“And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.” (ESV – Read the chapter)
The angel told Mary that she had found favor with God, and then set her on a road that was incredibly difficult. We’d sure like to think that being the recipient of God’s favor is a good thing from start to finish, but given the kinds of things Mary experienced, that’s not such an easy conclusion as we’d like. So, what does it mean to find God’s favor?
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“And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.” (ESV – Read the chapter)
The night Jesus was born the quiet world of these humble shepherds was lit up by the heavenly host calling them to hurry and go see the newborn baby. The shepherds are a pretty treasured part of the Christmas story. There’s always at least one in every nativity scene. They never fail to make a Christmas pageant—usually in the form of a cute youngster in his daddy’s robe, carrying a staff for which he has been threatened with everything short of death by hanging if he uses it Jedi-style to hook an unsuspecting audience-member as he processes down the aisle. We love the shepherds. The people of first-century Israel, however, did not.
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“For though the Lord is high, he regards the lowly, but the haughty he knows from afar.” (ESV – Read the chapter)
Have you ever met someone who was too big for their britches? We like to give lip service to the idea that people are people no matter who or where they are, but in reality we don’t really believe that. We don’t believe it whether we think we are something or whether we’re sure we aren’t. Our celebrity culture makes this as plain as day. Celebrities are a little (or sometimes a lot) like spoiled children. The worst of them act in the zany ways they do not only because they think they can, but because all the people around them enable them to do it by catering to them.
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“You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.” (ESV – Read the chapter)
Where’s your mind? Ever been asked that? It was probably asked sarcastically when you said something that was possibly suggestive in some way. Or perhaps you were not paying as much attention in some sporting event as you needed to be and your coach told you to get your head in the game. Our minds are amazing things. The amount of information, they can process effortlessly and their ability to analyze complex data to find patterns is jaw-dropping. But sometimes it’s hard to keep them focused, isn’t it?
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This post and this afternoon’s post of yesterday’s sermon will be the only two posts this week. Enjoy celebrating Christmas with your family tomorrow and see you on Monday of next week! Merry Christmas!
“And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.” (ESV – Read the chapter)
How did you respond the last time God asked you to do something hard? Were you ready to go, or were you more hesitant in the face of the great unknown stretching out before you? When God calls us on an adventure of some kind, that’s a scary place to be. His adventures tend to go well beyond what we can manage or handle on our own. But in that unease is the promise of life.
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The Nexus 