. And now, we come to the conversation between her and Gabriel.
So in the meanwhile between visiting Zechariah, and at least six months later on this day, Gabriel has been back up at the throne of God. I am wondering during that year if all these occurrences ranked the highest for numbers of angelic visitation in Bible history. I think in this story there are more than 4 angelic visitations, maybe more, at least two of those by Gabriel himself. Once again, Gabriel is sent to earth, this time to Mary. I wonder if he finds out about these things just before the fact? It is my guess he does. You know how God never seems to lay out the whole story to us, just part of it? I wonder if he did that with Gabriel. Nevertheless, Gabriel continues his post at the throne of God, watching for any sign from God that it was time to carry out the next portion of his plan. And six months after visiting Zechariah, he is now sent to earth again, this time to a young, unimportant, unknown teenage girl in a similarly unimportant small village. And the first thing he says to Mary is “Hello, woman who has been given favor, the Lord is with you!”
There is an exclamation point in this verse, as there was when Gabriel spoke to Zechariah. I think he was truly excited and enthused. Remember, he had been in the throne room. He was seeing the God of the universe, his creator and our creator, now setting in motion the events of the Messiah’s coming to earth. Of course he was excited! He, no doubt, had a bigger picture than the humans who he was sent to would have. And he was enthused!
29 Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. At this point, he’s come to her, excited, calling her favored, saying the Lord is with her. I think it is correct to say that a young girl of her culture would be very confused and disturbed and trying to figure out what was going on. Do you know the thoughts that can run through your mind in a split second after hearing a person speak only a sentence? It is amazing how fast the brain can start analyzing and churning out information and questions.
30 “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God!
I saw something here I didn’t catch before with Zechariah. In both instances, Gabriel calls them by name and tells them not to be afraid. He was not some obscure entity from another planet sent to deliver a generic message. He was debriefed by the God of the Universe, about Zechariah, and then about Mary, their positions, their lives, about them as people, and their names. He knew the people he was speaking to, and he called them by name. Doubtless, as Gabriel stood in front of God himself, God spoke their names. “Mary”... I just love that, because even that one little gesture shows the personal nature of God in his relationship with us individually. He calls us by name. And the angel who had watched his every move, not only brought a message, but he was bringing relationship. It is one thing to have an angel show up in your room. It is another for them to look you in the eyes and call you by your name and tell you not to be afraid. How loving, how personal, how intimate a picture of God’s desire for relationship with us. And that desire for relationship with us is the crux of this whole story, the reason he would soon send Jesus to us. I just never saw before that hint at relationship.
I know that’s not very far along in the story today, but that’s where I feel led to stop. I feel it is vital today, that you end this segment with the knowledge that God Almighty KNOWS your name and he SPEAKS your name. He knew intricately the players of this story, but just as intricately he knows us. Look at the verses below. And let it sink in, that HE knows YOU. HE designed YOU.
"Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you.. Before you were born, I set you apart for my holy purpose. Jeremiah 1:5
Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. Isaiah 43:1-3
See, I have written your name on the palms of my hands. Isaiah 49:16
Zephaniah 3:17(NIV) The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take GREAT DELIGHT in you, he will QUIET YOU with his love, he will REJOICE OVER YOU with singing.
Your mother, whether your birth mother or your adoptive mother, had a desire to sing over you when you were a baby. It is innate in us as mothers. We hold our babies tenderly and close to our hearts and sing to them. It is a time of bonding, of soothing, of expressing our love, our watch care over the one we have been entrusted to love. Mary would soon hold her child close to her heart, as we still do, and sing over him. But, remember, God said he made us in his image, and this innate desire in us is but a picture of our God, who in the same manner sings over us. It began with him, not with mothers. It is an image of him. He knows you, he made you, he set you apart, he called you by name, claimed you as his. He wrote his name on the palm of your hand. There is something close and intimate about the palm of the hand (remember writing your girlfriend or boyfriend’s name on the palm of your hand as a kid, closing it tightly to keep it close to you?) I used to get on to my middle son for constantly writing on his hands as a kid. Obviously, I might now have rethought that, as this was another trait of God that was passed to us when we were made in his image. He takes great delight in you, he quiets you, and he sings over you. If that is not enough, read Psalms 23 about every benefit he provides YOU.
Today let Him call you by name. I challenge you to do this - When you are near your Bible, do this. Open it up to the passage we studied today in Luke 1. Now open your hand and look at your palm. Be reminded that your name is written on God’s palm. Now close it tightly and feel the complete protection the hand provides over that palm. Lastly, now open your hand, stretch your fingers wide, and press your palm into that passage in the Bible we studied today. Leave it there. Let your alive body touch God’s alive and active words and realize that you are touching truth.
Do you hear what I hear? Listen, and you will hear him call your name.
How wonderful.
Teresa
26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, 27 to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. 28 Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you![d]”
Yesterday, we pondered Mary, and the day before learned about her hometown, Nazareth. We learned what their engagement/betrothal customs were. And now, we come to the conversation between her and Gabriel.
So in the meanwhile between visiting Zechariah, and at least six months later on this day, Gabriel has been back up at the throne of God. I am wondering during that year if all these occurrences ranked the highest for numbers of angelic visitation in Bible history. I think in this story there are more than 4 angelic visitations, maybe more, at least two of those by Gabriel himself. Once again, Gabriel is sent to earth, this time to Mary. I wonder if he finds out about these things just before the fact? It is my guess he does. You know how God never seems to lay out the whole story to us, just part of it? I wonder if he did that with Gabriel. Nevertheless, Gabriel continues his post at the throne of God, watching for any sign from God that it was time to carry out the next portion of his plan. And six months after visiting Zechariah, he is now sent to earth again, this time to a young, unimportant, unknown teenage girl in a similarly unimportant small village. And the first thing he says to Mary is “Hello, woman who has been given favor, the Lord is with you!”
