Morning Moments

As we continue our journey toward the Incarnation, let's first look at Luke 1:26-38, where we see:

Luke 1:26-38 (KJV)
26 And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth,
27 To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary.
28 And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.
29 And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be.
30 And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God.
31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS.
32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:
33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.
34 Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?
35 And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.
36 And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren.
37 For with God nothing shall be impossible.
38 And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her. Gabriel’s Announcement to Mary

Lk 1:26-38

The Messenger “Gabriel”
This was a fulfillment of the double reference verses by God to David in 2 Sam 7:12-13.

The Message “a son”
Again, the fulfillment of Scripture: Isa 9:6 and 7:14

The Miracle “How…Holy Spirit”
Mary obviously did not understand just how all this would come to pass (nothing like this was ever heard of before), but she was not nearly as concerned with the “how” as she was with the “Who.” If He is in control…it doesn’t matter how.

The Meekness “be it done”
Are we that willing for God to do what He wants to do in and with us? We may not understand, but we are nevertheless willing and submissive. We are so afraid somebody else is going to the best of us, take advantage of us, and we fail to see the hand of God for looking at the face of man.

This is a wonderful lesson of the extent to which God will go and the extent to which we are willing to prove His love for us and ours for Him.

It is so easy for us to look back and be thankful, but imagine yourself in Mary's position; a young girl espoused to a young man without either having been immoral. The marriage of course was planned by the family, and for Mary to have broken the bond of engagement would have meant death for her.

The word from God was enough for her to face danger from society, disappointment of friends and family if necessary, as well as the confusion that must have run through her mind about the whole process. This is absolutely amazing.

God wanted to place a treasure in her trust. He wanted to honor her through possible humiliation. One reservation would cancel her consecration. One moment of denial might have changed her destiny.

We shall see just what brought her to the place of saying, "be it unto me according to thy word."

This is right where God wants each of us. This is right where most of us fail. If we can't see it, we won't believe it, but true "faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen."

"He is faithful who has promised who WILL do it."

Blessings!