Sunday, December 1, 2019

Give Peace a Chance

Part One

Luke 1:26-46 NLT

In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a village in Galilee, 27 to a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of King David. 28 Gabriel appeared to her and said, “Greetings, favored woman! The Lord is with you!” 29 Confused and disturbed, Mary tried to think what the angel could mean. 30 “Don’t be afraid, Mary,” the angel told her, “for you have found favor with God! 31 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. 32 He will be very great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. 33 And he will reign over Israel forever; his Kingdom will never end!” 34 Mary asked the angel, “But how can this happen? I am a virgin.” 35 The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God. 36 What’s more, your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age! People used to say she was barren, but she has conceived a son and is now in her sixth month. 37 For the word of God will never fail.” 38 Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.” And then the angel left her. 39 A few days later Mary hurried to the hill country of Judea, to the town 40 where Zechariah lived. She entered the house and greeted Elizabeth. 41 At the sound of Mary’s greeting, Elizabeth’s child leaped within her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. 42 Elizabeth gave a glad cry and exclaimed to Mary, “God has blessed you above all women, and your child is blessed. 43 Why am I so honored, that the mother of my Lord should visit me? 44 When I heard your greeting, the baby in my womb jumped for joy. 45 You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said.” 46 Mary responded, “Oh, how my soul praises the Lord.”

Gabriel appears to Mary

He has a message

“You are a favored woman” “The Lord is with you”

Mary’s response

Confused – disturbed – frightened

Truth is, life never takes the paths we think or choose.

There are twists and bends.

Though angels seldom appear, it’s still true that God ordains our steps.

Psalm 37:23-24 NLT

The LORD directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. 24 Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the LORD holds them by the hand.

Sometimes those steps are clear and understandable.

The path seems well-lit. The journey makes sense.

• But there are times the way seems dark.

The path seems narrow.

What’s happening doesn’t make sense.

We are confused.

We are disturbed.

We are frightened.

The whole of our future relationship with God – any hope of eternity – any chance of being saved, healed, delivered all come down to this moment in lowly Nazareth with a poor teenage girl.

vss. 35 and 38 NLT

35 The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God.

38 Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true.” And then the angel left her.

And though confused and disturbed and frightened, in a few days Mary would exclaim:

“Oh, how I praise the Lord. How I rejoice in God my Savior! For He took notice of His lowly servant girl, and now generation after generation will call me blessed. For He, the Mighty One, is holy, and He has done great things for me.” Luke 1:46-49

Now here’s the message. Here’s where the theme, “Give Peace a Chance” comes in.

The way to peace begins and basically ends right here, “I am willing to accept whatever He wants.”

“I’m willing to give up my life, let go of my plans, lay aside my aspirations for the opportunity to experience the big plan of God.”

Worship Set

O Holy Night

– Adolphe Charles Adam, Placide Cappeau, and John S. Dwight

Verse 1

O holy night the stars are brightly shining

It is the night of the dear Savior’s birth

Long lay the world in sin and error pining

Till He appeared and the soul felt its worth

A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices

For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn

Chorus

Fall on your knees

O hear the angel voices

O night divine

O night when Christ was born

O night O holy night

O night divine

Verse 2

Led by the light of faith serenely beaming

With glowing hearts by His cradle we stand

So led by light of a star sweetly gleaming<