Drew Boswell

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“Preparing To Encounter God’s Call” Joshua 2:22-24 – 3:1-8

Joshua: Courage Over Fear

A Sermon Series

“Preparing To Encounter God’s Call”

Joshua 2:22-24 – 3:1-8

Part One

 Introduction

When I was just learning to drive my dad would let me drive the family car – but when I would get out on the long straight highway or interstate, I would drift from one side of the road the other – back and forth between the lanes. After a while of doing this my dad said, “you are looking down the hood of the car and right in front of the car; instead look way out the horizon and focus on far away.” When I did this instead of going from side to side, my driving straightened out. I was focused on the horizon, not what was right in front of me.

When Joshua and Caleb returned from spying out the land they gave a report to Moses and the people. The people’s response to the report was “all the congregation raised a loud cry, and the people wept that night. 2 And all the people of Israel grumbled against Moses and Aaron. The whole congregation said to them, “Would that we had died in the land of Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness!” Numbers 14:1-2 Their focus was the perceived danger of inhabitants in the Promised Land. In today’s passage, after fourty years of wandering in the wilderness, and a new generation being raised up, their focus is different – now they are focused on the horizon, on God.

Prayer

What We Choose to Focus On Determines Where We Are Going (vv. 2:22-24)

22 They departed and went into the hills and remained there three days until the pursuers returned, and the pursuers searched all along the way and found nothing. 23 Then the two men returned. They came down from the hills and passed over and came to Joshua the son of Nun, and they told him all that had happened to them. 24 And they said to Joshua, “Truly the Lord has given all the land into our hands. And also, all the inhabitants of the land smelt away because of us.”

The spy’s mission was to gather information (especially about Jericho) and they now have what they need. Rahab’s retelling the stories she had heard, and her faith in God by hiding them was an encouragement to the spies “Truly the Lord has given all the land into our hands.” When we experience someone placing their faith in Jesus, and seeing how their lives are changed encourages us in the mission of our church – to make disciples of Jesus Christ.

What a change of heart from the first report of the spies when Joshua and Caleb reported back. The focus of the first spy report was on the stuff, the material, and on the outward superficial. Numbers 13:23 “And they came to the Valley of Eshcol and cut down from there a branch with a single cluster of grapes, and they carried it on a pole between two of them; they also brought some pomegranates and figs.” . . . “However, the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large.” They brought back proof that the land was “flowing with milk and honey.”

Now in Joshua 2, the spies bring back a report of the inhabitant’s hearts, their spirit, the mentality of the people there – their courage is gone, and they are scared. It’s two different types of reports based on the heart of the spy (it’s the same land, the same inhabitants). Somehow the people in the promised land (over 40 years) have shrunk in size – they are no longer giants and God’s people grasshoppers. Now their God is huge and the enemy has become small.

“The spies violated God’s explicit command that none of the people living in the land were to be spared (Duet. 7:1-6; 20:16-18). Rahab, however, turned to God and sought deliverance. Her experience is proof of the gracious saving purpose of God. His overarching decree is that “everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved” Joel 2:32.[1]

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When we last left the Israelites they were preparing for the crossing of the Jordan.  Joshua has to prepare his heart.  God tells him over and over, “Be strong, be courageous.”  To get ready to cross the Jordan, Joshua needs to also prepare a battle plan.  Joshua has to prepare his mind by studying the Word (he studies it, meditates on it, talk about it, and do it).

Then Joshua sends in two spies and we are introduced to Rahab the redeemed Hero, but more importantly “24 They said to Joshua, “The LORD has surely given the whole land into our hands; all the people are melting in fear because of us.”  The land is ready and for them to cross-over!  But the people have to prepare themselves for the crossing.

In our text God lovingly calls Israel to be a cross-over people.  The transition from the wilderness into Canaan would not be an easy one. The Israelites must be a people who are willing to grow in their faith and anticipate seeing God move. This morning God is calling us to be a cross-over church.  A church willing to face the impossible by keeping our eyes on God, following Him into the ever-changing future, united together in our mission of reaching Bellevue for Christ.

 How Do We Cross The Jordan? How Do We Face the Seemingly Impossible?