There is an exclamation point in this verse, as there was when Gabriel spoke to Zechariah. I think he was truly excited and enthused. Remember, he had been in the throne room. He was seeing the God of the universe, his creator and our creator, now setting in motion the events of the Messiah’s coming to earth. Of course he was excited! He, no doubt, had a bigger picture than the humans who he was sent to would have. And he was enthused!
29 Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. At this point, he’s come to her, excited, calling her favored, saying the Lord is with her. I think it is correct to say that a young girl of her culture would be very confused and disturbed and trying to figure out what was going on. Do you know the thoughts that can run through your mind in a split second after hearing a person speak only a sentence? It is amazing how fast the brain can start analyzing and churning out information and questions.
30 “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God!
I saw something here I didn’t catch before with Zechariah. In both instances, Gabriel calls them by name and tells them not to be afraid. He was not some obscure entity from another planet sent to deliver a generic message. He was debriefed by the God of the Universe, about Zechariah, and then about Mary, their positions, their lives, about them as people, and their names. He knew the people he was speaking to, and he called them by name. Doubtless, as Gabriel stood in front of God himself, God spoke their names. “Mary”... I just love that, because even that one little gesture shows the personal nature of God in his relationship with us individually. He calls us by name. And the angel who had watched his every move, not only brought a message, but he was bringing relationship. It is one thing to have an angel show up in your room. It is another for them to look you in the eyes and call you by your name and tell you not to be afraid. How loving, how personal, how intimate a picture of God’s desire for relationship with us. And that desire for relationship with us is the crux of this whole story, the reason he would soon send Jesus to us. I just never saw before that hint at relationship.
I know that’s not very far along in the story today, but that’s where I feel led to stop. I feel it is vital today, that you end this segment with the knowledge that God Almighty KNOWS your name and he SPEAKS your name. He knew intricately the players of this story, but just as intricately he knows us. Look at the verses below. And let it sink in, that HE knows YOU. HE designed YOU.
"Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you.. Before you were born, I set you apart for my holy purpose. Jeremiah 1:5
Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. Isaiah 43:1-3
See, I have written your name on the palms of my hands. Isaiah 49:16
Zephaniah 3:17(NIV) The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take GREAT DELIGHT in you, he will QUIET YOU with his love, he will REJOICE OVER YOU with singing.
Your mother, whether your birth mother or your adoptive mother, had a desire to sing over you when you were a baby. It is innate in us as mothers. We hold our babies tenderly and close to our hearts and sing to them. It is a time of bonding, of soothing, of expressing our love, our watch care over the one we have been entrusted to love. Mary would soon hold her child close to her heart, as we still do, and sing over him. But, remember, God said he made us in his image, and this innate desire in us is but a picture of our God, who in the same manner sings over us. It began with him, not with mothers. It is an image of him. He knows you, he made you, he set you apart, he called you by name, claimed you as his. He wrote his name on the palm of your hand. There is something close and intimate about the palm of the hand (remember writing your girlfriend or boyfriend’s name on the palm of your hand as a kid, closing it tightly to keep it close to you?) I used to get on to my middle son for constantly writing on his hands as a kid. Obviously, I might now have rethought that, as this was another trait of God that was passed to us when we were made in his image. He takes great delight in you, he quiets you, and he sings over you. If that is not enough, read Psalms 23 about every benefit he provides YOU.
Today let Him call you by name. I challenge you to do this - When you are near your Bible, do this. Open it up to the passage we studied today in Luke 1. Now open your hand and look at your palm. Be reminded that your name is written on God’s palm. Now close it tightly and feel the complete protection the hand provides over that palm. Lastly, now open your hand, stretch your fingers wide, and press your palm into that passage in the Bible we studied today. Leave it there. Let your alive body touch God’s alive and active words and realize that you are touching truth.
Do you hear what I hear? Listen, and you will hear him call your name.
How wonderful.
Teresa
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Day 7, The Christmas Story, Humble Women
Good morning:) Yesterday, we learned a lot about Nazareth, Mary and Joseph’s hometown, and the place Jesus would be raised as a boy. Today, we are going to look more at where Mary was in terms of age, position, engagement, etc.
26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, 27 to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David.
In Matthew and in Luke, the lineages of Joseph and Mary are given. They are both considered to be from the lineage of David. The engagement of Mary and Joseph is not at all like our Western culture. It is actually a very interesting process. It is, of course, an arranged marriage. The usual age for betrothal (engagement) for a girl was around the age of 15, even as young as 12 or 13!!, and for a young man was around the age of 25. The bride was chosen by the groom’s parents or by a confidential friend. Upon entering into the engagement, a dowry and financial considerations were agreed upon by both sides. Betrothal was much more formal and far more binding than "engagement" is in our culture. It was considered to be the most binding part of the marriage transaction. Mary and Joseph had gone through a ceremony of betrothal, with acceptance before witnesses of the terms of the marriage as contracted for. God's blessing was then solemnly asked on the union, however, the complete union would take place after anywhere from some months to one or two years, completed by a procession where the groom took the bride into his house to live. In Mary’s case it would be in about a year. Mary then went back to her home to live with her family for this year until the groom took her into his house. We don’t know how long they had been engaged when this passage was written. The ceremony had already occurred. Joseph was working on her dowry during this time. She was living at home still with her parents. There were no sexual relations during this time. Their communication was always carried on through a friend of the bridegroom. They lived in separate houses during that time. The year of their betrothal was likely spent for Joseph in service to Mary’s family or in other ways raising money for her dowry, to purchase his wife. However, they were legally in the position of a married couple and any unfaithfulness would have been considered adultery. Unfaithfulness was punishable by death according to Jewish law. And, a groom would have the right to divorce his “wife” before he ever took her into his house, before there was ever a wedding procession.
