The Story of a Birth

The Story of a Birth

We all know the Story; we’ve heard it over and over again. 

this is the beginning of the Christmas story and it has all the earmarks of a great story.  You hear it this time of year in sermons, songs and read about it on Christmas cards. 

Of course, it’s the birth of Jesus, and we all know the narrative.  How an angel came to a young girl named Mary with news that she would be the mother of the Messiah.  Her only objection was that it would be impossible because she was still a virgin.

To which the angel replied by telling her that it might be impossible under the laws of nature but that all things were possible for the author of the laws of nature.  Including virgins having babies.  Because while Mary would be the mother of the Messiah the father would be God himself.  And while under natural law both mom and dad would each contribute a cell and those two cells would eventually become billions of cells by the time the baby was born. 

But in the case of Jesus there was one cell and the miraculous.  And in that is the entire mystery of the incarnation, Jesus 100 % Man and 100 % God. 

 

We all know the Story; we’ve heard it over and over again. But there is another story, a story seldom told that is part of the Christmas Narrative as well.

I would invite you to stand for the reading from God’s word.

Scripture

You see even though the Angel visited John’s father before he visited Jesus’ Mother, and even though John was born before Jesus was born, the story of John’s birth is a story seldom told at Christmas.   And yet the story of John’s birth is not only a vital part of the story of Jesus’ birth but the story of John’s ministry is a vital part of Jesus’ ministry.  They weren’t just related, their births, their lives and even their deaths were woven together with a common thread. 

So, if you don’t know the story, John’s parents were an older couple by the name of Zechariah and Elizabeth.  And we know quite a bit about this couple.  We know that Zechariah was a priest, that they were good people, that Elizabeth was related to Mary, the mother of Jesus, in some way and we know that Zechariah and Elizabeth were childless.

And the childless part wouldn’t have been an issue if they were younger but we are told they were “old” and they had come to the point in their lives that they had to admit they baby wagon had passed them by. 

Most of that is summed up in Luke 1:5-7  When Herod was king of Judea, there was a Jewish priest named Zechariah. He was a member of the priestly order of Abijah, and his wife, Elizabeth, was also from the priestly line of Aaron.  Zechariah and Elizabeth were righteous in God’s eyes, careful to obey all of the Lord’s commandments and regulations.  They had no children because Elizabeth was unable to conceive, and they were both very old.

We don’t know how old they were but it was old enough to be mentioned, probably culturally in their fifties?

And the fact that they had no children would have been a personal tragedy in a society and a culture where children were seen as a blessing from God and compounded because of their birthright, they were both from priestly families and the priesthood was passed from Father to Son.

But they had probably had come to the point of accepting that children would never be a part of their marriage, perhaps they doted on nieces and nephews, but for the most part they had probably become fairly comfortable with their lives, and that was about to change.

If we keep reading, we discover that one day while Zechariah was serving in the temple he was visited by an Angel who had a message for him. 

Most of you know the story, especially if you were here for Mother’s Day, but this is what he was told Luke 1:13  But the angel said, “Don’t be afraid, Zechariah! God has heard your prayer. Your wife, Elizabeth, will give you a son, and you are to name him John.

And that promise is what brought us to the passage that was just read for us. 

And while most of us think of the birth of Jesus as the beginning of the story, the beginning of the story really goes back to the birth of John.

In Some Ways, the Story was the Same

There are many parallels between the story of John and Jesus and they can’t be ignored. As a matter of fact, when Gabriel was telling Mary about the miracle that was going to happen in her life he references what was happening in Elizabeth’s life.

So let’s jump ahead a little bit to a more familiar Christmas reading. 

Luke 1:34-36  Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.”  The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God.  What’s more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she’s now in her sixth month.  

The first thing we discover is that Mary and Elizabeth are related.  Now we don’t know how, the NLT and NIV simply say they were relatives while the KJV calls them cousins.  

There are some who would say this is a mistake because Mary was descended from David’s line and Elizabeth from Aaron.  But that’s just dumb.  If it was just a straight line that wouldn’t be a family tree it would be a family stick.  Maybe the ladies were related on their mother’s sides.

Angela and I are distantly related, don’t look at me that way, we’re from a little island that has a fairly shallow genetic pool to fish in.  But the relationship is through Angela’s mother’s mother and my father’s mother, who were third cousins or something silly like that. 

