The Race Set Before You, Hebrews 12:1-2

Hebrews 12:1
 Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,

Therefore, connects what has just been said with what is about to follow.

Therefore, we also, is an invitation, for us to be part of what has just been said with what about is to follow.

What has just been said?

Hebrews 11. The Hall of Faith. All those amazing testimonies of the exploits of the Hall of Faith heroes.

And we also are invited to be a part of it!

So, the intro. to Hebrews chapter 12 is your very own personal Hall of Faith RSVP!

Yeah, but Doug, that was written to the Hebrews, not us.

True, it was written to the Hebrews, and, we also.

2 Tim. 3:16-17
All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

Before even thinking it only applies to males. Man: ánthrōpos – the generic term for "mankind".

Therefore, “Therefore we also” includes we, us, also.

The Holy Spirit extends His invitation multiple times in this chapter. We see, “we” ten times, and, “us” seven times. NKJV.

Therefore, we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses...

Surrounded by what, by who?

A cloud, only used here, depicts a swelling growing cloud, a (crowd in the cloud).

Witnesses, from the Greek word “martus” from where we get our word, martyr. So many witnesses for Christ were killed, the word martyr, came from the Greek word for witness.   

The faith heroes we surrounded ourselves with as we studied Hebrews 11, are witnesses to us, not witnesses of us.

There are no holes in the floor of heaven.

As nice as it sounds, it’s not Scriptural to think our loved ones are looking down on us.

Witnesses testify.

If you’re in a court room, what do witnesses do?

Testify.

Repeatedly, through Hebrews 11 we’re told that the lives of these witnesses are a testimony of living and dying by faith.

By faith the elders obtained a good testimony. Heb. 11:2.

By faith Abel offered a more excellent offering and God testified of his gifts. Heb. 11:4.

Enoch had this testimony, that he pleased God. Heb. 11:5.

All these obtained a good testimony. Heb. 11:39.

The faithful who’ve gone before are examples to us, not observers of us.

1 Corinthians 10:11
Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.

In context that is talking about the opposite of the Hall of Faith Heroes, more like the Hall of Shame.

The point is that the Bible records testimonies of those who’ve gone before as examples to us.

The folks in heaven are probably not gathered around a Cloud TV watching a reality show of “As the World Turns.”

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so many great examples of those who’ve gone before,  let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,

Christians, we are in an endurance race.

Not a race to finish first, but a race to finish well.

Not a race against others, but against the clock of our lifespan.

The race set before you is an individual, customized, one of a kind, endurance race.

Because it takes endurance, some compare it to a marathon, which is a good comparison regarding endurance, but not distance.

A marathon is a long race, but our life is short, whether a day or over a hundred years, it’s short. A vapor, a mist.

It all takes endurance.

A bull ride is only eight seconds, but it takes endurance, every second out of the gate.

Hebrews 10:36
You are in need of endurance so that after you have done the will of the Lord you will receive the Promise.

We have much to do:

The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Matt. 9:37, Luke 10:2.

There’s so little time:

John 4:35. Do you not say, ‘There are still four months until the harvest’? I tell you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are ripe for harvest.

There’s no time to waste. The fields are ripe and ready.

We must diligently endure to finish the race set before us.

There are those God has given you.

People on your path that Jesus wants to reach, through you.

Jesus our Grand example.

He had those God had given Him.

He only had so much time on this earth to finish.

He prayed about it like this in John 17: ⁴ I have finished the work which You have given Me to do... ⁶ “I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world. ... ⁹ “ I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me...  ¹¹...Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are. ¹² While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name. Those whom You gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. ...²⁰ “I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; ²¹ that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You...  ²⁴ “Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am...

We each have an individual, customized, one of a kind, endurance race.

How are you doing in your race?

Are you moving forward every step? Every day?

Have you taken a break?

Your race is like a bull ride. There’s no time for daydreaming. The bull wants to buck you off, every second.

There’s no sitting still.

The current of the world is flowing downstream toward the lake of fire.

The race set before you is to run against the current, upstream.

To take a break is to drift down stream.

Have you gotten off course?

We only have so much time to complete the race.

But if we dilly-dally, don’t run at all, or if we wander off and don’t stay the course—

Well, it’s my life, my choice. I’ll do what I want. I’ll do it my way. So stay out of my way!