So, Mary was a very young girl. I know in our culture, we cannot imagine this kind of occurrence in a 14 or 15-year-old girl. She was a virgin and was pure. (That one is unfortunately becoming harder to imagine today too.) And she had been legally bound to a man, Joseph, by a ceremony. She was a “wife” and yet under the authority still of her parents’ home. Mary was the last person to know of her intended marriage. It would have been Joseph’s parents or a trusted friend of the family who chose his wife. Then, they would have talked to Mary’s parents first and gained their approval. Mary would have been the last to know. Women did not have any kind of status in their culture. What is interesting about this is that Luke is careful to include women instrumental to the gospel in this book he wrote. You will find Luke including histories of the women involved in the life of Jesus, as well as the men. From his unique perspective as a non-Jew and a physician, his account is more detailed and recognizes women more than in the other gospels. First, we learn about Elizabeth, and now about Mary.
Remember at the first of Luke how it said that he had interviewed people and gotten first-hand accounts and collected all his data before writing this book? I wonder if he interviewed Mary. I wonder if she sat with him one day as an old woman, and began to recount her story to Luke, as he jotted down every detail she could tell him. Luke, being a doctor, no doubt believed in the validity of Mary’s virginity at the time of Jesus’ conception, or he in his medical profession would not have included it in his writings. I wonder if, looking back all those years, past all the things that had happened in her lifetime being the mother of Jesus, she began to recount for Luke the days when she was just a girl living at home, when she found out one day who her husband was going to be. The day she went to her betrothal ceremony to a man she hardly even knew. The day Gabriel came to her. The day he told her what God asked of her. The day she said yes. The day she felt the first faint flutter of her child moving inside of her. The aloneness she must have felt. The many times she submitted to choices made outside of her own will. Wow, haven’t we as women come so far from what Mary’s environment was? We choose who we date, who and if we marry, we choose our education, our careers, we choose when and if we want to have babies, and unfortunately, we have also been given a legal “right” to choose to terminate the babies that were not in our plans. Yes, when it says “we’ve come a long way, baby”, I wonder in which direction sometimes? One of the things I struggle with as a female is a very strong and independent spirit. Now, I believe God put in me exactly what he intended me to have in terms of my spirit and personality, just as he did all of us. But, I have a hard time not being “in the know”, not being part of any decision making that’s going on, not being considered an equal, deferring to my husband when we disagree and a final decision must be made. I am a daughter of Eve. But when I think of Mary, I think of a purity and an innocence, a submission, an availability, an openness, and a godliness, all wrapped up in the body of a young teenage girl. That in our day alone would be considered a miracle. But I also know that Mary was a strong young woman to be chosen to endure what she would over her lifetime. Just think, the day that Mary’s mother gave birth to her, she was born into this world with a purpose that would change the course of history, less than two decades down the road. Just think, Mary’s own mother was probably only in her 30s!
So, today, women, I especially ask you to consider what it is that causes you to not be in a position of purity and submission before the Lord. Think of the task God placed before Mary by the age of 15, and then think of where you are in your walk with the Lord today, at your age. Is there a place for greater devotion to him? Is there a place of more humility and less “rights”? Is there an openness in our hearts for what he wants to bring about through us, for what he wants to use us for, for what he wants to birth in us? What do you think he would have done in you and through you by now were you totally submitted and devoted to him and to his purposes? It is a hard question for me. But these women are placed throughout the story of Jesus birth for us to learn from. We will later study the last chapter of Proverbs, chapter 31, the virtuous woman. But for today, think about the virtue of the women we have met so far in this story. And remember, humility is not an absence of strength, but rather it is “strength under the control of God”.
Teresa
26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, 27 to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David.
In Matthew and in Luke, the lineages of Joseph and Mary are given. They are both considered to be from the lineage of David. The engagement of Mary and Joseph is not at all like our Western culture. It is actually a very interesting process. It is, of course, an arranged marriage. The usual age for betrothal (engagement) for a girl was around the age of 15, even as young as 12 or 13!!, and for a young man was around the age of 25. The bride was chosen by the groom’s parents or by a confidential friend. Upon entering into the engagement, a dowry and financial considerations were agreed upon by both sides. Betrothal was much more formal and far more binding than "engagement" is in our culture. It was considered to be the most binding part of the marriage transaction. Mary and Joseph had gone through a ceremony of betrothal, with acceptance before witnesses of the terms of the marriage as contracted for. God's blessing was then solemnly asked on the union, however, the complete union would take place after anywhere from some months to one or two years, completed by a procession where the groom took the bride into his house to live. In Mary’s case it would be in about a year. Mary then went back to her home to live with her family for this year until the groom took her into his house. We don’t know how long they had been engaged when this passage was written. The ceremony had already occurred. Joseph was working on her dowry during this time. She was living at home still with her parents. There were no sexual relations during this time. Their communication was always carried on through a friend of the bridegroom. They lived in separate houses during that time. The year of their betrothal was likely spent for Joseph in service to Mary’s family or in other ways raising money for her dowry, to purchase his wife. However, they were legally in the position of a married couple and any unfaithfulness would have been considered adultery. Unfaithfulness was punishable by death according to Jewish law. And, a groom would have the right to divorce his “wife” before he ever took her into his house, before there was ever a wedding procession.
