Advent
Meditation
December 2nd
10.
Can it be?
Lk
1:34-38 "How will this
be," Mary asked the angel, "since I am a virgin?" The
angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power
of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will
be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have
a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her
sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God." "I am the
Lord's servant," Mary answered. "May it be to me as you have
said." Then the angel left her.
Mary
has a question. It's like she senses that the angel doesn't mean in
the future once she is married; he seems to mean now, and now has difficulties.
Now she hasn't had any sexual relations with Joseph, now she's not married.
There is a small problem about this: surely you need a man to be involved?
Some
of us who have been Christians a long time, are really too spiritual
for our own good! We know the theory of all this, we've heard the story
so many times, but it stays at a distance when it comes to applying
it to our own lives. It's so easy to read the verses above and think,
“Oh, isn't that nice, isn't that wonderful!” The trouble is that it
still stays in the realm of the impossible as far as our own lives are
concerned. That would never happen to me, I'm never going to be called
to accept something like this! Really?
You
see Christianity is, as we've said previously, all about life change.
Later on after Jesus had been born, after he had grown up and was now
teaching people and performing miracles (and the two went together with
him), he said to a leader called Nicodemus, “You must be born again”
(Jn 3:7). Now as Nicodemus acknowledged that was a human impossibility,
but when we come humbly to God, confessing our need of His love and
forgiveness, He comes and transforms us by the power of His own Holy
Spirit. What we couldn't do, He does! As the angel said to Mary, “Nothing
is impossible with God”. But this isn't just a life change when we are
‘born again', it is an ongoing life change, the New Testament teaches
us. For some of us, these life changes are as dramatic as the life change
being put before Mary. God's purpose for Mary was to bring His own Son
into the world through her body. God's purpose for you and me is exactly
the same! Yes it is. it's not to bring a baby out of your body, but
it is to bring Jesus into the world through you. That is His ultimate
purpose. We're told that in the New Testament: “we…are being transformed
into his (Jesus') likeness” (2 Cor 3:18.
See also Eph 3:16-19)
Yes,
amazing isn't it. Mary was called to become a vessel to bring the Son
of God into being on the earth. Today God calls us into relationship
with Him, so that we may be called ‘children of God' (Jn 1:12,13),
sons of God (Gal 3:26),
being changed into Jesus' likeness (Rom 8:29,
1 Cor 15:49).
That is God's wonderful ultimate goal for you – for you to enter into
this life-long, life-changing process. Now look at Mary's response.
She may not understand how this can be but she responds, "May
it be to me as you have said."
There's
a lot more to come in this Christmas story but here is the challenge
from the Lord: will you respond to Him in the same way, willing to let
Him bring this staggering life change we've been talking about? Can
it be? May it be!
If
you wish to e-mail us any comment on this meditation please click here
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tony.thomas@rochfordcc.co.uk
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