Sorry to hear that, but it’s your choice you can go to hell if you want. You may not care about your own eternal soul, but do you want to drag others there with you?

Your choices affect others, eternally.

If you don’t run your race, the one God’s set before you, what will happen to those God has given you?

Will the Lord say to us as He said to Ezekiel: If you don’t warn them, they will die in their sin, but their blood, I will require at your hand. Ezekiel chapters 3 and 33.

Yes, we are our brother’s keeper.

Travel Light.

We are told to lay aside every weight (encumbrance).

In a race you travel light.

No time for baggage.

Can’t carry collections

Our race is against time.

What takes our time?

Our hobbies are enjoyable, our toys are fun, they may be fine and good...

But we’re in a race.    

Do they carry us forward? Or are they an encumbrance, a distraction, a weight?

We must be intentional, purposeful, about where we invest our most precious commodity, time.

Do they rob our energy, fog our focus, steal our time? 

Are we spending our time, or investing it in the harvest the Lord has set before us?

The harvest is ripe and ready and plenteous, but the laborers are few.

Lord help us finish well, faithful stewards of the harvest You’ve given us.

We’re also told to lay aside the sin that so easily ensnares us.

The sin which so easily ensnares, besets, trips up and entangles us, is the sin we like.

That’s the sins that look good for food, pleasant to the eyes, and desirable to make one wise. Like we saw in the beginning, in the garden, in Genesis 3:6. 

Just one bite from the forbidden fruit damned the entire human race and all creation. 

We need to lay aside, cast away, turn from, run from, every sin.

Not just the big ones. But especially the little ones we like.

All sin separates from God.

God is Light, sin is dark.

The two cannot dwell together.

How do we lay aside every weight, every sin?

How do we stay in the race, endure, not quit?

Great questions.

Actually, it’s never been done by anyone.

Well, none, but One.

Only Jesus, was able to endure every temptation, stay the course, finish the race and not fall, not even once.

So, what are we to do?

Look to Jesus.

2 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith,

Our races are individual, we take different paths, but the start and finish are the same.

Jesus is at the starting gate and the finish line. The Alpha and Omega.

He sets us up, gives us life, plants in us a seed of faith, has a plan and path for us to follow.

If we do, we win.

But before we’re three steps from the starting line, we turn aside, fall down, trip over a hurdle, run off track going our own way.

The rest of our race, He’s knocking, calling, sending folks across our path to turn us back on track.

Ultimately, it’s up to us which path we take.

But in the end, it’s back to Him.

Only difference is whether we meet Him cheering us across the finish line, welcoming us to our new Home.

Or, we meet Him as judge, sentencing us to the eternal tormenting home, created for the devil and his angels.

Run to Jesus, cast aside every weight, every sin, run with endurance, don’t quit, look to Him.

who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Jesus as our Grand Example, looked beyond this life, for the joy set before Him.

Your endurance race may not be so much fun to cross, but don’t quit, don’t let go.

Hold on like a bull rider looking for the buzzer.

Keep your eyes on the Prize like the runner looking to the finish line.

Like Jesus, who endured the cross, for you, so as much as it depends on Him, He will see you in the victory circle on the other side.  

No matter where you’re at, at this moment.

On the track moving toward the finish line.

Broke down, out of gas, stalled out, on the side of the road.

Lost somewhere out in the woods.

Stuck in the mud, in some ditch, in someplace you shouldn’t be, far from the straight and narrow race the Lord’s called you to.

No matter where you are, no matter how tired, how lost, how broke down, if you hear and heed His call, there’s still hope.

You can finish well.

You can, look to Jesus.

You can endure the race set before you.

You can take up your cross and follow Him to the finish line.

Where you can say as He said, “Tetelestai” meaning, it is finished, or more accurately, “Paid in full.”

You can finish well, knowing beyond the shadow of a doubt, that your sins have been paid in full, so when you see Him, you will hear Him say, “Well done.”

Let’s pray.

Lord Jesus, we submit to you, completely, in body, soul and spirit. Please help us run the race You set before us, with purpose, wisdom and focus, looking to You, every step, every breath, so that of all those You’ve given us, none are lost.

Thank You.

We love You, forever.

Amen.

