Christmas is a special time of year for me. There are many reasons for this that I won't take time to share here. A couple years ago, God began to speak to my heart about what I really wanted during the Christmas season. It finally came down to the question, "Do you want to see Jesus?" From that question, God led me to write a series of reflections. A year ago, I had the privilege to prepare an afternoon service based upon that question for the New Salem Church of the Brethren where I was serving on a preaching team. Now God has put the question on my heart again and so I would like to take a break from my postings about the Dominican Republic to share those reflections with you. While your experience will be different than if you had been there in person, I hope these reflections will help you to see Jesus during this Christmas season.

 

 

It’s Christmas time. Already the lights are up; the trees stand tall covered with tinsel and sparkling glass bulbs; the stores are playing Christmas carols and running specials. The air is crisp and cold as we hustle here and there collecting what we need for another Christmas celebration.

For Christians, the challenge is to see Jesus in the midst of all the other activities. But we aren’t the only ones. Years ago another group of people – a nation – wanted to see Jesus. Only they didn’t know him as Jesus. They were looking for Messiah – the Warrior/King who would set them free and establish a throne and kingdom. Although many prophecies spoke of the Suffering Servant and the Sacrificial Lamb, this is not the One they were expecting.

If they were to see Jesus for who He was, there were choices they needed to make. Mary, Joseph, the shepherds and wise men represent the choices the nation of Israel faced. We are faced with these same choices today if we want to see Jesus – whether at Christmas time or any time of the year.

 

 

         Mary...................... Chose to Obey

        Joseph..................... Chose to Change His Mind

        The Shepherds..... Chose to Overcome their Fear

        The Wise Men....... Chose to Believe the Promise

You are invited to spend time reflecting upon these choices and how they relate to your own life. Not all the reflections will apply to your life situation, but my prayer is that at least one will touch your heart and bring you closer to Jesus. Feel free to spend as much or as little time as you like with each one. We will begin with Mary:

 

Mary …….. Chose to Obey

Luke 1:26-38

 

Mary was a young woman of Galilee. She lived in a small family house of stone and mud-brick. She worked like any young girl, grinding wheat and barley into flour, preparing dishes of beans, eggs, vegetables, fruits, nuts and occasional chunks of mutton. Wool had to be made into clothing. Bread had to be baked. A few chickens and a donkey had to be fed.

 

Almost daily she carried a large jar of water from the town well for washing and cooking. The well was a favorite spot where women talked and traded bits of everyday news. Here at the well Mary listened closely to stories about married life.

 

For Mary was betrothed to Joseph. The marriage contract had been signed. Excitedly she went about her daily chores while eagerly anticipating the day he would come to take her to his home. Plans for the celebration occupied her mind as her hands busily prepared what she needed to set up her own household. All the while her imagination soared…..

 

 What are you looking forward to this Christmas season? What plans are you making; what are you busily preparing?

 

²⁶ In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, ²⁷ to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. ²⁸ The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”

²⁹ Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.

 

Can you imagine Mary’s shock when the angel Gabriel appeared to her and spoke? What would you think if that happened to you?

 

³⁰ But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. ³¹ You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. ³² He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, ³³ and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”

³⁴ “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

  

Perhaps you have heard a message just as troubling as Mary’s that has caused you to wonder what God means. Maybe it wasn’t an angel but a Bible verse or something in a sermon or perhaps the still small voice inside.

Perhaps He is telling you not to go into debt this Christmas. Perhaps He wants you to reach out to that impossible person at work or in your family. Perhaps it has nothing to do with Christmas at all. Whatever it is, what you have been asked to do seems impossible. Like Mary, you ask, “How will this be?” And like Gabriel, God has replied, “Nothing is impossible with God.”

 

What has God asked you to do?

 

What are your questions, your doubts, your fears?

 

 

The angel promised Mary that obedience would bring a great reward – a son who would do great things.

 

What reward might your obedience bring?

 

³⁵ The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. ³⁶ Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. ³⁷ For no word from God will ever fail.”

³⁸ “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.

                                                                  

Surely Mary, as a good Jewish girl, knew what she would face if she became pregnant before Joseph took her as his wife – shame, rejection, perhaps even death. Yet Mary chose to obey, to trust that God would honor her obedience and work everything out.

 

What difficulties will you face if you choose to obey God?

 

Will you believe Him? Will you trust Him?

 

Because Mary chose to obey, she saw Jesus. Will you?

 

 

Next time we will see what Joseph had to choose.......