The Angel to Joseph, Leave Nazareth - New Year’s Eve - Eve of the Circumcision and Name of Jesus - December 31, 2012 - Text: Matthew 2:13-15

The angels became very prominent in the work of the Lord at the time of the birth of Jesus. We began the Advent season talking about the angel that God sent to announce to Zachariah the birth of the one who would prepare the way for Jesus, John the Baptist. We went on to talk about the angel sent from the Lord who announced to Mary that she had found favor with God and would be the mother of God. We talked about the angel who was sent in a dream to reassure Joseph that it was okay to take Mary as his wife because what was conceived in her was from the Holy Spirit. Last week, on Christmas Eve, we moved on to talk about the angel and the angels who were sent to announce the good news of Jesus’ birth to the shepherds. And last week on Christmas morning we move on to talk about the angel who was sent to announce to Simeon the birth of the Savior for whom he and the believing Israelites had been waiting, the birth of the Savior of the world. This evening we conclude our series of the work of the angels by talking about the angel who appeared to Joseph in a dream to instruct him in saving Mary and Jesus from the hands of King Herod.
 

Again, as we have done through the Advent season, before we get to the actual announcement, let us take a moment to look at the message receiver. This evening we have the angel again sent to Joseph and again rather than appear to Joseph as he did to Zechariah and Mary in person, the angel appears to Joseph in a dream. Now, remember, the angel had previously appeared to Joseph in a dream to assure him that it was okay to take Mary as his wife because she was pregnant by the power of the Holy Spirit. At this time the angel appears to Joseph in order to save him, Mary and especially the baby Jesus. The message recipient this evening is Joseph, the husband of Mary and father of Jesus.
 

The occasion or what precipitated the necessity of the angel appearing to Joseph was the fact that Herod was after the life of Jesus. Let me refresh your memory. After Jesus was born there were Magi or wise men from the East who saw the special star God put in the heavens to guide them to meet the Savior of the world. These Magi were not Jewish, but were Gentile and so were the first non-Jews to visit the baby Jesus, reminding us that Jesus came to save all people, Jew and Gentile alike. When the Magi came to Jerusalem they were instructed by Herod and his priests as to where the baby Jesus might be found and they were further instructed that after they found Jesus they were to report back to Herod, under the pretense that he wanted to worship the baby as well. After waiting for a length of time, perhaps a year, Herod realized that the Magi, the wise men, had tricked him.
 

As we know, looking back, as the story unfolds, Herod was not looking for the baby Jesus in order to worship Him, rather Herod feared for his throne and was looking for the baby Jesus in order to kill Him. Herod was rather a selfish and paranoid ruler. His life and rule were riddled with murder in order to keep his earthly throne and the search for Jesus was only a part of this miserable life.
 

Because Herod did not know where Jesus was or who He was, in order to destroy this competition for the throne he sent his soldiers to kill all the baby boys in the region where Jesus was born, the region of Bethlehem, that were two years old and under, just to make sure. And so was fulfilled the prophecy of the cry from Bethlehem Ephritha concerning the murder of these infants.
 

The Lord sent the angel to Joseph to deliver a message and the again the angel appears to Joseph in a dream. The message the angel delivered was that Joseph was to take the Child and His mother and leave for Egypt. Notice the Child is mentioned first because all of history is centered on this Child, His life and soon His death, resurrection and ascension.
 

The angel appeared to Joseph, delivered God’s message and Joseph believed the message and obeyed God’s direction through the angel. Joseph packed up his family and all their belongings from the house where they were now staying and began the trip to safety, away from Herod and his murdering soldiers.
 

Joseph took his family and moved to Egypt. Again we are told of the fulfillment of a prophecy concerning the fact that God would call His Son out of Egypt.
 

The typology of these events, the going down to Egypt and the coming up out of Egypt is important. Jesus came to be Israel. He came to do what Israel could not do, and for that matter, what we cannot do. So, just as the Lord sent Israel to Egypt in order to survive the famine and just as the Lord called Moses to lead the children of Israel out of Egypt, so now the same is happening to the Lord’s own Son, Jesus.
 

Jesus coming out of Egypt, is the anti-type, except that His is true Israel, perfect in every way. So, Israel is the type and Jesus is the greater anti-type. Israel was called by God and set apart to be His chosen people and the nation through whom the Savior of the world would be born and Jesus is the anti-type, the true Israel who fulfilled all of what God commanded His people to do, but all they could not do.
 

The importance of this going to and coming out of Egypt is seen in typology and is an example and message to us of the same scenario today. Israel was called by God to live perfectly, to inhabit the promised land, to be God’s people and to be the nation through whom the Savior of the world, of all people would be born. Israel failed miserably in their calling from God. We have been called by God to faith. We have been called by God to be His people, to bear witness through our lives, our thoughts, words and actions that we are God’s people and yet we continually fail miserably.
 

And so Jesus came to do for Israel and to do for us what we are unable to do. Jesus came to live perfectly. And He did, being conceived by the Holy Spirit, being born in perfection and never sinning. Jesus came to fulfill all the law and the prophets perfectly. And He did, perfectly obeying all God’s laws and commands and perfectly fulfilling all God’s prophecies and promises concerning the coming Messiah.
 

