This
is the eighth of a series of blog posts with my sister Betty Haynie about what
we believe. Our thoughts are intentionally brief on subjects that could fill
volumes.
WHAT I BELIEVE ABOUT CHRISTMAS
By Betty Haynie
The Christmas season is a special time
of awe and wonder. Tune in to the miracle of life and the love of God. Enjoy
Christmas events, specials on TV and inspiring worship. Be amazed by the greatest miracle of all, the incarnation - God as a new born babe. Jesus
came as both the gift and the Giver - all wrapped up in one package.
I’ve been thinking of what it must have been like
for Mary and Joseph. Jesus’ coming had been foretold, not by physicians but by
angels. If those angels were right - and how could they not be? - Here was a
Messiah who had been the subject of poems, songs, dreams and prophecies for
years. At least 800 years before Jesus was born a prophet named Isaiah
predicted:
“Unto us a child is born,
unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his
name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father,
Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6
Savior? Prince of Peace? Messiah? Perhaps Mary and Joseph stammered when they tried to speak those words. It must have been hard to believe that their baby was going to save the world; that He was the Messiah, God incarnate. Imagine looking at their sleeping infant and realizing that, not only was He their son, which astounds most of us when we see our newborns, but He was also the promised Messiah.
The Hebrew people had no idea their Messiah would come as a baby. They believed that the Messiah would be the ultimate military commander. He would arrive on horseback, with sword held high, crying out for vengeance and redemption in the name of the Lord and his favored nation.
Yet here was a baby - just a helpless, little baby.
Joseph and Mary had to admit that He was a baby who seemed like any other
newborn child, but if this was just an ordinary infant how could he be the
Son of God?
Scripture tells us that Jesus is the One, like no other ever born, for he was 100% human and 100% God - simultaneously. Nothing about his humanity could take away from his Godliness; nothing about his Godliness could take away from his humanity. Only because of this truth can he reconcile the Father in heaven with his children on earth. He is the Man of both worlds; He came as the bridge by which God comes to earth and people come to heaven.
So what about the certainty of the virgin birth? The Hebrew word
for Virgin (alma) is translated from “ha alma
So first, we see that the Virgin Birth
is the sign of Jesus divinity. He was not conceived
like the rest of us. He came to the earth from outside, pure and clean,
for He is in no way a product of this world.
Second, we see that His infancy
is the sign of his humanity. He was carried in Mary’s
womb and born like we all are. He is one of us. He
arrived from heaven with perfection and Godliness, of which no man or
woman is capable - yet he takes the full human journey.
He was man and He was God. He came as a child to confront and conquer every challenge and every temptation common to humanity. We trust Him with our lives because he is God. We love him with our hearts because we know that once He was a tiny baby, wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger, and because He TOOK OUR SINS AWAY.
Blessings, Betty
WHAT I BELIEVE ABOUT CHRISTMAS
By Dottie Parish
Christmas is a happy, festive and joyful time. We
celebrate Christmas with gifts, fancy meals, family gatherings and we enjoy
marvelous, joyful worship. But in the busyness of the season do we miss the
holy meaning of Christmas? Do we know what Christmas is really about?
It’s about the greatest miracle of all! The
Incarnation of Jesus as a baby. As Betty said, Christ assumed human form in the person
of Jesus and is completely God and completely man. The Son of God existed
before the world was created. “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was
with God, and the Word was God. All things came into being through Him and
apart from him nothing came into being that has come into being.” (John 1:1-3)
The divine Son of God existed with God and took on his human
body in the womb of Mary. He was not the son of Joseph. He was the Son of God.
Mary was a virgin and God impregnated her. Can you imagine this?
“The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son and will
call him Emmanuel, which means, God with us.“ (Matthew 1:23) In this scripture Matthew
is quoting from Isaiah 7:14. Scholars for centuries didn’t know this could be
taken literally. As Betty said they were expecting a different kind of Messiah.
This is a promise greater than anyone expected. Mary is pregnant with the Son
of God!
Angels run all through this holy story. The angel Gabriel appeared to
Mary and said: “You
will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He
will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God
will give him the throne of his ancestor David. And
he will reign over Israel
Mary asked the angel, “But
how can this happen? I am a virgin.” The angel replied,
“The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will
overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the
Son of God.” (Luke 1:34-35) Have you ever seen an angel? Can you imagine this happening to a teen-age
girl? What an amazing revelation!
When Joseph learned Mary
was pregnant he planned to quietly end their relationship. Then an angel
appeared to him in a dream and said: “Do not be afraid to go ahead with your
marriage to Mary. For the child within her has been conceived by the Holy
Spirit. And you will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will
save his people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:20-21) And Joseph listened and
married Mary in spite of what the neighbors must have said.
Another angelic appearance came at the birth of Jesus. An
angel appeared to the shepherds and said, “I bring you good news of great joy
for everyone! The Savior – Yes, the Messiah, the Lord- has been born tonight in
Bethlehem David
How amazing that must have been for these shepherds to hear
the angel’s message and then to see a vast number of angels praising God and
announcing the Good News. Can you imagine the awe and wonder of this? Only Almighty God, Our Holy God could do this. Coming as a baby cost Jesus much. He
gave up indescribable power and glory to become one of us.
There
were witnesses to all these events and they have been studied and written about
and pondered over for centuries. The star that guided the wise men from the
East also attests to the divine nature of Jesus. He was both divine and human. He
lived on earth, grew up and taught his disciples to love God and follow Him. And
he died to save us. And he rose again! The Christmas “story” is the
most amazing true story told and it is a TRUE
story. It is His Story. Don’t miss this. Ask Jesus into your heart this
Christmas.
“Unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given;
and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called
Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Isaiah
9:6
Blessings, Dottie
Watch for the next Reasons to
Believe post on WHY I BELIEVE IN HELL AND HEAVEN in mid January by Betty and Dottie
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