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Hall of Faith Grand Finale, Hebrews 11:30-40

 

Outline:

1.    National Faith; 30

2.    Individual Faith; 31

3.    Mountain Moving Faith; 32-35a

4.    Martyrdom Faith; 35b-38

5.    Grand Finale of Faith; 38-39

Hebrews 11:30-40
 By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they were encircled for seven days.

National Faith

This was their first battle inside the Promise Land.

This was Israel staking a claim to their God given land, taking a stand, as one united nation under God.

This was like our Revolutionary war in 1775.

Joshua’s walk around Jericho and shout was, like our, Paul Revere ride and call.

By faith the walls of Jericho fell. Obviously, the walls didn’t have faith, but they fell by the faith of those who circled them for seven days.

In Joshua 6, the Lord told Israel to march around Jericho once a day for six days, and on the seventh day march seven.

As they marched, they were not to speak a word.

The warriors would lead, followed by seven priests blowing rams horns, then priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant, and then, behind them were more warriors for the rearguard.

On the seventh day on the seventh lap when the priests blew the trumpets Joshua told the people to shout for the Lord had given them the city.

At the sound of the trump and the shout of the people the walls of Jericho fell down flat and Israel utterly destroyed Jericho.

The falling walls was no small feat. The city was lined with double walls totaling a rise of over 40’.  Archeologists have found that the walls fell outward making a natural ramp for Joshua and crew to go straight up into the city; exactly as the Bible says.

Additionally, they’ve discovered in the ruins a layer of ash and full vessels of grain; evidencing the city was all at once utterly destroyed and burned. Once again, confirming exactly what the Bible has said.

By Faith Israel Marched:

1)    In unity.

2)    In silence (without speaking).   

3)    In obedience.

Unity

In unity they marched. Not randomly, separately, individually, but together, united, as one force, of one mind.

The power of unity is a palpable force, for good, or evil.

God acknowledged this at the tower of Babel when He said the people are one, and of one tongue, now nothing they imagine to do will be impossible to them. Gen. 11:6.

In John 17, Jesus prayed five times, “Father, make them one.”

In Acts 2, on the day of Pentecost, when the disciples were united, together, in one accord, the Holy Spirit came, the Church was born, the world has never been the same.

Jesus promises, whenever you come together, in My name, I’ll be there, in your midst.

United by faith they marched, and the walls of Jericho fell.

Our United States, stands or falls according to how united we are in the faith. (Christian faith).

“Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.” John Adams.

Silence

As the trumps were sounding, they were marching, as silent knights. They were not to speak a word. The Lord in His wisdom knew if they were talking, they’d be complaining, outshouting the trumps, talking doubt, dousing faith and feeding fear.

We’re sitting ducks. This makes no sense. This is stupid. Those horns are so irritating...

That kind of divisive, faith robbing, grumbling, would’ve stole their unity, their faith, and the victory.

Dad always said, “If you don’t have something good to say, don’t say anything at all.”

The Lord puts it like this:

Be slow to speak and quick to listen, James 1:19. Let no unwholesome word come out of your mouth, but only that which is edifying. Eph. 4:29

They marched in unity, they marched in silence, and they marched in obedience.

Obedience

The Lord commanded when they march, in what order they march and what they do while they march.

They obeyed.

Church recipe for a successful, joyful, walk of faith. Walk in unity, with a bridled tongue, obedient to the Lord.

They might not have enjoyed it, but they put one foot in front of the other, stayed the course, stuck together, remained silent until it came time to be heard, then they let out an earth shaking, wall dropping victory shout, that landed them in the Hall of Faith, and has us talking about them to this very day.   

National Faith is powerful and world changing. We’re blessed to be in this country, where currently our administration promotes, not persecutes, our faith and freedom.

Folks from all over the world flock here to pursue the American dream.

We must be ever grateful and never take this for granted. For there are those (from without and within) that seek to destroy the American dream and our way of life. They are of their father, the devil, who hates Truth and liberty.

Charlie Kirk often said, “The American dream dies the moment we forget Who gave it to us.”

Ronald Reagan told us the moment we are no longer one nation under God, we will be one nation gone under.

Israel shows that all too well in their very next battle after Jericho, they fell to the little city of Ai, due to the sin of one man (Joshua 7).

Which brings us to our next verse.

National Faith is powerful and important but doesn’t exist without Individual Faith.

³¹ By faith the harlot Rahab did not perish with those who did not believe, when she had received the spies with peace.

