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Christmas Message!
The Three Wise Women Of Christmas!
Reading Luke 1 v 26-48 & Luke 2 v 36-38
Introduction:
The appearing of Jesus on earth made such an impact from that moment onwards all history is judged in relationship to him.
Celebrities of all kinds have crossed the stage of human history and made little difference.
But by Jesus Christ all men are judged and their destiny determined.
A man may make other poor decisions and be temporarily worse off, but if he decides wrongly about Jesus Christ he is eternally worse off.
Jesus Christ has the answer to depravity, despair, demonism, death, discouragement, defeat, and dilemma, to name but a few!
When Jesus comes the tempters power is broken,
When Jesus comes all tears are wiped away.
He takes the gloom and fills the life with gladness,
For all is changed when Jesus comes to stay.
The whole Christian life is wrapped up in Jesus!
The Bible is God's word about Jesus!
Christian doctrine is systematized truth about Jesus!
Christian experience is Jesus living within!
Christian work and service is the out living of Jesus!
The deeper Christian life is more about Jesus!
The most important thing about the Lord’s return is Jesus!
Sidlow Baxter reminds us very forcibly in his messages, 'The Glory of the Lamb.'
The main attraction of heaven is Jesus!
The light of heaven is the face of Jesus!
The music of heaven is the name of Jesus!
The harmony of heaven is the praise of Jesus!
The theme of heaven is the praise of Jesus!
The joy of heaven is the presence of Jesus!
The enjoyment of heaven is the service of Jesus!
The strength of heaven is the Omnipotence of Jesus!
The magnetic center and superlative glory of heaven is Jesus himself!
The duration of heaven is the eternality of Jesus! Oh! Oh!
That old Puritan had it right when asked what he thought he would do when he got to heaven! Oh, I think I will spend the first thousand years gazing at the lovely face of Jesus, then maybe I’ll take a look around.
The bride eyes not her garment, but her dear bridegroom’s face,
I will not gaze at glory, but on my King of grace;
Not at the crown he gifteth, but on his pierced hand;
The Lamb is all the glory of Immanuel’s land.
Jesus is all the glory of that fair realm where sin and the curse are gone forever and His own are one forever!
That being the true facts beloved, then it’s wise, very wise to make much of Him here! That’s what these three wise women did concerning the Saviour at the time of his birth.
1. The First Wise Woman Of The Christmas Story Is Mary!
Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin's name was Mary.
And having come in, the angel said to her, "Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!" But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was. Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a son, and shall call his name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the son of the highest; and the Lord God will give him the throne of his father David. And he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end."
Then Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I do not know a man?"
These sentences constitute the boundaries of the matchless story of the annunciation. The story is matchless, mysterious, magnificent, and majestic!
This is the story of the coming of the angel Gabriel to Nazareth; the story of the messenger from heaven brings to earth wonderful tidings of good news!
This is the story of God from heaven to a little lass of tender years on earth.
As we approach it, let us do so in the attitude and spirit of the words written by the apostle Paul to Timothy, when he said.
"Without controversy great is the mystery of godliness"
Now let me point out to you as we pass through this wonderful story!
It was Galilee, not Judea, Nazareth, nor Jerusalem, the home where Mary dwelt, not even the temple.
Now remember, God had chosen Judea to be the theatre of his operations through the centuries. Jerusalem was, as the master subsequently called it, the City of the Great King. The temple was at the very center of that city and was the dwelling place of God, as to his manifestation and as to his communion with his people. So what on earth is happening?
Well, God is always and in all his actions in human history, independent of his own institutions, when men degrade them.
The land of Judea was blighted; the city of Jerusalem was blasted; the holy temple was degraded; and God’s messenger bypassed them all.
God left the land of his own choosing, abandoned the city of his love, and passed by the temple of his own appointment, and went to a land of which Nathaniel said, "Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?" Went to the humblest of homes in that place and sought out the most submissive lass in the town and from that trinity of country, home and lass brought forth the son of the living God!
Here was behaviour indeed as becoming the person of submissive humility.
You see beloved; it's always those of low estate that God raises to great blessing. God uses those who are blessed in Jesus to be a blessing to others.
He that is down need fear no fall; he that is low no pride;
He that is humble ever shall have God to be his guide.
A holy life is a voice; it speaks when the tongue is silent and is either a constant attraction or a perpetual reproof. Archbishop Robert Leighton.
A holy life is not an ascetic, or gloomy, or solitary life, but a life regulated by divine truth and faithful in Christian duty. It is living above the world while we are still in it. Tyrone Edwards.
Holiness has love for its essence, humility for its clothing, the good of others as its employment, and the honor of God as its end. Nathaniel Emmons.
