THE MIRACLE BIRTH OF JESUS
Luke 1:26-38
PROPHECIES FULFILLED
V:26-27. \”In the sixth month, 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
A. In these two verses, God announced the fulfillment of prophecies made hundreds
of years earlier.
1. God the Father spoke about Jesus as the promise seed in Genesis 3:15 4000 BC
2. The prophets spoke of Jesus being called a Nazarene. Matt 2:23.
a. The name Nazareth come from the root word netzer which means branch. Isa 11:1 , 700 BC
3. Isaiah spoke of Jesus being born of a virgin. Isa 7:14
4. Jeremiah spoke of Jesus being a descendant from the house of David. Jer 23:5, 600 BC
5. Micah 5:2 is the prophecy of the city of Jesus birth; Bethlehem. 700 BC
6. Daniel 9:6 gives the time frame of Jesus birth and death. 600 BC
7. God is in no hurry to fulfill His prophecies, but they will be fulfilled.
8. Whatever God says He will do for you, He will do, but in His time.
B. God\’s plan for your life supersedes your plans.
1. Mary and Joseph had a planned marriage.
2. God changed their plan to fit His plan.
3. God\’s plan for your life is better than any plan you can make.
C. The Lord uses those who are faithful and just to carry out His plans.
1. Mary and Joseph came from the line of David and were both righteous in their lives.
2. We can infer this by what is said about Jesus.
3. We can also infer that God would not have chosen unfit parents for His Son.
THE FAVOR OF GOD
V:28-29. \” 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.\”
A. Our faithfulness gets God\’s attention.
1. God rewards us on this earth for our love for Him
2. God is on the side of the faithful
3. There is no end to the favor of God for the righteous.
B. God\’s favor to us does not prevent us from facing the trouble of the world.
1. God is with us through our trouble
2. God comforts us in our trouble.
C. Like Mary, we ought to meditate on the Word of God.
1. We ought to bless the Lord in our troubles and through our troubles.
2. We ought to consider the favor of the Lord in our lives with thanksgiving.
3. We ought to show our gratitude by our obedience to His commands.
GOOD NEWS FROM THE FATHER
V:30-32. \” But the angel said to her, \”Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name 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,\”
A. God\’s favors include particular blessings.
1. Not only will God bless us with children, but He has a plan for
the future success of our children.
2. God named Jesus according to the mission He had for Him.
a. The name Jesus means savior or deliverer.
b. Traditionally, Jewish male babies were named at the time they were circumcise .
c. Traditionally, Jewish babies were name after a decease relative (grand parent).
3. Jesus was not a traditional baby, therefore was not named according to tradition.
B. The birth of Jesus was not by human conception, but by the Holy Spirit.
1. Normally for the ancient Jewish marriage there were two celebration, the betrothal and then wedding celebration.
2. Normally, the conception of a baby took place after the marriage celebration.
3. Since Mary was espoused to Joseph, a dowry had been paid to her father.
a. She was legally married to Joseph, but the wedding celebration
had not taken place.
4. God eliminated the marriage celebration so Joseph would not have any part in the birth of Jesus or could claim he had any part.
C. Jesus is not the son of Joseph, but the Son of the Heavenly Father.
1. Joseph was father in the care taker sense.
2. Joseph had the role of taking care of Jesus during his childhood.
D. God\’s plan for Jesus was greater than any plan Mary and Joseph
could develop.
1. Jesus is the Son of God.
2. Jesus is the king of mankind forever.
3. As His name implies, He is the Savior of mankind.
THE MISSION OF JESUS
V:33. \” And he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.\”
A. Jesus holds three eternal positions.
1. He is King.
2. He is our High Priest.
3. He is our prophet.
B. Jesus is our Lord.
1. He is our Shepherd.
2. Jesus is our Savior.
3. Jesus is our intercessor seated at the right hand of the Father.
WHEN GOD SPEAKS, IT\’S OK TO ASK QUESTIONS
V:34 \”How will this be,\” Mary asked the angel, \”since I am a virgin?\”
A. This question from Mary seem strange to me.
1. Since Mary was espoused to Joseph, why wouldn\’t she naturally
think that her wedding to Joseph would take place and she would
conceive a son?
