Matthew 2:13-23 Peril of Christ

January 30, 2019January 30, 2019 Joanne Hagemeyer

So far the story is interesting, even beautiful, remindful of all the nativity pageants we’ve seen, Christmas cards with wise men on their camels. The rest of the story is pretty harsh. King Herod wasn’t going to let it go.

“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.’”

God had given this king many opportunities to know Him. Herod had all of the scriptures right there at his fingertips, and access to the most knowledgeable people about God and religion in the whole world. Herod lived right there in Jerusalem, God’s holy city. And he had even personally seen to the rebuilding of the temple, now covered in gold, magnificent by night and day, sacrifices and incense being offered around the clock.

God had given Herod every possible chance to be in relationship with Him, including first chance at receiving the Messiah. But Herod had grown to despise the thought of God’s deliverance through Christ because it seemed like it would mean he would lose his throne, his power, and his wealth.

The loss of fellowship with God is humankind’s greatest, most devastating tragedy. Having been made in God’s image

We are like God in spirituality: Only humankind received God’s breath, or “spirit.” We are aware of God and His presence, and have the ability to commune with God. We can be made one with God through regeneration by His Holy Spirit. But instead of being spiritually alive, Herod was spiritually dead. God’s presence felt like a threat to his own power; he set out to thwart God by killing God’s Son.

We are like God in personality: God gave humankind intelligence, an ability to think and to know, feelings and emotions, and a will: the ability to make choices so we can correspond to God in obedience, experience His presence, to enjoy Him with overflowing joy, as the Magi did. But Herod had allowed his entire personality to become twisted by his jealousy for his crown.

We are like God in morality: God gives humankind a simple test, teaching us to know the difference between right, which is obedience to God’s word, and wrong, which is choosing something apart from God’s expressed will. The chief priests remained unmoved by God’s word, they chose to do nothing. Herod was troubled and unnerved by God’s word, he chose to try and destroy its fulfillment.

God revealed to Joseph what was about to happen, and Joseph obeyed God’s guidance.

“So [Joseph] got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt…”

How quickly, and completely, am I apt to obey what God reveals to me?

“…where he stayed until the death of Herod. And so was fulfilled what the Lord had said through the prophet: ‘Out of Egypt I called my son.’”

This is the second fulfillment of prophecy. It was important that Jesus go into Egypt.

Jesus was to be the people’s savior, One Who had experienced every aspect of His people’s lives and history. God’s plan for Joseph, Mary, and Jesus was to save them from disaster by hiding them in Egypt, just as God had brought Jacob’s clan to Egypt thousands of years before, to save their lives during the famine.

It must have been only a matter of days before Herod realized the Magi were not coming back through Jerusalem.

“When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi.”

Mayhem is part of life in a fallen world. The moment Adam and Eve brought sin into the world, murder was soon to follow as their firstborn son murdered their second, godly, son in cold blood. No one is exempt, not even the most godly.

Nothing escapes God’s notice. No one can thwart His plans or undermine His purposes. Yet, even so, events never spiral out of God’s control, as if He lacked power or insight to control what goes on in our little planet. Nevertheless, it’s hard to imagine what could possibly have been God’s plan here, as He allowed the desperately wicked and evil King Herod latitude to put all these precious babies and toddlers to death.

We can still know anything and everything that happens in the lives of His people happen only by God’s permission, and always fulfill His purposes. God always has a purpose in what He allows, even if we don’t know what it is. From our perspective tragedies look meaningless and senseless and chaotic. But God specializes in taking evil and bringing good out of it. For ever believing family during that awful time in Bethlehem, God had a plan for good.

Tragedy can serve as a wake-up call. Sometimes it takes the horror of some awful event to wake up the otherwise stubborn coma of unbelief. As one theologian, C. S. Lewis, put it, “Pain is God’s megaphone to a deaf world.”

It is possible to embrace hope even in the middle of a tragedy. God’s hand is always held out to you in the middle of your suffering with the invitation to grab hold and count on Him to pull you through.

This world is not our final home. When terrible things happen, as happened to these shocked and grieving families so long ago, it is good to remember this fallen, broken world, riddled with sin, is not our final home. We were created for eternity, and tragedy can never change that.

This life is only a transition period, a prelude to what God really has in mind for us. The all-absorbing “now-ness” of our experiences severely limit our perspective. We want to rewind the tape, we look at how it could have been different, but God says “Look forward.” Look into eternity. For all those who love Him, Jesus says “I AM preparing a place for you to take you to be with Me forever.”

All passages taken from the New International Version (NIV) Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

(Thoughts taken from “Where is God When Bad Things Happen?” by Luis Palau)

Matthew 2:1‑12 Praise and Worship of Christ

January 16, 2019January 16, 2019 Joanne Hagemeyer

Magi: They were students of ancient and sacred lore. Two hundred years before Christ the entire Old Testament had been translated into Greek, making it available to scholars world-wide. They would also have had the original writings of the prophet Daniel, who had lived in Chaldea for most of his life.