So, Mary was a very young girl. I know in our culture, we cannot imagine this kind of occurrence in a 14 or 15-year-old girl. She was a virgin and was pure. (That one is unfortunately becoming harder to imagine today too.) And she had been legally bound to a man, Joseph, by a ceremony. She was a “wife” and yet under the authority still of her parents’ home. Mary was the last person to know of her intended marriage. It would have been Joseph’s parents or a trusted friend of the family who chose his wife. Then, they would have talked to Mary’s parents first and gained their approval. Mary would have been the last to know. Women did not have any kind of status in their culture. What is interesting about this is that Luke is careful to include women instrumental to the gospel in this book he wrote. You will find Luke including histories of the women involved in the life of Jesus, as well as the men. From his unique perspective as a non-Jew and a physician, his account is more detailed and recognizes women more than in the other gospels. First, we learn about Elizabeth, and now about Mary.
Remember at the first of Luke how it said that he had interviewed people and gotten first-hand accounts and collected all his data before writing this book? I wonder if he interviewed Mary. I wonder if she sat with him one day as an old woman, and began to recount her story to Luke, as he jotted down every detail she could tell him. Luke, being a doctor, no doubt believed in the validity of Mary’s virginity at the time of Jesus’ conception, or he in his medical profession would not have included it in his writings. I wonder if, looking back all those years, past all the things that had happened in her lifetime being the mother of Jesus, she began to recount for Luke the days when she was just a girl living at home, when she found out one day who her husband was going to be. The day she went to her betrothal ceremony to a man she hardly even knew. The day Gabriel came to her. The day he told her what God asked of her. The day she said yes. The day she felt the first faint flutter of her child moving inside of her. The aloneness she must have felt. The many times she submitted to choices made outside of her own will. Wow, haven’t we as women come so far from what Mary’s environment was? We choose who we date, who and if we marry, we choose our education, our careers, we choose when and if we want to have babies, and unfortunately, we have also been given a legal “right” to choose to terminate the babies that were not in our plans. Yes, when it says “we’ve come a long way, baby”, I wonder in which direction sometimes? One of the things I struggle with as a female is a very strong and independent spirit. Now, I believe God put in me exactly what he intended me to have in terms of my spirit and personality, just as he did all of us. But, I have a hard time not being “in the know”, not being part of any decision making that’s going on, not being considered an equal, deferring to my husband when we disagree and a final decision must be made. I am a daughter of Eve. But when I think of Mary, I think of a purity and an innocence, a submission, an availability, an openness, and a godliness, all wrapped up in the body of a young teenage girl. That in our day alone would be considered a miracle. But I also know that Mary was a strong young woman to be chosen to endure what she would over her lifetime. Just think, the day that Mary’s mother gave birth to her, she was born into this world with a purpose that would change the course of history, less than two decades down the road. Just think, Mary’s own mother was probably only in her 30s!
So, today, women, I especially ask you to consider what it is that causes you to not be in a position of purity and submission before the Lord. Think of the task God placed before Mary by the age of 15, and then think of where you are in your walk with the Lord today, at your age. Is there a place for greater devotion to him? Is there a place of more humility and less “rights”? Is there an openness in our hearts for what he wants to bring about through us, for what he wants to use us for, for what he wants to birth in us? What do you think he would have done in you and through you by now were you totally submitted and devoted to him and to his purposes? It is a hard question for me. But these women are placed throughout the story of Jesus birth for us to learn from. We will later study the last chapter of Proverbs, chapter 31, the virtuous woman. But for today, think about the virtue of the women we have met so far in this story. And remember, humility is not an absence of strength, but rather it is “strength under the control of God”.
Teresa
Monday, December 7, 2009
Day 6, The Christmas Story, Nazareth
A LITTLE HISTORY LESSON FOR YA
Happy Monday! I hope you had a great day with your family and friends and at your church yesterday. It’s my favorite day of the week (Sunday, that is, not Monday!!). I just soak it in like a sponge. I am blessed to be a part of a ladies class that spans every age group and every walk of life, yet we are sisters in the truest sense and God always shows up in there with us. Yesterday was no exception.
So, today, we continue with day six of our story. I hope you have been able to read the previous days on Zechariah. These stories of each person all tend to build upon each other.
26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, 27 to a virgin named Mary.
Today, we shift our focus to Mary. We have studied about Zechariah and Elizabeth, and the Christmas story is well under way now in our studies. As you’ve seen, the Holy Spirit has been quite active, making sure Zechariah got to burn the incense, sending Gabriel to show up in the temple, making people deaf and dumb, old women bearing children, a baby like John on his way to prepare the way for the Messiah. Elizabeth has spent the last five months in seclusion, spending time alone with God. If you were to do the same, starting today, you would be secluded alone with God from today until May 7 of next year! Don’t you know her relationship with him was deepened in a huge way during that time?! A lot has happened in the lives of these people in a short amount of time. And now the story gets even more overwhelming.
Today we head over to a little town called Nazareth where we find a young girl named Mary. I have found some interesting facts about Nazareth that I want to share with you today, as a background for you getting to know Mary’s life during that time better. So, today will be a little of a history lesson for us all, hopefully enlightening and not boring. It helps me to know the background when we read a story, and I hope it will you too, so here goes....
