The Angels' Christmas

The angels in heaven knew something was up. However they didn't know exactly what was going on.  They'd seen the Angel Gabriel talking to the Almighty, but they didn't know why.  Anytime Gabriel was seen having a one on One conversation with God the other angels knew something big was in the offing. They also knew that they hadn't seen the Son of God around in their precincts for a while. They weren't sure how long it was because they don't have clocks or calendars. It all seemed strange to them. However they knew that if they were supposed to know they would find out.All of a sudden one angel went running and a whole group soon took up the pace. Whatever adventure he was going on they wanted to be there and see it. All of a sudden the heavens broke open and they were in earth's atmosphere. The Angel was saying to a group of frightened shepherds on the ground,

 " Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.  For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger"

With those words immediately the other angels broke out in an ecstatic chorus  "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men." Then just as suddenly the heavens closed back up and the angels went back to their duties. "Isn't this glorious God is working with those people on earth," buzzed the news all over heaven. " I hope they realize how blessed they are," said one of the angels to another.

"No  wonder there was so much  unusual activity up here,"  excitedly said  angel Rochel.  Wow! "Just think God has gone down to earth in the form of a baby" piped in a cherubim.  "Do those earth people know who the baby really is, " questioned Marciel?  "I don't think they do, but I have a feeling that in a little while they will figure it out," said  Petel as he picked up his harp and walked down the golden street.

While the quoted Scripture is true, the rest of  the above conversations are pure fantasy based

 on nothing more than an active imagination.

Mary's Confidential - Keeping it 100 in Private!

In 2025 Social Media is awash with people sharing their personal feelings, and grievances. There seems to be the blurring of boundaries of what should be for public consumption and what should be withheld for private consideration. As I reflected on this spilling of all things into the atmosphere with the goal of keeping it I thought back to a young woman who lived over 2,000 years ago.

Mary, the earthly mother of Jesus, really had  a lot about which she could talk. She was the recipient of mysteries which we still do not understand.  An unexpected startling visit from an Angelic Messenger turned Mary's world upside down.  The incongruity of her being a virgin and  being pregnant  must have baffled her young mind.  The fact that Joseph had serious questions about marrying her at all after she told him this strange news worried her. Mary knew the law.  A woman pledged to be married could be stoned to death for a breach of the marriage contract. Undoubtedly she could say a whole lot about her situation. 

History does not report Mary running hither and yon with news for all to hear. She never jumped to defend herself from the gossip that inevitably occurred in her small town.  Some scholars report that a Roman military detachment had occupied the town for a few months. As her pregnancy advanced the town gossips got busy. They spread tales that Mary was the soon to be a Baby Mama of one of those handsome young men.  All the while Mary held her peace and hid these sacred revelations in her heart. 

Mary shows us that there are some things that are worth keeping to ourselves. Ruminants, like cows,  take in their food and then switch it from one stomach to another  where it undergoes important alterations. This process causes the initial substance to transform until it is ready for use outside of its body. The final product from the cow is milk from which we get cream,  ingredients to make butter and other useful items. All of these changes take place hidden from human eyes. When the time comes the product makes its appearance. 

I wonder how much richer our lives would be if we emulated Mary by pondering more and talking less about some of our experiences.  It might benefit us to let things ruminate in our systems before sharing them with others, if at all. Obviously Mary shared  her experiences at some point or we would never know she hid them in the first place. During this Advent season and going into the New Year will you join me as I try to be more like Mary in doing more introspection and saying less?   Let's remember everything is not for public consumption. 

But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.

Luke 2:19

A Very Important Delivery is on Its Way!

Today I‘m anticipating the arrival of an important package. FedEx and other package delivery services have gotten smart. Instead of having millions of people clogging the phone lines to inquire about deliveries they have instituted a system to track individual packages. The customer enters a Tracking Number on the company’s website. The customer then receives a digital read out of where the package is in the system on its journey.

As I thought about this, the thought came to me that this is just what God did when it came to Jesus, the Messiah’s birth. In the Book of Genesis God started notating the purpose and  process by which the Messiah would come. Each Book of the Bible and each prophetic utterance points to Christ on His journey from heaven to earth. 

After the crucifixion and resurrection Jesus walked on the Road to Emmaus. Jesus was traveling incognito. Jesus joined up with two men and asked the topic of their conversation. The two men  expressed surprise that this stranger walking with them did not know about the burning issue of the moment  which was the death of a man everyone thought was  the Messiah.  As they walked  and talked together Jesus taught them something profound. “27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.”  Luke 24:27

Each prophecy and story provides the pieces to ensure that when the Messiah appeared  in the New Testament that Jesus was the only one who met all of the criteria or stopped at those different transfer points.  God’s tracking of His  Divine Gift,  to earth is proof of the reason for this season.   This is simply amazing. Jesus Christ, the Messiah did not miss one point on the route to the Manger Scene in Bethlehem. 