They would have had some access to at least the books in Hebrew of the Old Testament written up to the time of the great diaspora described at the end of 2nd Kings, since the Jews would have brought their scriptures with them when they went into exile.

They were not Jews, as the citizens of Jerusalem were, and the scribes and chief priests were, and Herod was (more or less). But they believed God and acted on their belief. They had faith. Think of all the planning, the cost, the time, and the risk that went into this trip. Their plan was to follow this star, for however long it would take, wherever it would take them. They were absolutely committed to seeking God, based on what God had revealed to them, and God brought them to the Messiah.

“When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.”

Part of our design, the design God worked into all people, is the propensity to worship. We all worship something. But, our design is to worship God – that’s the fulfillment of our longing.

Their worship was physical. The Bible talks often of falling on your knees, raising up your hands, falling prostrate on the ground before God. Our bodies become expressions of what’s going on in our hearts. Even Jesus prayed on His knees before His Father in heaven.

Their worship was emotional. In spite of their worldly dignity and high standing, they humbled themselves before this tiny king. They delighted in Him and adored Him – we just read how they were filled to overflowing with joy.

Their worship was spiritual, based on truth, They came expectantly into the home Joseph had now found for his family. But it wasn’t until they saw God’s literal fulfillment of His promise, a young girl, a virgin, holding the little baby boy, begotten of God, right there in Bethlehem, the birthplace of kings, that they fell down on their knees.

Their worship was generous, They didn’t come empty-handed. In meditating on this chapter it struck me what you and I are saying to the Lord when we come empty-handed to Him in worship. Essentially we’re saying -God has been a stingy Father. We’re saying, “Well Lord, looks like You didn’t provide very well for me, since I have nothing left to give you.” And we’re also saying, even in hard times when the money’s pretty scarce, “Lord, this time the sacrifice is simply too big. You aren’t worth it this time.”

The Lord says,

“Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test Me now in this…if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows.” (Malachi 3:10)

Jesus says, “Give, and it will be given to you. They will pour into your lap a good measure‑‑pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return.” (Luke 6:38)

The Magis’ gifts were also prophetic, and an expression of their faith.

The gold spoke of Jesus’ purity and His royalty.

The frankincense spoke of Jesus’ priestly duty, receiving the prayers of believers, and offering up intercession for all those who come to Him.

And the myrrh spoke of Jesus’ sacrificial death to save His people from their sins.

The right response to God is to worship and obey His Son

You hear people say they’re seeking, but what are they really seeking? God says, through the prophet Jeremiah,

“When you come looking for me, you’ll find me. Yes, when you get serious about finding me and want it more than anything else, I’ll make sure you won’t be disappointed.” (Jeremiah 29:13, The Message)

If a person is really seeking God, they will always find Jesus.

Having, in faith, followed God’s guidance and having accepted and worshiped the Messiah, the wise men gained a deeper sensitivity for God’s voice. God took the Magi into His protection and guided them more directly,

“And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.”

Without questioning, even though it meant having to map out a new, and unknown, route, finding new and unknown oases and connections for their large company on the long trek home, they–unquestioningly and immediately–obeyed and continued to follow God’s guidance.

Worship that does not continue with obedience is not true worship.

(Thoughts taken from “Adventuring through Matthew, Mark and Luke” by Ray Stedman)

Matthew 2:1‑12 Proclamation of Christ

January 11, 2019 Joanne Hagemeyer

After the scribes and chief priests had presented their case, Herod was convinced.

“Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, ‘Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.’”

Herod was of course disguising what he really wanted to do, so he could manipulate these well-meaning foreigners into doing his leg work for him.

The wise men believed him.

“After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was.”

How were they able to follow a star? Matthew doesn’t tell us, but certainly God was in it, because He makes Himself known to the people who genuinely look for Him.

So let’s stop a minute and think about all the responses Matthew has recorded so far to God’s proclamation that His Son has been born.

The people were bothered, vaguely worried, instead of excited and eager for their promised Messiah. Their ruler was a cruel and capricious king. They didn’t want anything to disturb him because that meant he would, in turn, take it out on them, people would get hurt, there would be upheaval and crackdowns.

Maybe you’re there. You like when the Bible talks about things that already are a part of your life, things that agree with how you view life already. But when you get to a part that doesn’t agree with your views you feel bothered. You feel vaguely worried, sensing this is going to mean upheaval in your life, and it might hurt.

How prepared are you to receive God’s guidance and how willing are you to follow it?

Herod was insanely suspicious, always worried that someone was going to try and take away his power and wealth. For all his good qualities as a ruler, this one trait ruined every good thing he did. Instead of him controlling his life, and ruling his realm, this one trait controlled him and made him a tyrant of his realm.

