Grace to the humble: Do not be afraid.
“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.’” (Luke 1:30-31)
Here comes Christmas – the time we celebrate the birth of our Saviour Jesus Christ. Many people have made the celebration into so many other rituals, traditions and fanfares, but Jesus Christ must remain central for the true Christian. In his first Chapter, Luke presents two women experiencing miracles: Mary, the much younger one, is confronted by an angel with the message of favour and an imminent child out of wedlock, while the much older retired Elizabeth is embarrassed with her very first pregnancy in her old age. Through these God was orchestrating the climax of salvation history.
‘Remaking a broken world’ is the title of Christopher Ash’s book that carries the thesis that ‘the judgment of God leads to scattering and He shows his grace and faithfulness by gathering’. In his passionate prayer, Nehemiah asked God to remember His word to His servant Moses: ‘If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the peoples, but if you return to me and keep my commandments and do them… I will gather’ (Neh 1:8-9). Scatterings away from Eden, at Babel, to Assyria, and to Babylon were such typical judgments, while fellowship gatherings at Sinai, at the Jerusalem Temple, at the Cross, and in the glorious eternal Kingdom are such gracious blessings. The brokenness of our world is propagated by the same evil spirit that brought about the scatterings of the Biblical times – the pride of the heart. The symbol of meekest humility is the Cross of Jesus Christ, and there at Golgotha is the place where godly fellowship can be restored and our world reconstructed.
Brexit is a live example of how much confusion our pride brings upon us. The 2016 referendum to decide whether the UK should leave or remain in the European Union ended with a 52% win for those supporting ‘Leave’. Only two years earlier Scotland in their independence referendum had wisely voted to remain in the UK so that they do not lose their participation in the EU; no wonder they voted 62% for ‘Remain’ during the 2016 referendum. Now confusion looms over this former super-power, with Prime Minister Theresa May almost stuck with the Brexit deal that her Parliament does not support. Do these British know what they really want? All I can say is that the evil spirit of pride is working hard to scatter.
Humility is important to the healing and salvation of our world: Mary humbly received favour (recognized her needy state) and accepted to be used of the Almighty God (potentially losing her planned comforts and marriage prospect), while Elizabeth was also humble enough to call the baby in Mary’s womb ‘My Lord’. We can only receive Jesus Christ today as our Saviour when we look at our needy state, humble ourselves and draw near to Him. Are you frightened by world powers? Or by a celestial revelation? Do not be afraid; just humble yourself before God and receive His will, receive His salvation plan, receive your Saviour.
God bless you all.