The Lord’s Resolution, Ezekiel 8

 

Outline:

1-2 Holy Fire

3-6 Wicked Image

7-12 Wicked walls

13-14 Wicked weeping

15-16 Wicked worship

17-18 Righteous Resolution

 

1-2 Holy Fire

And it came to pass in the sixth year, in the sixth month, on the fifth day of the month, (September 17, 592 BC) as I (Ezekiel) sat in my house with the elders of Judah sitting before me, that the hand of the Lord God fell upon me there.

 ² Then I looked, and there was a likeness, like the appearance of fire—from the appearance of His waist and downward, fire; and from His waist and upward, like the appearance of brightness, like the color of amber.

2,617 years ago.

13 years after Daniel was taken captive to Babylon.

4 years after Ezekiel was taken.

About 13 months after Ezekiel’s first vision.

Ezekiel had his own house.

He had the respect, or at least the attention, of the elders.

Elders weren’t just old folks, they were leaders.

It appears they gathered on a regular basis at Zeke’s place to see and hear what the Lord had to say through the prophet. (Ez. 14:1, 20:1, 33:30-31).

On this day without warning, like with Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3:2), like tongues of fire (Acts 2:3), the Lord appeared to Zeke in a blaze of glory.

For our God is a consuming fire (Heb. 12:29).

The others probably saw and heard nothing, other than perhaps, a gasp from Zeke’s lips and the look of awe and wonder and even a glow, radiating from his face.

The others were yacking about the weather while Zeke was seeing and hearing Him who created the weather.

Dear friend, I pray you don’t simply read these words, but see and hear, The Word.

Deuteronomy 4:24. For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.

3-6 Wicked Image

³ He stretched out the form of a hand, and took me by a lock of my hair; and the Spirit lifted me up between earth and heaven, and brought me in visions of God to Jerusalem, to the door of the north gate of the inner court, where the seat of the image of jealousy was, which provokes to jealousy. ⁴ And behold, the glory of the God of Israel was there, like the vision that I saw in the plain. (Ez. 3:22-23).

⁵ Then He said to me, “Son of man, lift your eyes now toward the north.” So I lifted my eyes toward the north, and there, north of the altar gate, was this image of jealousy in the entrance.

⁶ Furthermore He said to me, “Son of man, do you see what they are doing, the great abominations that the house of Israel commits here, to make Me go far away from My sanctuary? Now turn again, you will see greater abominations.”

Not literally lifted by the hair of his head but brought by God in vision to Jerusalem.

And what does God show him?

Imagine your friend stops by. You can see he’s sad.

He says, “let’s go for a ride.” He takes you to his house. The house he built for his wife. He stops just shy of the driveway and tells you he’s going to leave her.

You can’t believe it. He loves his wife beyond measure. He’s the best husband ever. “Why?” You ask.

He points.

There in the driveway sits a nice, shiny, brand new, fancy, automobile.

“You bought your wife a new car?”

“It’s not hers. It’s his.”

About then out walks Mr. Fancy Car with your friend’s wife on his arm.

“Maybe it’s just an old friend? Relative? Brother?”

They pause and hug and kiss, a long, this ain’t your brother kiss.

You can see he’s hurt and sad, and mad, but mostly, jealous.

He simply says, “Do you see what they are doing to make me go far away from my sanctuary?”    

Israel setting up idols not only broke the first 2 of the 10 commandments, but broke God’s heart. (No gods. No idols. Ex. 20:1-17 and Dt. 5:6-21).

You see, God takes His relationship with us personal. Idolatry hurts like adultery.

Before we ask, “How could Israel be so dumb as to worship some stupid statue made of wood or stone?”

We must ask if we’re so dumb.

Do we love Him first above all else? 

Do we put anything before God? (Family? Health? Reputation? Pleasure? Money? Job? Mr. Fancy Car?)

Do we have idols?

Do we put feet to our faith? (Faith without works is dead. James 2:17, 20, 24, 26).

Does our commitment to God show by our lifestyle regarding three simple foundational principles of a Christian?

Prayer

Bible Reading

Church

Are they non-negotiable?

Even when the schedule gets busy?

Or does the doctor’s appointment, a call from a friend, a late night movie or sleeping in, steal the time intended for Him?