Nazareth was a long way from Jerusalem (which was the center of Jewish life and worship). Nazareth, in rural Galilee, was located on a major trade route and it was visited often by Gentile merchants and Roman soldiers. It was near a caravan route linking Egypt and Mesopotamia. It was a very arid, dry, hilly climate. They often lacked water and no one knew if enough rain would fall that year enough to provide abundant crops. They were hard workers and because of struggling in this uncertain environment, were a close-knit community.
Mary likely lived in a small family house of stone and mud-brick. She worked like any young girl, grinding wheat and barley into flour, preparing dishes of beans, vegetables, eggs, fruits, nuts, and occasional chunks of mutton. Wool had to be made into clothing. Bread had to be baked. A few chickens and a donkey had to be fed. And in the village, small as it was, there were always little children to care for.
Almost daily she carried a large jar of water from the town well for washing and cooking (the well still supplies modern Nazareth today and is called "Mary's Well").
Early on, the Jews found that cleanliness prevented disease, so frequent washing -- an important chore of women -- became part of their religious practice. The well also was a favorite spot where women talked and traded bits of everyday news.
Just as for the other women of Nazareth, the seasons and times of harvest determined what Mary had to do. With the first downpour of rain in October, the vital wheat crop was sown on the mountain fields, to be gathered -- if all went well -- in May. Small dark olives, knocked from dull green trees in September, had to be pressed into oil for lamps and food. In May or June, early figs were picked; in July, the softer juicy fruit. Grapes and pomegranates ripened in September and October. God blessed the hills of Galilee with his bounty, but it could never be taken for granted. The unpredictable land could just as well give nothing to those working it.
The people of Nazareth had a strong Jewish faith. As descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the Jews believed this land was theirs, given to their ancestors whom Moses led out of Egypt. They knew by heart the deeds of kings like David and Solomon and the words of prophets like Isaiah and Elijah. Even though the Romans, with Herod's family as their puppets, now occupied Palestine, the Jews of Galilee believed God would someday send a Messiah who would free Israel from her enemies.
They lived in a war-torn land. For centuries before the Roman occupation, conquering armies of Babylonians, Assyrians, Persians and Greeks fought over Palestine. Despite their wars, revolts and riots, the Jews remained a subject people -- taxed, bullied and despised by succeeding rulers. Like their compatriots, the Jews of Nazareth were never far from the dangers of political violence. During the Jewish uprisings in Galilee around 6 A.D. -- when Jesus was a child -- Roman legions captured the city of Sepphoris, sold all its inhabitants into slavery and burned the city to the ground. (Now I understand much better why the Jews were looking for a military Messiah to set them free from oppression!)
Mary's faith was strong. Yet, in fervently religious Nazareth with its high moral standards, she hardly stood out at all, even in the eyes of those who knew her best. Besides, as a woman living in a society where men counted most, she would be little noticed except as a mother and a wife.
When she was 15 or so, Mary's parents made plans for her to be married, as was customary in those days. They chose Joseph of Nazareth, a carpenter, for her husband. The engagement took place and Mary returned home to wait about a year before she would go to live with her husband as his wife. But then, something happened...
I want to end here today with the history lesson. Now you know the background of Mary’s town, Nazareth. Sometimes history can be dull and dead, but think with me for a few moments about some things I find very interesting today about the place the God chose for his son, Jesus, to grow up. I believe God purposefully chose Nazareth, and that everything he does is with a plan and a purpose in mind.
Think about it, Nazareth was actually nowhere near the center of Jewish worship. It was a place far removed from the center of Judaism, just like it's inhabitant, Jesus, would be. People there were familiar with Gentiles traveling along their routes. Jesus would be raised in a town far removed from the center of Judaism. He himself would later rebuke the legalism of the Pharisees, the laws which they had added to and made unbearable for his people, their “religion”. He would not be isolated from Gentiles, and his people of Nazareth would possibly be a lot more open to Gentiles because of their location along the trade route. (Remember, he was also the Messiah to the Gentiles, and he grew up watching them, knowing their ways and beliefs and lifestyles, knowing them as people, maybe even befriending a little Gentile boy who came through with his father on the trade route.) He had a heart for others not like him, for all of mankind. Remember the story of the good Samaritan, remember he himself going through Samaria instead of around it, remember his discussion with the woman at the well, his going to a tax collector's home forlunch. He was very comfortable around those that the rest of us are maybe not so comfortable around. Maybe Nazareth was instrumental in this. Maybe we need a Nazareth experience in our lives today.
But the thing that struck me most today was that, in a land that needed water and never knew if it would be available or not, in that dry, arid place, God chose to send the LIVING WATER, Jesus Christ, to live as a child, their “eternal living water” growing up right in the midst of the people who likely prayed for water fervently every year. There is a well to this day named after his mother, Mary. But it probably never crosses their mind to this day, that Mary’s son, Jesus, is their Messiah, their living water, the well that never runs dry. As they draw from Mary’s well water to sustain them, we now draw from Mary’s offspring, Jesus the Messiah, to sustain us with his living water! Amazing!
I will return tomorrow. Love you all. Teresa
Happy Monday! I hope you had a great day with your family and friends and at your church yesterday. It’s my favorite day of the week (Sunday, that is, not Monday!!). I just soak it in like a sponge. I am blessed to be a part of a ladies class that spans every age group and every walk of life, yet we are sisters in the truest sense and God always shows up in there with us. Yesterday was no exception.
So, today, we continue with day six of our story. I hope you have been able to read the previous days on Zechariah. These stories of each person all tend to build upon each other.
26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, 27 to a virgin named Mary.