Is there some trait in your personality that is driving everything else, overshadowing your other good qualities because you are not reigning in the excesses of this one trait? Maybe it’s your short temper. Maybe you are a critical person, always pointing out what’s wrong with other people. Maybe it’s your love of shopping, or your love of gossip.

Maybe it’s your fear of people, or fear of anything new. Maybe it’s your self-consciousness. Maybe you are overly sensitive and see insults and slights in just about everything people say to you. Herod believed God’s word, but instead of rejoicing that God had brought the wise men right to his door with this incredible good news, he felt threatened, slighted, insulted by God. He wanted to destroy the fulfillment of God’s promise.

When do I resist God’s word and see it as a threat to my happiness?

Scribes and chief priest Religion was their work. These were the seminarians, ivory tower academics, deeply religious traditionalists, who considered themselves as perfectly keeping the law, above reproach; they knew it all and observed all the religious mores. Bethlehem was only five miles away, but they made no move to see if the Messiah had really been born there so they could worship Him.

As the teachers and law keepers, they didn’t feel the need to be taught anymore, the need to grow anymore; they considered themselves above all that, and above the people who still needed that.

You might find yourself there, Bible study has become a little ho-hum, it’s your work, you get it done, that makes you feel good, but it isn’t igniting your heart. You’re looking around at the people you feel still need it, so you’re keeping up with your Bible study for someone else.

How closely are you watching for God’s guidance in your own life?

Matthew 2:1‑12 Prophecy of Christ

December 31, 2018 Joanne Hagemeyer

Chapter 2 begins with quite a stir in the city.

“After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem.”

In other words, a great company of exotic foreigners had arrived in Jerusalem, from the east, with all their retinue. The traditional number is three Magi, because they presented three gifts to the Christ child. But there were probably many more than just three.

These were important people, most likely Gentiles who had come from Chaldea with a large caravan of camels loaded to the gills, and a full complement of servants and guards. They made their way to the largest Ritz Carlton in town, got checked in, then immediately headed over to the palace to find out where the new king of the Jews had been born.

The Magi “asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”

Which apparently provoked all Jerusalem to vexed arousal.

Matthew was continuing to show how the Jews had completely missed recognizing Jesus’ credentials as the Messiah. God had established His people thousands of years before to cherish and keep His word, to love, worship, and obey Him, and to wait expectantly for the Messiah Who would free them from bondage.

All the rest of the world was also waiting for this big event. Even the Roman historian Tacitus in the days of Caesar wrote about the expectation of a ruler being born near the province of Judea.

But, what actually happened, is that when the real king, the one the rest of the world had been waiting for, was born in the one place only a real king could be born in, during the days of the pretend king who was falsely ruling over God’s people, wise men, bringing God’s wisdom, came from far away to God’s holy and royal city where there didn’t seem to be any wise people at all.

Originally, God had made humankind in His own image, making us to fit Him in a perfect way, filling us with His own breath. God had created humankind to be in eternal fellowship with Himself. God loves His people deeply, in ways we can hardly imagine, having designed us to be His intimate companion, just as He designed Eve and Adam to correspond to each other. God intends for us to be made one with Him in a profound intimacy. This is a person’s greatest purpose and blessing, and it was Messiah Who would provide the way for eternal fellowship with God.

So God’s people were supposed to be alert, watching for the signs.

In Genesis 1:14 God had said,

“Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens…let them be for signs…”

Before there were satellites and other sophisticated technologies, the stars and planets were used for navigation, clocking the seasons, measuring large distances on the earth for map-making purposes, and so on.

Then in Numbers 24:17 God said a specific sign would come,

“A star shall come out of Jacob…”

King David himself had written

“The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims His handiwork,” (Psalm 19:1)

Ancient people understood this to mean that God would literally reveal signs of what lay in the immediate, and far future in the sky, in the alignment of the stars and planets, so they made a close study of the patterns in the night sky.

But only these wise men from the east, astronomers who recorded the movement of stars, comets, and planets, and scholars who were familiar with the Hebrew scriptures, had taken God’s word seriously. There was evidently an unusual phenomenon in the sky that these men recognized as being directly connected with the prophecy concerning Messiah. About a dozen or so other ancient historians, representing cultures and religions from the entire region, had also recorded this very same phenomenon.

God’s people were supposed to be mindful of the prophecies, so they could be ready when their Messiah came. There were specific prophecies, a baby boy, begotten by God, born of a virgin in Bethlehem, Who will be heralded by a star coming out of the house of Jacob. In order, those prophecies were delivered by some heavy hitters: King David, Isaiah, Micah, and Moses. Not only that, the prophet Daniel had predicted a particular point in history when this Messiah would be born, so the whole known world was breathless with anticipation.

Nevertheless, it seems the Jews were caught by surprise.

“When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.”

So Herod got together all his seminary people.

“When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born.”

First were the chief priests, who came from the religious aristocracy, they were the CEO’s of Judaism, Bible experts. Next were the scribes, what we would call lawyers today, men who had taken their studies in Old Testament law, along with all the law commentaries.

