Haggai 2
I will shake the heavens and the precious thing of all nations shall come.
Luke 1:26-38 (New International Version)
The Birth of Jesus Foretold
26In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary. 28The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you." 29Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 30But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. 31You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. 32He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end."
34"How will this be," Mary asked the angel, "since I am a virgin?"
35The angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called[a] the Son of God. 36Even 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. 37For nothing is impossible with God."
38"I am the Lord's servant," Mary answered. "May it be to me as you have said." Then the angel left her.
Pledged to be married – Minesteuo: Betrothal
Mark 15:34
And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"
Overshadow – Episkiazo: Envelop or hover over
Lary King Quote:
He said, 'Jesus Christ.' The questioner said, 'And what would you like to ask Him?' King replied, "I would like to ask Him if He was indeed virgin-born. The answer to that question would define history for me'."
Reflection
How is the nature of Christmas “sacrifice for beauty?†Spend some time thinking about what that phrase means and how it applies to the birth of God. What does “sacrifice for beauty†mean for you as you consider the divinity of Christ? What does it mean for you as you follow Christ?
Know this, God did not choose you to make your life ease but to give you glory. How do you define favor? Do you think at the end of Mary’s life, her definition of favor would be the same as yours? What parts of Mary’s life were sacrificial? What parts of her life reflect the beauty of God? In great bravery, ask God to deny you comfort so He can give you beauty.
What do you do with the virgin birth? Is it possible? What must be true about God for the virgin birth to be possible? If the virgin birth actually occurred, it must change your life as it does define human history. How will the birth of God radically change your life--understand that change is an on-going process?