2. Why would Mary think that the angel was speaking of a birth that didn\’t include her husband?
3. Why was Mary not alarmed that the Angel was speaking of something that would be considered adultery by her community, punishable by death?
4. Why didn\’t God inform Joseph first of His plan for Mary?
5. Why didn\’t Mary immediately inform Joseph?
6. Is it possible that Mary had a conversation with the Angel that is not recorded?
7. Don\’t worry, God told us all He wanted us to know.
B. Sometimes God\’s plan for our lives does not follow our normal thought process.
1. Before we jump to conclusions, we have to listen to the Word of God.
2. If we don\’t fully understand God\’s Word, we should ask questions.
3. God\’s plan for our lives always follows His Word. Isa 7:14.
THE ANSWER IS IN THE WORD
V:35. \” The angel answered, \”The Holy Spirit will come upon 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.\”
A. It take faith to act on God\’s Word.
1. It takes faith to allow God to use you in a controversial way.
2. It takes faith to believe that God can do something extraordinary with you.
3. It takes faith to act on God\’s Word without consulting those you trust.
4. It takes faith to act on God\’s Word when you have never witness what He commands you to do.
B. The body of Mary was used to house the Spirit of Jesus in human flesh.
1. Jesus was God first, then God in human flesh.
2. The Holy Spirit took charge of Mary\’s body to perform the Holy conception.
3. The Holy Spirit was in charge of the growth and the development of the
baby Jesus in Mary\’s body.
4. The Holy Spirit claimed God as the Father of Jesus.
5. Notice Joseph was left out of the process all together.
6. God does not need your approval to do what He desires to those you love.
GOD CONFIRMS HIS AUTHORITY BY POINTING US TO HIS WORKS
V:36. \” Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month.\”
A. To give Mary comfort that God performs miracles, The angel pointed Mary to her relative who was pregnant in her old age.
1. Elizabeth was well past the child bearing age, yet she was 6 months pregnant.
2. While Elizabeth\’s pregnancy was a miracle, in my mind it was not on the same level as Mary\’s.
B. Everyday, life on this earth is God\’s miracle. We just don\’t see life as a miracle.
ALL THINGS ARE POSSIBLE FOR GOD
V\”37. \” For nothing is impossible with God.\”
A. God created man out of the dust of the earth.
1. God spoke the universe into being.
2. If we can believe the creation story in Genesis, it should be
easy to believe God can do anything He desires.
3. Just because we can\’t understand something, does not mean it is
impossible for God.
B. Our ways are not God\’s ways and our thoughts are not God\’s thoughts.
1. We must leave room in our prayers for God to do unexpected miracles n our lives.
2. I believe we need to expect God to do the unexpected.
OBEDIENCE, A PROPER RESPONSE
V:38 \”I am the Lord\’s servant,\” Mary answered. \”May it be to me as you have said.\” Then the angel left her. \”
A. Complete submission to God\’s Word takes complete faith in God.
1. Mary set an example of what it takes to be faithful.
2. We first have to see ourselves as servants of God.
3. We have to allow God to take control of our lives.
4. We have to be willing to suffer to follow God\’s Word.
B. We have to ignore the opinions of others when serving God.
1. We have to put complete trust in God to carry us through
any adversity we face while serving Him.
2. We have to thank God for using us in His plan of redemption.
THANK GOD FOR JESUS
Rev M Mitchell
Asst Pastor of Greater Macedonia Baptist Church
5510 West Sam Houston Parkway
Houston Texas 77041
For more lessons follow me on facebook and visit my
blogs. www.revmmitchell.com and goodnewsrevmitc.blogspot.com
