HOW SHALL THESE THINGS BE?
Luke 1: 26- 38
INTRODUCTION
This is a story about the Angel Gabriel who was sent by God to a virgin named Mary. Announcing the miraculous birth of Jesus the Christ who is both Saviour and king.
People get lost in all the decorations and cards, and trees and gifts, and braais and travels and outings and off work days and bonuses and works charity and shopping and carols and glitters etc.
Christmas is about and Must be about, a Virgin giving birth to a child (Seed that crushed the head of Satan with finality),
And opening a New and Living way to Spiritual Salvation in Christ.
So, if all the festivities end and Christ is not Lord in your Life, then you missed the whole point.
This is a 3-point sermon;
1. Messenger
2. Message
3. Motivation
THE MESSANGER
Angel Gabriel is a messenger sent by God to deliver a very important message to the Virgin Mary. The Angel is like a post man delivering letters sealed in envelops. The letters are usually addressed to a particular person or organization intended to be the recipient. On that particular day, the messenger or the post man from God delivered a letter that was addressed to Mary:
To:
Miss Mary
12 Olive Street,
Nazareth, South Galilee.
Do not open to read a letter that is not addressed to you, this is a special letter addressed to a special woman called Mary.
Luke 1: 28: 30
“Greetings, you are highly favoured!"
This greeting is also known as ‘Ave’ in Latin.
This is where ‘Ave Maria’ is derived from. "The Lord is with you.” Mary was greatly troubled by this form of greeting.
Mary was not the only virgin in the land, and Nazareth a city so despised was not the only city with a virgin woman. Of all the virgins in the land at that time God located her, singled Mary out.
When God desires to accomplish something in your life he will locate you, He will single you out from among many.
He knows how to get you, and He has your address.
She was indeed highly favoured of the Lord. Which means she was full of God’s grace?
Mary is not the source of grace but the recipient of grace. She only receives grace from above which she passed on.
The source of grace is God above; she is simply a chosen , ready and available vessel who carried the incarnate body of Christ.
Mary is not the ultimate dispenser of God’s grace, for her to become the ultimate object of our worship, but God.
We thank God for Mary but glory, honour and praise should be directed to God. He alone is worthy of worship.
Grace is the unmerited favour of God. Grace is God giving me what I never deserved.
It’s grace that singled out a sinner like me. What I deserved was punishment, what I deserved was banishment or total separation from God.
The consequences of my sins deserving that of hell and fire. But God’s grace rescued me.
Christ took my sins and died in my place to save a sinner like me.
The messenger sent to Mary was not sent from below but sent from above. The message is not from below but from above.
Meaning that salvation was not initiated by man below, but from God above. Salvation is not man’s idea but God’s idea; He initiated it by sending his only son Jesus Christ.
It is God’s grace that we have been saved, that is favour from God.
THE MESSAGE
Luke 1: 31-35
The envelop is opened, the letter is pulled out. We must read this letter in order to understand the content or the message.
The message contained in this letter is going to powerfully and radically impact Mary’s life forever.
This letter is not just going to change Mary, but will change the nations. The message is as follows;
i. She will have a son named Jesus
ii. The child will be the son of God and will occupy the throne of David.
iii. The birth of the child will be extra-ordinary affected by the overshadowing of the Holy Spirit.
(Matthew 1: 21) “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.”
So, we know that Jesus is the saviour but he is also king. He is the king of the kingdom of God. He will sit on the throne of David. His Kingdom is not an earthly political kingdom but the kingdom of God.
Mary asked the Messenger a question “how will this be since I am a virgin?” Though Mary believed the message of the Angel, she desired to know further how such a thing could be out of the ordinary cause of nature.
Mary’s conception is of the Holy Spirit and not Man, Jesus is born of God not man.
MOTIVATION
Luke 1: 36-38
Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God.
Mary can relate to the story of Elizabeth. Her question, “how shall these things be since I am a virgin” is challenged by the announcement of Elizabeth’s pregnancy.
Mary is given this testimony to encourage her of what God can do. If God can give Elizabeth and Zechariah a child in their old age, then what the Angel has spoken to me will indeed come to pass.
There is so much negativity around us, people are always angry and depressed as we are confronted with the covid-19 pandemic that has left many dead, and others lost jobs and income.
The media is becoming the means of depression, I just want to hear a testimony like that of Elizabeth to encourage & lift me up from discouragement.
I just want to hear, “What the Lord has done for me, I cannot tell it all, what the Lord has done for me I cannot tell........He saved me, and washed me in His blood....so I will sing Hallelujah......."
Mary responded by submitting willingly and obediently to God saying, “I am the Lord’s servant; let it be so according to your words”.
Mary was ready and available to be used by God.
The word “Amen” means let it be so according to your word. It’s agreeing to the word of God. We must submit to whatsoever God has in store for us. We must say to the Lord, “May it be so according to your words”.
APPLICATION
Brothers and sisters, I don’t know what Christmas means to you.
For me growing up as a child Christmas meant that we have an opportunity to eat chicken, rice, and drink a Coca-Cola. That was Christmas made for us.
For some Christmas means decorating and putting up lights on the Christmas tree, spending time with family and sharing gifts.
No Christmas gift can even begin to compare with the greatest gift that God has given to us.
All the gifts we receive here are temporary but God gave us a precious, priceless and endless gift of salvation through his son, Christ the saviour and King.
Christmas is about sharing this good news to your friends and neighbours giving them more than just a Christmas gift.
We sharing our lives wrapped and changed by Jesus Christ.
Yes! Jesus is the reason for the season.
From the Musunte Family we wish you a merry Christmas and a Promising 2022 [Feliz Navidad] 🎉🎉🎉💞💞💞🎄🎄🎄🥳🎊
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