So the Word became human and lived here on earth among us.
John 1:14
Today in the world about 14,708 babies will be born each hour. Now in the early days birth was not quite happening at that rate, but it was happening. After all, God told Adam and Eve to be fruitful and multiply. He told Noah and his sons to be fruitful and multiple. He told Jacob aka Israel to be fruitful and multiple. So this is what was supposed to happen, right? Babies were to be born. Procreation was on.
Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit.
Matthew 1:18
The Word became human by being born of a woman. Mary. At first glance it looks so ordinary, doesn’t it? A woman has a baby. Happens every day. But if we really think about it, it is quite fantastic. We all pretty much know this story. It’s the Reason for the Season, right? But do we really understand how extraordinary it is? His mother found out she was pregnant by an angel not a doctor. This pregnancy was not unplanned but a planned pregnancy from the beginning of time. His parents were not married but betrothed. His mother was a not a woman but a teenaged girl. His father was not Joseph but the Holy Spirit. He was born in a manger not a hospital. There obviously were some extraordinary happenings surrounding the birth of this baby.
Here’s how Sinclair Ferguson describes it:
Christ came into the womb of a virgin and emerged from it as a new-born infant. He came to share our humanity from its beginning—an embryo cradled in the body of a teenaged virgin.
What a beautiful vision. Cradled from womb to manger. Although important, the most extraordinary part isn’t how He came or the events surrounding the birth, but why He came, that’s the most beautiful vision.
Come, Thou long expected Jesus
Born to set Thy people free;
From our fears and sins release us,
Let us find our rest in Thee.
Israel’s strength and consolation,
Hope of all the earth Thou art;
Dear desire of every nation,
Joy of every longing heart.
The ordinary course of life starts with birth. If we do not see the extraordinary in this ordinary, we will have missed Jesus.
Wednesday Read John 1:1-18. What does The Word mean? Write out your understanding of it.
Thursday Read John 1:1-18. What do these scriptures say about Jesus being fully human and fully God?
Friday Read Genesis 1:1. Who was there in the beginning?
Read Genesis 1:26. Who created people? In whose image were they created? Hint – look for the pronouns.
Saturday Review your answers to the questions posed on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.
Sunday Spend time in prayer asking God to reveal to you how extraordinary He is.
Monday Read Luke 4:14-22. What was Jesus sent to do?
Tuesday Spend time in prayer today praising God for sending the hope of the earth to release us from our sins and fears. Praise God for sending The Word.
Names all the extraordinary happenings in these verses. List all the things that only God could do.