Luke 1, con't

The same angel, Gabriel, came to Mary to let her know she was also going to conceive. Mary questioned the angel - out of awe - for she was a virgin. Her question was not a question of disbelief so Gabriel did not rebuke her like he did Zacharias.

An unwed mother, back in the day, would be accused of adultery, a sin that could be punished with stoning. So her response to the angel is extraordinary! "And Mary said, 'Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word.'" v. 38

An interesting think I learned in this chapter. Mary went to see Elizabeth while Elizabeth was in her 6th month. Mary stayed 3 months, which means Mary was there for the birth of John! Very cool.

Of course, when Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, her baby leaped in her womb, a verse I never get tired of hearing. But what I had missed before, was that Elizabeth was also filled with the Holy Spirit and knew Mary's condition before Mary even told her. "And she cried out with a loud voice and said,' Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And how has it happened to me, that the mother of my Lord would come to me? For behold, when the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby leaped in my womb for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what had been spoken to her by the Lord.'" v.42-45

And so it went, in the Shadow of the Cross.

Luke 1

This is a very long chapter. I'm going to take it in two parts.

It starts with meeting John's (the Baptist) parents and Mary and ends with seeing that John was growing to a man. In chapter 2, Luke regresses back to when Mary is about to give birth. I guess because Chapter 2 is the Christmas story, I never really paid much attention to Chapter 1, John's parents, Zacharias and Elizabeth, and the detail of John's birth. Luke is very specific.

Zacharias was a priest and at this particular moment was given a very high priestly task. It was during the performance of this task - that the people of the temple were very aware of and watching - that the angel Gabriel comes to him while he is alone. His wife Elizabeth, like Sarah, was very advanced in years and without a child. Gabriel was there to let him know that his wife was going to be pregnant.

"Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your petition has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will give him the name John. You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth. For he will be great in the sight of the Lord;...he will be filled with the Holy Spirit while yet in his mother's womb. And he will turn many of the sons of Israel back to the Lord their God. It is he who will go as a forerunner before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children..." v. 13-17

John, like Elijah, would take a bold and uncompromising stand of the Word of God. Also note, that John was filled with the Holy Spirit while in Elizabeth's womb, proving God's sovereignty in salvation - not of our works.

So, after being told this, Zacharias questions the angel. Honestly, I would have...that would have been a lot to believe! The angel punishes him by taking away his speech (makes him mute) until the time Elizabeth gives birth. Wow. But God needed to bring attention to Zacharias from the people in the temple who were waiting for him. So when he emerged, unable to speak, they realized he had seen a vision. Otherwise, the incident, most likely, would not have been believed and gone unnoticed.

After the baby was born and was circumcised on the 8th day in the temple, Zacharias "asked for a tablet and wrote as follows, 'His name is John.' And they were all astonished. And at once his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed and he began to speak in praise of God. Fear came on all those living around them, and all these matters were being talked about in all the hill country of Judea. All who heard them kept them in mind, saying, 'What then will this child turn out to be?' For the hand of the Lord was certainly with him." v. 63-66

I thought it was cool that he wrote on a tablet, like in the movies. LOL

"And you child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare His ways; to give to His people the knowledge of salvation..." v. 76-77

"And the child continued to grow and to become strong in spirit, and he lived in the deserts until the day of his public appearance to Israel." v. 80

I love this dipiction of John from the movie, Godspell, from 1973. Enjoy and smile!

Luke

Dear Heavenly Father,
Bless my time in the book of Luke. Give me eyes to see and ears to hear what You have intended for me. Let me take what I glean and manifest it into my daily life to bring glory to You. I thank-you that I can call You, Abba Father! Amen

The book of Luke, was written by Luke who also wrote Acts. Both books were written to Theophilus. Luke is the only gentile author in the New Testament and I found it interesting that he quoted the least from the Old Testament and when he did go there he read from the LXX, a Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures. He uses Greek terminology over Hebrew: "The Skull" over "Golgotha", for instance.