And Jesus came to pay the price for sin, which He did after living perfectly and after taking all our sins upon Himself. He who was without sin, He who knew no sin became sin for us in our place. And He paid the price, the wage, the cost for our sins which is death, eternal spiritual death and hell for us, for Israel, for all people, of all places, of all times. Jesus suffered and died, and rose again for us. He showed Himself to be alive and then ascended back to the place from which He descended.
 

Jesus came to trade His perfect life for our imperfect life and to robe us with His perfect robes of righteousness. By faith in Jesus, faith given to us through our Baptism as well as through His Word, faith strengthened through confession and absolution as well as remembering our baptism, hearing God’s Word and through His Holy Supper, by faith we are robed in His robes of pure righteousness and we inherit eternal life in heaven.
 

What does this mean? Again we notice this evening, it was not Joseph who approached God. Notice also, it was not because he was blameless that God reassured him. If this statement were true, then we would naturally point to ourselves and we would be the reason that God does what He does. Because we know that we are not the prime movers, but that God is the Prime Mover, we know that it was God who chose Mary and Joseph as her husband. It was God who chose to give him directions in a dream in order to save the baby Jesus and his family by taking them to Egypt and later by bringing them back to Galilee. As always, it always begins with God.

Twas the Night Before Christmas

Past

Twas the night before Christmas
And all through the world
No one was expecting, (even though they were told)
The events that were soon to unfold.

The angel appeared to Zechariah and Mary
The angel told Joseph, “Don’t worry”
To Bethlehem town they must go
In order their family to enroll.

The town was so busy
David’s family so big
Everyone else had made it to town
So no place to stay could be found.

A barn was all that remained
For Mary a place to be laid
For the baby now on His way
He was born and laid in the hay.

The shepherds were watching their flock by night
They did not worry, they had not a fright
They had all settled in to watch the sheep
They were never expecting to be woke from their sleep.

The angel appeared and said, “do not fear”
The news that he brought was so great to hear
Then the heavens filled with the Lord’s glory all around
Singing praises to God with a great heavenly sound.

The shepherds did rush, they did not tarry
To the manger they went in such a big hurry
What a wonderful sight were Joseph and Mary
The Savior of all the manger did carry.

They worshiped the new king
Then good tidings went to bring
To all who would listen and hear
They brought the greatest news for all the world to hear.

May the Lord bless and keep you
May He give you the strength
In this world to bear witness in all that we say
To Christ as our Savior, the truth, the life, the way.

Present

Twas the night before Christmas
And all through the world
While some were preparing a grand celebration
Others were oblivious to all the sensation.

While some were a rushing here, there, everywhere
Some were working the events of that day to prepare
Some thought of others to their delight
Yet, some thought of nothing but to escape the night.

For some the season is quite a challenge
For others it seems a time to indulge
What if there is no reason for the season
What if the answer is some other reason.

Twas the night before Christmas
And all through the world
Some want to celebrate tolerance, diversity
Others don’t want to acknowledge the King of Christianity.

So many things vying for our attention
We get so confused and we get so distracted
We make a witness which makes some people wonder
Do we know what or why we celebrate and ponder.

So what do we do?
How do we respond
Do we get all involved in rites of this life?
Do we stand up for Christ and celebrate His life?

Christmas time is indeed a struggle, a fight
The world is confused and at times in a fright
We can compromise and not share with those that we love
Or we can stand firm with the help of the Spirit above.

Do we celebrate Hanukkah, Kwanza, Santa or Christ
Do we water it all down so as not to offend
With the help of the Lord we can stand up and say
Our hope in one Savior, to heaven, the way.

May the Lord bless and keep you
May He give you the strength
In this world to bear witness in all that we say
To Christ as our Savior, the truth, the life, the way.

Future

Twas the night before Christmas
And all through the world
A small few were waiting
While the rest were not caring

Twas the night to celebrate and sing
God in flesh, the birth of the King
It happened so may years long before
Yet into their memory their hopes they did pour.

Twas another night to wait for the Savior’s return
He has been quite patient for unbelievers to turn
He has yet one promise to fulfill
But waiting patiently they are sure of His will.

While too many are dazed and confused
So many are following after false clues
Too many have turned to follow other ways
And many are looking to make it their own way.

In Jesus’ day it was much the same
Some were faithfully waiting, watching and praying
Others put on a spin and too often with a grin
Decided to choose what would give pleasure to them.

In days forward it is certain yet surely not right
But some will be running away from the Light
Some will look for their own way to fulfill
Anyone, anything, except with the Lord to be filled.

Yet we have God’s promise straight from His Word
And some will try following the narrow, straight road
So when it is time for us to be accounted
By the Spirit’s power, we will stand up to be counted.

The future holds naught what we know for sure
For some that brings fear and trembling so pure
But we face forward, with the Lord, ever so bold
We have certainty, in His hand our life He does hold.

