Christmas

Monday, December 23                                                                      Luke 1:1-38

“Two Angelic BirthAnnouncements”

     Luke begins his story by placing it in anestablished historical setting – the reign of Herod.  The angel Gabriel’s announcement of the birthof John the Baptist has three aspects to it: the revelation that God has a planto direct the affairs of humanity and restore his relationship to it, theoutline of the career of John himself, and the disappointment in the lives of Elizabethand Zechariah, two righteous people who had lived with the reality and frustrationof being childless.

     Gabriel’s announcement to Mary parallelsthe announcement to Zechariah, but the differences are also significant.  Whereas the first announcement takes place inthe temple in the center of Israelite culture, this one takes place in anobscure Galilean village much to the north of the capital.  The humble nature of the announcementparallels the humble nature of Jesus’ birth and ministry.  Luke identifies Mary as a virgin, engaged toJoseph; that is, she was pledged to him but they were not yet married.  A Jewish betrothal involved two steps: theformal engagement, and then about a year later, a wedding.

I trust you, Lord, to complete yourpromises in your time and in your way. Amen.

Tuesday, December 24                                                                        Luke 1:39-80

“My soul magnifiesthe Lord”

     The meetingbetween Mary and Elizabeth takes place in the hill country of Judea, somewhereoutside of Jerusalem, a three-day journey of some eighty to one hundred miles fromNazareth.  The meeting demonstratesMary’s obedience, since it reflects her desire to observe the sign the angelhad told her about in verse 36.  Mary’ssong comes in two parts.  She givespersonal praise for her specific situation as she rejoices in the action of Godon her behalf, and she praises God’s activity in more general terms.

     When God acts,we should listen with ears of faith. When the birth of John was announced to Zechariah, he could not believeit, so the Lord gave him a sign for reflection. He would be unable to speak until all was fulfilled.  Then he would know that God does what hesays.  Here we learn of the outcome ofZechariah’s reflection.  As a righteousman, Zechariah has learned from his mistake. Through the pain of the discipline, he emerges a stronger man of God,and when his tongue is freed he speaks in praise to God.

Ipraise you, Lord, for all the ways that you are good to me.  Amen.

Wednesday, December 25                                                                    Luke 2:1-20

“The time came for her baby to be born”

     In the ancientworld, if anyone had asked if there was a more important person than Caesar,the emperor and ruler of the vast Roman empire, the answer surely would havebeen no.  Yet it is the birth of a littleboy in a rural Judean village that causes the angels to launch intopraise.  The circumstances of Jesus’birth are so basic and humble in origin that it is hard to appreciate just whoit is that is born here, for the child is born in either a stable or acave.  They are in this strange birthingroom, “because there was no room for them in the inn.”  Finding shelter where they can, Mary givesbirth to Jesus and the Son of God spends the first hours of human existence ina manger.

     The birth ofJesus is a lesson in God’s faithfulness to do what he has promised, but it alsoreveals God’s heart and character.  Godidentifies with the human race, and this birth reflects suchidentification.  The most humble birthfor the most exalted figure ever shows that the key values of life are found inthe life itself, not in the trappings that come with life.

 Humbly you came, Lord, and humbly I come toyou.  Amen.

Disciples Who Make Disciples

Thursday, December 26                                                             Matthew 4:18-22 

“Come, follow me” 

     Jesus’ strategy was to develop a disciplecommunity, to call a group of associates who would be with him and learn fromhim.  A disciple is one who bothidentifies with and learns from his master. Jesus discipled people by being with them and modeling his truth ratherthan simply teaching them the Law, as did other rabbis of his day. 

     Jesus began by calling Peter and Andrew, areport which is here given very briefly. In the Gospel of John we learn that Andrew, who had been a disciple ofJohn the Baptist, upon meeting Jesus, went and found his brother, Peter, andbrought him to Jesus (John 1:41-42).  Matthewstates that Jesus said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers ofmen.”  He was moving these men from theiroccupation as fishermen to recognize the vocation to be disciples, heralds ofthe good news, who in turn discipled others. Jesus next called two brothers, James and John, sons of Zebedee, fromtheir occupation of fishing, asking them likewise to follow him.  These four made up the inner circle of Jesus’larger group of disciples.

You have calledme, Jesus, and I follow you.  Amen.

 Friday, December 27                                                                 Matthew 28:18-20

“Go and makedisciples”

     The emphasis of these verses is on makingdisciples while going, baptizing and teaching. Their going is no longer to be only “to the lost sheep of Israel” but tothe whole world.  In the commission tobaptize those who become disciples, Jesus institutes the threefold formula ofFather, Son and Holy Spirit, the three persons of the Trinity by whom Godencounters us in his love from all eternity and to all eternity.  To be baptized in the name of the Trinitybrings a person into direct relation with God as he has made himself known.

     The commission is also to teach newdisciples to observe all that Jesus has taught them.  This statement is directly related to thecontent of Jesus’ ministry.  He is ourSavior, having rescued us from sin’s penalty which is death, and he is ourLord, the One whose teaching we are committed to following.  Matthew concludes the book with theremarkable promise that Jesus will be with his disciples until “the end of theage,” that is, until his second coming when he returns to take us home withhim.

As your follower, Jesus, I will encourageothers to do the same.  Amen.

Saturday, December 28                                                                        Acts 2:42-47

“The believersdevoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching”

     We are told that about 3,000 peoplebelieved the message of the gospel as spoken by Peter on the day of Pentecost,and they were baptized and became a part of the church.  Then, we learn that there was immediate,regular follow-through care of these first converts as they devoted themselvesto four activities, that is, they continued in faithful adherence to the newlyformed community.  The first activity wasthe apostles’ teaching.

     Considering that Jesus spent so much timeteaching the crowds and his inner band of followers, it is not surprising thatteaching had an important place in the early church.  Jesus himself instructed his disciples toteach obedience to those who had been baptized, as we saw in yesterday’sdevotion.  While Acts doesn’t give us a specificdescription of what was taught to the new believers, we can say that it likelyincluded explanations of the nature of salvation, the person and work ofChrist, the commands of Christ, other features of the Christian life, and themessage of the kingdom of God.

Thankyou, Jesus, for those who teach us about you. Amen.

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