Promises Kept

Monday December 22, 2014

In the 2013 film Man of Steel, young Clark Kent used his super-human strength to save a busload of fellow students from drowning in a river. Clark´s father, who believed the world wasn´t prepared to accept his supernatural son, urged Clark to keep his great strength a secret. He explained to him, "When the world finds out what you can do, it´s going to change everything - our beliefs, our nations of what it means to be human - everything!"

Watching that scene made me wonder if Joseph, Jesus' stepfather, ever had similar thoughts cross his mind about his supernatural son. I wonder if it ever occurred to him how dramatically the world was going to change when it found out who his boy truly was.

We can´t say for sure if Joseph had such thoughts, but we know Mary did. Several day after an angel broke the news to Mary that she was going to get pregnant (Luke 1:26-38), she went to visit her relative Elizabeth, who was 6 months along in her pregnancy. Luke tells us that the baby in Elizabeth´s womb "jumped for joy" at the sound of Mary´s voice (v. 44). The two women saw it as a sign that Mary was indeed pregnant with God´s child.

Overcome with joy, Mary burst out with what would become one of the most famous songs of the Bible - The Magnificat (vv. 46-55). The last line of the song acknowledges that Mary was fully aware that the child growing inside her womb was the long-awaited fulfillment of God´s promise to Abraham - one that would bless and change the whole world (Genesis 12:1-3).

One of the many things the birth of Jesus reveals is that God is faithful. To celebrate Jesus' birth is to celebrate the One who keeps His promises - Jeff Olson

Read
Luke 1:39-45
At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, where she entered Zechariah´s home and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary´s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. In a loud voice she exclaimed : "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!"

Luke 1:68-70
" Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,
because he has come and has redeemed his people.
He has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of his servant David
(as he said through his hoy prophets of long ago)"

Question to Ponder
What are some promises God has kept that  you can celebrate=
How has His faithfulness been revealed in your life?

** Article taken from ODJ (Our Daily Journey with God) Dec 2014 - Feb 2015 issue