Application:
We must listen to what God says in the Bible and believe Him.
Bible Text:
Luke 1:26-56.
Matthew 1:18-25.
A Happy Girl:
In the last days of King Herod the Great, all the world was at peace beneath
the well-ordered rule of the Roman emperor, Caesar Augustus. In the
town of Nazareth which lay high up in the hills, there lived a young lady
named Mary. She was lovely and daily came with the other women to get
water in her pitcher from the fountain that supplied the town. All
who met Mary loved her for her pleasantness and tenderness of heart.
Now Mary was engaged to Joseph, a carpenter of the town and it was soon to be
time for their wedding. Mary and Joseph were poor people who lived in
humble stone homes among the workers of Nazareth. And yet, both were
descended from David, the dearly beloved King of Israel. Mary loved
to sing and would often wander in the green fields covered with wild flowers
in the hills beyond the town
An Angel Appears:
One fine day, the angel Gabriel was sent by God to Mary. The angel
appeared to her and said, "Greetings! You who are highly favoured!
The Lord is with you and you are blessed above all women."
Mary must have been so surprised. She was just a simple village girl
and wondered what this greeting could mean. The angel spoke again,
"Fear not, Mary, for you have found favour with God and will give birth to
a son and call Him Jesus. He will be great and be called the Son of
the Highest. And God will give Him the throne of His forefather
David and He will rule over the house of Jacob for ever, and of His
kingdom there shall be no end."
Mary's Reply:
"How shall this be," Mary said to the angel, "Seeing that I am not married
and have no husband?" The angel answered and said to her, "The Holy
Spirit shall come upon you and the power of God will cover you. And
the child that is born of you shall be holy and be called the Son of God."
Mary bowed her head and replied, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.
Let it be to me as you have told me." The angel left her and
when she had taken into her heart all the splendour of the vision, she
arose and went off in haste to share her joy with her cousin Elisabeth,
to whom a child had also been promised.
She quickly packed her belongings and made her way through the hill-country
of Judea to the house of Elisabeth's husband, Zacharias, who was a priest
who served in the temple of the Lord.
Mary Visits Elizabeth:
As she greeted her cousin, Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and
cried out, "You are blessed among women, and the child you shall bear is
blessed. But why has the mother of my Lord come to me?"
Mary answered, "I praise the Lord and rejoice in God my Saviour. For
He has blessed me, His simple handmaiden. From now on all future
people will call me blessed. For God has done great things for me,
and holy is His name." Yes, Mary was filled with joy and sang and
praised the Lord, and then stayed with Elisabeth for about three months
before returning to her home in Nazareth.
Mary Returns Home:
When Mary got home, she went and told Joseph what had happened and that she
was going to have a baby. He was very cross and because he was a
good man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he decided to
immediately end their engagement.
After he had thought about this, an angel appeared to him in a dream and
said, "Joseph, don't be afraid to take Mary as your wife, because the baby
in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you
are to give him the name Jesus, because He will save his people from their
sins."
Listening and Believing:
When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and
took Mary home as his wife. Both Mary and Joseph listened to God and
believed what He told them and trusted that He would do what He had said.
They then obeyed and this pleased God and so He blessed them.
God always keeps His Word and does what He has promised. And so we must
also listen to what God says in the Bible and believe Him. And when
we trust God and do what He says, we will please God and He will bless us
too!
God bless.