Today, we shift our focus to Mary. We have studied about Zechariah and Elizabeth, and the Christmas story is well under way now in our studies. As you’ve seen, the Holy Spirit has been quite active, making sure Zechariah got to burn the incense, sending Gabriel to show up in the temple, making people deaf and dumb, old women bearing children, a baby like John on his way to prepare the way for the Messiah. Elizabeth has spent the last five months in seclusion, spending time alone with God. If you were to do the same, starting today, you would be secluded alone with God from today until May 7 of next year! Don’t you know her relationship with him was deepened in a huge way during that time?! A lot has happened in the lives of these people in a short amount of time. And now the story gets even more overwhelming.
Today we head over to a little town called Nazareth where we find a young girl named Mary. I have found some interesting facts about Nazareth that I want to share with you today, as a background for you getting to know Mary’s life during that time better. So, today will be a little of a history lesson for us all, hopefully enlightening and not boring. It helps me to know the background when we read a story, and I hope it will you too, so here goes....
Nazareth was a long way from Jerusalem (which was the center of Jewish life and worship). Nazareth, in rural Galilee, was located on a major trade route and it was visited often by Gentile merchants and Roman soldiers. It was near a caravan route linking Egypt and Mesopotamia. It was a very arid, dry, hilly climate. They often lacked water and no one knew if enough rain would fall that year enough to provide abundant crops. They were hard workers and because of struggling in this uncertain environment, were a close-knit community.
Mary likely lived in a small family house of stone and mud-brick. She worked like any young girl, grinding wheat and barley into flour, preparing dishes of beans, vegetables, eggs, fruits, nuts, and occasional chunks of mutton. Wool had to be made into clothing. Bread had to be baked. A few chickens and a donkey had to be fed. And in the village, small as it was, there were always little children to care for.
Almost daily she carried a large jar of water from the town well for washing and cooking (the well still supplies modern Nazareth today and is called "Mary's Well").
Early on, the Jews found that cleanliness prevented disease, so frequent washing -- an important chore of women -- became part of their religious practice. The well also was a favorite spot where women talked and traded bits of everyday news.
Just as for the other women of Nazareth, the seasons and times of harvest determined what Mary had to do. With the first downpour of rain in October, the vital wheat crop was sown on the mountain fields, to be gathered -- if all went well -- in May. Small dark olives, knocked from dull green trees in September, had to be pressed into oil for lamps and food. In May or June, early figs were picked; in July, the softer juicy fruit. Grapes and pomegranates ripened in September and October. God blessed the hills of Galilee with his bounty, but it could never be taken for granted. The unpredictable land could just as well give nothing to those working it.
The people of Nazareth had a strong Jewish faith. As descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the Jews believed this land was theirs, given to their ancestors whom Moses led out of Egypt. They knew by heart the deeds of kings like David and Solomon and the words of prophets like Isaiah and Elijah. Even though the Romans, with Herod's family as their puppets, now occupied Palestine, the Jews of Galilee believed God would someday send a Messiah who would free Israel from her enemies.
They lived in a war-torn land. For centuries before the Roman occupation, conquering armies of Babylonians, Assyrians, Persians and Greeks fought over Palestine. Despite their wars, revolts and riots, the Jews remained a subject people -- taxed, bullied and despised by succeeding rulers. Like their compatriots, the Jews of Nazareth were never far from the dangers of political violence. During the Jewish uprisings in Galilee around 6 A.D. -- when Jesus was a child -- Roman legions captured the city of Sepphoris, sold all its inhabitants into slavery and burned the city to the ground. (Now I understand much better why the Jews were looking for a military Messiah to set them free from oppression!)
Mary's faith was strong. Yet, in fervently religious Nazareth with its high moral standards, she hardly stood out at all, even in the eyes of those who knew her best. Besides, as a woman living in a society where men counted most, she would be little noticed except as a mother and a wife.
When she was 15 or so, Mary's parents made plans for her to be married, as was customary in those days. They chose Joseph of Nazareth, a carpenter, for her husband. The engagement took place and Mary returned home to wait about a year before she would go to live with her husband as his wife. But then, something happened...
I want to end here today with the history lesson. Now you know the background of Mary’s town, Nazareth. Sometimes history can be dull and dead, but think with me for a few moments about some things I find very interesting today about the place the God chose for his son, Jesus, to grow up. I believe God purposefully chose Nazareth, and that everything he does is with a plan and a purpose in mind.
Think about it, Nazareth was actually nowhere near the center of Jewish worship. It was a place far removed from the center of Judaism, just like it's inhabitant, Jesus, would be. People there were familiar with Gentiles traveling along their routes. Jesus would be raised in a town far removed from the center of Judaism. He himself would later rebuke the legalism of the Pharisees, the laws which they had added to and made unbearable for his people, their “religion”. He would not be isolated from Gentiles, and his people of Nazareth would possibly be a lot more open to Gentiles because of their location along the trade route. (Remember, he was also the Messiah to the Gentiles, and he grew up watching them, knowing their ways and beliefs and lifestyles, knowing them as people, maybe even befriending a little Gentile boy who came through with his father on the trade route.) He had a heart for others not like him, for all of mankind. Remember the story of the good Samaritan, remember he himself going through Samaria instead of around it, remember his discussion with the woman at the well, his going to a tax collector's home forlunch. He was very comfortable around those that the rest of us are maybe not so comfortable around. Maybe Nazareth was instrumental in this. Maybe we need a Nazareth experience in our lives today.
