Responding to God's Greatest Gift

Merry Christmas

Jesus is the greatest gift that anyone could ever receive. The promised Messiah.

Immanuel - God with us. Born of a virgin, in the city of Bethlehem, in the line of David. The Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

The baby King, born in a manger. Jesus - which means “He Saves”

Please read about the giving of this most precious Gift with me and consider your response.

Mary was told about The Gift (Luke 1:26-38)

Mary must have had so many mixed emotions. She had just received news of the ultimate unplanned pregnancy. But also, she was visited by an angel, God favored her above all other women in the world, and she would experience a miracle. He had chosen her to be the mother of the promised King of the world. She would give life the One who would give eternal life to all - The Savior of the World. But how would something like that work? How could she have God’s Child? Impregnated by the Holy Spirit? Who would ever believe her?

How do you respond when God changes your plans? Do you accept that He is giving you a gift or are you angry that your life isn’t going according to your own plans?

How do you respond when God chooses and calls you for His special tasks? Are you humbled, yet flattered, eager to carry out His plans? Or do you feel inadequate, think it too hard or inconvenient, or wish He would choose someone else?

Do you accept what you don’t understand or do you only believe what you can see and explain? Faith is being confident of the things we hope for and sure of the things we cannot see. (Hebrews 11:1) So do you believe that Jesus is God’s Son and not that of a man?

Joseph was told about The Gift (Matthew 1:18-24)

Mary, unfaithful? Surely not! But it must be because she was pregnant and the baby was not his. He loved her and could not bare to watch her face the fatal consequences even though they hurt him more than anyone else. But then he had a dream. An angel told him the same wild story Mary had given him. Could it be true? Could it be that he was not the baby’s father because He was the Son of God? Was his sweet bride really carrying the Savior of the world? Would God in the flesh really live in his home? Would he, a humble carpenter, raise Immanuel?

Do you find it easier to believe the worst about the people you love rather than trust that God can perform a miracle in their lives and turn to goodness all that Satan meant for bad? Be gracious and patient with others. Things aren’t always what they seem. (Genesis 50:20)

Do you prefer to keep the unexplainable things of God to yourself? Do you worry too much about what the world thinks? Does it keep you from doing God’s will?

Do you believe that Jesus was able to live up to His name as the One who saves? Do you trust that He was God in flesh, therefore sinless and the only one capable of paying the price for you sins? (2 Corinthians 5:21)

John the Baptist & His Parents Responded to The Gift (Luke 1:1-25, 39-45, 57-80)

Zechariah questioned how his wife could have a child in her old age. But he was a priest. Had he not heard how Sarah gave Abraham when she was well past her childbearing years? (Genesis 17:17, 18:10-14, 21:1-7) Mary was a young virgin who truly couldn’t understand what they angel was saying to her. But Zechariah was an old man that should have known that God could do the thing the angel was telling him. Surely they had been praying for a child for years, and now they would not only have a son but he would be special, set aside to God from birth to prepare the people for God’s greatest gift.

His wife Elizabeth, on the other hand, understood and believed the moment she saw Mary. The six-month old baby in her womb knew who Jesus was because the Spirit told him even then. John the Baptist told his mom about Jesus over 30 years before he began telling the rest of the world. From the beginning, John knew his purpose and Elizabeth was receptive to what the Holy Spirit was telling her. She knew instantly that Mary was carrying the Son of God, before her cousin ever said a word.

How receptive are you to the Spirit of God? When He tells you things, do you listen? Do you check what you hear with the things you know to be true from His Word? Do you know Him well enough to know what He can do? Or like Zechariah, do you just rely on your human knowledge?

Mary Anticipated The Gift (Luke 1:46-56)

When Elizabeth confirmed to Mary what the angel had told her, she praised the Lord. She recognized the special calling on her life, and she was humbled.

Do you recognize when God is confirming His word to you? Do you praise Him and take your calling seriously or do you take for granted the fact that God chooses to work through us. He could do everything outside of us. But He wants a relationship with us, so He uses us instead. Praise Him for who He is and what He does through you.

The World Received The Gift (Luke 2:1-7, 21)

Meet the Savior of the World - Jesus - The King. The Jews had been waiting for an earthly king, a man who would liberate them from Roman rule. How could the government be on the shoulders of this baby who was born in a manger. How could this carpenter’s son be the royal grandson of David? This was not a royal birth, to a prestigious family. Surely He would not overthrow the Roman government or build an earthly kingdom.

God’s idea of a King was not the same as theirs. His Kingdom was in heaven, not on earth. Are you willing to accept that God’s ways are different? Everything doesn’t have to make sense to us. His ways may be different, but they are also higher and better. (Isaiah 55:8-9)