Faith

Today’s passage is from Luke 1.  I’ve called this devotional Jesus is Coming!  And yeah, I know, the timing isn’t great because Christmas is just past.  A season where we most celebrate the coming of our Lord into the world. Do we still have that excitement?  Would we, if just a babe in the womb, leap for joy at the news?  Jesus is coming!!! 

Luke 1:39-45

³⁹ In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a town in Judah, ⁴⁰ and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. ⁴¹ And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, ⁴² and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! ⁴³ And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? ⁴⁴ For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. ⁴⁵ And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.”

Jesus is Coming!

So Mary is pregnant right?  At least I would assume she was at this point because “she went with haste into the hill country“. Kinda sounds like a euphemism for something doesn’t it?   It wasn’t done back in the day for young women to get pregnant without the benefit of marriage.  People would talk.  It would be a shame to the family. So here, let’s pack you off to spend time with distant family. 

Who did she go visit?  None other than Zechariah and Elizabeth! 

And get this excitement level.  Mary comes into the house and Elizabeth’s baby leaps for joy in her womb.  I can just imagine the oomph from Elizabeth her baby’s antics. But her baby leapt for joy just from being in the presence of Jesus.  All Mary did was walk in the door.

How many of us have lost that joy?  That immediacy of deep satisfaction/love/inner peace when we are in God’s presence? Is going to church a joy?  Is opening up your bible a joy?  Do you long to just be with him?  I know I struggle with this.  Working actively to fix it, to notice that small things of God that make my heart smile.  Also to make meaningful connections between God’s word and the world that I live.  It isn’t always an easy road walking.   But oh, seeing the joy that John had while YET IN THE WOMB of the close presence of his Lord and Saviour… that is so inspiring isn’t it? 

But Elizabeth..

John leapt for joy but Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. When she saw Mary she cried out “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! ⁴³ And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? ⁴⁴ For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. ⁴⁵ And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.”

Do you see it?  Do you see how the Holy Spirit helped Elizabeth to understand what was going on with Mary?  How she could see the blessing that was upon her (Mary)?!?!  She knew that Mary was going to have God’s child.  The knowledge was given to her that this child would be her Lord. 

She added this though “blessed is she who believed“.   Mary wasn’t forced to believe.  She chose to believe.  For her belief she is blessed.  Believing that God will have a child through her.  Her belief, it’s a great thing indeed.  And Elizabeth saw it. 

Think about it

Isn’t that neat?  Like seriously, just think about it for a bit.  

This young relative comes to you “in all haste” and you know that can’t be good.  But when she arrives you just KNOW.  The Holy Spirit abundantly lets you know who the child is that she is bearing.  And it’s good.  It’s beyond good.  You know what a blessing this is.  Her belief and the situation that Mary is in.  It’s a good thing, not shameful or horrible, but good. 

I’m betting that Mary had a good stay with Elizabeth and Zechariah. You see, the Holy Spirit let Elizabeth know what a good thing is was, how blessed Mary was for her believing.  Isn’t it fantastic?  

God worked it all out eh?

From choosing who would bear his child. The child who would foretell his boy when he grew up. That child recognizing who his Saviour was while yet a babe in the womb.  The Holy Spirit moving in Elizabeth’s heart.   God made it all work together perfectly. 

All the little pieces of the puzzle fit together making it all work out for our good.  A good working eh?

Follow along with Studies from Unexplainable Jesus

Come along with me as we continue to go through the study Unexplainable Jesus. 

• Day one and Two
• Questions have consequences
•  

 

So a couple of weeks ago I mentioned a study I’m going to be doing and I thought I’d chart my progress on my blog.  It’s just a small way of keeping myself accountable, and for encouraging you to join me. 🙂  Videos to watch, daily chapters to work through, 8 weeks of study.  So let’s go eh?  Let’s learn more about the Unexplainable Jesus and his Unexplainable Beginnings. Today covering day one and two.

Unexplainable Jesus: Unexplainable Beginnings Day One and Two

Day One draws us into Luke 1:1-4 where we learn how Luke wants to give us an eyewitness account of his time with the Lord.  His goal is to give Theophilus (and us) a certainty about Jesus and what he has been taught about him. 

Luke 1:1-4

Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us, ² just as those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word have delivered them to us, ³ it seemed good to me also, having followed all things closely for some time past, to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, ⁴ that you may have certainty concerning the things you have been taught.

I never really thought about these words before, about how many others did the same thing.  We have the other gospels of course, but how many ordinary people noticed Jesus and then wrote about him?  Just think about the sheer number of eyewitnesses he had! So Luke, being the person he is, a physician, used to paying attention, and having to make order of the things people say to him.  Luke says to himself, I need to make an orderly account of this Jesus, the Christ, so I can help others know the truth of what they see and hear and read. 

He undertook this study of Jesus a few years after Jesus died and was resurrected.  Taking his time over some 10 years to get the details right.  Can you imagine the people he talked to?   The distance he has to travel and the dangers he faced?  Christian and Jewish folk weren’t among the popular of the day, so this was no simple undertaking. 

Moving on to Day Two

Luke 1:5-15

⁵ In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, of the division of Abijah. And he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. ⁶ And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord. ⁷ But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years.

⁸ Now while he was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty,</span> ⁹ according to the custom of the priesthood, he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense. ss=”text Luke-1-10″>¹⁰ And the whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense. ¹¹ And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. ¹² And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him. ¹³ But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. ¹⁴ And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, s=”text Luke-1-15″>¹⁵ for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. ^{ass=”versenum”>16} And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, ¹⁷ and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.”

Reassurance and Instructions

In this passage we see Zechariah an old man and a priest within the Jewish people.   The method of lots was used to choose which priest had the privilege of burning incense before the Lord, and this time it fell to Zechariah.  People outside praying.  Zechariah goes in and gets the fear of his life, an angel of the Lord is standing there on the right side of the altar of incense. 

The angel immediately reassured Zechariah and told him the reason for his appearance But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard.

I wonder if Zechariah indeed lost his fear at that point?  To know that his prayer was heard and that God sent an angel to tell him.  Would it be a relief to him?   Or would the requirements of his life be a burden?

your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. class=”text Luke-1-14″>¹⁴ And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, 

But as we read…. he will have great joy and many will rejoice at his birth.  Rather cool eh?  Not something to be feared, but something to rejoice in! 

¹⁵ for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. 

I have to admit, to hear that my boy would be great before the Lord would certainly fill me with some trepidation.  Could I mess something up with him?  Or could I just trust that God would simply see his will done in my boy? Knowing that the Holy Spirit would be strong in his life from the get go would certainly help ease the momma worry in my heart.  For Zechariah’s Dad brain, I’m guessing he’d would just rest more assuredly in the grace of God. 

¹⁶ And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, ¹⁷ and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared

What a thing to look forward to eh?   To know that God will be using your boy for good things? It’s the hope of every believing parent eh?  To see your child grow up into the faith. 

a promise for the future

But to know that your child will be instrumental in preparing the people for more!

¹⁶ And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, ¹⁷ and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.”

Don’t you see this truth in the words written?   This baby from Zechariah and Elizabeth will bring the people of God into truly the people of God.  People who care about their children, people who are disobedient into people of wisdom.  A person who will make the people of Israel prepared for more.  That’s who he will be.   

What a joy and yet, what a weight to bear.  To know who your son will be and knowing that you have a part in helping him reach that potential.  No wine, no strong drink, I’d be guessing it was banned from his house!  🙂  And lots of teaching done to help him be the person God called him to be.