The scribes and chief priests had a lot of work to do, pouring over their manuscripts, conferencing together, trying to figure out what was going on, trying to get the right information to a very agitated and upset Herod, who was known for his viciousness and cruelty whenever he felt someone was threatening his crown. They finally narrowed in on a prophecy written six hundred years before Jesus was born.

“’In Bethlehem in Judea,’ they replied, ‘for this is what the prophet has written: “But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.”’”

And the prophet Micah had finished that verse with the words

“His goings forth are from long ago, from the days of eternity.”

This is the first of four fulfillments of prophecy in this chapter and is a continuation of Matthew’s catalogue of Christ’s credentials. He was born a human baby, Son of Man, but He was also Son of God, from the “days of eternity.”

He was born in the hamlet of Bethlehem, an inconsequential dot on the map, but it was the birthplace of Kings, the very root and stump of Jesse, and from it now sprang this young shoot, the ruler who would sit on the throne of Judah forever.

Matthew 1:21-25, Prophetic Heredity

December 25, 2018December 22, 2018 Joanne Hagemeyer

Matthew showed Jesus to be fully qualified as both king and savior, that this had always been God’s plan,

“’She [Mary] will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.’

“All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet”

Whether it was Matthew reminding the reader, or the Holy Spirit guiding Joseph’s thoughts at that moment, Joseph believed this baby was the coming Messiah,

“…the Lord had said through the prophet: ‘The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel’ (which means ‘God with us’).”

And Joseph was sensitive to God’s leading, recognized God’s word, and put it immediately into practice in his life,

“When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.”

If there was ever any question about the virgin birth, Joseph’s actions should put your doubts to rest. If the baby had been conceived by another man, Joseph would have divorced her. Even if he had married her, he would have had no reason to keep from consummating their marriage bed together. But instead, as soon as Joseph had received God’s word to him, he was ready to be obedient to all God’s commands in three direct ways.

First, he married Mary.

Next, recognizing the fulfillment of prophecy in Mary’s virginity, he made sure she remained a virgin until Messiah was born, so no one would try to dispute fulfillment of God’s word.

Finally, even though the custom was to name the first born after the father, Joseph obeyed the Lord’s command to name God’s Son Jesus.

Jesus is the Greek form of the Hebrew name Joshua, which means “Jehovah saves.” Jesus’ life’s work was appointed from before time. Paul said in Philippians Jesus humbled Himself to become a man, and you can certainly see it as humbling, to step down from the throne of God to enter into the womb of an ordinary young girl, living in Israel.

Paul went on to say Jesus humbled himself in obedience to His Father, He became obedient even to death on the cross. This was how Jehovah would save His people from their sins, He would die for them, sacrificing Himself in the place of those who are guilty, you and me, every sinner.

The ancient Jew, at this point in the text, would have taken particular note of the name Emmanuel (“God with us”), since this was what God had said to Moses was His desire, to dwell among His people. When the tabernacle was dedicated, and later the temple, God’s presence descended to dwell visibly in the midst of His people. But God had never been so present as to become a human being, living side-by-side with His people. It is an amazing truth.

The Lord understands you and me because He went through every kind of life experience you and I live through, yet He never sinned (Hebrews 4:15). Whatever is going on in your life, you can talk to Jesus about it. He will listen with compassion and love, He knows you and loves you, and understands completely what you’re going through.

But the most important name given to Jesus is the one Matthew used in his genealogy, in verse 1, verse 16, verse 17 and verse 18: Christ, Messiah, the anointed one. Messiah is the unique God-Man, the eternal Son of God, Who is also the Son of Man, with two distinct natures in one Person forever – fully God and fully man. Because of Jesus’ humility in obedience, God has exalted Him, giving Him authority over every authority. Jesus is even now actively ruling with God, as Lord over all.

Just as you can’t separate the brilliance of sunshine from the sun itself, Jesus is described as “the radiance of the glory of God.” (Hebrews 1) Not just an image or a reflection of God, He is “the exact imprint of God’s nature,” “He is the image of the invisible God,” Jesus is the absolutely authentic representation of God’s being. God says that all of His fullness – the totality of God’s powers and attributes – rests in the Lord Jesus Christ.

There are two kinds of prophecy about Messiah. The first kind of prophecy points to Christ Who will suffer for the sake of His people, out of love for them. The second kind of prophecy points to the future when Christ has promised He will one day come back to rule the earth in righteousness, and gather His people to Himself forever. How much of your trust have you put in this Christ?

God requires faith in a relationship with His Son Jesus Christ

What has God given you to believe and have faith in Him about? In what ways is your life reflecting your response to God’s word?

Joseph had only one night of instruction with God’s word, and then he immediately responded in practical, real-time ways. He was definitely all in. What has God given you to apply in your life right now, without delay?

Who has God given you to protect—to feed and clothe, to care for and teach, to pray over and tenderly love?

