A Seasoned Christmas

And there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; and this man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel; and the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. And he came in the Spirit into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to carry out for Him the custom of the Law, then he took Him into his arms, and blessed God, and said,

“Now Lord, You are releasing Your bond-servant to depart in peace,
According to Your word;
For my eyes have seen Your salvation,
Which You have prepared in the presence of all peoples,
A light of revelation to the Gentiles,
And the glory of Your people Israel.”

And His father and mother were amazed at the things which were being said about Him. And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary His mother, “Behold, this Child is appointed for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and for a sign to be opposed–and a sword will pierce even your own soul–to the end that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.” Luke 2:25-35

Intro: Christmas is not only a day, it is a season

It is the most important season for America’s economy
– but we’re already well aware of that
• it starts too soon and is crammed with too much
– for Mary, Christmas season was kicked off when the angel approached her
• in both Hebrew and Greek “angel” and “messenger” are the same word
• angel messengers arrive straight from the presence of God

Normally, when encountering humans, the angel’s first word is, Do not be afraid
– how Gabriel began with Zacharias who was troubled by his presence (Lk. 1:13)
• and the same with the angel who appeared to the shepherds when they were terribly frightened (Lk. 2:10)
◦ it seems that with Mary, Gabriel forgot to deliver his opening line
• I don’t think it is a misreading to sense Gabriel’s excitement
◦ Gabriel blurted out what he knew about Mary when he saw her:
favored one – she was chosen for something great
the Lord is with you – she would not fail; could not fail
(in scripture, this second statement means everything will be okay)
– perhaps, when he saw her reaction to him, he remembered the “Don’t be afraid” part
• Do not be afraid – and for second time he said her name
◦ Mary was known to the angels in heaven
• what he did not say was, “Be terrified, for your destiny is upon you”
◦ the plans she had for coming years had been scrapped
◦ all she can do now was to wake up each morning and discover where God’s plan would take her

That one Christmas changed everything for Mary

The beginning of Joseph’s Christmas season was more complicated
– he did not first learn about Mary’s destiny from angels
• I think we sometimes read Bible in fairytale mode
◦ we don’t stop to think about its real-life impact on these people
• Joseph did not instantly think, “It’s a miracle!”
◦ he assumed the worst – still, he was a good man
◦ he planned a secret divorce rather than expose her to public shame
– the Scriptures do not explore whatever inner anguish he felt
• while considering this course, angel came
◦ he too was told not to be afraid – and specifically, to take Mary as his wife
◦ an angel explained to Joseph that the Child in her was of the Holy Spirit (Mt. 1:20)
• Matthew adds that this was a fulfillment of prophecy: Emmanuel, “God with us” (Mt. 1:22-23)
◦ so, whereas Mary was told, the Lord is with you
◦ we learn from Matthew that in Jesus, the Lord is with us all

The way Jesus enters any human life works the same for us as Mary and Joseph Continue reading →

Holiday Food for Thought

Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the descendants of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. And coming in, he said to her, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” But she was very perplexed at this statement, and kept pondering what kind of salutation this was. Luke 1:26-29

Intro: Mary was one of a kind

Never has anyone else been asked to become what she became
– the surrogate mother of the Messiah, the Son of God
• nevertheless, her uniqueness illustrates something:
◦ a response to God that is necessary universal
• the response is a way of holding the gifts of Spirit that bears the fruit of the Spirit
◦ a way to receive life so that it gives birth to more life
◦ Mary signified her acceptance of God’s will when she said:

May it be done to me according to your word (Lk. 1:38)

– Mary received God’s word into her whole self; heart, mind, soul and body
• the baby within her was infinitely more than her body,
◦ nevertheless, he was sheltered and nourished by her body
◦ in this way he became a human person in our world
• when we give our consent to God’s word to live and work within us, it reproduces life

Mary’s initial response wasn’t enthusiastic joy

In verse 29 she was perplexed and kept pondering the angelic greeting
– perplexed sounds like “confused,” but the Greek word hints at “disturbed”
• the word translated pondering means “to turn over in the mind”
• she was trying to penetrate the meaning of this unusual greeting
– ponder is one of four words Luke uses regarding Mary’s thought process
• I do not think Luke’s use of these words was incidental
• they reveal something about Mary’s inner life
◦ the way Mary moved along in God’s will Continue reading →

Gateway to God’s Heart

And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying:
“Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
For He has visited us and accomplished redemption for His people,
And has raised up a horn of salvation for us
In the house of David His servant–
As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from of old–
Salvation from our enemies,
And from the hand of all who hate us;
To show mercy toward our fathers,
And to remember His holy covenant,
The oath which He swore to Abraham our father,
To grant us that we, being rescued from the hand of our enemies,
Might serve Him without fear all of our days.
And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
For you will go on before the Lord to prepare His ways;
To give to His people the knowledge of salvation
By the forgiveness of their sins,
Because of the tender mercy of our God,
With which the Sunrise from on high will visit us,
To shine upon those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death,
To guide our feet into the way of peace.” Luke 1:67-79