May the Lord bless and keep you
May He give you the strength
In this world to bear witness in all that we say
To Christ as our Savior, the truth, the life, the way.

The Angel to Simeon - Christmas Day - December 25, 2012 - Text: Luke 2:22-35 (v. 26)

The angels became very prominent in the work of the Lord at the time of the birth of Jesus. We began this Advent season talking about the angel that God sent to announce to Zachariah the birth of the one who would prepare the way for Jesus, John the Baptist. We went on to talk about the angel sent from the Lord who announce to Mary that she had found favor with God and would be the mother of God. We talked about the angel who was sent in a dream to reassure Joseph that it was okay to take Mary as his wife because what was conceived in her was from the Holy Spirit. Last night we moved on to talk about the angel and the angels who were sent to announce the good news of Jesus’ birth to the shepherds. This morning we move on to talk about the angel who was sent to announce to Simeon the birth of the Savior for whom he and the believing Israelites had been waiting, the birth of the Savior of the world, but right off let me confess, I have stretched our theme a bit this morning. As we hear in our text, it was actually God Himself, God the Holy Spirit in this instance that made the announcement to Simeon, not an angel.
 

Again, as we have done through this Advent season, before we get to the actual announcement, let us take a moment to look at the message receiver. Our message receiver this morning is the priest, Simeon. Simeon was from the tribe of Levi and so was serving the Lord in the temple when Mary and Joseph brought Jesus for the purification rite of the firstborn male child. About Simeon we are told that he was a righteous and devout man. He served faithfully in the Lord’s service in His temple.
 

About Simeon we are also told that he was waiting for the consolation of Israel, in other words he was waiting for the promised Messiah, the Savior. Simeon was getting older in years, but God had told him that he would not die before seeing the Savior of the world. And it was for this reason, that God might fulfill His promise to Simeon, that he was on duty in the temple when Mary and Joseph brought Jesus for the purification rite. Notice that this was not a coincidence, but as all seeming coincidences are, this was accomplished by the actions of God.
 

The events which surround the announcement of Jesus’ birth is that Mary and Joseph had come to Jerusalem to perform the purification rite of Mary after she had giving birth to a son, and a the firstborn. The actual rite required that a lamb was to be sacrificed, but if the couple could not afford a lamb, the rite allowed for two turtle doves or pigeons might be sacrificed.
 

So, Mary and Joseph entered the temple with their sacrifice of two turtle doves and they are met by the priest on duty, Simeon. Simeon was in the temple as we are told because he was moved by the Holy Spirit to be in the temple, in the right place at the right time, to meet with Mary and Joseph and to see the baby Jesus, the long awaited Savior of the world. Here again, rather than send His angel, the Lord Himself announces this message to Simeon.
 

As Simeon approaches the couple and the Savior of the world, he is moved by God the Holy Spirit to speak words of joy and words of prophecy. Simeon began by proclaiming that now he was ready to die because he had seen the Messiah. The words he speaks are the words we often sing following our participation in the Lord’s Supper. When we come to the Lord’s Table, we taste and see that the Lord is good. We are given His body and blood to eat and drink, thus participating in His life, death and resurrection and so we too are ready to die, we too are ready to depart in peace from this world, this valley of the shadow of death, in order to be taken to be with the Lord in heaven for eternity.
 

And Simeon also proclaims words of prophecy concerning this Jesus, this Savior of the world, that is that Jesus is the Savior for all nations, Gentiles included. Unfortunately, Simeon also proclaims a bit of not so good news, announcing to Mary and Joseph that this Jesus will cause the rise and fall of many in Israel, in other words there will be those who rise to eternal life by faith in Jesus as the Messiah and those who fall or are eternally condemned because of a lack of faith in Jesus as the Messiah. And just as Jesus will be pierced on the cross, so will Mary’s heart be pierced.
 

The response of Mary and Joseph to the revelation of Simeon is that they marveled at these events. As for Mary, as Simeon spoke of Mary’s own soul being pierced, certainly this might be compared to our hearing how she kept pondering these things and keeping them in her heart. Certainly Mary’s life consisted of the great events of a normal mother and child as well as those greater and marvelous events including Jesus’ opposition, His suffering, death, resurrection and ascension.
 

This morning we celebrate the fact that Jesus was born for the express purpose of being the Savior of the World. We celebrate Simeon and the Lord’s promise and fulfillment to him to be able to see the promised Messiah and we are reminded that every time we come to the Lord’s Table, we taste and see that the Lord is good, we taste and see and participate in Jesus’ life, suffering, death and resurrection, so that His life, His perfect life becomes our perfect life; His death, His perfect death becomes our death; His resurrection becomes our resurrection; and His life, His rising to eternal life is our eternal life.
 

What does this mean? Again we notice this morning, it was not Simeon who approached God. Notice also, it was not because he was blameless that God reassured him. If this statement were true, then we would naturally point to ourselves and we would be the reason that God does what He does. Because we know that we are not the prime movers, but that God is the Prime Mover, we know that it was God who chose Mary to be the mother of God and Joseph to be the adopted father of Jesus. It was God who chose to promise Simeon that he would not die until he saw the Savior of the world. And it was God who kept His promise to Simeon so that he was in the temple when Mary and Joseph brought Jesus to the temple. As always, it always begins with God.
 

