Angel Gabriel Appears to Mary

Luke 1:26-38, KJV:  “26 And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, 27 to a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. 28 And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. 29 And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be. 30 And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. 31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. 32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: 33 and he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. 34 Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? 35 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. 36 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. 37 For with God nothing shall be impossible. 38 And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.”

The Christmas story from the Bible begins with a miracle, a virgin becoming pregnant, as was foretold in the Old Testament.  In fact, this fulfillment of prophecy is how the New Testament begins.

As Mary was only engaged at that point (or the Jewish equivalent of engagement, which was closer to marriage), she could have been shunned from society, or worse.  However, God had chosen Mary to give birth to the Savior of the world.

While this was something that didn't happen, it did happen once to bring the Savior into the world.  The angel, Gabriel, even gave Mary proof that something miraculous would happen, by saying her relative, Elisabeth (who was older), was pregnant already 6 months.

As you move forward in the Roadmap to Christmas, consider what it would be like if you were in these situations.  Doing so will make these situations more real and more vibrant.

Next, on Wednesday, December 8, Mary will be visiting her relative Elisabeth, who is pregnant with John the Baptist.