Advent, Day 15

DAWN

When dawn breaks, there is a long period of gradual change. It can be imperceptible at first, but it grows more and more obvious until the whole horizon is on fire. Then it happens all at once: The radiance of sunlight breaks across the horizon, and the day has begun.

For those awaiting God’s deliverer, it must have seemed like night would last forever. God prepared the world stage slowly and imperceptibly. It is difficult for humans to bear the peculiar patience of God. We forget that God is not trapped inside time like us, his hand forced by haste, boredom, or eagerness. God knows every story that could possibly be, and He chooses what is best, even if it requires long epochs of quiet. God was not slow, but He was very, very patient. Then suddenly, when the time was just perfectly right, God sent the dawn, and the world changed. Nothing would ever be the same.

The first rays of light—the first notes of the new reality—came in the form of an angelic visit to a young woman named Mary. Mary was a Jewish teenager preparing for marriage to a kind man named Joseph. Mary’s father probably arranged the betrothal, and custom would have given Mary and Joseph little time to become acquainted—Joseph would practically have been a stranger to her.

Mary was a vulnerable young woman in a small satellite of the Roman Empire. She would have grown up hearing of God’s promises, but she doubtless saw herself as having a very small role to play in God’s plans. But God loves humble roots, so it’s not surprising that Mary is exactly the kind of woman He would choose to honor.

One late summer day, the ordinary laws governing creation were suddenly cracked open, and in the rift, Mary witnessed the most incredible and fearful sight of her life—a fearsome angelic being blazed with the light of God’s glorious presence. The terrifying visitor told her not to be afraid—which was timely because standing next to him would have been like standing by the core of a runaway nuclear reactor. It would have been like standing on the horizon at those first cracks of brilliant sunlight spilling across the Earth. The angel Gabriel told Mary she would soon conceive, not in the natural way, but by the supernatural intermediation of God’s Spirit. Her son would be God’s own son, and she should name him Yeshua (“Jesus” is the American form of his name) which was a contraction of the words “Yahweh Saves” or “Yahweh’s Salvation”.

Everything about this story bears the thumbprint of God! Joseph was David’s heir, so Joseph’s adoption of Jesus would place the boy right smack in the center of all God’s promises. Mary was a nobody, and God loves working through people of no acclaim. Jesus’ supernatural birth would show that He was not just a great human. He was not just the answer to Isaiah’s prophesy. Jesus would be the answer to every riddle. He would be the heir of David, yet also the son of a nobody, yet also the very son of God himself. He would be the Salvation of Yahweh, the Hero,
Emmanuel, the Lord with his people.

DAILY SCRIPTURE READING
In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled at the saying and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be.

And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. 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, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?”

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. For nothing will be impossible with God.”

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.
– Luke 26-35, 37-38

REFLECTION QUESTIONS
– Why is it significant that Jesus was adopted into David’s royal line?
– What thoughts would have gone through Mary’s mind when she heard that her son’s kingdom would have no end?
– There are many stories in the Bible about God’s provision of children to women who should not otherwise have been able to conceive (e.g. Sarah, Rachael, Hannah). How do these stories prepare us to understand Mary’s conception?
– This week in Advent, we light the love candle to remember God’s love that came down into the darkness to provide rescue. How can God’s love steady you in the challenges you face this week?

PRAYER
Lord God, we praise you! There is no one like you! You work wonders and honor those we would not expect. You resolve every mystery. You keep every promise. Thank you for lifting humanity up from the darkness—you don’t consign us to despair. You are faithful. You step in. You bring the sun. Would we love you all the more as we marvel at your humility and faithfulness! Amen.