Throughout the Old Testament God told His people, you and me included, what was going to happen. God continually reiterated His promises, to Abraham, to Isaac, Jacob, Moses, King David and the like. Our church year begins with Advent and the account of the beginning of God’s fulfillment of these promises. Now we can be certain, from the promises and from the fulfillment that Jesus us who He says He is. Jesus is God in flesh. Jesus is the Messiah, the Savior of the world, the one promised in the Garden of Eden. Jesus is God and God with power. Indeed, we can believe what God tells us in His Word. God’s Word is His Word and is a Word with power, the power to do what He says. As we begin our celebration of Jesus’ birth, may we do so in all faith and confidence that this was ordained and accomplished according to God’s good and gracious will and so is efficacious for our salvation. To Him be the glory, for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

The Angel and Angels to the Shepherds - Christmas Eve - December 24, 2012 - Text: Luke 2:8-20

The angels became very prominent in the work of the Lord at the time of the birth of Jesus. Three weeks ago we talked about the angel that God sent to announce to Zachariah the birth of the one who would prepare the way for Jesus, John the Baptist. Two weeks ago we talked about the angel sent from the Lord who announce to Mary that she had found favor with God and would be the mother of God. Last week we talked about the angel who was sent in a dream to reassure Joseph that it was okay to take Mary as his wife because what was conceived in her was from the Holy Spirit. This evening we move on to talk about the angel and the angels who were sent to announce the good news of Jesus’ birth to the shepherds.

Again, as we did last week, before we get to the actual announcement, let us take a moment to look at the message receiver. Our message receiver this evening is not one person, but is a group of people. Our message receivers are the shepherds who were out in the field keeping watch over their flocks by night. It is interesting that the first people who are given the good news of the birth of the Messiah are these shepherds, perhaps this is so because Jesus often refers to Himself as a shepherd and even as the Good Shepherd. And Jesus compares us to sheep. We are like sheep. We have a tendency to follow after the ways and whims of the world. And Jesus is our Good Shepherd who leads us through this earth, this valley of the shadow of death, leading us beside quiet waters and green pastures.

These shepherds were ordinary, common people. They lived their lives caring for and tending the sheep. They were always outside. They probably did not smell as nice as the next person, being out in the heat of the day and in good weather and bad. They may not have been the most educated of the world, but they certainly knew how to take care of sheep. Someone suggested that the sheep they tended may have been those used in the temple as sacrificial sheep. I think that suggestion was simply a way to, shall we say, elevate their standing, which, as we will see is not necessary. These were ordinary shepherds taking care of an ordinary flock of sheep.

Now, we turn our attention to the message giver, the angel. Our Bible narrative tells us that at first there was only one angel. This one angel first appeared with the message of the birth of Jesus. As was the case with the appearance of the angel to Zechariah, Mary, and Joseph, so here the first thing the angel does is to reassure the shepherds with a message of peace, “Fear not . . .” The angel has not come for judgment but to announce good news.

The message of the angel was the announcement of the birth of a child, a son of David, the One promised of old, even the Messiah, the Savior of the world. Yes, some four thousand years has past since God first promised to send a Messiah. Yes, some five hundred years has passed since the children of Israel were a great nation. Yes, some five hundred years have passed since any in Israel has seen or heard a prophet or any first hand message from God. And yet, there were some in Israel who continued to have faith and hope in the coming of a Messiah.

The angel gives a sign so the shepherds will be able to recognize the child about whom they are speaking. The sign is that the baby will be wrapped in, as we say, swaddling clothes, that is the baby will be wrapped in cloth and even more distinctive, the baby will be lying in a manger which is a feeding trough for animals. I believe the second part of this announcement is the more important part, because I do not believe the shepherds will find many babies lying in a feeding trough.

After the angel makes his announcement, he is joined with a great number of angels as a matter of fact our narrative tells us that he was joined by a host of angels. Now, to make sure we have the picture correct, we must look at the word “host.” This word “host” literally means an army. This was an army of angels. Why an army of angels? Because God is taking on human flesh in the birth of a baby, a helpless baby. Because Satan is alive and well, always prowling around seeking someone to devour and because Satan will do anything to destroy Jesus and God’s plan of salvation for all people, God sent His army of angels to guard and protect the baby Jesus. And this host of angels then speak these words of praise and joy, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”

The response of the shepherds to this greeting and these words of good news is that they left the sheep in the field, maybe leaving some of the shepherds behind to tend them, or maybe leaving them in some sort of night time corral, but leaving them they hurried to Bethlehem. We are not told how they searched to find the baby, but we are told they came with haste and they did find the baby as they were certainly lead by God. I would suppose that the birth of a child among relatives would be enough of a scene that they would have no trouble finding the child in the small town of Bethlehem.

