Month: December 2022

Luke 1:26-35, GNT

The story of the announcement of the birth of Jesus began in verses 26-27 when God sent the angel Gabriel to a town in Galilee named Nazareth with a message for a young woman named Mary. Mary was promised in marriage to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. According to Jewish tradition and law, this was the first stage of marriage. Even though she continued to live with her parents for about a year, she was referred to as a “wife.” The agreement was legally binding and could only be nullified by a divorce.

The angel came to her and said, “Peace be with you!” The angel prophesied, telling her that she is highly favored, the Lord is with her, and she is blessed among women (v.28, KJV)! The angel’s message troubled Mary greatly, and she wondered what his words meant (v.29). No doubt the angel saw that she was visibly shaken so he spoke to calm her fears. He told her to not be afraid because God has been gracious to her (v.30). The angel delivered God’s message: “You will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus (v.31). He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High God. The Lord God will make him a king, as his ancestor David was (v.32), and he will be the king of the descendants of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end (v.33)!”

Mary said to the angel, “I am a virgin. How, then, can this be (v.34)?”

The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and God’s power will rest upon you. For this reason the holy (sinless) child will be called the Son of God” (v.35).

Thank God for sending His angel to announce the miraculous birth of our Savior! Give Him praise and a hand clap for Mary; she yielded herself to the Spirit of God.

In Psalm 103 David wrote of God’s great love for us. He has done so much for us, and we don’t deserve it. David expressed the relationship between God and us as that of a father and his children. He said, “The Lord is like a father to his children, tender and compassionate to those who fear him” (v.13). As our creator, God made man from the dust of the earth; therefore, He knows how fragile we are (v.14). David described our days on earth as being like grass; like wildflowers, we bloom and die (v.15); the wind blows, and we are gone as though we had never been here (v.16). We must make wise use of our time while we are here because the Scripture says that all flesh will perish as though we had never been here.

The love and righteousness of our providential Father remain forever with those who fear him, and His salvation extends to the children’s children of those who are faithful to his covenant and keep His commandments (v.17-18)! David continued: “The Lord has made the heavens his throne; from there he rules over everything” (v.19). He sits high and looks low; from His holy Temple He sees what every person is doing – just or unjust. Verse 6 told us that the Lord gives righteousness and justice to all who are treated unfairly.

Praise the Lord, you angels, you mighty ones who carry out his plans, listening for each of his commands (v.20). Yes, praise the Lord, you armies of angels who serve him and do his will (v.21)! Praise the Lord for everything he has created in His kingdom (v.22). Here David closed with the command for God’s mighty hosts of angels, who carry out His charges,   to praise the Lord for everything he has created in His kingdom. Let us cease not to give God praise for the His everlasting mercy and all He has done.

Ephesians 2:8-10

When man disobeyed God, he became spiritually dead. Yet,   while man was in his fallen state, God showed how great His   love was for him. “He gave His [One and] only begotten Son, so that whoever believes and trusts in Him [as Savior] shall not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16, AMP Bible).

Paul started verse 8 stating how men are spiritually resurrected from death in sins. He told the Ephesians that it is by grace they have been saved through faith. This is God’s unmerited favor. Further Paul told them this is not their own doing; it is the gift of God. It is the manifestation of His kind and forgiving nature toward all mankind. How wonderful it would be if all accepted the free gift of salvation which only comes through faith in Christ Jesus!

Verse 9 stressed that none of this is the result of works by the hands of man so that no one may boast or take credit in any way for his salvation. Man’s attempt to keep the law demands work. This is legalistic and useless; Scripture condemns it: “Yet we know that a person is justified not by the works of the law but through the faith of Jesus Christ.And we have come to believe in Christ Jesus, so that we might be justified by the faith of Christ and not by doing the works of the law, because no one will be justified by the works of the law” (Galatians 2:16).

“For we are what he has made us. The Amplified Version declares “we are His own master work, a work of art,” created in Christ Jesus. Yes, God prepared good works for us beforehand so when we become spiritually resurrected, we may walk in them (v.10). Children of God are created to be used for His purpose. We don’t plan our paths; God does. We are to live according to His will, and trust Him to lead us in the way He’d have us to go. Give Him praise for grace has made you alive in Christ through faith!  

Ephesians 2:1-10

This passage began with Apostle Paul telling the Ephesians   that Christ “made you alive who were dead in trespasses and sins” (v.1). When we walk according to the ways of this world, we are spiritually dead. The spiritually dead follows the ways of the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience (v.2). Just as the others outside of Christ were once in the same dead condition so were we.  By nature we were children of wrath; we conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind (v.3).

He went on to tell the Ephesians that God, who is rich in mercy, had a great love with which He loved us (v.4). Even when we were dead in trespasses, He made us alive together in Christ; by grace we have been saved (v.5). He raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus (v.6). God did this so that in the ages to come, He might prove the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus (v.7).

Paul told the Ephesians that they have been saved by grace. Their salvation was through faith and not of themselves; it is the gift of God (v.8) – not of works, lest anyone should boast (v.9). For we are His workmanship; we have been created in Christ Jesus with a new nature to do the good works He prepared beforehand for us (v.10). Praise God and give Him a handclap for giving us faith and salvation. Without faith we cannot be saved. Will you commit to a new life in Christ Jesus through faith today and avoid God’s wrath?