 Remember Our Commitment To God When Crossing Over (vv. 1-4)

Then Joshua rose early in the morning and they set out from Shittim. And they came to the Jordan, he and all the people of Israel, and lodged there before they passed over. 2 At the end of three days the officers went through the camp 3 and commanded the people, “As soon as you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God being carried by the Levitical priests, then you shall set out from your place and follow it. 4 Yet there shall be a distance between you and it, about 2,000 cubits in length. Do not come near it, in order that you may know the way you shall go, for you have not passed this way before.”

(look at Exodus 14) There is a similar story about God’s people where they were following Moses out of Egypt and they came to the Red Sea. Exodus 14:11-12 “They said to Moses, “Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us in bringing us out of Egypt? 12 Is not this what we said to you in Egypt: ‘Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.” Now, there is no outcry, there is no demands to return to the wilderness – only moving forward.

The first command was to follow the Lord, and it was stated in a strange way. Up until then, the people of Israel had followed the cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night as symbols of God’s leading, presence, and protection in the wilderness. Now those symbols were going to be replaced by the ark of the covenant.

The ark contained the Ten Commandments carved in stone that had been given to Moses at Mount Sinai. It also held the entire Pentateuch, the first five books of the Old Testament. Thus the ark symbolized both the covenant commitment that God had made to Israel and the covenant conditions that God had established for the people of Israel. The whole covenant relationship, an entire way of life, would continue with them as they crossed the Jordan and entered Canaan. Inside the ark was also a jar of manna to remind the people that day after day for forty years God had met their physical needs.

The ark symbolized the presence and power of God with his people. The ark was the sign that God was leading them. They weren’t just a migratory people optimistically yet futilely thinking that they could go into the land of Canaan. They had to know that they were God’s people, being led by him.

The ark also symbolized the specific teaching and direction that God had given to his people. They had the assurance of his guidance and leadership as they moved into the new, completely unfamiliar territory. If they didn’t follow the Lord, as symbolized by the ark, they would get lost and disoriented; they wouldn’t know where to go or how to live.

God is with His people and they are expected to follow Him and His ways.

(v. 4) “for you have not passed this way before” – God is constantly calling us, and leading us into unfamiliar territory.  He required Abraham to leave his home and “move to a land I will show you” (Gen. 21:1). Joseph was required to move from his home, then to slavery, and then to Egypt. Jesus said, “I will go to prepare a place for you, for where I have gone there you may be with me also.” The Christian life is moving from one unknown place to another.

As we cross the Jordan as a church, we must remember that God is committed to us in His provision for our needs, His salvation, grace and forgiveness of sin – but we must also remember our commitment to Him.  Out of love and loyalty we follow and commit ourselves to an ever-deepening relationship with Him.

Consecrate Yourself Before Crossing-Over (v. 5)

“Then Joshua said to the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.”

Some of God’s promises are unconditional, and all we have to do is believe them, while other promises have expectations and consequences attached. In meeting these expectations, we are not earning God’s blessing. Rather, we are making certain that our hearts are ready for God’s blessing. The promise was that God would demonstrate miraculous power, but it was contingent on the people’s willingness to consecrate or sanctify themselves.

In the Old Testament, sanctification was usually tied to ritual cleansing, and God gave very specific instructions for ceremonial cleanliness. If the experience of Israel at Mount Sinai was the pattern, then “sanctify yourselves” meant that everyone was to bathe and change their clothes, at least in part. In the Bible this imagery of washing one’s body and putting on fresh clothes symbolized a new beginning with the Lord. Sin is a picture of defilement.

God has to cleanse us before we can truly follow him. When Jacob made a new beginning with the Lord and returned to Bethel, he and his entire family washed themselves and changed their garments (Gen. 35). And after King David confessed his sin with Bathsheba, he bathed, changed his clothes, and then worshiped God (2 Sam. 12:20). This imagery is carried over into the New Testament. Colossians 3:9-10 speaks of the necessity of being forgiven for sin, putting away the old patterns of behavior and attitudes, allowing those things to be washed away by the blood of Christ. Then there is the wonderful invitation to put on the new person, to clothe ourselves in the righteousness of Jesus (Eph. 4:24).