Individual Faith

By faith the...what?

Harlot. Hooker.

I thought we were in the Hall of Faith chapter. What’s a hooker doing here?

Religious folks try to scrub HIStory, to fit their sanitized, sanctimonious, sanctuary. So, they say, “harlot” doesn’t really mean “harlot” it means Inn Keeper.

However, the word the Holy Spirit chose in the original text is; zanah: (zaw-naw'). It means to commit fornication, to be a harlot.

Not exactly the definition for Inn Keeper.

So, by their hypocritical sanctimonious snobbery, they call God a liar.

We just believe God says what He means and means what He says.  

And we thank Him for loving us enough to tell us the raw, honest, truth.

God looks past the hard and broken life of a harlot and sees the soft and searching heart of a woman.

Could it be, that He searched all of Jericho and saw the hungry eyes of someone searching; heard, the faintest cry of a hurting heart, from a harlot.

That’s all it took.

After that, no raging Jordan river was too wide. No walls of Jericho were too high. He would reach her, come hell or high water…or rejection, or slander, or beatings, or, an old rugged cross.

He sent His spies on a mission. They thought they were there to spy out the land, but really, they were there to seek and to save, a lost soul, the one the world calls, a harlot, but He calls, His daughter.

One individual with faith.

Like the woman at the well. She thought He was there for water, but He was there for her.

Like here, like now, He is where you are... for you.

This is the heartbeat of CHRISTmas—Immanuel, God with us.

Then, He does one better and reveals His great love by weaving Rahab into His family tree, the ancestry of His Son.

Matthew 1:5. Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse, ⁶ and Jesse begot David the king.

King David, mentioned in the Bible, 971 times, second only to Jesus. A man after God’s own heart, ancestor to Christ. The mighty King David, great, great grandson, of the harlot, Rahab.

Okay now, just in case you don’t remember the setting of the story about Rahab. Let’s fill in some gaps.  

Joshua 2. Joshua had sent two spies into the Promise Land to spy out the land.

They snuck into Jericho, the oldest city in the world, and found the oldest profession in the world, the harlot, Rahab.

Somehow the king of Jericho found out and sent men to Rahab’s to capture the spies.

She hid the spies then helped them escape with a scarlet rope out her window, on the city wall. Before they left, she said, I know the LORD has given all the land into your hands....remember me, and spare my household. They told her they would if she kept that scarlet rope tied in the window.

Wait! You may be thinking, we just talked about how the walls come crashing down.

If Rahab’s house is on the wall—ruh roh.

If only those walls could talk.

Well, actually they do.

Archeology caught up with the Bible during the German excavation of Jericho in 1907–1909. They found on the north side a short stretch of the lower city wall did not fall as everywhere else. 

What? Really?

Yes.

So, does that mean...?

Yep. This is very likely the remains of Rahab’s house.

The Bible is so awesome. HIStory told in advance.

God is awesomer.   

Rahab’s scarlet rope, as blood on the first Passover doorpost, caused death to pass-over.

The harlot, Rahab, born, in a godless pagan culture, destined for destruction, on the wrong side of the river, in the wrong profession.

The harlot, Rahab, great great grandma to King David, ancestor to Christ, heroine of the faith, mentioned multiple times in Scripture, (Old Testament and New) and honored in the Faith Hall of Fame.

Like Jesus kept His scars as badges of honor reflecting His great love, she kept her name, the harlot Rahab, as a ray of hope for every lost sinner looking for a place to call Home.

This CHRISTmas, tell Rahab’s story. Invite a lost sinner to come Home.

Now the pendulum swings to another type of faith hero.

The Mountain Movers

³² And what more shall I say? For the time would fail me to tell of Gideon and Barak and Samson and Jephthah, also of David and Samuel and the prophets: ³³ who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, ³⁴ quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, became valiant in battle, turned to flight the armies of the aliens. ³⁵ Women received their dead raised to life again...

These are those that make the news, followed by television crews.

Through these we witness Mountain Moving Faith.

The Power of His Resurrection. Philippians 3:10a

The thrill of victory.

But don’t look too closely or you’ll see they’re just regular folks.

Then again, maybe we should look close to see that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.

So, we idolize no one, but Him.

For whatever reason, according to God’s Divine sovereignty, He used them, worked through them, to move His plan forward for His glory.