The word that was used originally by Luke simply meant they were related, and when I know I’m related to someone, but I’m not sure how . . . they’re my cousin. 

And while we don’t know how closely related they were, it was close enough that Mary could travel to the town where her kinfolk lived and spend three months living with Elizabeth and her husband. 

But it wasn’t just the relationship they shared with each other that they had in common, they also shared a relationship with God.   In both accounts the gospel writer makes sure we understand that Mary and Elizabeth were considered to be righteous and obedient to God’s will. 

When Luke begins the story by introducing us to Elizabeth and Zechariah he writes,  Luke 1:6  Zechariah and Elizabeth were righteous in God’s eyes, careful to obey all of the Lord’s commandments and regulations.  At least one commentator suggests that in the culture at that time for a woman to be barren, that is unable to have children, was considered to be as much a spiritual problem as it was a physical problem.  If children were a blessing and a couple couldn’t have children it must be because they didn’t deserve a blessing 

But that theory doesn’t really hold water because all you have to do is look at some folks who have been able to reproduce to see that there is no spiritual requirement there, and apparently no intellectual requirement either.

But to make sure that people understood that Luke the Doctor very clearly states that this couple was a righteous couple who had pleased God.

Later in the story when Gabriel is telling Mary that she has been chosen to carry the Messiah in her womb he tells her in Luke 1:30  “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favour with God!

And Mary and her cousin, or her whatever are the first two people in the New Testament who we are told were filled with the Holy Spirit, we read in  Luke 1:35  The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God.  And it isn’t very much further in the story that we read,  Luke 1:39-41  A few days later Mary hurried to the hill country of Judea, to the town  where Zechariah lived. She entered the house and greeted Elizabeth.  At the sound of Mary’s greeting, Elizabeth’s child leaped within her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.

Interesting the first people chosen to start the Gospel story were women, and the first 2 people that the New Testament records were filled with the Holy Spirit were women.  Hmmmmm.

Another thing that Mary and Elizabeth had in common was that they were both childless.  The children who were promised to them would be their first born.  And there would be no doubt for either one of them that what happened would be far beyond their own power and ability and would rest entirely with God.  And while this part of the story was the same for both ladies it was also very different and we’ll come back to that in a few minutes.

And in both cases their sons would die way too young, each of them in their early thirties.  And they would die violent deaths that were caused by their righteousness.  And in both cases, all they had to do was back away from what they said and their lives would have been spared and in both cases they refused.  Not because they had a death wish but because they knew what was right.    

It was Edmund Burke who said “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”  And neither John nor Jesus were willing to do nothing.

And while in many ways Elizabeth’s and Mary’s stories were the same, In Other Ways, the Story was Different

Probably the largest way the story was different was what I reference earlier.  They were both childless but they were childless for different reasons.  When Gabriel tells Zechariah that he and Elizabeth will have a son, Zechariah raises one objection.  Luke 1:18  Zechariah said to the angel, “How can I be sure this will happen? I’m an old man now, and my wife is also well along in years.” We’ve gone down this road before but it’s kind of fun, listen to how this was written in the King James Version Luke 1:18  And Zacharias said unto the angel, Whereby shall I know this? for I am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years.  Here’s a hint guys, when you are describing your wife or her age “well stricken in years” is never appropriate.  

So the reason that Elizabeth didn’t have children was because her and Zechariah couldn’t have children.  It probably wasn’t for lack of trying, or lack of wanting, as a matter of fact when Gabriel breaks the news to Zech he tells him that their prayers were going to be answered.  Actually Gabriel tells Zechariah that his prayers will be answered, we don’t know what Elizabeth’s prayers were in regards to getting pregnant at that stage in her life.

But the reason that Mary was childless was because she was a virgin, plain and simple the language and the words that Mary uses when she is told that she will be a mother are beyond debate.  Luke 1:34  Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.”

2000 years ago people had figured out how babies were made and Zechariah knew they had been trying for years and it hadn’t worked and Mary knew that she had never tried.  The end result was the same.  Neither Mary or Elizabeth were mothers at this point.

And because that was different what happened was different.  As far as we know Zechariah went home, conveyed the message of the angel to Elizabeth, they tried and again and made a baby. 

That conversation must have been interesting.  “An angel told you we are supposed to do what?”  “Seriously Elizabeth, I’m not kidding.” 