Whenever we face new opportunities, God’s voice calls us to sanctify ourselves. God calls his people to holiness, purity of life, and separation from sin. For us today, the invitation to be cleansed means that we come once again to claim the cleansing of the precious blood of Jesus Christ, which washes away all defilement, uncleanness, and sin.

That requires a willingness from us to admit our sin, to live an examined life, to be open to truth. It means opening ourselves to the convicting work of the Holy Spirit, because after our confession of sin, repentance, and experiencing forgiveness, then the Holy Spirit enables us to be used by God.

As we enter into a time of crossing over, you must cleanse yourself of all sin, and truly seek His will, if you are to ever hear from him as to the direction we are to go.  There are some who will not do this, they want to counted among God’s people but are unwilling to give up certain sin, it is these individuals who like the 1st generation of Israel have doubt, cause dissention, and see giants where there are none!

Keep Your Eyes On God When Crossing Over (vv. 6-8)

“And Joshua said to the priests, “Take up the ark of the covenant and pass on before the people.” So they took up the ark of the covenant and went before the people. 7 The Lord said to Joshua, “Today I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. 8 And as for you, command the priests who bear the ark of the covenant, ‘When you come to the brink of the waters of the Jordan, you shall stand still in the Jordan.’”

The instruction to keep a thousand yards away shows the need of some degree of separateness between the people and a holy God. The people were commanded to never touch the ark, to never treat the things of God lightly.

The ark was a holy piece of furniture from the tabernacle. It wasn’t to be treated carelessly. And there is an implication for us today. God is our Abba, Father, our companion as we go through life, but we dare not relate to him casually or superficially. Hebrews in 12:28-29 “Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, 29 for our God is a consuming fire.”

Also, of importance for Israel at this point was the logistical issue of staying far enough away from the ark so that it could be seen as it was held up by the Levites during the crossing of the Jordan. The ark was to lead the way across the treacherous river and into unfamiliar land, and therefore the eyes of the people would be focused on the presence and power of God and not on their dangerous circumstances as they crossed the Jordan River.

We must be focused on the God of mercy, not the held back water! There is safety in the middle of the Jordan when it is God’s hand that holds back the water! It is only perceived as dangerous if God were not in it.

If we are to be a people who are willing to follow the Lord today, we must keep our eyes fixed on Jesus Christ. Remember, his offer of salvation to each of us was basically a call to begin a lifelong process of following him. The writer of Hebrews describes following Jesus Christ as running a race with perseverance, “…fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author [pioneer] and perfecter of our faith….” (12:2).

He pioneered the way; he has been across the Jordan and in the unfamiliar territory himself; he has been tempted in every way that we can possibly be tempted. Jesus suffered, was humiliated, died, and then rose again for our sakes. And his being the perfecter of our faith means that he goes with us, teaching and enabling and encouraging us.

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 God has a calling upon your life, so as we “Prepare To Encounter God’s Call” – how do we face this incredibly difficult task?

  • What We Choose to Focus On Determines Where We Are Going (vv. 2:22-24)
  • Remember Our Commitment To God When Crossing Over (vv. 1-4)
  • Consecrate Yourself Before Crossing-Over (v. 5)
  • Keep Your Eyes On God When Crossing Over (vv. 6-8)

Closing

When a researcher started interviewing hospital workers—the people who cleaned out the patients’ rooms each day she assumed they would only have bad things to say about it. That was partially true, but she also found a second group of workers with the same jobs who felt their labor was highly skilled.

They described the work in “rich relational terms,” talking about their interactions with patients and visitors. Many of them reported going out of their way to learn as much as possible about the patients whose rooms they cleaned. “It was not just that they were taking the same job and feeling better about it … It was that they were doing a different job.”[2]

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[1] Madvig, 264.

[2] https://www.preachingtoday.com/illustrations/2024/june/dirty-jobs-turned-into-meaningful-callings.html

Leaders Who Hold On Too Tight For Too Long

In Mark 12 we find Jesus teaching in the temple during the week leading up to Passover. This is the week that the Jewish believers would remember how God had passed over the homes who had marked their doorpost with blood (see Exodus 12) and it involved a special symbolic meal that represented various things around that historical event. During this week Jesus would teach in the temple during the day, and it was during this time that he overturned the tables of moneychangers, drove out livestock traders, and kept people from cutting through the Gentile court (Mark 11).