There is a great verse in the Bible in Galatians 4:4-5  But when the time arrived that was set by God the Father, God sent his Son, born among us of a woman, born under the conditions of the law so that he might redeem those of us who have been kidnapped by the law. (Message Bible) 

It’s the same when one prays a prayer. I imagine the prayer gets a time stamp on it as soon as it reaches heaven. Then it starts the  tracking process to whatever the answer is going to be.

Yes FedEx, UPS and the USPS can track your package too. However the very first and best Tracking System can be found right between the covers of the Bible starting in the Book of Genesis.  

Surprise! Your Wife is Going to Have a Baby.

 

God's Messenger the angel Gabriel suddenly appeared to Zechariah with the astounding words that his prayers had been answered.  “Wait a minute, hold up angel,” said a stunned Zechariah as he stood shaking and staring at the angel standing beside the altar of incense.  “What prayer,” he stammered?  “You know the one when you asked God for a child,” replied the angel. “I prayed that prayer for a child over 40 years ago,” countered Zechariah.  “I don’t know how it can be answered now, he continued.”  “I’m old and my wife Elizabeth is way past menopause,” he said.  “We gave up the dream of a child decades ago,” he softly mused.  “I, well I’m just not the young man I used to be either,” mumbled a bewildered, Zechariah

For decades Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth lived with the disappointment of not being able to have a child.  The aching arms and empty womb gave way to a plaintive resignation that parenthood would not be a part of their lives. The years of praying and pleading for a little one of their own had ended. Zechariah and Elizabeth adjusted to a childless home. They endured the nosy  questions about when was Elizabeth going to have a baby. Elizabeth tried to avoid the pitying looks of the other women as they cradled their newborns. Zechariah and her were well aware that like the old patriarch Job, their friends, whispered that they must have some secret sins and were being punished by not having a child. However Elizabeth knew that her husband was honest and ethical. Her own heart bore her witness that she was following all of God’s laws.  Long ago she decided to love Jehovah no matter what anyone said.

Meanwhile, over the years Zechariah took his turn in the temple offering sacrifices as prescribed in the law. Now in his senior years he had the less strenuous job given to older priests to keep the incense burning. Zechariah counted it a privilege to not let the light go out in the temple and the burning of the incense. He lived a righteous life and enjoyed being faithful in his service in the temple. Now here’s this angel at his workplace upsetting his retirement plans.

Gabriel introduced himself. “I came from heaven, right from God’s presence to bring you great news,” he continued.  “You know you’re the first priest God has spoken to on earth in four hundred years,” he explained.  “Since you wouldn’t accept the news that your wife is going to have the baby who’s going to announce the Messiah is coming, I tell you what, I’ll give you a time of silence,” he said with nary a touch of irritation in his voice.  “You are not going to be able to speak until this child is born,” he announced.  With that the Angel Gabriel left the astonished priest standing at the altar.

But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zechariah: for thy 

prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee 

a son, and thou shalt call his name John

Luke 1:13

That day Zechariah learned day that prayers prayed to God never expire. 

You can read the Rest of the Story in the Bible  Book Luke 

Chapter 1, but here is a little portion of the Scripture from 

Luke 1.

57 When it was time for Elizabeth to have her baby, she gave birth to a son. 58 Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown her great mercy, and they shared her joy.

59 On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to name him after his father Zechariah, 60 but his mother spoke up and said, “No! He is to be called John.”

61 They said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who has that name.”

62 Then they made signs to his father, to find out what he would like to name the child.

 63 He asked for a writing tablet, and to everyone’s astonishment he wrote, “His name is John.” 64 Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue set free, and he began to speak, praising God. 

Are You Sure You're in the Right Family?

What do two prostitutes, a woman from a banned tribe, and the widow of a murdered soldier have to do with the Christmas story? Well it turns out a lot. Without these four women there would be no story. That serene looking Nativity scene of Joseph, Mary and Jesus in a cow stall  was preceded by centuries of mayhem and mess. 