Yeah, but Doug, you’re being too legalistic. I don’t have to do all that stuff. I’m saved by grace not by works.

Exactly the point. You don’t have to.

IF you love Him, if you know Him, if you have no other gods or idols before Him...

YOU WILL.

You don’t have to, you get to, you want to, it’s a joy to.

 “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these other things will be added unto you.” Matthew 6:33.

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, strength...” Deuteronomy 6:4-7, Matthew 22:37-40, Mark 12:30-31, Luke 10:27

When the Lord looks at the gate of your heart, what does He see? An idol that drives Him to jealousy?

Or, does He see, His reflection?  

2 Corinthians 3:18. But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.

7-12 Wicked walls

⁷ So He brought me to the door of the court; and when I looked, there was a hole in the wall. ⁸ Then He said to me, “Son of man, dig into the wall”; and when I dug into the wall, there was a door.

⁹ And He said to me, “Go in, and see the wicked abominations which they are doing there.” ¹⁰ So I went in and saw, and there—every sort of creeping thing, abominable beasts, and all the idols of the house of Israel, portrayed all around on the walls. ¹¹ And there stood before them seventy men of the elders of the house of Israel, and in their midst stood Jaazaniah the son of Shaphan. Each man had a censer in his hand, and a thick cloud of incense went up. ¹² Then He said to me, “Son of man, have you seen what the elders of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man in the room of his idols? For they say, ‘The Lord does not see us, the Lord has forsaken the land.’ ”

Like the wall, their hearts were holey, not holy.

Like in C.S. Lewis', The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Ezekiel stepped through a hidden door in the wall.

Of course he’s seeing a vision, but it’s a realistic picture of the spirit realm.

To the natural eye they may have appeared righteous, in the temple, going through religious rituals.

Burning incense was meant by God to represent the prayers of the saints, a sweet aroma to the Lord.

But their perverted hearts made the religious rituals a vile stench to the Lord.

The temple was supposed to be filled with the light and glory of the Lord and the walls adorned with heavenly cherubim.

Instead, the walls crawled with every unclean creeping thing, exposing how the elders had gone from worshiping their Creator in the light to worshiping demonic abominations in the dark.

We must pause and ask the Lord: “What wickedness hides inside the walls of my heart?”

Do we hide sins like idols because we like them, enjoy them, want to keep worshiping them? Even though we know they’re wrong we want them, so we hide them.

Repent. The idol is coming between you and God.

However, on the other hand, do we hide them because we despise them? Are we ashamed of them, are we battling to defeat them? Are we appalled at the addicted weakness of our flesh?

That’s conviction, not condemnation. Keep fighting. God understands and stands beside you in the battle. If you don’t quit, He will make sure you win, even if it’s not until you hear Him say, “Well done.”

The mention of Jaazaniah the son of Shaphan, is a warning.

Just a generation earlier, Shaphan helped king Josiah (2 Kings 22), turn the nation of Israel back to the Lord. Yet now his son leads the hideous slide to idolatry, inside the very Temple his father helped cleanse.

Heritage cannot guarantee holiness, or wickedness.

One generation can turn the tide of a nation for good or evil.

Israel’s prior revival with Josiah was squandered in a generation when the leaders abandoned the Word of God.

As for US, we are in a hard and bloody battle, but by the grace of God, we’re still standing.

We’re at a Turning Point.

We have opportunity to see a measure of justice, an increase in righteousness.

IF we stay in the fight. IF we stop worrying about, thinking about, talking about, the dark. And be busy about, thinking about, talking about, walking about, in the Light.

Matthew 5:16. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

13-14 Wicked weeping

¹³ And He said to me, “Turn again, and you will see greater abominations that they are doing.” ¹⁴ So He brought me to the door of the north gate of the Lord’s house; and to my dismay, women were sitting there weeping for Tammuz.

Weeping for Tammuz was a demonic pagan ritual.

The mythological stories vary but go something like this:  

Tammuz was a handsome god, married to goddess Ishtar.

In the fall of the year, Tammuz died (some say at the hand of Ishtar). Then, the tears from her weeping brought him to life in the spring.

So, each fall the women cried for Tammuz. In the spring they celebrated with a marriage ceremony, which likely included immoral lascivious rituals in hopes of birthing an abundance of crops and offspring.

The weeping women may represent temple prostitutes.