Trying to trap Jesus various religious groups came up to him with scenarios, theological and political questions, and each time Jesus skillfully escaped their word games. By Mark 14 and in other gospels we are told that they were trying to develop a plan to kill him. So what was the disconnect between Jesus and these Jewish religious groups – didn’t they have the same law of Moses?

At the end of the day you can boil it all down to one word – influence. Jesus was claiming to be the Messiah – the promised king who would bring salvation to His people. He proved this by teaching “as one who had authority,” and performing miracles (casting out demons, raising the dead, healing the blind and sick, controlling weather, multiplying bread and fish to feed thousands, etc.).

These religious leaders were trying to kill Jesus because he threatened their influence over the people. When John the Baptist faced this same situation early in Jesus’ ministry he came to the conclusion, “He must increase, but I must decrease.” Understanding who Jesus was and John’s role as preparing the way for Jesus, when it was time for him to step aside and let Jesus take the spotlight, John stepped aside. So from a leadership perspective . . .

How do you know if you are being like the Pharisees or John the Baptist?

We all know of leaders who held on too long – they may have been the founder, planter, original leader, or just in the same position for a long time, but their ability to take the ministry, church, organization has been overshadowed by the job itself (it has grown past their ability or skillset).

(1) Have You Clearly Heard From the Lord? Ministry is hard, and there will always be tough issues to work through. So, the spiritual leader must understand their role in the organization and execute that to their fullest. In ministry, I have experienced the Lord telling me to hang on and keep going, and there have been times when He has said, “Drew, your time here is over.” Keep praying until you clearly hear one or the other.

(2) Are You Afraid to Surround Yourself With Great Leaders? Bad leaders feel threatened by new leaders who seek excellence, are growing and developing – while they decline and are becoming obsolete. Good leaders try to sure up where they are weak, and put people where they have blind spots. If you feel so threatened by people who are better at things than you are, then it may be time to step aside. Part of this concept is raising up new leaders, to eventually replace you or to multiply the work. If a person is so threatened to mentor another, then they are keeping the organization stagnant on purpose.

(3) Why Do You Do What You Do? When John the Baptist would preach and baptize people Mark tells us that, “John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 5 And all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.” This would have been thousands of people traveling out to the wilderness just to see, hear, and be baptized by John. If John had been a prideful man, then all that popularity and influence would have been very difficult to let it go.

For the Pharisees, Sadducees, high priests, scribes, etc. this influence was intoxicating to them – they loved it. Jesus even said, Matthew 23:5-7 “They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long, 6 and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues 7 and greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbi by others.” This is something about leadership that is hard to identify when you are in the moment – you may not see how people’s response to you drives your reason for serving in a particular position.

(4) Are You In Touch With Reality? The Pharisees, Sadducees, High Priests, and Scribes had to ignore all the miracles, fulfilled prophecies, and clear signs that Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of God. Even at the testimony of the guards who saw Jesus rise from the dead, they paid them off to say the disciples came and moved the body. They ignored reality because they wanted to hang on to power and influence.

Take a good hard look at your current situation – are you having to overlook constant and clear signs that it is time for you to go, or do you see how God is using you to move the needle, and push the organization forward? Don’t ignore what is right in front of your face, so that you can hold on to power and influence. Ups and Downs are a part of any organization, so don’t be discouraged if you are “down.” If you are called to be there, surrounding yourself with good leaders, taking solid steps forward then hang on, and learning as-you-go then it will get better.

Remember, you are in between the last leader, and the one that will come after you. Therefore, you are a steward of the organization now, but you will not be there forever. So, leave it better than you found it.

Christmas Stories: Christmas Sermon Series “Mary’s Story” Luke 1:26-45

Christmas Stories: Christmas Sermon Series

Mary’s Story

Luke 1:26-45

 Introduction

God’s Plan For Mary (vv. 26-33)

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, 27 to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!”3 29 But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. 30 And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. 31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

The sixth month refers to Elizabeth’s sixth month of pregnancy, not the sixth month of the year. God’s plan for Elizabeth, Zachariah, and John the Baptist have already been in place for six months.  God had already began the process of birthing the one who would run ahead of Jesus in the desert.