God gives us His presence on earth, He is with us and has promised to live in us when we believe in Him. When was the last time you simply thanked Jesus for His presence with you, and (for those of you who have put your faith in Him) in you?

In just one chapter, Matthew showed that Jesus called Christ is fully qualified to be king and savior by His royal ancestry, His divine conception and birth, and by His credentials through the fulfillment of prophecy in His coming, and His identity.

How fully have you accepted Jesus for Who He is?

Matthew 1:18-20, Divine Heredity

December 22, 2018 Joanne Hagemeyer

God did not only provide a royal lineage for His Son, He provided a miraculous, divine lineage as well.

“This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

“But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.’”

The virgin birth has been questioned in recent times, but Matthew makes a big deal about it. He was careful to explain each of the names in Jesus’ genealogy were fathered by the name before it: “Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob…” and so on. Until you get to verse 16 in the genealogy, which states,

“Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and Mary was the mother of Jesus who is called the Messiah.”

Because Mary and Joseph were married before Jesus was born, Jesus inherited Joseph’s lineage. But Joseph did not father Jesus. Instead, Matthew said Jesus was conceived in Mary through the Holy Spirit. God fathered Jesus Christ.

It is a pivotal point in Matthew’s telling of Jesus’ story. Why a virgin birth? Was there a biological reason? A moral reason? All we can say is that in Genesis 3:15, God said the deliverer would come from the seed of the woman. This is the way God had always planned to give the world the Messiah.

The ancient Jewish wedding customs were a little different than the way we do things now. Typically, the marriage was arranged between the parents when the future bride and groom were still children.

Everyone in the community would know these two were promised to each other, to be married when they grew up. Up until the betrothal, if the girl became unwilling to go through with the arrangement, she had the option of backing out, and her family could then make a new arrangement with a different family. But once the girl and the boy both came of age, a legal ceremony called “betrothal” would be performed which would have the couple exchange absolutely binding vows, tantamount to a marriage.

During the betrothal time there would not be much contact between the bride and groom, each would live with their parents, and not enter into any of the privileges of marriage. The betrothal period lasted about a year to prove the bride’s virginity and to give the groom time to prepare their new home.

When the time was right – something only the father of the groom would determine – the formal wedding would take place, and the groom would take the bride to his family home to begin their married life together.

It was during this betrothal time that Mary was visited by the angel, and Joseph found himself in the predicament of having a pregnant fiancé.

If the baby had been his, he would not have hesitated to take Mary as his wife. Instead, he was troubled. The only way out of a betrothal was for it to be broken by another legal contract called a divorce, which is what Joseph determined to do, quietly, in order to protect Mary’s dignity and the reputation of her family.

We’re not sure when Joseph found out Mary was pregnant. In the gospel of Luke, chapter 1, it says an angel came to tell Mary what was about to happen. Mary was perplexed since she was not married, and she was a virgin. But the angel explained the child would be fathered by the Holy Spirit. Something unique would take place inside of her that would allow the Son of God to be born from her body.

Somehow, under the direct action of the third person of the Godhead, the Holy Spirit, the second person of the Godhead, the Son, was implanted in Mary’s uterus.

Amazingly, Mary said yes. Every woman since Eve had been hoping and praying for this honor. But Mary must have also known that, given the circumstances, this was not going to be easy.

Right after her encounter with the angel, Mary left to visit her elderly cousin Elizabeth, who was experiencing her own miraculous pregnancy, carrying John the Baptist. In Elizabeth, Mary found someone who understood completely what was happening to her. Mary must have used the next three months to think and pray through her feelings about her own circumstances, as she helped Elizabeth, and stayed for the birth of Elizabet’s son John.

So, doing the math, here. Mary received the angel’s astounding message. She must have told her parents soon after. A plan was devised for Mary to see her elderly relatives, the priest Zechariah and his wife, Elisabeth. By this time, Elizabeth was six month’s into her miracle pregnancy, and the story of Zechariah’s own vist by an angel would have been well-known by now. Mary stayed at least three months, and most likely four months, for we know she was there when little John was born, and most likely stayed to help Elizabeth through those first weeks.

When Mary returned home, there is no doubt her own baby bump was showing. In a small town like Bethlehem it would have taken only a few hours for that news to have rippled out to everyone!! Think of the curtains fluttering as neighbors watched Mary come home! Think of all back doors banging as people ran from home to home, spreading their story! (If you’ve ever lived in a small town, you know exactly what I mean.)

Unlike Elizabeth, Mary was just a girl, unmarried and pregnant in a time when that was considered a crime punishable by death. She was willing to obey God, but she didn’t know how God was going to work it out to protect her.

God’s immediate protection came in His wisdom of choosing the right man to be the earthly father of His Son. The ancient Jew would have been horrified and repulsed to find out his betrothed was pregnant. But Joseph was a righteous man, he didn’t want to expose Mary to public disgrace, which would have resulted in her execution by stoning. That Joseph did not want any harm to come to Mary, or the baby, speaks volumes about his godly character, and tender compassion.

