“The Celebration in Heaven of the Most High”

Luke 1

1 Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us, 2 Even as they delivered them unto us, which from the beginning were eyewitnesses, and ministers of the word; 3 It seemed good to me also, having had perfect understanding of all things from the very first, to write unto thee in order, most excellent Theophilus, 4 That thou mightest know the certainty of those things, wherein thou hast been instructed.

5 There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth. 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. 7 And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years.

8 And it came to pass, that while he executed the priest’s office before God in the order of his course, 9 According to the custom of the priest’s office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple of  the Lord.

10 And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the time of incense. 11 And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense. 12 And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him. 13 But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John. 14 And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth. 15 For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother’s womb. 16 And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God. 17 And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.

18 And Zacharias said unto the angel, Whereby shall I know this? for I am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years.

19 And the angel answering said unto him, I am Gabriel, that stand in the presence of God; and am sent to speak unto thee, and to shew thee these glad tidings. 20 And, behold, thou shalt be dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall be performed, because thou believest not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season.

21 And the people waited for Zacharias, and marvelled that he tarried so long in the temple. 22 And when he came out, he could not speak unto them: and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple: for he beckoned unto them, and remained speechless.

23 And it came to pass, that, as soon as the days of his ministration were accomplished, he departed to his own house. 24 And after those days his wife Elisabeth conceived, and hid herself five months, saying, 25 Thus hath the Lord dealt with me in the days wherein he looked on me, to take away my reproach among men.

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.

This celebration is not for our honour but His honour – He who is spotless and sinless. From the time of Adam no one was born as He was.

David acknowledged that he was born in sin. All of us were born in sin. Even Mary was born in sin, even though some deny it. But Jesus was born without sin, unlike us.

Only He could defeat the power of satan, for He is the spotless Son of God. The Bible explicitly states how He was born, that we may know that He was not born as we are. That’s why we celebrate the way in which He was born. He who is God Himself.

The mysteries the Bible reveals is wonderful regarding His birth.

God commanded the angel Gabriel to bring these glad tidings to Mary, a pure virgin. When he met her he greeted her as favored and blessed among women. But she marveled at him and his greeting.

Mary asked Gabriel, the chief angel, how this would be possible, and he answered her that the Holy Spirit would come over her and the power of the Most High overshadow her. She was satisfied and accepted it out of God’s hand.

Mary was a special girl unlike most of the girls today. She was concerned about the things of God. She wasn’t imitating the world but had no time for worldly pleasures, neither desired them.

Few girls could have been greeted as she was for most are immoral and live for the pleasures of the world.

Do you grasp these wondrous words spoken to her?

We might not have seen angels but Mary saw him. We read in the Bible of many men and women of God who had seen angels. The Bible says a lot about angels. We’re told they are ministering spirits for God unto the saints, protecting His saints (Hebrews 1:14).

There are very few girls who live the life Mary had been living. How about you, young girl, do you take after Mary?

Neither Mary nor Joseph were wealthy.

What radiates from your life? With some it’s evil talk.

Can Jesus be born in you through the life you are living?

Mary and Joseph lived another type of life. It wasn’t normal for young people of their generation to bear children out of wedlock. Remember the Samaritan woman who went at noon to draw water alone. She was an outcast because of her immoral lifestyle. Girls who kept themselves pure went in a group and in the morning. Pure girls didn’t want to associate with her.

However although Mary was so upright and favoured, yet she was not sinless. She was also born in sin.

Are you highly favoured before God? Are your children following the Lord?