But the thing that struck me most today was that, in a land that needed water and never knew if it would be available or not, in that dry, arid place, God chose to send the LIVING WATER, Jesus Christ, to live as a child, their “eternal living water” growing up right in the midst of the people who likely prayed for water fervently every year. There is a well to this day named after his mother, Mary. But it probably never crosses their mind to this day, that Mary’s son, Jesus, is their Messiah, their living water, the well that never runs dry. As they draw from Mary’s well water to sustain them, we now draw from Mary’s offspring, Jesus the Messiah, to sustain us with his living water! Amazing!
I will return tomorrow. Love you all. Teresa
Saturday, December 5, 2009
Day 5 of the Christmas Story, Elizabeth
Hello to everyone. I hope you are enjoying your Saturday!
23 When Zechariah’s week of service in the Temple was over, he returned home.
That is where we left off yesterday. Zechariah returning home from his week of service in the Temple, struck deaf and mute by Gabriel, to a confused wife (well beyond her years). Elizabeth and Zechariah were devout and righteous people, and they had been married to each other for a long time. Elizabeth surely knew when Zechariah began to try to explain, that he was not making this up. It was obvious that her husband had experienced something life altering. As he wrote down as best he could what had happened, I would suppose he had to have someone come to the house to read it for her. Remember, in those days, women were not taught to read and write. If that is the case, this was going to be a long period of silence in their house and very little privacy if they wanted to communicate! He couldn’t hear what she was asking him, she couldn’t read or write, and he couldn’t speak to answer any of her questions. I’m sure of you men out there are wondering why the wife wasn’t struck mute for 9 months instead of the man! I wonder if she even comprehended the prophecy the angel had given that day to Zechariah. And to add to that, if she had to have someone read what he wrote, you know that talk soon went around the village of Judea, where they lived. In true small town fashion, everybody knew Zechariah’s and Elizabeth’s business!
24 Soon afterward his wife, Elizabeth, became pregnant and went into seclusion for five months. 25 “How kind the Lord is!” she exclaimed. “He has taken away my disgrace of having no children.”
Do you think Elizabeth during that 5 months was reminded of the prophet Isaiah’s words in chapter 40, verse 27-31?
27 O Jacob, how can you say the LORD does not see your troubles?
O Israel, how can you say God ignores your rights?
28 Have you never heard?
Have you never understood?
The LORD is the everlasting God,
the Creator of all the earth.
He never grows weak or weary.
No one can measure the depths of his understanding.
29 He gives power to the weak
and strength to the powerless.
30 Even youths will become weak and tired,
and young men will fall in exhaustion.
31 But those who trust in the LORD will find new strength.
They will soar high on wings like eagles.
They will run and not grow weary.
They will walk and not faint.
Elizabeth had waited a lifetime, had waited upon the Lord, and at times grew tired and weary and hopeless, but now she didn’t have to wait much longer, for it says that soon afterward she became pregnant. She had waited on the Lord and it was her time to soar with the eagles now! And, oddly enough, it says she “soared” in seclusion for five months. Maybe when she did become pregnant, she went into seclusion because she needed the time alone, the time out of the spotlight. She must have taken the time to reflect deep within her heart every little detail she was able to piece together from Zechariah, time to think what all the words meant that Gabriel said, time to realize that she would be the mother of a man who had been prophesied to prepare the way for the Savior of her people. If she were able to grasp what was taking place and how it all tied into prophecy, that would be a huge thing to wrap your head around. And no doubt, as we see above, her heart was filled with worship and Thanksgiving to her Lord. It is daunting enough to think about raising a child when you are expecting a baby for the first time, especially given her older age. But to think of raising a child like John might have been a tad overwhelming. (Now, hopefully, during this time it hadn’t yet dawned on her that somebody who never cuts their hair and beard, probably rarely bathes, lives out in the wilderness alone, eats locusts, and behaves like a prophet – well, that is going to be a strange man! Prophets usually were on the strange side!)
After all the years of feeling disgraced and shamed over being barren, walking around the market seeing all the young women expecting babies, women her age already having grandchildren, her heart must have broken every time she encountered the situation, every time she went to another woman’s home to help with a birth or with a new baby. I have heard that barrenness is a very painful and lonely thing to endure, as you are faced with it everywhere you turn, every celebration, every holiday, every time you are with friends, or around nieces and nephews. But now, none of that would ever taunt her again. She had been chosen, favored, so much so that God sent Gabriel to her husband after God had arranged for him to be alone burning incense that day! He had taken note of her and the waiting was over. It was not just any child, it was the forerunner of the Savior, the Messiah, a little boy given the name “John” (meaning “the Lord is gracious”) by God himself.
Isaiah 52:7 How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news of peace and salvation. Her son, John, would be one of those spoken of in Isaiah, whose beautiful feet would come out of his life in the wilderness to bring the good news that their people had been waiting to hear, to prepare them for the salvation that was in the flesh, living among them. Indeed, his name was appropriate. God truly had been gracious.
Elizabeth, like most of us, was another unlikely candidate in this story of stories. She was old, she was barren, and she was female. There wasn’t much going for her, especially in her Jewish culture, except that she was righteous in God’s eyes. But isn’t that really all that matters when God decides to use someone? She was the perfect choice in God’s eyes – another person at the end of themselves, knowing that if something happens, it would totally have to be a God thing. Knowing there is no way they could ever claim to have humanly had anything to do with being chosen by God to carry John.
We are all unlikely candidates today, in this month of December, in the year of 2009. But remember, that is the way our Father likes it. I know that for me I say, I’m 47, I’m not highly educated, and I’m a female (which can all be limiting). But nevertheless, I have a passion inside of me for the Word of God and for sharing it with others. Can He use me? I’m pretty unlikely, but yes, He can. What are the things in you that you think make you the unlikely candidate? Can He use you? You can be absolutely sure that he can and he will, if only you are available.