They found Mary, Joseph and the baby. The found the baby laying in a manger. It was just as the angel had told them. Certainly their appearance was a surprise to Mary and Joseph. It is no wonder we are told that Mary ponder all these things, all these events and kept them in her heart. I would suggest that for the next thirty-three years and even past Jesus resurrection and ascension that Mary thought about these events and I would further suggest that the Lord comforted her in her pondering.

After the shepherds had an opportunity to greet Mary and Joseph and to pay respect to the new born Savior, they left and as they left they went out telling everyone what they had seen. What exciting good news. How could they keep any of this to themselves? They wanted everyone to know the good news they had heard, seen and witnessed. They wanted the world, or at least their little world to know that the Savior was born.

What does this mean? This means that Jesus who is God, truly God and He had to be truly God in order to be born in perfection, has now been born in human flesh. Jesus is truly human and he had to be human in order to be our substitute, in order to trade His perfect life for our imperfect sinful life.

This means that Jesus came for all people, from the lowest shepherds to the greatest, even for those we deem as the greatest, kings, monarchs and rulers. Jesus came as promised in the Garden of Eden, for all people, of all places, of all times.

This means that Jesus’ birth is a big deal. Jesus’ birth ushered in the end times. We celebrate the beginning of the end. We celebrate that we are living in the last days.

What does this mean? Again we notice this evening, it was not the shepherds who approached God. Notice also, it was not because they were blameless that God reassured them. If this statement were true, then we would naturally point to ourselves and we would be the reason that God does what He does. Because we now that we are not the prime movers, but that God is the Prime Mover, we know that it was God who chose Mary and Joseph as her husband. It was God who chose to announce the birth of His Son first to these lowly shepherds. As always, it always begins with God.

Throughout the Old Testament God told His people, you and me included, what was going to happen. Throughout the Old Testament God reiterated His promises to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, King David and the like. It was God who sent His angels to announce to Zachariah that Elisabeth would give birth to the one who would prepare the world for Jesus’ work of salvation. God said all these things would happen and now we are getting God’s fulfillment of these promises. Now we can be certain, from the promises and from the fulfillment that Jesus us who He says He is. Jesus is God. He is God with power. God’s Word is a Word with power, the power to do what He says. As we begin celebrating Jesus’ birth, may we do so in all faith and confidence that this was ordained and accomplished according to God’s good and gracious will and so is efficacious for our salvation. To Him be the glory, for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

The Angel to Joseph - Advent Mid-week 3 - December 19, 2012 - Text: Matthew 1:18-25

The angels became very prominent in the work of the Lord at the time of the birth of Jesus. Two weeks ago we talked about the angel that God sent to announce to Zachariah the birth of the one who would prepare the way for Jesus, John the Baptist. Last week we talked about the angel sent from the Lord who announce to Mary that she had found favor with God and would be the mother of God. In both of those narratives we were told that the angels name was Gabriel. This week we move on to talk about the angel who was sent in a dream to reassure Joseph that it was okay to take Mary as his wife because what was conceived in her was from the Holy Spirit. This week, for whatever reason, we are not told the angel’s name.
 

Again, as we did last week, before we get to the actual announcement, let us take a moment to look at the message receiver. And interestingly enough, this will not be the only time the angel will appear to Joseph as we will find out later. Anyway, this Joseph of our text, this man chosen to be the father of our Lord, even the father of God, that is the adoptive father of Jesus was himself from the line of David, King David. Now let me remind you that one of the prophecies concerning the coming Messiah, the Savior of the world is that He would be from the line of King David and so Joseph meets that requirement. This is important information which substantiates Jesus claim to be the Messiah.
 

Joseph was betrothed to Mary and as we said last week, that meant that he was legally her husband. Even though they had not yet consummated their arranged marriage, they were, in the eyes of the community, in the eyes of God, for all intents and purposes, married. The only way to dissolve such a betrothal would be a legal divorce.
 

And about Joseph, we know that he was a just man. He was a fair man. He always looked to do the right thing. When he found out that his wife to be, his legally betrothed wife, was pregnant, because he loved her, already, he was unwilling to have her put to shame and worse to have her stoned to death which was the punishment for adultery, so he resolved to divorce her quietly. Because they were betrothed and legally married, divorce was his only option for dissolving the betrothal arrangement.
 

Now, for the angel and the angel’s message. Over the past couple of weeks we heard how the angel appeared in person, in flesh, to each of those involved in the announcement and birth of Jesus. This evening we hear that the angel did not appear in person, but in a dream. And please do not ask me why the Lord decided to deal with Joseph in this way, because I do not know, God does not tell us and so I would presume we do not need to know. The fact is that we are told in this narrative that the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream.
 

As usual, as we have been hearing over the past couple of weeks, the first thing the angel announces to Joseph is words of comfort and a declaration of peace, to not fear. The angel explains to Joseph that Mary’s pregnancy is not because she has been promiscuous, not because she has committed adultery, but because she has been chosen by God to be the mother of the Messiah. Mary has become pregnant by the power of God, by the Holy Spirit. And she has willingly and humbly agreed to take on that responsibility.
 