Intro: John the Baptist occupied a unique turning point in biblical history

The transition from the Old Testament era to the New Testament times
– more specifically, John was the end of the prophetic tradition associated with Elijah
• a tradition that reached its climax in John (Lk. 7:28)
• in fact, there was a strong link between John and Elijah
◦ he came in the spirit and power of Elijah (Lk. 1:17)
◦ in some way John was a prophetic fulfillment regarding Elijah (Mal. 4:5-6; Mt. 17:10-13)

For all the prophets and all the Law prophesied until John. And if you are willing to accept it, John himself is Elijah who was to come. He who has ears to hear, let him hear. (Mt. 11:13-15)

– it is clear that Zacharias and Elizabeth still stood very much in the Old Testament
• for example, their connection to Aaron and their description, “righteous…and walked blamelessly” (Lk. 1:5-6)
• in fact, their situation echoed that of Abraham and Sarah
◦ the old couple who could not produce a child, yet miraculously gave birth to Israel
– my point is: the more you know about the Old Testament, the easier it is to interpret Zacharias’ poem

When it came time to name Zacharias’ son, certain uncanny events occurred
– such that neighbors were astonished and even fearful
• the were wondering, What then will this child be(come)?
– the poem is God’s answer to that question
• that is why Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit
◦ so he could deliver this inspired poem

There are two parts to Zacharais’ poem

The two parts are delivered in two long sentences
– the first part is history, the second was the present and future
• first, the poem travels backward through time to David, the prophets, then Abraham
• then it turns around and addresses his child’s future and One whose way he would prepare
– the first part is praise, the second is prophecy Continue reading →

Reconcilable Differences

The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Mark 1:1

Intro: I want to carry our current theme of prayer through Christmas

Mark is an odd place to start, because he does not tell the Christmas story
– instead, he tells us who Jesus is and goes straight to his story
• gospel: good spell (old English, a story or speech) a good message
◦ it is like hearing a relative who was in a car accident survived and is well
• we need good news, because something is wrong with the world
◦ something is wrong with us
– we live in a world of lost spiritual intimacy — not only with God
• but with the world of nature, human society, family, ourselves
◦ our world is fragmented – the pieces don’t go together
• the anger, hostility, violence and cruelty in our nation is staggering
◦ we have become strangers in a strange land

Daniel Siegel has pointed out that every relationship has instances of rupture
– we know this – we have felt rejection, insecurity, cut off from a friend or lover
• Siegel says that the answer to rupture is repair
◦ the repair he recommends requires education, retraining, courage, humility
(and probably therapy)
• people who experience too many fractures tend to give up
◦ in relationships they adopt defense strategies rather than intimacy strategies
– we need good news, we need hope, we need help — we need Jesus

. . . if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold new things have come. Now all these things are from God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself . . . . (2 Cor. 5:17-19)

So Mark says, The beginning of the gospel, which refers to a specific moment in history
– but, for us, the good news begins when we pick up the book and read
• the beginning is now – something new is entering our lives
• we can put up with a lot–trouble, imperfection, setbacks–if we have hope

Reading through Mark this week, I noticed something

There are themes or events or unusual phenomena that appear at
the beginning of Jesus’ story and reappear at the end
– of course, this is not surprising if we clearly understand his story
• Christmas and crucifixion are inseparable

More than once, Helmut Thielicke wrote, “The manger and the cross are made from the same wood.”

• the angel who appeared to Joseph told him,

. . . you shall call his name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins (Mt. 1:21)

◦ “Savior” is one of the words that defines his life
◦ it was in his dying that he delivered life to us

Now My soul has become troubled; and what shall I say, “Father, save Me from this hour?” But for this purpose I came to this hour. Father, glorify Your name.  (Jn. 12:27-28)

– I have four examples of themes that tie the beginning and end of the gospels together

First, angels appear at the beginning of his story

Both Matthew and Luke report a flurry of angelic activity
– they make announcements and give people encouragement and assistance
• then they return at the end of all four gospels to announce Jesus’ resurrection
– only two other times during Jesus’ ministry do they emerge from their invisible realm

1. The first is close to the beginning
   – right after Jesus’ temptation (Mk. 1:13), angels ministered to him
2. The second is close to the end
   – the night prior to his crucifixion (Lk. 22:43) an angel strengthen him
   – so these other two visitations occurred at times of severe crisis

Continue reading →