Ponder how unlikely we really are today. And that will just point even more toward God’s handiwork in each of our lives.
In Him,
the unlikeliest of candidates,
Teresa
23 When Zechariah’s week of service in the Temple was over, he returned home.
That is where we left off yesterday. Zechariah returning home from his week of service in the Temple, struck deaf and mute by Gabriel, to a confused wife (well beyond her years). Elizabeth and Zechariah were devout and righteous people, and they had been married to each other for a long time. Elizabeth surely knew when Zechariah began to try to explain, that he was not making this up. It was obvious that her husband had experienced something life altering. As he wrote down as best he could what had happened, I would suppose he had to have someone come to the house to read it for her. Remember, in those days, women were not taught to read and write. If that is the case, this was going to be a long period of silence in their house and very little privacy if they wanted to communicate! He couldn’t hear what she was asking him, she couldn’t read or write, and he couldn’t speak to answer any of her questions. I’m sure of you men out there are wondering why the wife wasn’t struck mute for 9 months instead of the man! I wonder if she even comprehended the prophecy the angel had given that day to Zechariah. And to add to that, if she had to have someone read what he wrote, you know that talk soon went around the village of Judea, where they lived. In true small town fashion, everybody knew Zechariah’s and Elizabeth’s business!
24 Soon afterward his wife, Elizabeth, became pregnant and went into seclusion for five months. 25 “How kind the Lord is!” she exclaimed. “He has taken away my disgrace of having no children.”
Do you think Elizabeth during that 5 months was reminded of the prophet Isaiah’s words in chapter 40, verse 27-31?
27 O Jacob, how can you say the LORD does not see your troubles?
O Israel, how can you say God ignores your rights?
28 Have you never heard?
Have you never understood?
The LORD is the everlasting God,
the Creator of all the earth.
He never grows weak or weary.
No one can measure the depths of his understanding.
29 He gives power to the weak
and strength to the powerless.
30 Even youths will become weak and tired,
and young men will fall in exhaustion.
31 But those who trust in the LORD will find new strength.
They will soar high on wings like eagles.
They will run and not grow weary.
They will walk and not faint.
Elizabeth had waited a lifetime, had waited upon the Lord, and at times grew tired and weary and hopeless, but now she didn’t have to wait much longer, for it says that soon afterward she became pregnant. She had waited on the Lord and it was her time to soar with the eagles now! And, oddly enough, it says she “soared” in seclusion for five months. Maybe when she did become pregnant, she went into seclusion because she needed the time alone, the time out of the spotlight. She must have taken the time to reflect deep within her heart every little detail she was able to piece together from Zechariah, time to think what all the words meant that Gabriel said, time to realize that she would be the mother of a man who had been prophesied to prepare the way for the Savior of her people. If she were able to grasp what was taking place and how it all tied into prophecy, that would be a huge thing to wrap your head around. And no doubt, as we see above, her heart was filled with worship and Thanksgiving to her Lord. It is daunting enough to think about raising a child when you are expecting a baby for the first time, especially given her older age. But to think of raising a child like John might have been a tad overwhelming. (Now, hopefully, during this time it hadn’t yet dawned on her that somebody who never cuts their hair and beard, probably rarely bathes, lives out in the wilderness alone, eats locusts, and behaves like a prophet – well, that is going to be a strange man! Prophets usually were on the strange side!)
After all the years of feeling disgraced and shamed over being barren, walking around the market seeing all the young women expecting babies, women her age already having grandchildren, her heart must have broken every time she encountered the situation, every time she went to another woman’s home to help with a birth or with a new baby. I have heard that barrenness is a very painful and lonely thing to endure, as you are faced with it everywhere you turn, every celebration, every holiday, every time you are with friends, or around nieces and nephews. But now, none of that would ever taunt her again. She had been chosen, favored, so much so that God sent Gabriel to her husband after God had arranged for him to be alone burning incense that day! He had taken note of her and the waiting was over. It was not just any child, it was the forerunner of the Savior, the Messiah, a little boy given the name “John” (meaning “the Lord is gracious”) by God himself.
Isaiah 52:7 How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news of peace and salvation. Her son, John, would be one of those spoken of in Isaiah, whose beautiful feet would come out of his life in the wilderness to bring the good news that their people had been waiting to hear, to prepare them for the salvation that was in the flesh, living among them. Indeed, his name was appropriate. God truly had been gracious.
Elizabeth, like most of us, was another unlikely candidate in this story of stories. She was old, she was barren, and she was female. There wasn’t much going for her, especially in her Jewish culture, except that she was righteous in God’s eyes. But isn’t that really all that matters when God decides to use someone? She was the perfect choice in God’s eyes – another person at the end of themselves, knowing that if something happens, it would totally have to be a God thing. Knowing there is no way they could ever claim to have humanly had anything to do with being chosen by God to carry John.
We are all unlikely candidates today, in this month of December, in the year of 2009. But remember, that is the way our Father likes it. I know that for me I say, I’m 47, I’m not highly educated, and I’m a female (which can all be limiting). But nevertheless, I have a passion inside of me for the Word of God and for sharing it with others. Can He use me? I’m pretty unlikely, but yes, He can. What are the things in you that you think make you the unlikely candidate? Can He use you? You can be absolutely sure that he can and he will, if only you are available.
Ponder how unlikely we really are today. And that will just point even more toward God’s handiwork in each of our lives.
In Him,
the unlikeliest of candidates,
Teresa
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