First there is Tamar. She is the widowed wife of the Patriarch Jacob's grandsons. After her first two husbands died, that’s a whole other story, she was still desperate for a baby. Her errant  widowed father-in-law, Judah, wanted some “female company.” Knowing that Judah was coming into town Tamar dressed up as a prostitute and laid a trap for him. He fell into it. She became pregnant and gave birth to his twin grandchildren or his own children. Whatever, whoever they were, it was messy. Nevertheless those children ended up in the line of the Messiah. Yes  Tamar was a pretend prostitute, but she got a mention in the Messianic line. The Bible does not deny it. It’s a mess, but some lives 

are messy.1 

Then there is a practicing  prostitute in Jericho.  Her name is Rahab. She aided and abetted two 

spies doing espionage for the nascent Nation of Israel.  When the king  of Jericho found out there were spies in the land he sent soldiers to look for them at Rahab’s house.2 This was all before phones, social media and electronics. News got around quick in those days too. However Rahab had lots of experience in hiding men. After all there was  probably a husband or two who’d been caught sneak-ing into her premises.  Believe me that rope she had in her house used to slip the spies over the  Jericho wall was not purchased that day. 

Being a good business woman she made a contract with the spies to spare her and her family’s life when they conquered the city. After the fall of the Jericho walls and the capture of the city Rahab reformed her ways. A Hebrew man fell  in love with her quicker  than the walls collapsed. His name was Salmon, no relationship to the Chinook. Salmon and Rahab had a son named Boaz. Boaz had a son named Obed. He had a son named Jesse who had a son named  David who had a son name Solomon. You get my drift. Rahab  made her way into the Messianic line. The Word of God doesn’t glorify the profession of prostitution. It also doesn’t hide that some of the people that God chose and chooses to use have some unsavory backgrounds.

Speaking of unsavory, in comes Ruth.  She is  from the  pagan tribe of Moab. Now the backstory on her lineage is disgusting. The Moabites were the result of an incestuous relationship that  a drunken Lot, Abraham's nephew,  unknowingly had with one of his daughters. The result was the tribe of Moab. 

Through marriage Ruth became acquainted with the living and true God. Her widowed mother-in-law Naomi's two sons also died, one of whom was Ruth’s husband. Naomi decided to return to Israel. Ruth declared her belief in God and undying love for Naomi. Her decision led her to a new husband, Boaz. They became the parents of Obed and subsequently the great-grandparents of King David. 4

What can I say about Bathsheba?  She is never referred to as the wife of  David but as Urijah’s wife. Urijah was the loyal soldier in the King’s army. David killed him to try and hide the adulterous affair he had with Urijah’s wife.  God didn’t like what David did. David 's transgressions brought a heap of trouble on David and his family.  Nevertheless, God allowed Bathsheba to be in the Messianic line.

Now you like me might be asking what kind of God doesn’t mention all the upstanding righteous women in the Messianic line? Why are these particular women with their unseemly stories given a spot in the New Testament Scriptures. I think it is to showcase several things about God. First it demonstrates God’s sovereignty.  In other words God is in charge. There is no scrap of information about our lives God does not know. God can pick up those  fragments, the loose threads of our own story and weave them into His comprehensive plan. 

Secondly, I think it shows that God has always been compassionate. Unlike us, when a person messes up and is repentant,  God does not toss  the person away as irredeemable and of no value. God weaves the  errors and their mistakes into His plan. Third, I think its to give me, to give you and to give us hope. If God can take the train wrecks and sordid stories of the lives of these women and welcome them into the Messianic line, surely God will take me into His family. 

I have plenty of flaws and mistakes. This God who forgave them will surely forgive me too. It’s not because I deserve God’s forgiveness.  It’s because God is love and compassionate. Four women point the way and are proof of God’s eternal love and that the God does not show partiality when it comes to being inclusive in His Family. Merry Christmas and I hope you’ll join the Family of God.  We may be a mess, but we are God’s “mess”  and God loves us.5

1. Genesis 38

2.  Joshua 2:1-2

3.  Deuteronomy 23:3

4. Ruth 4:20-22

5. Acts 10:34

Help! We're Not Ready and the Baby is Coming!

Last Installment

Joseph knew he had married a special woman when Mary didn't immediately start to complain about  what was lacking in the stable. She took the quilts she  brought with her and laid them carefully over  the floor which she had carefully swept. She asked Joseph if he wouldn't mind getting some more  water in the skins they used on their journey. They had enough food for several days. Mary was content because she didn't have to face the quizzical stares and hushed tones of gossipy women in this new place like she had in Nazareth.

On the fifth afternoon of arriving Mary looked at Joseph and said, "It looks like I am going to have this child this afternoon."  Joseph started timing Mary's contractions. An hour or two went by with contractions every fifteen minutes. Joseph knew that he was going to have to help with this childbirth. He'd already learned that the town's two midwives had gone with their husbands to their birthplaces for the census. If he'd been in Nazareth Mary's mother or one of townswomen would have stepped in to help. He looked around the stable. There were some fairly clean looking milk rags that were drying over one of corrals in the stable. He took some straw, the cleanest he could find, and placed it into a pile.