Gabriel was sent to a virgin named Mary who was engaged to a man named Joseph.  Their marriage process was slightly different than our own today.  A father would seek to find a wife for his son.  Once a girl was found the son’s approval was sought and then a dowry was paid to the father of the bride since he was losing a daughter and a valuable helper.

A written agreement was drawn up and the couple were considered to be married; but there was no sexual contact during this “engagement” time.  The engagement could not be broken except in instances of adultery. But if this were the case then there would be great shame on the part of the offender.

Time would pass and there would be a religious ceremony and then the couple would consummate the marriage.  It was between the engagement and the ceremony that Gabriel appears before Mary.

“Greetings, O favored one,” – Luke is careful to let us know that this favor is not because Mary had any kind of special holiness in her life.  There was nothing about her life that would have earned this type of privileged responsibility.  God in His grace and mercy just chose her.

God in his grace and mercy has a very special plan for each of our lives as well.  God desires to use us to do great things for His name.  Mary is an example to us of a person who was called by God to do something wonderful and she did it faithfully.  Let’s look to see how Mary sought to carry out her calling.  

She Knew God Was With Her

“the Lord is with you!” – This is not a wish that God would be with her, but a statement of fact – The Lord is with you.  kurios meaning supreme in authority, the controller. The God who was with her was supreme, He was in control, He who has all authority would be with her.  Not just in the beginning – but all the way through.

She would need to know that the Lord is with when she was to approach Joseph and tell him that she is pregnant.  She would need to know that God is with her when she would have to travel from Nazareth to Jerusalem while she would be “great with child.”  She would need to know that God is with her when she has to deliver this child in a filthy stable.

She would need to know the Lord was with her when she learns that Herod desired to kill her child – and as she escaped to Egypt.  She would have to know that the Lord was with her when the child would become a man – she would watch as he would lay down his tool belt and leave for a public ministry.  She would have to let him go.

She would have to know that the Lord was with her as she watched as he would be rejected, spit upon, cursed, ripped to pieces by a Roman cat-of-nine-tails.  Mary would have clung to these precious words “the Lord is with you!” as she watched her precious Son hang on an old rugged cross for the sins of the world.

As she heard him cry out, “IT IS FINISHED!” and sink into death.  She would have to know that the Lord was with her as she looked into the face of her dead son, beaten beyond recognition, wiping his face and body of blood, wrapping his body in cloth and lying his limp body into a tomb.  She would need these words from Gabriel.  

Notice that Mary is not afraid at Gabriel’s presence, but it his words that cause her to be afraid.  These words should cause us to cry out in joy “The Lord is with you!” These words should also drive us to our knees in prayer because if God has called us to accomplish great things for Him, things that can be accomplished only by “The Lord being with us” – then there will be great heartache and circumstances that require us to call out to Him and to cling to His Word. 

 Matthew 1:22-23 “All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: 23 “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel.”

Not only would The Lord be with Mary but “God is with us.”  Just as Mary would have clung to the words “The Lord is with you,” We can rejoice that God is with us.  The Son of the Most High Stepped out of heaven and would come to be among us – to be with us.

 John 1:1, 14 “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, . . .”

She Knew God Called Her To Do Something Great

Gabriel gives several things that describe the son she was to name Jesus. “He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High.” Whereas John would be known as a great man, the difference between John and Jesus is that His greatness would be related to His being the Son of God.  Jesus was God in the flesh, who came from heaven to dwell with us. 

 This child that she would give birth to, would be a king; But he would be different than Saul, David, Solomon, or any other earthly king – “And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end,” Not only would he be a king, but His reign will be for all of eternity.

 Responses To Christ

Matthew 27:27-31 “Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the governor’s headquarters, and they gathered the whole battalion before him. 28 And they stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, 29 and twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on his head and put a reed in his right hand. And kneeling before him, they mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” 30 And they spit on him and took the reed and struck him on the head. 31 And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the robe and put his own clothes on him and led him away to crucify him.”

