Luke 1:26-35
Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, 27 to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!”[c] 29 But when she saw him,[d] she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was. 30 Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. 32 He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. 33 And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.” 34 Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?” 35 And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.
As Christmas approaches later this week, I can’t help but think about how much we’ve forgotten about Christmas. How we changed it. How we’ve made it about us. About our kids. This day that we celebrate should be to focus on the birth of a Savior. We can say “Jesus is the reason for the season”… but how much time and focus does He get? How much have we removed Christ from Christmas?
This woman’s life was forever changed. Not only would she give birth to the Son of God, she would watch Him offer up His life. She had no idea what she was in for. She would never be the same. How has Jesus changed your life? How is this life change reflected in the way you celebrate His birth? Do you spend more time unwrapping presents than you do worshipping? Think about it. This is convicting me as I write it. I better take my guitar home from the church office…