Our generation has developed a mourning, victim mentality. An ever weeping, woe is me, it’s not my fault, ever needing, never winning, always losing, help me, help me, mentality.

That is far, far, far, from Godly.

You are called to be a victor not a victim, the head and not the tail, above and not beneath, more than a conqueror, a soul winner and disciple maker, walking in the strength, and joy, and light and love of the Lord.

God calls all that wicked weeping, wailing, mourning: greater abominations.   

But, it gets even worse.

15-16 Wicked worship

¹⁵ Then He said to me, “Have you seen this, O son of man? Turn again, you will see greater abominations than these.” ¹⁶ So He brought me into the inner court of the Lord’s house; and there, at the door of the temple of the Lord, between the porch and the altar, were about twenty-five men with their backs toward the temple of the Lord and their faces toward the east, and they were worshiping the sun toward the east.

This is the worst of the four abominations.

Twenty-five men (perhaps twenty-four priests and one high priest) on sacred ground with a sacred duty to lead people to the Lord.

Instead, they openly, arrogantly, rejected the Lord, turned their backs to Him and led the people into all kinds of wickedness.

This was the last straw.

17-18 Righteous Resolution

¹⁷ And He said to me, “Have you seen this, O son of man? Is it a trivial thing to the house of Judah to commit the abominations which they commit here? For they have filled the land with violence; then they have returned to provoke Me to anger. Indeed they put the branch to their nose. 

¹⁸ Therefore I also will act in fury. My eye will not spare nor will I have pity; and though they cry in My ears with a loud voice, I will not hear them.”

It started with just a little compromise, an image outside the gate.

You know, to show tolerance, to coexist, to show, inclusion, equity, diversity... insanity.

Then, it went straight to the temple, to the Church, filling the walls with every perverted, dark, demonic, unclean thing.

Then, heaviness, mourning, weeping, replaced the joy of the Lord.

Finally, the conscience was seared, hearts hardened, minds corrupt.

There was nothing left but for God to make the Righteous Resolution:

To remove His Presence

For judgement to fall

For Tribulation to come

Yet, even then, even now, His goal is not destruction.

As a miraculous object lesson for US today, Israel still stands. Small but mighty. For her size, the most powerful, prosperous, nation on the planet. She’s still David standing against Goliath.

There are only two nations to whom God has made an eternal promise.

Israel is one.

Are you the other?

1 Peter 2:9-10. But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.

(He calls you, doesn't drag you. It’s up to you, to come out of the dark into His Light.)

2 Corinthians 6:16-18. And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said:

“I will dwell in them
And walk among them.
I will be their God,
And they shall be My people.”

¹⁷ Therefore

“Come out from among them
and be separate, says the Lord.
Do not touch what is unclean,
And I will receive you.”
¹⁸ “I will be a Father to you,
And you shall be My sons and daughters,
Says the Lord Almighty.”

 

Let's pray:

Lord Jesus, will You please search our hearts and show us if there be any idols, other gods, hidden sins, or ways we’ve turned our back on You? Then, dear Lord, help us to abhor sin, run from it to You. Teach us to be soul winners and disciple makers. So, of all those You’ve given us, none are lost and we will all hear You say, “Well done.”

We love You, forever.

Amen.

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Unto Us, Isaiah 9:6-7

Paul Harvey told a story that went something like this:

The old farmer was kind, he loved his wife and kids. He worked hard, lived honestly, with integrity. But he just couldn't buy into the whole Christmas story, the virgin birth. His biggest question was, why in the world would God become man? That just didn’t make any sense at all to him.

So, he kindly kissed his wife and told her to enjoy her time at the Christmas Eve service, but this year he just wasn't going to go.

Her eyes glistened. She smiled, nodded, whispered, "I'll say a prayer for you. I love you"

About the time she left the wind picked up. So, he went inside, threw another log on the fire, grabbed a cup of coffee and sat in his favorite rocker by the fireplace to read the paper.

But then, shortly, he heard a thump, then, another, and another.

That’s odd? It wasn't a knock on the door. He grabbed his coat and hat and gloves and headed out into the cold. Shutters weren’t loose, barn door wasn’t banging in the wind. Then he saw them. A handful of sparrows fluttering outside his living room picture window. Sure enough, one flew smack dab into the window. Thump.

