The Promise of Christmas

In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent
the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a
virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a
descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The
angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are
highly favored! The Lord is with you.”

Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered
what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said
to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor
with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son,
and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will
be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will
give him the throne of his father David, and he will
reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will
never end.”

“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a
virgin?”

The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you,
and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.
So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.
Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child
in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to
conceive is in her sixth month. For no word from God
will ever fail.”

“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your
word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.
(Luke 1:26-38)

We live by facts. We are trained to operate according to what has already happened, what is certain, what is measurable, and what is definable. For some of us, this makes the concept of living by faith hard to embrace. We desperately want to feel Jesus’ presence in our lives. But too often that feels difficult when we can’t see him or touch him or hear his audible words. We don’t expect a surprise visit from an angel, sharing a word from God. Most of the time we just hope for the best and wonder, Can God hear me? Is God speaking to me?

Scripture does not tell us many facts about Mary. We know that she was a cousin of Elizabeth and betrothed to Joseph. But what is important to know is that God entrusted this seemingly ordinary girl with an extraordinary promise–a promise that would change not only her life but also the whole world.

According to Scripture, Mary immediately responded by saying that she believed what the angel said was true. But how might Mary have felt when the angel left and she was all alone with this news? She likely did not feel pregnant in that moment. She had been given a promise, but she had to wait for God’s timing to experience the fulfillment of it.

As believers, we hold on to the wonderful promise of Christmas: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). Through his life, birth, death, and resurrection, Jesus fulfilled that promise, and he gave us another promise–that he is coming back for his children:

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God;
believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if
that were not so, would I have told you that I am going
there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare
a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with
me that you also may be where I am.
(John 14:1-3)

The angel told Mary, “For no word from God will ever fail” (Luke 1:37). As her belly grew and she felt the Christ child stirring within her, she knew that God’s promises were true, that God’s word did not fail. The promise had come–for Mary, and for us all.

Prayer Focus
How does the promise of Christmas–that God is with us today, tomorrow, and forever–give you hope and peace for you life right now?

From Rob Renfroe and Ed Robb, The Wonder of Christmas: Devotions for the Season