Luke's book stays very much to the chronological order of Christ's life. Luke stresses Jesus' relentless progression toward the cross, which was the very purpose Jesus came to earth.

Romans 16

Romans ends with Paul giving acknowledgement to the people he is closest to in the church. I'm pretty sure that I have never seen this chapter...and am looking forward to getting back to the Gospels. Anyway, John MacArthur says of this chapter, " This chapter, which has almost no explicit teaching and contains several lists of mostly unknown people, is the most extensive and intimate expression of Paul's love and affection for other believers and co-workers found anywhere in his NT letters. It also provides insights into the lives of ordinary first-century Christians and gives an inside look at the nature and character of the early church."

Romans 15

Edification: to build up and strengthen.

"Each of us is to please his neighbor for his good, to his edification." v. 2
"Now may the God who gives perseverance and encouragement grant you to be of the same mind with one another according to Christ Jesus, so that with one accord you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." v. 5-6

"Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit". v.13

Amen

Romans 14

What a wonderful freedom we have in Christ. Praise Jesus that we no longer have to live under the mosaic law; we understand the freedom in Christ and realize the ceremonial requirements of the Mosaic law are no longer binding. But chapter 14 is very clear that we are not to judge those who want to stay with their ceremony and laws. We are not to judge.

I don't know if I've mentioned this in my blog before but I'm not one for ceremony or outward signs like incense or the like; but when 9-11 happened I wanted to do something more concrete than just pray...I wanted something hands on, some sort of gesture. I went to my old Methodist church - where I grew up before age 12 - and lit a candle for the victims and for this country. It seemed to bring me some peace. But really, it was the Holy Spirit meeting me where I was to offer comfort.

This hymn from my youth came to mind. Not sure why. Close your eyes and enjoy.

Romans 13

"Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. for there is not authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God." v. 1

When thinking about some of the governments in this world, that seems kind of tough because some are so horrific and ungodly. We are lucky in that our government, at least currently, hasn't made any laws that make it so we have to go against God's moral or ethical code. But what if we lived somewhere, like China - where they are forced to abort every baby after they have their first one? In Exodus 1:17 there was a similar situation: "The king of Egypt spoke to the midwives...'When you are helping the Hebrew women to give birth and see the upon the birthstool, if it is a son, then you shall put him to death; but if it is a daughter, then she shall live.' But the midwives feared God, and did not do as the king of Egypt had commanded them, but let the boys live." We are required to put God before Government and though it turned out well for these midwives, I fear it wouldn't be the same for those in China today. Something to think about.

There are four authorities, here on earth, sanctioned by God:
The government over all citizens,
The church over all believers,
The parents over all children,
and The masters over all employees.
We are also commanded to love our neighbors as ourselves. v. 9

In regards to sin, I loved this. "...put on the armor of light...put on the Lord Jesus Christ.." v. 12-14 The protection that practical righteousness provides. Very cool.

Romans 12, con't

Spiritual gifts are named here in v. 6-8. They are also mentioned in I Cor. 12:12-14. I wanted to name them here and ask you to take time to pray about what your gift/gifts might be and how you may use them in this upcoming year. You may want to google some of them to get a real feel for what it means.


Prophecy
Service
Teaching
Faith
Exhortation
Healing
Giving
Miracles
Leading
Discernment
Mercy
Tongues
Wisdom
Knowledge

I believe my gift strengths, usually, are discernment and exhortation. However, I don't really seem to be using any right now. So my prayer is that God will put me in a place or show me how to use my gifts for His Glory and for other's encouragement in the upcoming weeks and year.

Romans 12

Dear Heavenly Father,
May I start this new year with asking for Your divine help in living my life in accordance with Romans 12:9-15, "Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in love; give preference to one another in honor; not lagging behind in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope, persevering in tribulation, devoted to prayer, contributing to the needs of the saints, practicing hospitality. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep."

Being devoted to Prayer, dear Jesus, is my number one desire for a change this year. "...being transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect." v. 2
In Jesus' name,
Amen

I challenge you all. Happy New Year!