Temps dropping. Storm's brewing. They must be looking for shelter. Wonder if they’d go in the barn?

So, the kind old farmer opened the barn doors.

But the birds paid him no mind.

He tried to shoo them toward the barn.

They just scattered.

He tried to coax them in by laying breadcrumbs little by little all the way into the shelter of His barn.

They didn’t notice.

Thump. Another hit his window.

“Oh, for crying out loud you birdbrains, go in the barn!”  

Why can’t they understand I’m only trying to help?

If only I could be one of them for a minute, then I could show them the way, then, I could lead them to shel....ter.

The old farmer stopped... In that moment, it all made sense... In that moment, the Church bells started ringing.

His eyes glistened. He smiled, nodded, whispered, “That’s why You did it.”

Right there in the cold, in the snow, between the house, and the barn, with a flock of fluttering sparrows watching, he hit his knees and for the first time in his life, he prayed, really prayed, not just words you say before a meal because it’s the right thing to do, but he prayed to God, the God he knew was really there, really listening, really cared.

And before he opened his eyes, he heard singing.

No, not from the Church.

An angelic choir?

No. Maybe. Just as good. He heard singing, coming from inside the barn, from a flock of happy sparrows, that God used, to teach an old birdbrained farmer, the Christmas story.

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.

Unto us a Child is born. That’s Mary’s part. The Humanity part. Mary brought the X chromosome. He was born of a woman.

Unto us a Son is given. That’s God’s part. The Divinity part. “For God so loved the world that He gave...” He brought the Y chromosome (for Yahweh).

From Genesis 3:15, when God said the Seed of the woman would crush the serpent's head, X marked the spot in the fullness of time, when Mary would say:

"Behold the maidservant of the Lord, be it unto me according to your word.” Luke 1:38.

Of course, Jesus had more to do than just become flesh.

Galatians 4:4-5. But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.

He became a Child of man, so we could become a child of God.

Being born was Jesus showing up for work wearing His flesh and blood uniform.

Then He had to live out the reason for the season; to redeem humanity back into the family of God.

This was no small task.

Over a timespan of about 2,000 years, through multiple people, God documented His plan of redemption.

Within this plan He wove hundreds of prophecies that Jesus would fulfill to the letter.

All that was done to give us, documented, undeniable proofs that Jesus was and is, exactly Who the Bible says He is.  

This prophecy, “Unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given,” was written around 700 years before Jesus was born.

This is just one of over 300 documented prophesies fulfilled in the Man Christ Jesus.

Do you know the odds of that happening? 

Astronomical.

Peter Stoner was a Christian writer and Chairman of the departments of mathematics and astronomy at Pasadena City College; Chairman of the science division, Westmont College; Professor Emeritus of Science, Westmont College; and Professor Emeritus of Mathematics and Astronomy, Pasadena City College.

In his book Science Speaks he calculates the odds of one man fulfilling just eight of the 300+ prophesies at: 1 in 100 quadrillion (1 in 10^17).

To explain Stoner used this illustration:

Bury Texas 2’ deep in silver dollars, with one of them painted red. Now, blindfolded, on your first try, pick the red silver dollar.

That’s the odds of someone fulfilling just 8 of the prophecies about Christ.

Jesus fulfilled to the letter, every single one, over 300.

He was born under the law to redeem...

Unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given... Don’t miss that “Unto us,” is repeated twice.  

Why was He born, why was He given?

To redeem us, to buy us back.

Take note that the worth of something is determined by what one redeems it for, what one will pay to buy it back. It’s redemption value.

Galatians 4:4-5. But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, ⁵ to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.

John 3:16. For God so loved the world (you) that He gave His only begotten Son (for you) that whosoever (that’s you) believes in Him (committed in covenant love) shall not perish but have everlasting Life.

Let that sink in. 

Your worth is so incredibly valuable, that God gave Himself, His life, His blood, to redeem you, ransom you, buy you back into His family.

Also notice: He was born under the law to redeem, to buy back, lawfully, those under the law who were guilty as sin, under the penalty of death.

And the government will be upon His shoulder.

Jesus not only had to be born, not only had to fulfill prophecy, but also had to fulfill the law.

Matt. 5:17-18. “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. ¹⁸ For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled.

Not only was the government of Rome on His shoulder as He carried the cross up Golgotha.