This is how righteousness is displayed, in the fruit of the Spirit, where you reach out in love and mercy, instead of having the knee-jerk reaction of saying “I can’t handle this, you’re going down.” He opted for quiet legal action, he would be free to marry someone else, a virgin, and she would be free to raise her child, and possibly even marry the man who had fathered it.

While Joseph was considering a quiet divorce as the most merciful thing to do in the situation, God took the initiative in protecting both Mary and Jesus by sending an angel to speak to Joseph in a dream, reassuring him the child was supernaturally conceived by God Himself.

When I was a young girl, there was an enormous social stigma attached to having a baby when you weren’t married. You got sent away to extended family, had the baby in secret, started another life, or gave the baby up for adoption, very privately. Children raised out of wedlock didn’t have the same legal rights as children born to or adopted by a married couple.

But right around the 1970’s that all changed with abortion laws and the legalizing of all children’s rights, regardless of whether they were raised by a married couple. Today, forty years later, lots of single women actively pursue getting pregnant, there isn’t any stigma at all, it’s actually kind of popular, except in some conservative circles, so it’s harder to imagine what this must have been like.

But try.

Even though they were living in Nazareth, which was not as strong a religious community as Jerusalem, and was actually sort of a cosmopolitan trade center for its day, Jospeh and Mary were both godly people. Try to think how difficult it must have been to face the family pressure, the social pressure, the disapproving stares when they attended synagogue. The father is who?!

They never even had a big wedding, but hurried through a small private affair, just like a shotgun marriage. Yet, both Mary and Joseph were convinced that God knew what He was doing, and would take care of them all along the way.

God often uses difficult circumstance to accomplish His will

God’s will was to have His Son, the Son of God, be born to this little family, and the Lord took care of them.

God’s will today is to make you like Jesus Christ. So, He puts difficult people in your life to shave off your rough edges, to polish you and transform you. His will is to let others know about Him, and His will and His word, so He puts you together with people who need to hear about Him, maybe in your workplace or your neighborhood.

God’s will is to show you His love and His grace, and He can only do that when He has your complete attention, so He often uses difficult circumstances to focus you. What’s the difficulty in your life right now? I’d be surprised if there wasn’t at least one thing going on right now.

How willing are you to trust God, to have faith in Him, that He knows what He is doing, that He is good and loving and powerful enough to take care of you all along the way? How willing are you to lean into the struggle and give it all you’ve got, so you will be cooperating with God as He accomplishes His purposes in you?

James Tissot, “Annunciation” | Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain]

Matthew 1:1-17, Royal Heritage

December 11, 2018December 11, 2018 Joanne Hagemeyer

For you and me today, the sight of a genealogy like this one is enough to make our eyes glaze over. It’s a long list of unfamiliar names that are hard to pronounce, and don’t hold much meaning for us. The modern western reader would be inclined to skip this part, so we can get to the good part, the actual story.

But Matthew was writing to mainly Jews. When it came to biographies, for the ancient Jew, most often the genealogy made or broke the whole story. Since royalty depends on heredity, Jesus’ pedigree would have instantly piqued the ancient Jew’s interest because it definitively established Jesus’ right to the throne of David.

Careful records had to be kept of every Jew’s family relationships in order to authenticate they were from the tribe and clan they claimed. At stake was each person’s claim to God’s inheritance in Israel, an actual plot of land.

But also at stake were the royal lineage of David in anticipation of Messiah, the priestly lineage of Aaron, in order to choose high priests, and the Levitical lineage in order to serve in the temple. All these public records were kept in the temple and were carefully protected along with the scriptures when the Jews went into exile.

You can read about how important the genealogical records were when the Jewish people returned from exile to Jerusalem, in the book of Ezra. Three families claimed to be descended from Levi, but because no records could be found to prove it, they were barred from returning with the rest of the Levites (Ezra 2:62).

The phrase “Son of David” referred to the Messiah, and could only be traced through the kings of Judah. The ancient Jewish reader would have understood Matthew wanted them to know Jesus’ lineage proved He was legitimately from the kingly line of David, and a direct descendant of Abraham. The presence of an unbroken record before and after the exile left no question Jesus was Who He claimed to be.

Matthew divided Jesus’ record into three sections. He left out names in Jesus’ genealogy on purpose. In the Hebrew language there were no vowels and no numbers. The vowels were intuited and Hebrew letters did double duty as numbers whenever needed. The Hebrew letters for “David” were “DWD,” which, when representing numbers, added up to 14. So, Matthew put fourteen names in each section, and made three sections, one for each letter in David’s name. Jesus’s genealogy also mirrored the three great periods in Israel’s history up to that point.