Now, we pause, slow down, and shift our focus on those, who rather than moving mountains, climb them, die on them.

They are those unsung, yet heroic faith heroes, endued with the intense Anointing, the passionate Power, of the Faith of Martyrs.

³⁵ ...Others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection. ³⁶ Still others had trial of mockings and scourgings, yes, and of chains and imprisonment. ³⁷ They were stoned, they were sawn in two, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented— ³⁸ of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, in dens and caves of the earth.

Through these elite faith heroes we witness a greater love, obtain a better resurrection, of whom Jesus spoke when He said, “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.” John 15:13.

These, tried as though through fire, have the honor of experiencing the intimacy and intensity of knowing the fellowship of His suffering. Philippians 3:10b.

These see beyond this life, to Jesus, and like Jesus, endure their cross, for the joy set before them.

These faithful martyrs don’t fit in this world.

The world has nothing to offer them.

They have an unspeakable joy, an intense satisfaction, from being dissatisfied with this life by seeing the one just over the hilltop.

For them this world is not worthy.

³⁹ And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise, ⁴⁰ God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us.

The Grand Finale

What is this Something better?

Since it’s Christmas time, we’ll use a Christmas analogy.

They saw the Present wrapped under the tree.

We saw, the Present unwrapped and up on the tree.

Now, we see and know His Presence internally, personally, eternally.

All of Hebrews, all of the Bible, points to Him, “Something Better”

Jesus, Immanuel, God with us.

Let’s pray.

Lord Jesus, we pray for eyes of faith, to see beyond the present to Your glorious Presence. And with our eyes fixed on You, we will endure our cross, and walk by faith, to the joy set before us of seeing You, face to face.

Thank You for the honor of loving You, forever.

Amen.

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The Journey to the Manger

 

We’re all on a journey.

Dessie’s journey just crossed the threshold of 90 years young.

Her friend Shirley, also around 90, just crossed the threshold to forever young on streets of gold.

You are blessed if your journey, crossed their journey.

If you could zoom up and look at the journey of their lives, you’d see through all the twists and curves, peaks and valleys, joys and sorrows, their journey followed the nail pierced footprints of Christ.

Dessie is still making tracks, blazing a trail straight to Jesus.

Shirley’s journey on earth is through; she’s heard those glorious words: “Well done”. 

There’s another journey that crosses all our journeys.

Joseph and Mary’s from Nazareth to Bethlehem.

It’s likely their journey was around 90 miles, took around 9 days, give or take, depending on how round young virgin, around 9 months pregnant, handled the journey.

We’re all on a journey.

Depending on how we respond to their journey when it crosses our path, determines if we are blessed, or cursed.

The Beginning

Their journey began long before they were ever born. With a different couple. Way back in a garden.

Adam and Eve were presented with an impossibility.

God said: Don’t eat from that tree, if you do, that very day, you’ll die. Genesis 2:16-17.

The sneaky snake hissed, “No you won’t.” Implying, God lied, God made a mistake, God didn’t mean what He said. Genesis 3:4-5.

That is impossible! Preposterous! God cannot lie! Would not lie! Will never lie! He is Truth.

But the couple, instead of saying, “Impossible! Preposterous!” They forsook God’s Word, looked at the fruit, licked their lips, took the bait and the bite.

In that instant, His Presence that clothed them from the inside out, departed.

God is Life.

Separate from God, by definition, death.

There they stood, naked, ashamed, dead, dead, dead.

Oh, their bodies kept walking and talking but they were dead men walking.

You are a spirit, you have a soul, and you live inside a body.

Just because your heart is beating, doesn’t mean you are living.

They were dead, just like God said.

Don’t doubt it, try to redefine it, make it fit in your logic, or you’ll be doing just what they did.

So, they were dead, but God is good and He doesn’t give up on His kids so quick.

So, He showed up in the garden with an eviction notice, because God is just.

 And a new wardrobe, because God is merciful.

And a plan, because God is Love and Love never fails.

The plan was to:

Kick the legs out from under the sleezy, slimy, sneaky, snake.

Make labor hard for both, birthing a life, and making a living.

AND, for the grand finale, The Master Plan, to fix what we broke, He would...

become a Baby.

What? Seriously?

Yep.