But in Mary’s case it was instantaneous, one minute she wasn’t pregnant and the next minute she was, which technically is true in all cases but you know what I mean.  Remember when she said that she was a virgin?  Here was Gabriel’s response: Luke 1:34-35  Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.”  The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God.  Presto. . .Prego. 

So, you understand the conception and birth of John was improbable, the conception and birth of Jesus was impossible.   Which is why Zechairiah and Mary would both ask the same question “How can this be?”  And the Angel Gabriel’s response answers the question for both of them.  Luke 1:35-37  The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God.  What’s more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she’s now in her sixth month.  For nothing is impossible with God.”

The second area that was the same but different was how John and Jesus died.  Both mothers would eventually lose their sons, we don’t know if Elizabeth lived long enough to have her heart torn out with the death of her son, but Mary certainly did. 

And while they both died at the hands of weak leaders, they died for different reasons.

Carlos A. Rodriguez  summed it up when he wrote,  “Dear church, John the Baptist died for exposing the sins of others. Jesus died to actually pay for the sins of others.

John was great, but we should not follow his model. Our model is Christ. So let’s stop telling the world how bad their sin is and lets start sharing how good the Father has always been.”

And then thirdly,  The Two Stories Make the One Story Complete

Sometimes it’s easy to look at the Christmas Story and only see the story from the Christmas cards and Christmas Carols but each of the Seldom Told Stories that we will look at are an integral part of the story.  The is nothing incidental about them.  There were all kinds of things that happened when Jesus was born, but only some of them are recorded.  So, we have to assume there are lessons to be learned from them.  And you know what happens when you assume, sometimes you’re right. 

So, what do we learn from the story of John?  A few things actually.

It’s here we discover that “Prayer delayed is not prayer denied.” I wonder how many times Zechariah and his bride had questioned whether God even heard their prayers.  But their son was to be born not at any time but at just the right time.

Paul writes in the book of Romans that Jesus came at just the right time, not any time but at just the right time.  Which means that John had to be there at just the right time as well for him to be a part of the story.

Elizabeth’s pregnancy would be an encouragement for Mary and John’s ministry would be an encouragement for Jesus and those things couldn’t have happened at just any time, they had to happen at just the right time.

The story of John preaching repentance isn’t just an aside.   John prepared the ground for Jesus.  It was his preaching about repentance that opened the people’s hearts to hear Jesus.  He had tilled the soil for Jesus to sow.

The crowd that John had gathered around him had primed the pump for Jesus, so to speak.  Hundreds of people had heard John speak of the coming Messiah and there was an air of expectancy when John finally pointed to Jesus as the promised Messiah. 

I wonder if Elizabeth and Zechariah ever wondered how the son they had raised to be a priest ended up wandering the wilderness as an itinerant preacher?  But you have to wonder how many people would have listened to John if he had of been just been one of the many priests who were living in Israel at that time.

There is very little that we accomplish in life that isn’t accomplished with the help of others.  If you see a turtle on a fence-post you know that he had some help getting there.

And we discover that God uses who God wants to use.  He used an elderly lady who was most likely highly regarded in the community as the wife and daughter of a priest.

And he used a young lady who was engaged to a simple carpenter who because the scandal of her town by becoming pregnant before the wedding.   All that was required was their faith in and obedience to God.

And they must have been very special for God to entrust John and Jesus into their care.

And while it comes at the end of the story not the beginning we discover that doing the right thing often has a price that must be paid. 

I get tired of people who preach that as long as we are good and obedient we will be blessed. 

There will be eternal rewards, that’s true but it doesn’t always translate into earthly blessings.

Both John and Jesus did the right things and it cost them their lives. But we are still charged with doing the right things.

And that’s the way it is.

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Story of a Journey

We all know the Story; we’ve heard it over and over again.  If you close your eyes you can almost picture them, Mary, Great with Child, on a donkey.   Wow while that may be an accurate description I’m not sure that any woman ever, would appreciate being described that way. Ranks right up there with, “She was as big as a house.” 

However you might describe Mary’s physical state the reality was that Mary was 9 month pregnant and probably riding on a donkey, if she was lucky.

If we pull down one of our maps we discover the trip that took them from Nazareth, up here just 24 Kms southwest of the Sea of Galilee to Bethlehem which was 120 kms away over rugged terrain. 

A trip that probably would have taken them the best part of a week and in the very best of situations they would have ridden donkeys. Donkeys! You ever ride on a donkey?  You ever ride on a donkey 9 months pregnant? 