Not only did He fulfill every jot and tittle of the law.

But He fulfilled God’s Divine Justice.

He will not break His own law, even to His own hurt.

The first killing in the Bible wasn’t the sin of Cain killing Abel, but an act of mercy with God killing an animal or two to temporarily cover the sin of Adam and Eve.

Setting the Divine precedent of atonement for sin by the shedding of blood.

And by this God signed His own death sentence.

He knew that no man could pay the price.

Only He could live sinlessly, willingly die blamelessly, to rise victoriously over sin, death, hell and the grave.

Only He had enough love to do all that.

And so, the date was set for the Child to be born, the Son to be given.

And so, when the fullness of the time had come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to paid in full the price to redeem us, so we can be adopted into the beloved family of God crying Abba Father.

And He shall reign forever, and ever, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah!

Let’s pray.

Lord Jesus, Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace, of the increase of Your government and peace there will be no end, and upon the throne of David You will order and establish Your Kingdom with judgment and justice, and we will love You, forever, and ever.

Amen.

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

Thank you for sharing.

 

A Merry Little CHRISTmas

Last week we traveled from Nazareth to Bethlehem in The Journey to the Manger. Today we weave together the writings of Matthew and Luke and watch the CHRISTmas story unfold chronologically.

In so doing, I pray we’ll see how to keep CHRISTmas, well.

 Chronological Outline:

1)    Luke 1:5-38. Birth Announcements. John and Jesus.

2)    Matthew 1:18-24. Break up and make up scene with Joe and Mary.

3)    Luke 2:1-39. IRS. Bethlehem Baby. Mary ponders, angels, shepherds, prophets.

4)    Matthew 1:25-2:23. Wisemen. Egypt. Horrible Herod. Back to Nazareth.

5)    Luke 2:40-52. Jesus waxed strong in Spirit and grew in favor with God and man.

CHRISTmas, the biggest, most celebrated holiday of all, celebrated around the globe. With countless Christmas songs and movies and all kinds of parades, with floats and boats and golf carts and bikes and horses and...

At Christmas time it seems the whole world is aglow with Christmas.

That is indeed how it ought to be when celebrating the day, the Light of the world entered the world.

However, it hasn’t always been that way.

CHRISTmas came little.

Soft,

like

falling

snow,

quiet and slow.

Reflecting, the greatest story ever told, and how to do, CHRISTmas well.

There’s no record in the Bible of the early Church celebrating the birth of Christ at all.

They remembered His death, with the Lord’s Supper.

They honored His Resurrection, by gathering to worship on, Sundays, “The Lord’s Day”.

By today’s worldwide celebrations of Jesus birth, and the statistic that 2.5 billion Christians (1/3 world population) outnumber any other people group in the world (religious or secular), you would think that folks back in the day, closer to when Jesus walked and talked and did all kinds of awesomeness, that followers of Christ would be everywhere abundant, popular as rockstars.

But instead, Christianity was sparse, perhaps because Christianity was deadly.

All but one of Jesus’ disciples were martyred.

Witnesses for Christ were murdered so often that the Greek word for witness, (martus) birthed the word, martyr.

The apostle John wasn’t martyred, but not for lack of trying, they boiled him in oil, but he just wouldn’t die. So, he was banished to the prison island of Patmos where Jesus appeared and helped him pen the powerful conclusion to the Bible, Revelation.

Christians were crucified, fed to wild animals, covered in oil and burned as human torches, sawn asunder, tortured to death, decapitated...

Amazingly, the more they were persecuted, the more they grew, like trees being pruned.

However, the celebration of Christmas didn’t stem from persecution; actually, the opposite.    

The birth of Christ was finally formally celebrated after Roman Emperor Constantine had an epiphany, a vision of a cross, accompanied with the words, “In this, conquer”. Then, that very night, he said he had dream of Christ, confirming the vision.

Just one little vision, just one small dream, from God, turned the tide in Rome, from persecuting Christianity to promoting it.

God is involved in the politics of men. He chooses to use the unlikeliest of sources so all will know it was God, not men.

From that little epiphany, came a declaration around 336 AD that throughout the Roman Empire, December 25, would forever be, a celebration of the birth of Christ.

The date was not chosen because they thought Jesus was born on December 25^th, but to Christianize the culture.  