Matthew 1:18-25; quotes Isaiah 7:14, saying all this was done so that which is written would be fulfilled:

Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel. MEANING GOD WITH US

That’s what CHRISTmas is all about, because the best presents are HIS PRESENCE.

The Lord laid out the plan like this:

Genesis 3:15.
And I will put enmity
Between you and the woman,
And between your seed and her Seed;
He shall bruise your head,
And you shall bruise His heel.”

With those words to the serpent God was saying, there’s coming a day, when the Seed of the woman will crush your head (which implies a virgin birth, because women do not produce seed). And you, slimy, sleazy, serpent will bruise His heel; referring to Christ’s crucifixion.

With that opening declaration, the battle was on between the serpent and the Seed.

God wasn’t quiet about His plan. Through the ages, over and over He spoke of it through various people in various ways.

Amos 3:7
Surely the Lord GOD does nothing without revealing His plan to His servants the prophets.

His plan was doable because God saw that, ahead through the ages, there were enough faithful folks to carry out His plan.

Are you faithfully walking out God’s will and plan for your life, today? Do you know what it is? You can. You should. It’s the only way to true joy and peace.

Noah who found grace in the eyes of the Lord and built the boat to save his household—and thereby, the world.

Abraham believed God and offered his beloved son, Isaac.

Jacob’s son Joseph forgave his brothers saying, “what you meant for harm, God meant for good.”

By faith Moses considered the afflictions of following Christ of greater reward than the pleasures of sin.

David was a man after God’s own heart.

Isaiah prophesied 700 years before Jesus came as a Babe.

Isaiah 9:6-7.
For unto us a Child is born,
Unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His name will be called
Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
⁷ Of the increase of His government and peace
There will be no end,
Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom,
To order it and establish it with judgment and justice
From that time forward, even forever.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.

And then, he followed up by saying:

Isaiah 7:14.
Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.

We’re not done.

Queen Esther went to the king, saving the Jews from slaughter saying, “If I perish I perish”.

Malachi prophesied, 400 years prior:  

Malachi 4:5-6.
Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord .⁶ And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,
and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.”

John the Baptist came like Elijah, the voice of one crying in the wilderness, “prepare the way of the Lord.” John 1:23.

We can’t forget our dear Joseph who believed and obeyed the command of the angel and married dear Mary, and called her first born Son, Jesus.

And then there’s sweet Mary, who said, “Behold the handmaiden of the Lord, be it unto me according to your word.” Jesus echoed this sentiment saying “Not My will but Thine...”

They all obeyed by faith and carried God’s plan forward.

None of them, were forced.

Today, God’s looking to you, to look to Him who is invisible, trust what seems impossible, and carry His plan forward.   

The Journey is Impossible (and that’s the easy part)

Luke 1:26-38: Christ’s Birth Announced to Mary

What God asks Mary (and us) to believe is the impossible.

You will not have had sex with your fiancé Joe, or anyone; yet you will conceive and bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus.

That’s impossible!

Matthew 1:18-25: Mary & Joe, break-up and make up, thanks to an angel and a dream.

Joseph is a just man, he loves Mary and doesn’t want to shame her publicly and run the risk of her being stoned to death for cheating on their betrothal. So, he figures he’ll just break up with her privately.

But an angel shows up in a dream and says Joe, don’t be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. She will bring forth a Son. You shall call His name Jesus. He will save His people from their sins.

Joe could’ve said. “How can Mary get pregnant without—by... huh? what? That’s impossible!”  

Is God asking you to conceive the impossible? (To conceive the impossible we must get our, mind, reasoning, logic, out of the way. God is under no obligation to fit into our logic).

The impossible part is the easy part, because only God can do the impossible. So, it’s all Him.

What He asks of us is to believe and conceive.

Perhaps it would help to add a statement of faith to our prayers. Something like, “I believe I received when I prayed.” Or “I believe I conceived when I prayed.” Not that there’s any magic formula in words, but words are seeds. Therefore, seeds of faith produce faith, just as seeds of doubt produce doubt.

When Mary was presented with her impossible journey she simply said:  

Luke 1:38. “Behold the maidservant of the Lord. Let it be to me according to your word.”

And just like that, Divinity entered humanity.

The Light of the world was in the dark womb of woman.

The serpent crushing Seed (from Gen. 3:15) was planted inside the virgin Mary.