You would have to wonder what would ever possess a man to take his very pregnant wife on that type of journey.  Madness or perhaps there was another explanation or two. 

Within the scriptures we discovered the answers.  The first part of the answer lies in the Old Testament, it was prophesied by the Prophet Micah. 

You will remember that King David was considered the greatest king that Israel ever had, and he was born in Bethlehem and throughout the Old Testament it was declared that the coming Messiah would be a descendent of David and Micah wrote this hundreds of years before the birth of Christ:  Micah 5:2 But you, O Bethlehem, are only a small village among all the people of Judah. Yet a ruler of Israel will come from you, one whose origins are from the distant past.

But the second part of the answer is not found hundreds of years before Christ’s birth but at the very time of Christ’s birth. Luke 2:1-4 At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census. And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David’s ancient home.

Not sure that Mary and Joseph would have seen it as a fortuitous situation but it certainly meant that they were where they were supposed to be when they were supposed to be there.

The trip from Nazareth to Bethlehem is a very familiar part of the Christmas story and it has all the earmarks of a great story.  You hear it this time of year in sermons, songs and read about it on Christmas cards. 

We all know the Story; we’ve heard it over and over again. But there is another story, a story seldom told that is part of the Christmas Narrative as well.

Please stand with me for the reading from God’s word. (Matthew 2:7-14)

You see, when we think of the journey of Christmas we think of the part of the trip before Jesus was born, but there was another trip, and that is a Story that is seldom told.

Let’s go back to the story. 

You will recall how on their way to Bethlehem the Wise Men stopped into Jerusalem where they paid their respects to King Herod who wasn’t really a King but was kind of a puppet Governor whom the Romans let rule over a small portion of Palestine. 

But it was his portion of Palestine and he was insanely suspicious, with the emphasis on the insane part of that statement, suspicious of those he thought were a threat to his rule.  We mentioned a couple of weeks ago that he had murdered his wife, mother in law and three sons because he thought they were trying to oust him, and maybe they were, but still, that’s kind of harsh

When Herod heard that there was a child born who was the King of the Jews he was furious and began planning bad things for the baby Jesus. The Angela Gabriel shows up again warns the Wise Men to skip the Jerusalem part of their trip on the way home and that’s where we pick up our story.

Matthew 2:13-15 After the wise men were gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up! Flee to Egypt with the child and his mother,” the angel said. “Stay there until I tell you to return, because Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.” That night Joseph left for Egypt with the child and Mary, his mother, and they stayed there until Herod’s death. This fulfilled what the Lord had spoken through the prophet: “I called my Son out of Egypt.”

And that is really all we know.  The Holy family fled to Egypt, stayed for an indeterminable period of time and then returned to Palestine. 

I’m not a woman so I’m not sure which would be worse, making the journey to Bethlehem while 9 months pregnant or making the journey to Egypt shortly after having given birth, but it is what it is.

The bible doesn’t elaborate on where Joseph and the holy family lived or what they did while in Egypt. But, if you travel to Egypt today traditions of the Coptic Church will direct you to any number of spots that they claim were notable in Jesus’ childhood. 

A little aside here, for many of us the church is cleanly divided into two sections:  Catholic and Protestant.  And yet around the world there are parts of our family that have a long history.  The Coptic Church, or Egyptian Orthodox Church is said to have been started in AD 42, by Saint Mark, that’s only ten years after the death and resurrection of Christ.    

While we aren’t given a time in history that Mary and Joseph returned to Palestine, the bible tells us they stayed there until Herod’s death which history tells us happened in 4 BC.  So while we don’t have a definitive birth date for the birth of Christ the assumption of many scholars is that it happened between 6 and 4 BC.

Back to the story; We kind of see Egypt as a strange place for Joseph to take his family but that is because we see it from our time and perspective. 

Two thousand years ago Egypt was a Roman province where Greek was spoken, it wasn’t that far away from Bethlehem, if we pull down our map again, here is Egypt, the border is less than 100 Kms, but still outside the reach of Herod and there was a certain familiarity about it.

Not to mention the symbolism wrapped up in Jesus making the same trip the people of Israel had made when Joseph’s family had fled there to escape a famine in Canaan 1700 years before.

Recently someone commented that the people of God were saved when they fled from Egypt, and the son of God was saved when he fled to Egypt.  Interesting.                                        

And while we don’t know a lot of the details concerning their stay in Egypt there is a great story that is told in tradition.   