B. Mary was wise in her beliefs: Luke 1 v 35-38.
And the angel answered and said unto her, the Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that Holy Thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren.
For with God nothing shall be impossible. And Mary said, behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy Word. And the angel departed from her.
You see here was a bright shining angel raining down on this innocent lass, probably still in her teens, full of the flower of youth and beauty, never having been very far traveled from her home town. Totally unlearned in the ways of this Old World, some of the greatest Biblical truths ever heard! And what was her Response? How did she react to God’s Holy Truth being spoken by a bright shining angel? And what truths they were!
I hear folks say today about their teenage children and how very difficult for them it is to understand the preaching of God’s Word and therefore they have no heart in coming to the house of God!
Or I hear some of the young ones talk about how boring church is! How very boring the sermon is, how boring the worship is, if it were different I would come more regularly!
Listen folks we ought to take a long hard look at this little lass called Mary. As this bright shinning angel rains down upon her these great truths, what is her reaction? Oh, Mr. Angel, I’m too young to understand what all this means! Maybe when I am older grown I will be able to grasp those truths better but you must understand that just now I cannot take it all in, after all I am but a young lass! Was that her response? No! No! No! A thousand times no! "Behold the handmaid (servant) of the Lord; be it unto me according to what the angel says, no! Be it unto me according to what my parents say? No! Be it unto me according to what Joseph says? No! Be it unto me according to my friends say? No! Be it unto me according to thy Word" Oh, my word, Mary was wise in her beliefs!
C. Mary Was Wise In Her Blessing! Luke 1 v 46-48.
And Mary said, my soul doth magnify the Lord,
And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.
For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.
She blessed God! She would be a blessing to the generations to come!
In 1962, the Sawi people of New Guinea still lived in relative isolation. They were headhunting cannibals. Their culture could not be more different from that of Don and Carol Richardson, and yet this missionary couple attempted to share Christ with them. In fact, two rival Sawi tribes, fascinated by the Richardson’s, moved their villages right around the missionaries' jungle home.
But Don became frustrated by his inability to find a point of contact. He was also discouraged by the 14 civil wars he had already counted right outside his front door now that the two tribes lived side by side.
Eventually, the Richardsons decided to leave. However, the Sawi response surprised them: "if you'll stay, we promise we'll make peace in the morning." The next morning the Richardson’s awoke to see the most amazing ritual they had ever witnessed. The two tribes were lined up outside their houses, on either side of the clearing. Finally, one man dashed into his hut, grabbed his newborn son, and began to run across the meadow towards the other tribe. His expression betrayed absolute agony. His wife ran after him, screaming and begging him to give the baby back to her. But her husband wouldn't stop. He ran over to the other tribe and presented the boy to them. "Plead the peace child for me. I give you my son, and I give you my name," he said. Moments later, someone from that tribe performed the same agonizing sacrifice with the same intensity and passion. Richardson found out later that as long as those two children remained alive, the tribes were bound to peace. If they died, then literally all hell would break loose, cannibalism, murder, and civil war.
While this amazing scene unfolded before him, Don suddenly realized that this was the analogy he needed to communicate Christ. The next time he spoke to the Sawi elders he told them of the perfect peace child, Jesus. Eventually, droves of Sawi became followers of Christ.
Several years later, on Christmas day, hundreds of Sawi from every tribe that had warred and cannibalized each other for many years, gathered together for a feast for the first time. A Sawi preacher stood up and read in his own language a scripture that few people in the history of the world have ever understood so clearly: "Unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulders, and he shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Later, the Richardson’s would write that it was the best Christmas they had ever experienced. It was the best day the Sawi had ever known. Adapted from peace child by Don Richardson (Regal, 1976) Page 62-63.
2. The Second Wise Woman Of The Christmas Story Is Elizabeth!
A. Elizabeth Was Wise In Her Awareness! Luke 1 v 39-41.
And Mary arose in those days, and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Judea; And entered into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elisabeth. And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost:
Elizabeth was sensitive, aware of the Holy Ghost working in her!
You see this was deep calling unto deep!
This was the deep of the Holy Ghost speaking through Mary to Elizabeth.
Oh, the blessing of that lovely sensitivity to the Holy Spirit speaking to us and through us! You see if we go back in imagination to that home of Elizabeth’s in Judea, six months have now passed since the miracle of her son’s conception. She dwells much on what she had heard from the angel, on what her son will be, on what his purpose on earth will accomplish.
Her heart beats fast with hope and anticipation!
Listen to what she had been told by the angel. Luke 1 v 14-17.
