The opening ceremony to any grand event should always be handled with pomp and gaiety. Take the Olympics ceremonies, for example, that are always exploding with extravagant lights, special melodies, and mesmerizing performances. This is to captivate eager watchers, hyping them up for the sporting action yet to come. However, spiritually speaking, there should be no grander event one can experience than the moment the Almighty, in His Spirit, indwells us and fills us with His joy (See Acts 13:52), while at the same time preparing us to spend eternity with Him (See 2 Cor. 1:22/Eph. 1:13-14). This prophecy, "And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and
be careful to keep my laws..." (Eze 36:26-27 NIV), would be fulfilled on the day of Pentecost (See Acts 2:37-38/Rom. 10:9-10). It's no wonder that Christ's birth would also have had its own "opening ceremony", in the sense that nothing less than the Heavenly Choir itself would perform on that memorable day 2000 years ago: "Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others--the armies of heaven--praising God and saying, 'Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.'" (Luke 2:13-14 NLT) .
In this three-part series, we will look at some paramount lessons from Christ's birth.
Prompt...
As I hinted before, Christ's birth by itself would not make one a "Temple of God" (see 1 Cor. 3:16) and filling us with His divine joy, but it certainly prompts a start of the process towards the attainment of that ultimate privilege.
If the Christ child, the Saviour ("And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins." Matt. 1:21 NLT) had not been born, His atoning death, which involved the shedding of His own precious blood, would not have been possible 33 years later. If not for His substitutionary sacrifice, and subsequent resurrection three days later (See Rom. 4:25); a plan that was set in motion on the day of Jesus' birth, we would never have the chance to be cleansed from death or be fit enough to spread the good news to the world as "Temples of God". Because of this gift, on the Day of Pentecost, we, God's people, were bestowed our own gift from the Holy Spirit, a gift of witnessing, and that we should never squander this almighty gift; for wherever His presence is, an infinite joy that outshines any
other is sure to follow (See Psalm 16:11)!
In the Old Testament, wherein many prophecies and signs pointed towards Christ's coming, we see that the Lord's presence came to indwell King Solomon's temple (See 1 Kings 8:10), a temple which had been built upon countless animal sacrifices and offerings (See 1 Kings 8:5). In the New Testament, the signs and prophecies, such as those from the prophet Simeon and John the Baptist, also foretold of Christ's convergence and would proclaim Him as the "Divine Lamb": "I saw this happen to Jesus, so I testify that he is the Chosen One of God." (John 1:34 NLT; see also Luke 2:25-38).
Prophecy...
We should, however, realize that Jesus could have accomplished everything as per the Heavenly Father's plan (See 1 Peter 1:1-4) without even a single prophecy.
Now let's address this question: Why is the Bible filled with not only prophecies foretelling Jesus' birth: "But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, are only a small village among all the people of Judah. Yet a ruler of Israel, whose origins are in the distant past, will come from you on my behalf." (Micah 5:2 NLT; See also Gen. 3:15/Is. 7:14); but also prophecies relating to other milestone events in His life, such as His substitutionary death on the Cross: "See, my servant will prosper; he will be highly exalted. But many were amazed when they saw him. His face was so disfigured he seemed hardly human, and from his appearance, one would scarcely know he was a man." (Isaiah 52:13-14 NLT; See also Isaiah 53), and finally the grandest event of all: "And because we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, 'Abba, Father.'" (Gal. 4:6 NLT), Him indwelling us with His spirit? Whilst answering, allow me to illustrate a picture for you. Some years ago, during Christmas time, the women of our Church formed a "purchase committee" and travelled to a reasonably distant Department store to buy gifts for the widows, orphans, and Sunday school children of our Church. After they had returned, one of the Churchgoers, a member of the committee named Sunita Benny, realized that she had forgotten her purse in the parking lot of that huge and busy commercial complex. Praying profusely, the entire committee rushed back to that hustling, bustling area after a full hour of slogging through traffic congestion. Normally, an unguarded purse would have as much chance of remaining unpicked as an ice-cube not melting in a fiery furnace. But against all of that, they found it safe and secure! Hallelujah!
Now, if I were to share this account with an atheist or a rationalist and state that the Christian's God is a prayer answering One, then the atheist/rationalist may attribute the miraculous recovery of the purse to sheer "luck" or "coincidence" rather than to the power of God. Now consider this: If all the events, in proper and sequential order, relating to that dramatic experience of Sister Sunita were documented in a Sacred Book, say 300 years ago, would any rationalist worth his "logical" salt still attribute it to mere luck or coincidence? Not a chance. No wonder it's said that prophecy is described as "history written in advance".
At this stage, when we factor in the following three points:
1) On Jesus' one life hinged the salvation of all mankind, so it would follow that our infinitely wise Father would also take no chances, lest anyone attribute these prophecies as "coincidence", rather than Divine providence;
2) The Gospel was first preached to the Jews with whom the Apostles shared these prophecies to substantiate their points (See Acts 2:22-36/Acts 13:16-39)
3) Then to the Gentiles, in which the Apostle Paul also drew from these historical "prophecies", in order to present the Gospel: "For in him we live and move and exist. As some of your own poets have said, 'We are his offspring.'" (Acts 17:28 NLT)
There is great significance in these Prophecies for being wonderful facilitators for Gospel preaching and so that subsequent soul-winning can emerge with no ambiguity!
Prayer: Father, we are rejoicing in You today because You sent your Son into this World. We thank You and glorify You for the same. In Jesus' Name. Amen
Suresh Manoharan
An unworthy servant
J and SM Ministries
Please join us on Saturday for Lessons From Christ's Birth, Part 2