In our scientific age we would have wanted an exhaustive list as proof. But to the ancient Jewish mind, this was actually very convenient. Matthew was writing in a way to help people memorize his gospel because in his day not everyone possessed their own copy of the scriptures; memorizing was the only way people could have ready access to God’s word.

“Father of” meant direct genetic descendant of, and if they wanted whatever names were left out they could easily look them up given the material they already had in Matthew’s record. What’s more, if they knew their history well, since it’s all in the Old Testament, they could have mentally filled in what was missing.

Contrary to common custom, five women, including Mary, are mentioned in this genealogy. In Matthew’s day women were not valued too highly. In fact, they were so low in society, Pharisees would thank God every morning in prayer that they were not women. Were you amazed at the women Matthew chose to include? I might have chosen Sarah, the wife of Abraham, maybe, or Rebekah, or maybe godly Leah, all godly matriarchs, standing by the patriarchs.

But, if Matthew had ransacked the whole Old Testament, he’d have been hard pressed to find four more unlikely candidates for the Messiah’s genealogy than the following women.

Verse 3, Tamar – Was a schemer who posed as a prostitute to lure her father-in-law into bed with her and bore his twin sons out of wedlock.

Verse 5, Rahab – Was running a robust trade as a high dollar hooker in her own wayside inn, when she lied and betrayed her own country’s interests to help out two enemy Hebrew spies.

Also in verse 5, Ruth – Was a Moabitess whose husband had been a Jew even though God had said through Moses that no Moabite would ever be given a chance to enter the Lord’s sanctuary because of how they had treated the Jews.

Verse 6, Wife of Uriah – She is more well-known by the name of Bathsheba. Given to public nakedness on her roof, she committed adultery with her nation’s leader and her firstborn child died under God’s judgement

Finally, down in verse 16, Mary – only Mary had a squeaky clean record. If you look in Luke’s gospel, you’ll see she was also descended from King David, just through a different son. Joseph’s is the legal royal line, that gave Jesus His qualification to claim the throne of Judah. Mary gave Jesus the bloodline to King David, Abraham, and all the way back to Adam, the first man.

I hope you were able to pick out how each of these women expressed their faith, wanting to participate in God’s promises. Some acted unwisely, but even through their error, God blessed each of these women.

Tamar – despite how awful her first two husbands were, she was willing to do whatever it took to be linked with God and His people. In the end, Judah publicly confessed she was the righteous one, and he was dead wrong.

Rahab – had such a reverence for God, and awe of His power, she believed completely in His victory. She wanted to be saved along with His people.

Ruth – has a beautiful story of sacrificial love and redemption, well worth the reading

Bathsheba – the Bible isn’t clear about her faith, but of all the sons of David it seems only one reverenced God and desired God’s wisdom – her son Solomon.

Mary – in spite of the enormous hurdles and heartaches God’s will in her life would bring, she saw herself as God’s handmaiden, and willingly submitted to His command.

Though Matthew named some godly men, the patriarchs and good kings, many of the men in this list were not what we would call good men. They sinned, they were selfish, even cruel, wicked, rebellious against God, idolaters. But through them Messiah was born. I wonder if Matthew, ex-tax collector and publican that he was, identified with these women and men at some level.

Through this record God is displaying His grace to sinners. Even in this genealogy Matthew was already giving us a clue there is something unique and earth-shaking about Jesus. Expect the unexpected. Carried along in the Spirit, the apostle Matthew was showing how God in Christ was taking down the barriers of sin and its curse.

As you look at this list of names you realize God chooses unlikely people for His purposes. I think about how God spoke through a North Carolina farm boy from a small community who never in the world would have thought he would become the most famous evangelist of the 20th century, bringing the gospel to millions and millions of people all over the world.

I think about how God worked through a little known nun from eastern Europe, whose heart was so deeply moved by God’s love for the discarded and downtrodden in Calcutta, India. She brought God’s grace and compassion to them in such a way that it continues to humble all the rest of us in this world.

I think of a north African playboy named Augustine, who made this prayer to God 1,700 years ago, “O Lord, give me the grace to do as You command, and command me to do as You will.” He has since become known as one of the most important teachers and leaders in the church of all time.

Ordinary people who offered their lives to Jesus to serve Him in whatever way He commanded.

God chooses unlikely people for His purposes when they are willing to put their faith in Him.

What about you? Do you see yourself as an unlikely choice for God to speak through, and work through? Maybe you think you don’t have much natural ability, or you’re in difficult circumstances, the kind that hem you in to the point you couldn’t possibly serve God in any meaningful way.

Maybe, like some of the women in Jesus’ genealogy, you have a history of poor decisions, and wrongdoing, or there’s something in your background you feel might disqualify you from being worthy of God’s employ. But God chooses unlikely people for His purposes.

How willing are you to trust God to make your life valuable in His kingdom, just as He did for these people? Where is God pushing you to use your little bit for Him? What would it take, in your heart, for you to be able to pray Augustine’s prayer,

“O Lord, give me the grace to do as You command, and command me to do as You will.”?

