Christmas 2018 A Story of Contrasts (Mary, part 1)
Hello this is Eric again. A friend asked me, “How can I know that the Bible is true?” So, I am taking some time to answer my friends question and to do this I am looking at one of the evidences the Bible gives to answer this question, Prophecy.
(Read the previous blogs here)
When God comes and invites us to walk with Him and join Him on His amazing adventure of faith, we can respond with a yes or a no. There isn’t an in-between. We like to tell ourselves that there is, but in reality the middle ground is a no.
This is what the Pharisees were known for. They set up rigid and detailed rules, and high and lofty goals that they had to attain; But, they were still making God into their own image, and treating Him like an idol by doing this. If I do thus and such, I am good. Some call this “being religious.” Others might call this “hypocrisy.” Both titles fit. There are good intentions, but the ultimate end is to simply contain God in a box and have Him in our lives on our terms—not His. It’s the ‘third-rail’ of our response to God. We have told ourselves that if we do our devotions, and pray—give to the offering, and serve… That will keep God happy. Therefore, we will have the right to ask Him to do stuff for us. If He doesn’t answer, well then, we need to go back and address the ole ‘tick list’ of our religiosity and see how we need to “repent.”
The trouble with this is, it’s really close to what God says—it’s just interpreted through human hearts, not God’s. The human interpretation is about 1-degree off center. These seem to be good things… As we make our interpretations the ultimate things—using them to get God to do something for us—it’s all about us and not God. (Yes, we don’t talk like this, but consider how we respond when God doesn’t work on our schedule, answer our prayers, or He even allows us to walk through a difficult season—our responses tell us much about how we view God.)
I know, one degree off—that doesn’t seem like a big deal, right? Just a little bit off. One degree off center is a small amount now, but… If this is how we set the course and direction of our lives, when we get to the end of our journey we will end up in a completely different place than we intended—and God knows that. God came to rescue us, and to lead our lives—to be Lord. (He is God you know.) He came to have relationship with us (because He loves us)—To be God of our lives, and He asks us to follow Him in faith.
Zechariah, because of His inability to know how God might keep His promise, he wasn’t so sure he could trust God. Mary on the other hand had a very different response.
Mary was a young woman, maybe between 13 and 15 years old. She was betrothed to a man named Joseph—a cultural step between getting engaged, and getting married. An angel came to her one day, and Luke 1:26-38 tells us the story,
“In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. Gabriel appeared to her and said, ‘Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you!’ Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. ‘Don’t be afraid, Mary,’ the angel told her, ‘for you have found favor with God! You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. 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. And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!’”
Wow. This is the promise all of Israel has been waiting for. The Messiah. Wow. Me? Cool, but, pregnant…
“Mary asked the angel, ‘But how can this happen? I am a virgin.’”
She states the obvious question. This is not a doubting of God’s ability, or a lack of trust, this is a practical, “OK, so how’s this gonna work out?” God was ready for her question;
“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. What’s more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she has conceived a son and is now in her sixth month. For the word of God will never fail.’”
She has her answer. God couches this in light of His promises, prophecies, and character. She is being invited to walk with God in His amazing adventure of rescuing His children. To follow God would cost her dearly. She would be the only woman who would be able to say that it was from God, and not an affair, but no one would believe her, not even Joseph. There would be repercussions—she could be killed for looking like she committed adultery (divorce was needed to end a betrothal) but, this is not what was discussed. God invited her into His amazing plan, and gave her the encouragement of God’s power working in her cousin’s life—He did a miracle in her life—God’s word won’t fail. I love that verse. God’s word won’t fail. Hey, if God is inviting me to walk with Him, I think that God will be able to take care of me.
Mary didn’t even need to have this conversation—she saw her life in the big loving arms of God, and she trusted Him. There is something about being invited into God’s presence and plan that is bigger than anything we could hope or imagine. If God leads, I follow. He is my Lord and my God. Mary responds--like we should respond to the leading of God,
“Mary responded, ‘I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.’ And then the angel left her.”
