|
I hope these devotionals from Luke 1 have blessed you and helped prepare your heart for celebrating Jesus' birthday in a few days.
In Luke 1:45, Elizabeth blesses Mary again, and this time specifically for her belief, her faith in God: "Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord."
Here are a few things I want to share with you from our biblical text:
- Jesus is Lord. Is He your Lord? Do you believe the Bible? 1 Corinthians 12:3 states, "Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit." Stein states, "It is above all by the resurrection that Mary's child is recognized as Lord (Acts 2:36), although this verse [43] indicates that from His conception he was already Lord. The use of the title "Lord" indicates that Luke understood Jesus as standing on a different level from others. He, like God, is deserving of the title Lord." (Source: Stein, Luke, p. 90)
- Life in the womb is precious to God. Psalm 139:13-14 states, "For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother's womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well."
It is obvious what Mary and Elizabeth thought about the babies they were carrying in their wombs. "Had Mary and Elizabeth lived under Roe v. Wade, the plan of God to save the world would have been in jeopardy from the angel's announcement to her. She would have had a line of people ready to tell her to abort the baby. We think our age is more advanced and scientific. Well, these 'primitive people' recognized from the start something our culture works hard to deny: the fetus is a baby. If it's a baby when you miscarry, it's a baby when you abort. Praise God Christ was not born in modern-day America. Praise God for pregnancy! Praise God our Savior was born!" (Source: Thabiti Anyabwile, Exalting Jesus in Luke, p. 30-31)
- Invite Jesus into your heart and home and receive His joy this Christmas Season. What a wonderful time of the year! I am grateful to God for this Christmas Season where we focus our attention even more so on the Lord Jesus Christ. If you have not already, believe in Jesus, turn from your sins, and surrender your life to Christ.
I hope that you will experience the wonder of Christ afresh this year, that you would not just go through the motions but have true excitement and genuine joy. The way you and I will be blessed in these ways is through humility, recognizing we are nothing and He is everything, and Jesus must increase in our lives because it is all about Him.
My prayer for you is that you will have a blessed and excited Christmas, one with much joy. I also pray that you will be surprised afresh with the wonder of Jesus, and that He would do a miracle in your life even today!
|
Apple
Spotify
Deezer
YouTube