When Joseph and Mary were on their way to Egypt, they were waylaid by a group of highway men. One of the outlaws wanted to murder them and steal their belongings.

But another of the group stepped in and protected the family, tradition tells us that he looked at the Christ child and said, "O most blessed of children, if ever there comes a time for having mercy on me, then remember me, and forget not this hour".

So, the legend says that the next time Jesus and the thief met was at Calvary where Dismas hung on the cross next to Jesus and there he found forgiveness and grace.  Great story isn’t it?    Is it true?  I have no idea but it is a great story.     

In the Coptic church, there are a few noncanonical texts called “the Infancy Gospels”. These texts have never been accepted as the word of God, but in one called The Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew And in this book we read this account, “And it came to pass, when the most blessed Mary went into the temple with the little child, that all the idols prostrated themselves on the ground, so that all of them were lying on their faces shattered and broken to pieces; and thus they plainly showed that they were nothing.”   That account happened in a place called Tell Basta, and if you were to visit  today this is what you would see.  (picture)

And our Coptic brothers and sisters would say this was a fulfillment of Isaiah 19:1  This message came to me concerning Egypt: Look! The LORD is advancing against Egypt, riding on a swift cloud. The idols of Egypt tremble. The hearts of the Egyptians melt with fear.

But, traditions and legend aside, what can we learn from this brief interlude in this young families’ Life, from the biblical account?

We Discover It Was a Story of Trust Mary and Joseph must have been overwhelmed with all that was going on.  They get to the end of this gruelling journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem only to discover that for whatever reason the village inn had no room for them.  Some kind soul allows them the use of a stable where their first child is born. 

Do you remember the birth of your first child?  You can’t really believe it’s happened, even though you had nine months to prepare.  You have to count all the little fingers and toes and then you count them again, hardly able to comprehend how tiny and perfect they are.  Almost like, baby toes and fingers.  Then there are endless discussions of who the baby looks like until finally you settle on Uncle Moe.  You know, the uncle with no hair and no teeth.

And then a flock of shepherds show up, do shepherds come in flocks? Babbling about angels and wanting to see the baby.  And then it was the Magi with their gifts and talk about how they had travelled hundreds of miles across the desert in search of this child who would become a king.  A little overwhelming for a Nazarene carpenter and his young bride.

And just when Joe thinks that maybe things have settled down and he can finally get some sleep his dreams are interrupted by an angel, again. 

Matthew 2:13 After the wise men were gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up! Flee to Egypt with the child and his mother,” the angel said. “Stay there until I tell you to return, because Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.”  Joseph must have been thinking every time an angel shows up he gets some strange story and request. 

First it was when he was still reeling from the bombshell that Mary had dropped, that she was going to have a baby and that the father was the Holy Spirit.  He was already to break off the engagement when an Angel showed up letting Joseph know that everything Mary said was true and commanded him to marry her and call the child Jesus. And he did.

Now this, he was to believe that not only did King Herod know that Jesus was born, I’m sure he was thinking “Like what’s with that?  I’m just a carpenter and he’s a king, how’d he find out? We haven’t even put the announcement in the newspaper yet and Mary hasn’t posted it on Facebook.”  And even if Herod knew why should a grumpy old man care enough about their child to want to kill him?”

It’s surprising how often God reveals extraordinary plans to ordinary people.  “Noah, I want you to build me an ark.”  “Sarah and Abraham you are going to have a baby in your old age.”  “David I want you to take on the giant Goliath with just five stones and sling shot”, and on and on it goes. 

Mary, you are going to have a baby, even though you are still a virgin.  Joseph, Mary is going to have a baby even though she’s still a virgin.

And now this.  It’s not for the ordinary that we have to trust, those are just things we do.  And that’s probably why we have verses in the scriptures like Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.

 And why the prophet tells us in Isaiah 12:2 See, God has come to save me. I will trust in him and not be afraid.

And why Jesus assured his apostles and us:  John 14:1 “Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me.

And so there will be times that we don’t understand, and those are the times we have to trust that God knows what he’s doing.

I love the response of Joseph throughout the Christmas story.   He finds out Mary is pregnant and decides to call off the wedding, that night he is visited by an angel who tells him that it’s going to be all right and that he needs to marry his Fiancé.  His response is found in Matthew 1:24 When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded and took Mary as his wife.