Matt. 1:24-25. No words were ever recorded from Joseph in the Bible. He simply sprang into action. He jumped out of bed and wed his dear Mary.

Silent Joseph, speaks volumes. It wasn’t about him. But about protecting, providing, promoting, pursuing, God’s will, God’s impossible plan and purpose.

Okay, that’s the easy part, the impossible part, now comes the hard part.

The Journey is Hard

Luke 2:1-7: Journey to Bethlehem. Jesus born in a barn.

Not always, but usually, for most, conception is easy. What comes after, that’s a different story.

To conceive correctly is to willingly, joyfully, receive and accept, to faithfully protect and nurture, to patiently provide time and space for the Seed to grow and develop and mature until the right time for birth.

That ain’t so easy.

It’ll take patience, perseverance, and endurance.

Joseph and Mary, by faith, believed and conceived God’s plan.

They probably had some difficult conversations with mom and dad and family.     

They undoubtedly had to deal with rumors and whispers and snickers behind their backs.

But that was just the beginning.

They yielded to God’s will and were weaving their plans around His.

Can you imagine sweet Mary sewing baby clothes and blankets, while Joseph prepares a place for them, along with baby crib and rocker too.

It was hard, but happy and good.

Then, they got blindsided.

The Roman government demands they register for some stupid census, a tactic to take more taxes!

But that’s not the worst part. They command all return to their ancestorial homeland.

How could this happen?

Mary is carrying, God. Joseph is building a house for Him.

Why did He allow this to happen?

“Mary’s about to pop! How on earth can she travel that rugged terrain? It’s not right! Can’t You do something about this?”

Joseph perhaps said to the Babe in her belly.

“We trusted You with the whole virgin birth thing, but this, this, this is too much!

“The shortest route straight through the hill country is way to rough and dangerous for Mary.  

“Even if we take the Jordan river valley, which is smoother and closer to water, it’s still a long hard week and a half or two at least of travel. Not to mention the dangers of bandits and wild animals.

Lord God, You know everything, why in the world did You plan the pregnancy to happen now?

Lord, surely you don’t want to happen to Mary what happened to Jacob’s beloved Rachel who died on the side of the road to Bethlehem giving birth to Benjamin.”

What a scary thought.

Have you ever had that happen?

Just when you’re starting to get in the groove, things are going smooth and BAM life happens!

Do you blame God? You could’ve stopped this?

Question Him? Why would You let this happen?

Only God knows, but remember, God doesn’t possess people to control them like the devil.

He allows free will while watching and lovingly weaving His wonderful ways through the wicked ways of man.

So, maybe, just maybe, Joseph wouldn’t have listened to another angel telling him, the Baby is the Messiah and the Messiah must be born in Bethlehem, the city of David, to fulfill prophecy.

Maybe the only way for Joe to go was to weave the timing of all this into the greedy census of Rome.

We won’t know this side of heaven.

We do know this side of heaven, God is good, and we can trust Him with all the circumstances of life.

So, off they go, Joseph and round young virgin heavy with Child.

On their journey they probably passed thousands of olive trees. Perhaps, ate from many of them. For pregnant Mary it might’ve been better than pickles and ice cream.

As they skirted Jerusalem from east to south they may have passed through an olive garden still around today with some of the oldest olive trees in the world, over 2,000 years old.

The garden is called Gethsemane, which means Olive Press. Where olives were pressed under heavy millstones until the precious oil would flow like blood.

Where Jesus on the night in which He was betrayed, under such excruciating pressure would sweat, great drops of blood.

These timeless trees bear silent witness that the crushing journey our timeless Savior took, was not in vain, and still bears much fruit to this day.

Likewise dear Saint, the impossible hardship of your journey for Christ, is not in vain, don’t quit, stay the course, you will reap a harvest to the glory of our Lord.

On the last leg of their journey did Mary ride the donkey down the Mount of Olives, toward Jerusalem? Foreshadowing what the Child in her womb would do a week before He’d hang on an old rugged cross and say of His journey in this life, “It is finished.”   

Let’s pray.

Lord Jesus, please help us, in our journey, to follow Your nail pierced footprints all the way to heaven.

Thank You.

We love You, forever.

Amen.  

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This was feed for you to read. Now it’s Seed for you to sow.

Thank you for sharing.