(Thoughts taken from “Adventuring through Matthew, Mark and Luke” by Ray Stedman)

[Hortus_Deliciarum,_Der_Stammbaum_Christi | Wikimwsia Commons, Public Domain]

“Following in His Footsteps” – Advent Reflections 2016 – 4th Sunday

December 21, 2016December 21, 2016 Barbara Markham

4th Sunday of Advent, December 18, 2016

“Light to the Captives”

“I will appoint you as a covenant to the people, as a light to the nations, to open blind eyes, to bring out prisoners from the dungeon and those who dwell in darkness from the prison.” Isaiah 42:6-7

Isaiah wrote this to describe God’s purpose for His coming Messiah.

With these words, God equaled the playing field for mankind. In spite of the special relationship God had provided for the Jews, in Isaiah’s time they were living in spiritual darkness. In this way they were no different than their gentile neighbors, who had never experienced the light of God’s truth in the first place.

Every man was living in the dark prison of his own spiritual blindness.

Then Jesus came onto to the scene, springing open the prison doors and setting the captives free.

There are many miracles in the Bible, but out of every prophet or servant granted the power to do miracles in the thousands of years of biblical record, there was only one man who made the blind see. Those physical healings were an unmistakable sign that Jesus was the promised Messiah, described hundreds of years earlier by Isaiah as the One who would open blind eyes.

As wonderful as those miracles were, they were a mere metaphor for what He was ultimately sent to do: to bring mankind from the domain of spiritual darkness into the Kingdom of Light. “You will know the truth,” Jesus told his disciples, “and the truth will make you free.”

(Light candle)

As His light-bearers, we illuminate the darkness around us by living as He lived, sharing the truth of God’s Word as He gives opportunity, and inviting those in darkness into the light. People continue to be rescued by the light of God’s truth today. He is still in the business of setting the captives free.

Written by NHC teaching leader, author and speaker, Julie Coleman

“Following in His Footsteps” Advent Reflections 2016, 3rd Sunday

December 16, 2016 Barbara Markham

3^rd Sunday of Advent – December 11, 2016

“Light of the World”

“I have come as Light into the world, so that everyone who believes in Me will not remain in darkness.” John 12:46

When you are in total darkness, it is impossible to find your way to where you should be without some kind of light.

We were once lost in the darkness. The word lost does not mean condemned or doomed. It’s merely being in the wrong place. When something is lost, it exists—somewhere. It’s just not where it belongs. We were in the wrong place. As Isaiah wrote, “All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way.”

We had moved away from God. And like the good shepherd of Jesus’ parable, who went out into the dark of night to seek out the lost lamb, so Jesus came down to a world in darkness to seek His lost sheep. He sought us out, picked us up, and carrying us on his shoulders, brought us into the fold where we belonged.

He brought us out of the darkness into the light, where we were created to dwell in the first place.

So as we light this third advent candle, let’s remember the light of the world who stepped down into darkness to rescue the lost. The world around us continues in darkness. Jesus called us to be lights to the world. As we live to follow Him, may we shine a light to the lost, a reflection of the Savior who died to save us all out of the darkness.

Written by a NHC teaching leader, author and speaker, Julie Coleman

“Following in His Footsteps” Advent Reflection 2016, 2nd Sunday

December 7, 2016December 7, 2016 Barbara Markham

2^nd Sunday of Advent

Light in the Darkness

“The people who walk in darkness will see a great light; those who live in a dark land, the light will shine on them.” Isaiah 9:2

The trouble with darkness is that you are robbed of your ability to see clearly. It is a challenge to avoid obstacles and identify the things you are looking for. This is life for the more than 40 millions Americans who are blind.

Isaiah wrote this prophecy about 800 years before the birth of Christ. At the time of Isaiah’s writing, the nation of Israel had allowed itself to become heavily influenced by its pagan neighbors. They had turned to worship false gods instead of the one true God. It was a very “dark” time in Israel’s history.

But now Isaiah promises a “great light.” This declaration told Israel that God was not finished with them yet. He was going to bring Israel back to himself through the person of Jesus, the Messiah. When Jesus burst onto the scene, his presence was an unmistakable light. He brought hope for the destitute, freedom for the captives, and sight for the blind. Of all of the miracles recorded in the Bible, Jesus is the only one who made the blind see and fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah 61.

Spiritual blindness is still the problem for many of the people we see as we go about our day. Paul wrote, “the god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ.”

God wants to use us to reflect his light to those around us. Jesus said, “You are light of the world…let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

In this advent season, take the time to show the love of God to others in practical ways and give him the credit. Just a simple statement, “I am just passing on the love that God has shown me,” or “I am doing this in the name of Jesus Christ, or “I happy to do this because Jesus changed my life.”

God can take any light and shine it deep into a heart struggling in the darkness.

Written by Julie Coleman, NHC teaching leader, author and conference speaker