And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth. For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother's womb. And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God. And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.
Elizabeth, in the quietness of her priestly home and city must have been deeply aware of the power of God working in her producing something for which she had long prayed but by now must surely have given up hope. After all she was past the years of child bearing, her prayer had been made in younger days, in days of expectancy. Oh, beloved, never lose sight of what God can do with you and through you!
B. Elizabeth Was Wise In Her Announcements! Luke 1v42-44.
And she spake out with a loud voice, and said, blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For, lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. And blessed is she that believed: for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord.
Directly Mary arrived Elizabeth broke out into song. And this is interesting indeed! Did you know that Luke is the only gospel writer who records for us the outburst of poetry and song in connection with the incarnation?
Matthew, Mark, John make no mention of this fact, Luke alone, the Greek, the artist, himself a poet as well as a scientific man records for us these beautiful songs. And how very special they are!
From Luke we have received, and this will be of interest to those who love music, the beatitude of Elizabeth, the Magnificent of Mary, the Benedicts of Zacharias, the Nunc Dimittis of Simeon, the Evangel sung by the angel of the Lord over the plains and the Gloria of the angelic host.
Luke alone, the artist, has gathered and collected, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the stories which reveal the fact that when Jesus came into the world, poetry expressed itself, and music was reborn.
This announcement was like an ode to Mary v 42-45.
Although that was not the deepest truth that came out of this song. You see, its deepest note, is that of the homage to, and adoration of the Lord.
Why did she honour Mary in this way? "Blessed art thou among women,"
Why "Blessed is the fruit of thy womb. And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come unto me?"
Because Elizabeth, the daughter of the Old Economy, was the first singer of the New Economy. Hers was the first song of the gospel; the first song of the new age that was dawning. The entire blessing that she pronounced upon Mary passed through to her son in the womb.
It was the last poetic voice of the Old Economy, and it greeted the New World that was breaking.
My dear people, we live in an ever changing world. What kind of voice have we as we move from this world we now live in to the world that we will awake to come January? Have we the song of the soul set free in our hearts? Have we the song of the Saviour in our soul? Will we meet this new age with the joy of the Lord which is our strength rising up and calling him blessed so that, in days to come others will rise up and call us blessed? Elizabeth was wise in her announcement!
C. Elizabeth Was Wise In Her Affirmation! Luke 1v45.
And blessed is she that believed: for there shall be a performance of those things, which were told her from the Lord.
What a wonderful affirmation! What is that affirmation? Through belief comes performance! We should take careful note of the high praise, which Elizabeth bestows upon the grace of faith "Blessed is she that believed".
We need not wonder that this holy woman should thus commend faith.
No doubt she was well acquainted with the Old Testament Scriptures.
She knew the great things that faith had accomplished.
What is the whole history of God’s saints in every age, but a record of men and women who obtained a good report by faith?
What is the simple story of all men from Abel downwards, but a narrative of redeemed sinners who believed and so were blessed?
By faith they embraced the promises. By faith they lived. By faith they walked. By faith they endured hardships. By faith they looked to an unseen Saviour and good things yet to come. By faith they battled with the world, the flesh and the devil. By faith they overcame and arrived, safe home to glory.
And of this godly company Mary was proving herself one. No wonder Elizabeth’s affirmation is so profound. "Blessed is she that believeth"
Beloved, if there is one thing we desperately need today, it is, believing women that are a blessing in their family and in the world.
What an affirmation Elizabeth makes! Do we know anything of this precious faith this Christmas time? Ladies do we?
Let us never rest until we know it by experience and once knowing it let’s never cease to pray that our faith may grow exceedingly.
Better a thousand times to be rich in faith than rich in gold.
Gold will be worthless in the unseen world to which we are travelling. But faith will be owned in that world before God the Father and the holy angels. Then and then alone will the value of faith be fully known. Blessed are they that believe. Elizabeth was wise in her affirmation!
3. The Third Wise Woman In The Christmas Story Is Anna!
A. Anna Was Wise In Her Sagacity! (Keen in perception) Luke 2 v 36.
And there was one Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher: she was of a great age, and had lived with an husband seven years from her virginity.
Anna was a woman of great discernment, keen in perception, shrewd, having practical wisdom! In other words, she was a godly and wise woman!
It is interesting that the history of Anna is recorded only by Luke.
The wisdom of God ordained that a woman as well as a man should testify to the fact that the Messiah was born. In the mouth of two witnesses it was established that Malachi's prophecy was fulfilled and the messenger of the covenant had suddenly come to the temple. Mal 3v1.