Further, the angel announced to Joseph the babies name, that is that this baby will be named Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins. His name will be Emmanuel which means that God is with us. The angel gives this name to Joseph because he is the one who will be naming the child and in so doing, in naming the child he will be claiming the child as his own, adopting him to be his own son. In giving Jesus the name Emmanuel he will be stating the fact that God has come down, has intervened in human history, that God has taken on flesh and blood so that this child is truly human, born of the woman Mary, and truly divine, conceived by the Holy Spirit. This child will be our substitute and will defeat sin, death and the devil.
 

And as God’s Word always does what it say, the events happened just ast the angel announced. The prophecy of God through the angel was fulfilled. The virgin Mary did conceive, by the power of the Holy Spirit who overshadowed her. The child conceived in Mary’s womb was truly human, conceived of the woman, and truly God, conceived by the Holy Spirit, God Himself.
 

The child was born and the child was given the name, Immanuel, which means God with us. Just as God had promised, since the Garden of Eden; just as God reiterated to Abraham, to Isaac, to Jacob, to Moses, to King David, all through Israelite history, God is breaking into human history to undo what Adam and Eve did in the Garden of Eden. God is intervening to do what humanity could not do, restore our relationship with God Himself.
 

The child is true God taking on human flesh. Jesus is one hundred percent God and one hundred percent human. No other person has ever or will ever be who Jesus is, just as God Himself promised.
 

The result of the action of the angel appearing to Joseph in the dream is that after Joseph awoke, he believed what he saw in his dream, and he obeyed the words of God given to him through the angel in the dream. Joseph took Mary as his wife, yet he did not have any relations with her until after the baby was born. Interestingly enough, God provided that Mary and Joseph should go to Bethlehem to register for the taxes which took them out of their small town and out of the gossip that may be been going around concerning those who did not know God’s plan for Mary and Joseph and may have intended to bring harm to Mary and her child.
 

Joseph cared for Mary his wife as he did for Jesus his adopted son. He provide a house and a home for Mary and Jesus. He labored to provide for food and clothing, just as any good father would. He love Mary and indeed they had other children as the Lord blessed them.
 

And Joseph adopted Jesus as his own son by naming Him. By giving Jesus the name the angel told him to give Him, Jesus announcing that this was his child.
 

What does this mean? Again we notice this evening, it was not Joseph who approached God. Notice also, it was not because he was blameless that God reassured him. If this statement were true, then we would naturally point to ourselves and we would be the reason that God does what He does. Because we now that we are not the prime movers, but that God is the Prime Mover, we know that it was God who chose Mary and now Joseph as her husband. It was God who chose to reassure him in a dream. It was God who chose Joseph for the awesome duty to be the father, albeit the adoptive father of Jesus. It was God who chose to send His unnamed angel to bring him the message of the coming events. As always, it always begins with God.
 

Throughout the Old Testament God told His people, you and me included, what was going to happen. Now we are getting God’s fulfillment of these promises. Now we can be certain, from the promises and from the fulfillment that Jesus is who He says He is. Jesus is God in flesh. Jesus is God who is a God with power. God’s Word is a Word with power, the power to do what He says. As we continue our preparation to celebrate Jesus’ birth, may we do so in all faith and confidence that this was ordained and accomplished according to God’s good and gracious will and so is efficacious for our salvation. To Him be the glory, for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

The Angel to Mary - Advent Mid-week 2 - December 12, 2012 - Text: Luke 1:26-38

As we outlined last week as we began this series on the work of the angels, the angels became very prominent in the work of the Lord at the time of the birth of Jesus. Last week we took up the announcement by the angel that God sent to announce to Zachariah the birth of the one who would prepare the way for Jesus, John the Baptist. This evening we take up the announcement of the angel sent from the Lord to Mary that she had found favor with God and would be the mother of God.
 

Again, as we did last week, before we get to the actual announcement, let us take a moment to look at the message receiver. The one to whom the angel was to announce was Mary, the woman who would be the mother of God Himself, God in flesh. About Mary we know that she was a virgin, a young woman who had never been with a man. She was single and not married. She was young, perhaps between the ages of 13-16. And we are told that she had found favor with God. way we might look at this finding favor is that we might infer that this favor with God was something like the fact that we were told last week that Zachariah and Elizabeth were blameless. The implication is that Mary was a good girl.
 

We also know that she was betrothed, that is she was engaged to be married. Yet, we need to understand that this betrothal was not exactly like our engagement today. To be betrothed meant that the couple was actually married, yet they were not yet living in the same house, nor had they consummated the marriage. This betrothal also meant that if the couple, or better said, if the husband did not desire to be married, the couple would actually have to have a legal divorce to separate the betrothal. So, unlike our engagement, betrothal was legally binding.
 

Mary was betrothed, legally married to Joseph, thus Joseph was her husband. Joseph was of the line of David, the kingly line of David. This information is important to know, because this substantiates the claim of Jesus Messiahship, that He was born of the line of King David.
 

