Luke 1:26-47 & Luke 2:18-19
December 13, 2020
preached by Doug Cooper
Download

Time of Reflection Quotations

“Advent is a time of waiting, of expectation, of silence.”

~ Dorothy Day (1897-1980), American writer and social activist

“The Christian story is precisely the story of one grand miracle, the Christian assertion being that what is beyond all space and time, what is uncreated, eternal, came into nature, into human nature, descended into His own universe, and rose again, bringing nature up with Him. It is precisely one great miracle.”

~ C. S. Lewis (1898-1963), British writer, scholar and lay theologian.

“The Almighty appeared on earth as a helpless human baby, needing to be fed and changed and taught to talk like any other child. The more you think about it, the more staggering it gets. Nothing in fiction is so fantastic as this truth of the Incarnation.”

~ J.I. Packer (1926-2020), English-born theologian

“Why would God come this time in the form of a baby, rather than a firestorm or whirlwind? Because this time he has not come to bring judgment but to bear it, to pay the penalty for our sins, to take away the barrier between humanity and God, so we can be together. Jesus is God with us.”

~ Tim Keller (1950-present), American pastor, theologian, and Christian apologist

Sermon Passage

Luke 1:26-47 (NASB) & Luke 2:18-19 (NLT)

Luke 1:26-47 (NASB)

²⁶ Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth, ²⁷ to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the descendants of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. ²⁸ And coming in, he said to her, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” ²⁹ But she was very perplexed at this statement, and kept pondering what kind of salutation this was. ³⁰ 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 name Him Jesus. ³² “He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; ³³ and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.” ³⁴ Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” ³⁵ The angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God. ³⁶ “And behold, even your relative Elizabeth has also conceived a son in her old age; and she who was called barren is now in her sixth month. ³⁷ “For nothing will be impossible with God.” ³⁸ And Mary said, “Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.

³⁹ Now at this time Mary arose and went in a hurry to the hill country, to a city of Judah, ⁴⁰ and entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth. ⁴¹ When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. ⁴² And she cried out with a loud voice and said, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! ⁴³ “And how has it happened to me, that the mother of my Lord would come to me? ⁴⁴ “For behold, when the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby leaped in my womb for joy. ⁴⁵ “And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what had been spoken to her by the Lord.”

⁴⁶ And Mary said: “My soul exalts the Lord, ⁴⁷ And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior. ⁴⁸ “For He has had regard for the humble state of His bondslave; For behold, from this time on all generations will count me blessed. ⁴⁹ “For the Mighty One has done great things for me; And holy is His name.

Luke 2:18-19 (NLT)

¹⁸ “All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, ¹⁹ but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often.”