
Scripture Reading: Luke 2:13-14 (New International Version)
“Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favour rests.”
Thought for the day:
I don’t want to alarm you, but it’s roughly 270 days to Christmas! As the day approaches, many people begin to get in the festive spirit and excitement builds as the day gets closer. Many others detest the commercial emphasis and are concerned that they won’t have enough money to purchase all the gifts that are seemingly a necessity. When our children were small, there’s no denying that we bought them too many presents! On Christmas Eve, we would lay out the gifts carefully: my daughter’s gifts on one side of the room and my son’s on the left. When they walked into the room, their faces lit up as they saw so many things to unwrap! When they had finished with all those presents, they would sit there looking at them all not knowing what to play with first.
Every year we did the same thing: we would give them one more ‘big’ gift each – as their ‘main present’. They’d received so much but there was more to come.
Our verse today needs to be read in the context of the previous verses. An angel of the Lord had appeared suddenly and given them fantastic news. God’s glory had surrounded them as they gazed in awe, wonder and fear at the angel. Can you imagine being there that night? Wouldn’t it have been amazing? However, the next verse begins with a familiar word: “Suddenly”.
Now, there wasn’t just one angel but a whole host of them. “A great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel”. If their minds hadn’t been blown by the first sudden event, then they certainly were at the second! Just when they thought they’d seen it all, there was more to come. John 1:16 says: “From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another.” Grace upon grace and God keeps pouring out blessing. Oasis Community Church has been the recipient of so much blessing during the last 4 years or so. Many people’s lives have been impacted by the grace of God. Blessed beyond measure is more than just a motto – it’s a reality. God has been so good to us. Do we have faith to believe that this is just the ‘first suddenly’? Can we trust Him to pour out the next blessing over our church and community? Let us paraphrase Mary’s words in response – ‘Lord, be it unto us according to Your Word’.
Prayer and Application:
I’m going to ask you to commit to memory John 1:16. Quote it in your prayers for the next few days. Return God’s Word to Him and trust Him to do even more than He’s done previously.