The Announcement
Luke 1:26-28 (HCSB) 26 In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, 27 to a virgin engaged to a man named Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 And [the angel] came to her and said, “Rejoice, favored woman! The Lord is with you.”
The baby announcement is special! We tell our friends, we call our relatives, and we send out little cards telling everyone – a baby is coming!
Angels are very popular in our culture. Some people are even prone to worshipping them. Angels are as Billy Graham called them “God’s secret agents.” Angels do the will of the One who sends them, and bring the glory back to him. We could learn a lot from angels. The angel Gabriel and the angels we meet later in the Christmas story with the Shepherds are apparently a sight to behold. (“When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and overcome with fear.” Luke 1:12, “Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.” Luke 2:9)
The Shepherds and Zechariah seemed afraid of the angel. Mary was not. However, Mary and Zechariah questioned the angel (Luke 1:18, 34) but the shepherds did not (Luke 2:15).
All of this, and we sometimes wonder why God does not just send us an angel to give us instructions. Well, God did send us a message, it’s called the Bible and it gives us plenty of instructions for life. He also sent us Jesus, the one who came to save us from our sins.
Perhaps he is looking for us to share this message with those we know. We are not half as scary as an angel. We have the best news to share. More important than the birth of a baby - it is how that baby came to save the world!
Questions for Discussion
How do you think you would respond to an angel?
When have you been given good news from someone?
When have you last shared some good news with someone?
Prayer
God help me be an angel to someone and announce the good news of great joy that the savior is born! Amen.
Song
“Angels from the Realms of Glory”
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