Now, as for the angel, the messenger who was sent to Mary, to announce God’s message to her, we are told that the angels name was Gabriel. Now, I do not know too much about angels, how many angels are named Gabriel, but I would suppose that this angel Gabriel is the same angel Gabriel that was sent to Zechariah.
 

As the angel approaches Mary he greets her. His greetings is an announcement that she has found favor with God. We previously inferred that this greeting may have meant that she was a good girl. Another way to understand these words is that it is Mary who is being given favor. It is not Mary who is giving God favor by her actions. There is an artistic relief in one of the hospitals in Corpus Christi which depicts the angel Gabriel kneeling before Mary and kissing her hand. I really do not see that depicted in this text. It is not Mary who is the prime actor in this text, rather it is God who sends His angel Gabriel who is the prime mover.
 

Gabriel’s words are words of peace, “Do not be afraid;” words of encouragement, “you have found favor with God, or you are being given favor from God;” and words of instruction, “you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”
 

Again, as last week, we have some words of exchange in response to the appearance, greeting and announcement of the angel. Mary asks a question concerning the birth of this child, but unlike Zechariah’s question which was a question stemming from skepticism and doubt, after all he was old and had been praying for a child for many years, Mary’s question was not a question of doubt, but was a question of, shall we say, “mechanics.” Mary knew how children were conceived and so, being a virgin, being betrothed and not yet having consummated the marriage, she was simply asking how the angels announcement would come about.
 

The angel explains to Mary that what will happen will happen by the power of God. Mary will become pregnant, but not in the usual way. God the Holy Spirit will, to use the words of our text, “come upon [her], and the power of the Most High will overshadow [her].” Thus, the child will be truly God, conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit, and truly man, truly human, born of the human woman, Mary.
 

Now, even though Mary’s question was not a question of doubt and did not ask for any proof if you will, just as the angel provided proof for Zachariah, so he provided proof for Mary as well. As “proof” of God’s power and the validity of these events the angel points to Mary’s cousin, Elizabeth who was thought to be barren and beyond child bearing years yet now, by the power of God she is indeed pregnant. As a matter of fact she is six months pregnant according to the angel.
 

Gabriel’s words to Mary are indeed words to us and words for us to remember, especially when we think that something is impossible. As the angel tells Mary, all of these events will take place because “nothing will be impossible with God.” It is God who is in control. It is God who is in charge. It is God who is the prime mover. God has promised that these events will take place and He is now moving these events into happening.
 

Mary’s response is that she concedes and consents to what the angel has said and what God has proposed and is giving to her. She consents to be the handmaiden of God. Obviously she has no idea of what she is doing, what she is getting into, or what will happen and where all this will lead, but, by the power of God, by the moving of the Holy Spirit in her heart, mind and life, she consents to being the mother of God.
 

Mary, chosen by God, impregnated by the Holy Spirit, betrothed to Joseph, a man of honor, is fulfilling God’s promise to send a Messiah, Jesus, Christ the Savior who would be born in nine months, according to the usual, earthy way in which children are born.
 

What does this mean? One thing I hope you noticed again this evening like last week is that it was not Mary who approached God. It was not because she was blameless that God chose her. Again, if both of these statements were true, then we would naturally point to ourselves and we would be the reason that God does what He does. Because we know that we are not the prime movers, but that God is the Prime Mover, we know that it was God who chose Mary. It was God who chose her to fulfill His promises of old. It was God who chose to send His angel, Gabriel to bring her the message of the coming events. As always, it always begins with God.
 

Throughout the Old Testament God told His people, you and me included, what was going to happen. Now we are getting God’s fulfillment of these promises. Now we can be certain, from the promises and from the fulfillment that Jesus us who He says He is. God is a God with power. God’s Word is a Word with power, the power to do what He says. As we continue our preparation to celebrate Jesus’ birth, may we do so in all faith and confidence that this was ordained and accomplished according to God’s good and gracious will and so is efficacious for our salvation. To Him be the glory, for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

The Angel to Zachariah - Advent Mid-week 1 - December 5, 2012 - Text: Luke 1:5-25

The angels became very prominent in the work of the Lord at the time of the birth of Jesus. It was the angels that God sent to announce to Zachariah the birth of the one who would prepare the way for Jesus, John the Baptist. It was an angel sent from the Lord who announce to Mary that she had found favor with God and would be the mother of God. It was an angel who was sent in a dream to reassure Joseph that it was okay to take Mary as his wife because what was conceived in her was from the Holy Spirit. It was an angel and a multitude or rather a host of angels who announced to the Shepherds that Jesus was born. It was an angel that announced to Simeon that he would see the Christ. And it was an angel that warned Joseph to leave Nazareth to go to Egypt for the child’s protection. Angels played a prominent role in the Christmas story and so this year during the season of Advent and Christmas we will take the time to look at the role the angles played and how they were indeed God’s angels, God’s messengers. This evening we take up the angels announcement to Zechariah.
 