The Roman culture celebrated Saturnalia from December 17-24, in honor of the god of Saturn.

Another Roman holiday, on December 25^th, was Sol Invictus, meaning, the “Unconquered Sun,” associated with the winter solstice (when the days began to get longer).

When Rome declared Christianity as the state religion the Roman church converted Saturnalia and Sol Invictus to a Christian holiday, December 25^th, called the Feast of the Nativity, to commemorate Jesus’ birth, and provide an alternative to pagan celebrations. (It was first called “Christmas” in England, around 1038).

The darkness of the pagan holidays was overtaken by the Light of CHRISTmas.

Just like it should be.

The sinful customs of pagan holidays were, cleaned up, redeemed, saved, overtaken, and reshaped for the Master’s use.

Just like all of us who’ve been made new, born again, by the Christ of CHRISTmas.

Ephesians 5:8
For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light,

Instead of drunks carousing, singing naked from house to house, we gather clothed in the Love and Light of Christ and go house to house singing Christmas Carols.

Instead of ringing bells and lighting candles to ward off evil spirits, we ring bells and light candles to remember, unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given (Isaiah 9:6). We peal the bells more loud and deep, for God is not dead, nor doth He sleep; the wrong shall fail, the right prevail, with peace on earth, good-will to men. (Longfellow).

Now, for nearly 1,700 years from Rome to here, little by little CHRISTmas grew into the grand Christmas celebrations we know and love today (and sometimes hate, in some ways, I suppose).

But that very first CHRISTmas was hardly even noticed, it came little.

Soft,

like

falling

snow,

quiet and slow.

 That, in and of itself, reflects the greatest story ever told, and how to keep CHRISTmas well.

Chronologically, it went something like this:

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

Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, ²⁷ to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. ²⁸ And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!”

²⁹ But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was. ³⁰ Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 

Twice Gabe told Mary she had found favor with God.

That tells us much about Mary.

Proverbs 3:3-4. Let not mercy and truth forsake you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart, and so find favor and high esteem in the sight of God and man.

Later in Luke 2:40, 52, we read how Jesus waxed strong in spirit and grew in favor with God and man.

How do we keep CHRISTmas well?

Be a people of mercy and Truth.

The soil from which God’s favor grows.

³¹ And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. 

³² He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. ³³ And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.”

Here we see the beautiful tapestry of God’s Word, seamlessly weaving Old Testament prophecy to New Testament fulfillment:

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. 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.

³⁴ Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?”

God sees the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Just for fun, let’s compare the hearts of Mary and Zacharias.

Mary: How can this be, I do not know?

Zacharias: How can I know, this cannot be. Luke 1:18.

Mary: What can I do, for it to be?

Zach: What can you do to prove it to me?

Mary conceived.

Zach went mute.

³⁵ And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God. 

Dear Mary, the serpent crushing Seed of the woman, first spoken about way back in Eden, in Genesis 3:15, will be implanted in you.

The Son of God will be birthed into the world, through you.

Dear Mary, you didn’t ask for proof like Zach, but since God is so good, here’s a little confirmation anyway:  

³⁶ Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren. ³⁷ For with God nothing will be impossible.”

³⁸ Then Mary said, 

Those beautiful world changing words:

“Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.

Pray big, win small.

Mary prayed big, “be it unto me, according to Your Word.”

The Word was unbelievably impossible. But she prayed big, believed big, and conceived the Good and Perfect will of God.

But don’t miss her powerful corresponding action. She won small. She kept these things, pondered these things, in her heart. Luke 2:19, 51.

She conquered herself. The battle within.

Winning small is where big wars are won.

Win small and the big will fall.

Be faithful in the little, and you’ll rule over the greater.

Do what you can do, what you know to do, and God will take care of the rest.

The moment Mary simply said yes to God, Divinity entered humanity.

Notice, there were no earth quakes. No brilliant lights. Not even a burning bush.

The CHRISTmas story unfolded to Mary, individually, personally, quietly.

The Light of the world was quietly, discretely, planted into the darkness of Mary’s womb.

Notice the humility of Mary. Behold the maidservant, the handmaid, of the Lord.

She simply yielded all her trust, all her understanding, to her Lord.

Proverbs 3:5-6. Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; ⁶ In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.

How do we keep CHRISTmas well?

Say and mean, what Mary said, and meant: “Behold the servant of the Lord, be it unto me, according to Your Word.”