After Jesus is born an angel visits and tells Joseph that Jesus’ life is in danger and they need to leave the country , we read about his response in Matthew 2:14 That night Joseph left for Egypt with the child and Mary, his mother,

When Herod dies Joseph is visited once again by the angel, one would think that they should be on first name basis by now, and he is commanded to return to Israel, his response?  Matthew 2:21 So Joseph got up and returned to the land of Israel with Jesus and his mother.

I like the New Living Translation of the Bible, it’s what we use on Sunday at Cornerstone, but sometimes the other translations say it better.  For example in the NIV we read Matthew 2:13  When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. "Get up," he said, "take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him."

Do you see the commands?  “Get up”, “Take the Child”, “Escape to Egypt” “Stay there until I tell you”

Now let’s read the next verse in the NIV  Matthew 2:14-15  So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt,  where he stayed until the death of Herod.

If I could sing, I would sing “Do you see what I see”.  “He Got Up”, “He took the Child”, “He left for Egypt”  “He Stayed”

So more than anything we discover It Was a Story of Obedience

Is trust trust if we don’t act on it?  Do you trust that the ice is thick enough to walk on?  Will you walk on it?  I love the story of the man falling over the bank.  As he’s falling to a certain death he manages to grab hold of a branch and as he dangles he yells, “Help, help!”  From above he hears a voice call out, “this is God, I’m here to help you.”  “Thank you” He hollers back.  The voice responds “You need to trust me.  Do you trust me?”

“Yes, he responds, I trust you”   “Then let go of the branch!”  There’s a pause and the man calls out again, “Is there anyone else up there?”

We talk about trusting God but until we act upon that trust then trust is just a word.

We see how the bible is full of examples of trust, even when it didn’t seem to make sense,  but the reason they are there is because the trust was acted on. 

There are probably other instances were God called upon people and they said they trusted him, but when He asked them to do whatever it was to demonstrate that trust they hedged. 

And that’s why we don’t read about Harold in the lion’s den, or Bob killing the giant, or Fred building an ark.

Jesus offers us grace and forgiveness and in return he asks for our love and obedience.  And sometimes we bristle at the thought of having to obey, but the commands of Christ aren’t set there to ruin our fun, they are set there for a purpose. 

Do you remember in the book of Matthew one of the religious leaders asked Jesus what the most important commandment was?  In reply Jesus reached back into the Old Testament and answers Matthew 22:37-40 Jesus replied, “ ‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’ The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.”  Love God and love others.  And when you get right down to it that is the sum of Jesus teachings.

Love God and love people.  And so when he tells us not to murder or steal or commit adultery he is simply telling us to treat other people right.  Was the command to not cheat on our spouse put there to ruin our fun or to protect our families?  When we are commanded to not take the Lords name in vain, not to have other gods and to take time out to worship him they are part of the Love the Lord your God.

And It Was A Story Of Faith  Joseph had no guarantees, God didn’t hand him the plan written down so he could show Mary or that he could take out once in a while to look at to  reassure himself. 

The directions were a little vague, “Go to Egypt” there was no address, not contact person for when he got there, no promise of a job.  In the book of Hebrews Paul defines what faith is Hebrews 11:1 Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.

That could have been written about Joseph, time and time again.  He had an assurance about things he could not see.

And the story continues, Matthew 2:19-20  When Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt.  “Get up!” the angel said. “Take the child and his mother back to the land of Israel, because those who were trying to kill the child are dead.”

And finally, It Was A Story Of Deliverance  God’s deliverance may have been the outcome, but God’s deliverance was dependent on Joseph and Mary’s Trust, Obedience and Faith. 

Too often we get into messes in our lives because of choices we make.  And often those are the time that we have chosen to not believe God and have chosen not to obey God.  If Jonah had of had the faith to believe that God knew what he was doing and obeyed him he would never have ended up in the belly of the whale.

But what does this mean for today, December 18, 2016?  Well first of all it reminds us that we need to trust God.  We need to trust him with our career, we need to trust his with our family, we need to trust that he loves us and has the very best at heart for us, but being in the centre of God’s will doesn’t mean it will be easy or that there will be no problems.  But it does mean that he will be with us through the times of trouble and problems.

And it means that we need to obey him, to do as he commands and put our trust into action.

Today you can decide if you are going to trust God.   Are you willing to put your life in his hands. 

Are you willing to believe what you might not be able to see?