 Revelation 19:11-16 “Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. 12 His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. 13 He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. 14 And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. 15 From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. 16 On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.”

Here are the two responses that people would have to the Son of God.  One of mockery, and falsely following the King; or one of standing in awe and reverent fear of the Son of God.

The shepherds ran and told their town about what they had seen and heard, they later returned to worship and praise the Christ child.  The Magi from the west came over long distances and brought gifts fit for a king. What is your response to Christ; a mocking bow or reverential following?

God’s Plan For Mary Was Impossible – for her (vv. 34-38)

34 And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?” 35 And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God. 36 And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. 37 For nothing will be impossible with God.” 38 And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.”

Where Zechariah in the previous verses had wanted more proof from Gabriel that his message was going to come true, Mary asks about how this would come about (since she was a virgin.)

She is seeking to know more about God’s plan because she did not understand.  The only explanation she gets is “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.” God will make it so.  There are several things in the Bible that we cannot fully understand or explain.

We do not know how God created the world – only that he did.  We have, for example, God the Father sending and angel, The Holy Spirit directing the pregnancy, and the Son Jesus being brought into the world – the Trinity is something difficult to grasp but none the less true.

This Jesus would be fully God and fully man at the same time.  How do these things happen?  God.   Not a blind faith, but a faith upon the evidence revealed to us and taking Him at His Word.  “For nothing will be impossible with God.”

She recognizes that she is a servant of the Lord, and He has the right to do with her anything He desires.  But she is a servant of one where nothing is impossible.  A servant follows her master.

Your life may not where you thought it would end up, give it to God “For nothing is impossible with God.”  No matter how damaged the marriage, no matter how wayward the child, no matter how little in the checking account, “For nothing is impossible with God.” no matter how strong the urge, no matter whether you see how it will work out or not “For nothing is impossible with God”

If God can make a virgin girl become pregnant, if He came shape time and space to orchestrate a star for shepherds and Magi to see and move it at will, if God can fulfill hundreds of prophecy regarding Jesus’ birth and life, if he can give Zechariah and Elizabeth a child in their old age, than he can surely handle anything you desire to lay at his feet.

There will be a time in your life when God will desire to use you to be a part of something amazing, beyond anything you ever could have imagined – and He may just say, “follow me into the impossible.”  Our response must be like Mary’s; “Lord, I don’t know how you are going to do this, but here I am. . . “let it be to me according to your word.”  God is the God of the impossible.

Mary Raced To See Elizabeth (vv. 39-45)

In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a town in Judah, 40 and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. 41 And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, 42 and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! 43 And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? 44 For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. 45 And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.”

Immediately after discovering God’s plan for her life, she got ready and went to celebrate with Elizabeth and her miraculous pregnancy.  The angel had told Mary that God had allowed Elizabeth to have a child. So she goes to see it for herself.  One impossibility coming together with another impossibility. 

How is it that we have been so blessed by God in so many ways? Hebrews 10:25 “And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” God is always working impossibilities in the lives of those who say, “let it be to me according to your word.” God desires that we meet together to share these things and encourage each other.

Elizabeth says, “And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me?” Whereas before they would have met and talked about the mundane things of life, even seeing their relationship as casual.

But now she feels honored, “favored” that Mary would come by.   Oh, how their conversations would change – what would the two ladies who had experienced the impossible say to each other?  Let us meet and discuss the things of God regularly.

 Conclusion

The fact that God would gives us an opportunity to receive Christ and how God made the impossible possible is the wonder of Christmas.  In order for God to work in your life; realize that He is with you.  He has directed you here this morning – because for His love and desire to do great things through you.

Secondly, realize that it is impossible for you to go to heaven or do great things – without God. That is why Jesus was born into the world, to save us from our sins.  What is impossible for us, is possible for an almighty God.

This morning if you would like to ask Christ to come into your life and forgive you of your sins, you can say a prayer something like this:

Dear Jesus I know that I am a sinner and need Your forgiveness.  I believe that you died for my sins. I want to turn from my sins. I now invite you to come into my heart and life.  I want to trust and follow You as Lord and Savior.  Amen.

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"For by grace you have been saved through faith." Ephesians 2:8

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