The facts about this dear lady are few but none the less, worth taking note off and facts from which we may learn the best of lessons.
After a married life lasting only seven years she spent the remaining eighty- four years as a lone widow. The trials, desolation and temptation of such a condition were probably very great. But Anna by grace overcame them all.
She surely answers the description spoken of by Paul. She was 'a widow indeed' 1 Tim. 5 v 5. Her keen perception kept her in a continual, ever closer walk with God.
B. Anna Was Wise In Her Service! Luke 2 v 37.
And she was a widow of about four-score and four years, which departed not from the temple, but served God with fasting and prayers night and day.
This is evidently a lady who loves the house of God. 'She departed not from the temple.' She had high regard for this place where God especially dwells. She felt she was never so near to God as when she was in God's house, it was indeed for her, Holy Ground. She knew the meaning of David's wonderful words. 'My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the Lord.' Psalm 84 v 2. Anna was a woman of great self-denial, she served God with fasting and prayer, she was continually keeping her flesh under subjection. She was absolutely persuaded, through such practices she would be a vessel unto honour in the temple of the Lord. Evidently she was never weary in praying for others and praying for the fulfilment of the promises concerning the Messiah.
C. Anna Was Wise In Her Sharing! Luke 2 v 28.
And she coming in that instant gave thanks likewise unto the Lord, and spake of him to all them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem.
Tradition says that the tribe of Asher was noted for the beauty and talent of its women, who for these gifts were qualified for royal and high-priestly marriage! But add to those gifts the gift of wisdom and you have yourself a group of ladies powerful indeed for God.
Don't expect wisdom to come into your life like great chunks of rock on a conveyor belt. It isn't like that. It's not splashy and bold, nor is it dispensed like a prescription across a counter. Wisdom comes privately from God as a by-product of right decisions, godly reactions, and the application of spiritual principles to daily circumstances. Wisdom comes, not from trying to do great things for God, but more from being faithful to the small, obscure tasks few people ever see. Charles Swindoll.
Anna was a woman who shared things about the Lord and her house with others, according to the text.
As soon as she saw Jesus what did she do? 'She spake of Him' to others whom she knew in Jerusalem and with whom she was on friendly terms. There was a very rich bond between Anna and those of like precious faith. They often traveled to the same house of worship and had the very same hope and served the same master. Please note dear friends, Anna received a rich reward for all her diligence in God's service even before she left this Old World.
She was allowed the wonderful privilege of seeing Him who had been long promised and for whose coming she had often prayed. Her faith was at last changed to sight and her hope became a certainty. The joy of this dear lady must have been unspeakable and full of glory.
It would be well for all Christian women to ponder the character of these three Wise Women of the Christmas Story and draw great wisdom from them.
On May 24, 1965, a thirteen-and-a-half-foot boat quietly slipped out of the marina at Falmouth, Massachusetts. Its destination? England. It would be the smallest craft ever to make the voyage. Its name? Tinkerbelle. Its pilot? Robert Manry, a copy editor for the Cleveland Plain Dealer, who felt ten years at the desk was enough boredom for a while, so he took a leave of absence to fulfill his secret dream.
Manry was afraid, not of the ocean, but of all those people who would try to talk him out of the trip. So he didn't share it with many, just some relatives and especially his wife, Virginia. She was his greatest source of support.
The trip? Anything but pleasant. He spent sleepless nights trying to cross shipping lanes without getting run down and sunk. Weeks at sea caused his food to become tasteless. Loneliness, that age-old monster of the deep, led to terrifying hallucinations. His rudder broke three times. Storms swept him overboard, and had it not been for the rope he had knotted around his waist, he would never have been able to pull himself back on board. Finally, after seventy-eight days alone at sea, he sailed into Falmouth, England.
During those nights at the tiller, he had fantasized about what he would do once he arrived. He expected simply to check into a hotel, eat dinner alone, then the next morning see if, perhaps, the Associated Press might be interested in his story. Was he in for a surprise!
Word of his approach had spread far and wide. To his amazement, three hundred vessels, with horns blasting, escorted Tinkerbelle into port. Forty thousand people stood screaming and cheering him to shore. Robert Manry, copy editor turned dreamer, became an overnight hero.
His story has been told around the world. But Robert couldn't have done it alone. Standing on the dock was an even greater hero: Virginia. Refusing to be rigid when Robert's dream was taking shape, she allowed him freedom to pursue his dream.
Ministries cannot become great without dreamers who weary of only maintenance year in, year out. We need more Roberts who have the creativity and tenacity to break with boredom and try the unusual. But even more, we need the Virginias who won't allow rigidity to rule the roost. Charles R. Swindoll.
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