Before we get to the messenger and the message, let us take a moment to talk about the message receiver. The message receiver was Zechariah. Zechariah was a priest of the division of Abijah. He was from the line of Jacob’s son, Levi, the tribe set apart to be the priests in the temple of the Lord. For all intents and purposes, he was a regular Israelite. He was a priest and he served God in the temple.
 

Zechariah and his wife, Elizabeth, we are told from the text, were blameless and at the same time they were barren, which really does not seem to make sense, at least when we understand that in the culture of the day that, to be barren was considered to be a curse from God. So, how could a blameless couple be barren? Of course, we are looking back and we know how these events have panned out and we know that God’s timing is always perfect timing. Elizabeth was barren until the right time, which is the time for the birth of the way preparer for Jesus, John the Baptist. And so, Elizabeth was blameless, which, let me say, was not the reason she was chosen by God. She was chosen, as we all are chosen, by God’s pure grace. Elizabeth was blameless and not cursed, but was blessed according to God’s time with the child, John.
 

As for Zechariah, again he was chosen to serve in the temple on this particular day. He was chosen in the usual way, that is by lot, probably the urim and thummim, the two stones the priest carried for decision making so that indeed he was chosen by God, through the instrument of the urim and thummim to serve at this particular time. Make no mistake, all of these proceedings were directed by the very hand of God.
 

Now, for the angel and his message. Zechariah had been prepared for his service, to attend to the duty of the Holy of Holies, the most holy place. He went through the necessary and prescribe ceremonial preparations so that he might be ritually clean while performing his duty on behalf of the people. And the people were prepared as they prayed while he served. This service was the once a year service that God ordained for service in the temple.
 

While Zechariah was on duty, serving in the most Holy Place, the angel, sent from God,  appeared to him and his first inclination was fear. Which, humanly speaking, makes sense. If I actually saw an angel, and I do believe that there are angels all around us protecting us, I believe we would also be afraid.
 

The angel spoke to Zechariah and the very first words he announced were words of peace, “Do not be afraid.” He knew Zechariah’s fear and thus began by easing his fear with these words of peace. He went on to announce the birth of a son to Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth. He announced that the name of his son would be John. And he announced what would be John’s service, to prepare the way for the Messiah.
 

Upon hearing the news, the good news of the angel, the announcement of a child to him and Elizabeth, a child they had been praying for, for so many years, Zechariah relaxed and questioned the angel. Zechariah asked, “How shall I know this is true?” His question was a question of doubt. He did not believe the angel and so he wanted proof from the angel. This questioning we will see is different from when Mary asked the angel a question, later.
 

For proof, the angel tells Zechariah that his name is Gabriel and that he is a messenger from God. He explains that he has been sent by God Himself, meaning that Gabriel is not speaking on his own behalf, but on behalf of God, so these words are not his words but God’s Word and if any Word is a Word that is faithful and true, it is God’s Word.
 

As a sign of proof to Zechariah, Gabriel announces that he will have a lack of speech until the child is born. This is the sign to Zechariah, but will also serve as a sign to all the people who had gathered.
 

And so it was. Zechariah was unable to speak. He completed his work in the temple, which took longer than usual because of his encounter with the angel. And everyone knew that something had happened to Zechariah while he was on duty because they could see it in his face. And they soon discovered that he had seen an angel and had been given an important message. And that he was unable to speak the message. Evidently he had to write out all he wanted to say, at least until the time of the birth of John and Zechariah’s confirmation of his name as John.
 

We are not told exactly what happened following Zechariah’s time of service except that he returned home and that God had removed the reproach of Elizabeth. Certainly for the next nine months he communicated with his wife, through writing, all that had happened in the temple. Certainly he explained to Elizabeth that their son would be named John, John the Baptist and that he would be a special person, even a prophet.
 

Finally, even if Zechariah could not fully explain to Elizabeth and to all the people how their son, John would prepare the way for the Messiah, Jesus, the one for whom they have been waiting for so many years while he remained speechless, after his mouth was opened he most certainly communicated this message to all that would hear.
 

What does this mean? One thing I hope you noticed this evening, it was not Zechariah who approached God, nor was it Elizabeth, although we are told they did bring their prayers before the Lord concerning their desire to have a child. Notice also, it was not because they were blameless that God answered their prayers. If both of these statements were true, then we would naturally point to ourselves and we would be the reason that God does what He does. Because we now that we are not the prime movers, but that God is the Prime Mover, we know that it was God who chose Zechariah and Elizabeth. It was God who chose to answer their prayer. It was God who chose Zechariah to be on duty. It was God who chose to send His angel, Gabriel to bring them the message of the coming events. As always, it always begins with God.
 

Throughout the Old Testament God told His people, you and me included, what was going to happen. Now we are getting God’s fulfillment of these promises. Now we can be certain, from the promises and from the fulfillment that Jesus is who He says He is. God is a God with power. God’s Word is a Word with power, the power to do what He says. As we begin our preparation to celebrate Jesus’ birth, we do so in all faith and confidence that this was ordained and accomplished according to God’s good and gracious will and so is efficacious for our salvation. To Him be the glory, for Jesus’ sake. Amen.