Yield all your will, all your trust, all your understanding, to Him.

And you will have yourself a Mary little CHRISTmas, now.

Then, the very next verse (Luke 1:39) Mary arose and went with haste about 90 miles south, just west of Jerusalem to En Karim, to visit Elizabeth and Zacharias.

Luke 1:39-45. At Mary’s voice, baby John the Baptist, leapt in Liz’s womb. Liz was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied about Mary being the mother of her Lord

Confirming what Mary already knew in her heart, but was encouraged hearing it said out loud by Liz.

Luke 1:46-55. From Mary’s lips flowed the song of prophecy and praise called the, Magnificat.

Luke 1:56. Mary stayed for three months, probably until John was born.

Then, with perhaps a little three-month baby bump showing, Mary went home to face the music.

Fiancé Joe probably didn’t know she was prego.

So, off she goes back to Nazareth and off we go back to Matthew 1:18-24.

Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. ¹⁹ Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly.

Men, take note and imitate the quiet strength and integrity of Godly Carpenter Joe.

We never hear a word from him, but his actions speak volumes.

The Bible calls him a just man.

He didn’t drag Mary through the mud on social media. He didn’t scream her down. He didn’t tell the town to stone her. He didn’t get stone drunk to drown his sorrows and write a country song about it. He didn’t go looking to knock-out whoever knocked her up.

He simply, quietly, peaceably, decided to break off the engagement.

²⁰ But while he thought about these things, (he wasn’t impulsive, he gave the Lord time to speak) behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. ²¹ And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”

The CHRISTmas story unfolded to Joseph, softly, quietly, in a dream.

No flashing lightning, booming thunder, shooting stars, angelic choirs.

Just the still, small voice of the Lord.

How we do we keep CHRISTmas well?

Turn off the noise step outside the hectic hustle, listen, for the whisper, of the Creator,

calling,

soft,

like

falling

snow,

quiet and slow.

Micah wrote it seven centuries before Joseph, but maybe the Holy Spirit was thinking of Carpenter Joe when He had Micah the prophet answer to the question, what is good, and what does the Lord require of you? "But to do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God." Micah 6:8.

²² So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: ²³ “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.”

Once again, we witness the Lord wonderfully weaving Old Testament and New:

Isaiah 7:14. Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.

²⁴ Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife,

James 1:22. Be doers of the Word and not hearers only.

Joe jumped up and married Mary, but the next verse (25) tells us he did not consummate the marriage, until after Jesus was born.

So then, our CHRISTmas story was going great...

Until the IRS showed up and said, what Ronald Reagan called the eight scariest words ever uttered, “We’re from the government. We’re here to help.”

Now our CHRISTmas story jumps to Luke 2.

Luke 2:1-7

And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus (the government) that all the world should be registered (taxed, the IRS). ² This census first took place while Quirinius was governing Syria. ³ So all went to be registered, everyone to his own city.

⁴ Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, ⁵ to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was with child. ⁶ So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered. ⁷ And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

So, Joe and very pregnant Mary traveled about 90 miles south to the little town of Bethlehem. Very little, with a population of under 1,000, there was no Holiday Inn or Motel 6.

The word for “inn” doesn’t mean Inn, as in, hotel, it means, guest room.   

It’s very likely they were at a relatives’ home and it was full of other relatives due to the census.

Since the guest room was probably packed with people, the next best place for some privacy, without prying eyes of family and kids would be the place, attached to the house, where the animals were kept.

It was not a terrible idea. Plus, the manger wasn’t fancy, but not a bad place for a crib.

Luke 2:8-20. The angels told the shepherds the good tidings of great joy, praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill to men." 

The shepherds came running in awe and wonder.

How do we keep CHRISTmas well?

Luke 2:19. Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart.  

Psalm 119:11. Thy word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against Thee.

Let’s pray.

Lord Jesus, thank You for coming to us, quiet and soft and slow, with mercy and Truth, so we can hear and see and follow. Also, thank You for telling us how You will return, engaged for war, to bring peace through strength forevermore. Please help us keep CHRISTmas well, by ever being about Your business, as soul winners and disciple makers, ever faithful, ever saying, ‘behold Your servant, be it unto me according to Your Word.’ 

We love You, forever.

Amen.

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

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