As the hours went on Mary's contractions got closer. Joseph knew when they got to three minutes apart that it would not be much longer until the baby came. The most he could do for Mary was to encourage her as she endured the intense labor pains. Finally she gave one final push and the little fellow made his appearance into the world. Joseph tied the umbilical cord and used the sharpest tool he had to cut it. He took some of the water and washed the newborn. Joseph wrapped the tiny baby up and  placed him in Mary's arms. She nursed the new born. Following  Mary's careful instructions he carefully placed the newborn in the straw in the manger.

Mary, sighed, "I am so exhausted as she laid back on her pallet on the dirt floor. She drifted off to sleep. She had been asleep for a few hours. The sounds of several voices woke her out of her much needed rest. She saw some shadowy figures staring into the manger's door. " Whose that," she whispered to Joseph. He'd been trying to get these shepherds to lower their voices so as not to wake the baby or Mary. "He cleared his throat and said,"Well these are shepherds from outside of town"
They have the most fantastical story I've ever heard, he exclaimed. "Come closer he told them," as he moved them towards Mary. "Tell her what you just told me,"he urged them.

The amazed shepherds told of the visit by the angel and the sight of thousands of angels saying Glory to God, They related that they'd been told that God had sent Peace on Earth through a baby born in Bethlehem. They'd followed the angel's instructions on how to find the babe in Bethlehem.  They'd  come to worship the baby Emmanuel*. Their excitement knew no bounds. They scurried away to tell everyone they knew about the most unusual night of their lives.

Mary and Joseph looked at each other in wonderment. They were in the no star hotel manger with the best and brightest gift from God to the earth.

Now  Dear Reader; The question I have for you is, will you be as inquisitive as the shepherds and seek this Babe, the Son of God, Emmanuel, for yourself?

Some of the Greatest Gifts from God  may come

 wrapped in the most unlikely circumstances and surroundings. 

Based on the Advent Story in Luke 1 and Matthew 2 and 3

* Emmanuel means God with us

Well, It's Not Exactly the Hilton

Fourth

After an exhausting week’s long journey over very difficult terrain Mary and Joseph arrived in Bethlehem in the middle of the day.  Dusty and tired Joseph set out to secure lodgings leaving Mary to rest by the town's well. He knew that he’d have to pay to stay in the town's inn because  all of his family had left Bethlehem many years ago. He didn’t know a soul in the town.  As Joseph went to the inn he was hoping to rent a little room  that didn’t cost too much. He had to conserve his money so that he could pay those heavy Roman taxes. In previous years he'd experienced greedy tax collectors adding a stiff surcharge on whatever the Romans levied for taxes.  Joseph went ready to bargain hard with the Inn Keeper for a reasonable rate.

When he arrived the bedraggled keeper looked at him and shook his head. “Sorry, I’m filled up to the gills,” said the man.  “Every single space is taken,” he said.  "I even have people sleeping in the dining spaces,” he added.  As if to emphasize his point he continued,”  I even have one man sleeping in a corner in a hallway.”  “I just can’t take another person,” he added.  “My own five children are sleeping in one tiny room,” he continued.  “I don’t know what that Caesar Augustus was thinking when he ordered people to go back to their birthplaces, he whispered, less some one report him to the Romans for complaining. “What am I going to do,” asked  Joseph plaintively?  “My wife is  expecting our first child.”  “Do you know any homes  around here that are taking in people.”  “No,” said the innkeeper. “Everyone I know around here is filled to overflowing with family and strangers," he answered. There’s just no room in this town for anyone else. Joseph looked down scratching his head.

"Well I hate to suggest this," said the innkeeper sympathetically, "Seeing that your wife is expecting and all, but the only place I can offer is space in the stable."  "That’s the only space where a person can even sit down, " he said sounding embarrassed to even suggest such a wretched place.  "At least it will be out of the cool night air," he continued. "That’s all I have to offer," he said. "If you don''t take that I'm pretty sure that it will be snatched up if anyone else comes to town looking for a spot," said the harried innkeeper. 

Knowing he was in a predicament,  Joseph agreed on a meager price for the smelly stable. A disappointed Joseph went back to get his weary wife. "Mary, I have some bad news," he told her dejectedly.  He explained to her that there was absolutely no where decent to stay in the town. "Every room in the inn and every house is filled with people like us who had to come back to be taxed," said Joseph.  "Well it's a space and at this point we just have to do what we need to do," she said as she stood up. "Maybe something else will open up in a few days, said a hopeful Mary."  

Luke 2:7

And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.

Lesson: Doing the right thing  and being in the will of God doesn't mean everything will be comfortable all of the time.  Sometimes you just have to endure discomfort to get to your goal.