A stoic Greek philosopher, Epictetus, who was born in A.D. 55 as the early church was spreading, wrote: " while the emperor may give peace from war on land and sea, he is unable to give peace from passion, grief, and envy; he cannot give peace of heart, for which men yearn far more than even outward peace" How true is that today. The birth of the Saviour, the Light of the world, made it possible for mankind to have true peace in the heart. Will we, like the Shepherds of old, and the godly of that day joyfully spread the good news of the Prince of Peace?
John 1:14 says And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth."
wow soak that verse in. The word was made flesh and dwelt among us. Doesn't that just give you goose bumps It just reminds me of how much I should be willing to give up for my Savior not only because of how much he loves me but also because of how much he sacrificed for me so that I one day may live with him in Glory.
Oh how well we know the story of Jesus' birth, but do we just read it and go on with our lives and not allow it to change the way we live and interact with people. To think this tiny baby that Mary held in her arms had left the splendor of Heaven, but not only that He left His Father to come to this earth and be born of a virgin, proclaim His Father's name through his teaching and miracles, And then to die on the cross for the sins of the world.
And also think of Joseph and Mary's side of the story having a child out of wedlock was very looked down upon in those days and their reputation would forever be ruined. Little did they know that years later we would still be talking about them and pondering in our hearts the amazing journey they went through and the wonderful role they played in bringing Jesus to this earth.
And the shepherds oh their lives would forever be changed. They got a visit from Heavenly host proclaiming to them the birth of the Savior of the world. Can you imagine how excited they were! It says them made haste and went to where the child was. And then they continued and proclaimed all that they heard and saw to those around them. They were technically the first preachers of the gospel. But in Luke 2:19 it says "And Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart"
The Savior of sinners was born and the world rejoiced, or most of them anyways. The low and common people the ones that would be humble enough to accept Him (Jesus) were the ones that heard about him first and the ones whom it changed their lives forever and they went and truly worshiped him as the true King.
Luke 2:27-35
Can you imagine being Simeon. Watching. Waiting. Longing to meet this child the God of Heaven promised that he would be able to meet before he died. Oh what a day of rejoicing that was for him! Seeing the life of Simeon and how he rejoiced over this child and praised and thanked God for being faithful in his promise of a Messiah.
Simeon recognized this child as the promised one, but yet many around him were blind to the fact that this newborn baby could take away the sins of the world and bring true peace and joy. Simeon was looking for this baby for many years so I am sure that is one reason he realized who this baby was. I want to model my life after the faith fullness of Simeon and be watching and waiting for my savior when he comes back again someday.
And then later in Luke 2:36-38 we see a woman named Anna who was a widow for 84 years and it seems she had given her life to worship God in the temple. It says she served God with fasting and prayer. I believe this is also why she recognized Jesus as the promised Messiah is because she was wholly devoted to serving her God. In verse 38 It says she gave thanks to the Lord and then she continued to proclaim the gospel to all those looking for redemption. Here we see a wonderful picture of servants for Christ. Devoting their entire lives to searching for Jesus and then proclaiming His name to all those who would listen.
Salvation through Jesus Christ the light of the world was first for Israel but also for the Gentiles If he is truly our light we will not walk in darkness but will spread the light. What am I doing in the world around me to spread the light to the world around me?
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