Do you want to walk on this journey with us?
Subscribe here
(Read the previous blogs here)
When God comes and invites us to walk with Him and join Him on His amazing adventure of faith, we can respond with a yes or a no. There isn’t an in-between. We like to tell ourselves that there is, but in reality the middle ground is a no.
This is what the Pharisees were known for. They set up rigid and detailed rules, and high and lofty goals that they had to attain; But, they were still making God into their own image, and treating Him like an idol by doing this. If I do thus and such, I am good. Some call this “being religious.” Others might call this “hypocrisy.” Both titles fit. There are good intentions, but the ultimate end is to simply contain God in a box and have Him in our lives on our terms—not His. It’s the ‘third-rail’ of our response to God. We have told ourselves that if we do our devotions, and pray—give to the offering, and serve… That will keep God happy. Therefore, we will have the right to ask Him to do stuff for us. If He doesn’t answer, well then, we need to go back and address the ole ‘tick list’ of our religiosity and see how we need to “repent.”
The trouble with this is, it’s really close to what God says—it’s just interpreted through human hearts, not God’s. The human interpretation is about 1-degree off center. These seem to be good things… As we make our interpretations the ultimate things—using them to get God to do something for us—it’s all about us and not God. (Yes, we don’t talk like this, but consider how we respond when God doesn’t work on our schedule, answer our prayers, or He even allows us to walk through a difficult season—our responses tell us much about how we view God.)
I know, one degree off—that doesn’t seem like a big deal, right? Just a little bit off. One degree off center is a small amount now, but… If this is how we set the course and direction of our lives, when we get to the end of our journey we will end up in a completely different place than we intended—and God knows that. God came to rescue us, and to lead our lives—to be Lord. (He is God you know.) He came to have relationship with us (because He loves us)—To be God of our lives, and He asks us to follow Him in faith.
Zechariah, because of His inability to know how God might keep His promise, he wasn’t so sure he could trust God. Mary on the other hand had a very different response.
Mary was a young woman, maybe between 13 and 15 years old. She was betrothed to a man named Joseph—a cultural step between getting engaged, and getting married. An angel came to her one day, and Luke 1:26-38 tells us the story,
“In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. Gabriel appeared to her and said, ‘Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you!’ Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. ‘Don’t be afraid, Mary,’ the angel told her, ‘for you have found favor with God! You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. 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. And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!’”
Wow. This is the promise all of Israel has been waiting for. The Messiah. Wow. Me? Cool, but, pregnant…
“Mary asked the angel, ‘But how can this happen? I am a virgin.’”
She states the obvious question. This is not a doubting of God’s ability, or a lack of trust, this is a practical, “OK, so how’s this gonna work out?” God was ready for her question;
“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. What’s more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she has conceived a son and is now in her sixth month. For the word of God will never fail.’”
She has her answer. God couches this in light of His promises, prophecies, and character. She is being invited to walk with God in His amazing adventure of rescuing His children. To follow God would cost her dearly. She would be the only woman who would be able to say that it was from God, and not an affair, but no one would believe her, not even Joseph. There would be repercussions—she could be killed for looking like she committed adultery (divorce was needed to end a betrothal) but, this is not what was discussed. God invited her into His amazing plan, and gave her the encouragement of God’s power working in her cousin’s life—He did a miracle in her life—God’s word won’t fail. I love that verse. God’s word won’t fail. Hey, if God is inviting me to walk with Him, I think that God will be able to take care of me.
Mary didn’t even need to have this conversation—she saw her life in the big loving arms of God, and she trusted Him. There is something about being invited into God’s presence and plan that is bigger than anything we could hope or imagine. If God leads, I follow. He is my Lord and my God. Mary responds--like we should respond to the leading of God,
“Mary responded, ‘I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.’ And then the angel left her.”
Do you want to walk on this journey with us?
Subscribe here
Comments
Post a Comment