Christmas 2020 Message
At this Christmas Season, as we face a world crisis, anticipating wars and civil unrest, I am led to think about the two Christmas related songs, both recorded in Luke chapter 1. They are the songs of Mary, and Zachariah. The troubled condition these people personally faced can be shared to encourage us for what we are facing now in our world, alone.
Mary’s song, much appear in the songs or the musicals called “Magnificat” is recorded in Luke 1: 46-55
The uncertainty and trouble that was facing Mary would be unbearably great.
- Being pregnant before marriage. This most likely would get Mary death by stoning
- Abandonment and shamed by her fiancé Joseph and the two clans.
- She would become cursed and an outcast for the rest of her life.
But Mary exalted the Lord and trusted God with gladness. I encourage all of us to rejoice now just as Mary did as we face our current troubled world. The message for us is that we should obey and exercise faith in God, our Savior. We should all trust in our God. No matter the situation or circumstance, God has it all in his hands. We should strive to imitate the heart and mind of Mary in every situation. She knew the scripture very well and her response to God are for all of us to learn from.
Mary’s Song: “The Magnificat”
“My soul exalts the Lord,
47 And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
48 For He has had regard for the humble state of His bond-servant;
For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed.
49 For the Mighty One has done great things for me;
And holy is His name.
50 And His mercy is to generation after generation
Toward those who fear Him.
51 He has done mighty[Lit might] deeds with His arm;
He has scattered those who were proud in the thoughts of their hearts.
52 He has brought down rulers from their thrones,
And has exalted those who were humble.
53 He has filled the hungry with good things,
And sent the rich away empty-handed.
54 He has given help to His servant Israel,
In remembrance of His mercy,
55 Just as He spoke to our fathers, To Abraham and his descendants forever.”
Zechariah’s Song. Also known as “Benedictus,” (Luke 1:67-79; cf. 1:5-25, 57-66, 80) also called Song Of Zechariah, hymn of praise and thanksgiving, sung by Zechariah, a Jewish priest of the line of Aaron, on the occasion of the circumcision and naming of his son, John (the Baptist). The “Benedictus” was used as a hymn beginning in the 4th century in both Eastern and Western liturgies.
Zachariah’s trouble started when he, while serving in the Holy of Holies as the high priest, and spoken to by the angel of God, questioned and laughed at the angel Gabriel’s message from God regarding his wife Elizabeth, who was to be pregnant, at an age way beyond child bearing age. For that unbelief, he was punished with dumbness till his son was born. Just imagine for a moment, the chosen man of Israel serving God in the Holy of Holies, the presence of God, argued with God and punished with dumbness for ten months because of his disobedience and unbelief! What a shame. Here we learnt to trust God and wait for God’s action to fulfill His will to all of us, those who trust in God’s Words and will. It was at the eighth day of John’s birth, at the circumcision/naming ritual, that Zachariah gained back his speech and he burst out singing this “Benedictus”:
Luke 1, The Benedictus:
68 “Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,
because he has come to his people and redeemed them.
69 He has raised up a horn of salvation for us
in the house of his servant David
70 (as he said through his holy prophets of long ago),
71 salvation from our enemies
and from the hand of all who hate us—
72 to show mercy to our ancestors
and to remember his holy covenant,
73 the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
74 to rescue us from the hand of our enemies,
and to enable us to serve him without fear
75 in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
76 And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High;
for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him,
77 to give his people the knowledge of salvation
through the forgiveness of their sins,
78 because of the tender mercy of our God,
by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven
79 to shine on those living in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the path of peace.”
Zachariah’s wife Elizabeth has an experience that should encourage us too.
Elizabeth had been cursed and shamed for decades as a barren woman. The suffering was unbearable. As a nation, we have been suffering for decades, and its getting worse even now, just as we were shown a beam of light of hope, this hope is now on verge of being extinguished, our Christian faith is at the verge of being attacked, and persecuted. Like Elizabeth, our hope and faith is in God. He will eventually redeem all of us from shame, and persecution, bless our lives with the His glory.