Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David.
The virgin’s name was Mary. And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favoured one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!”
But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was.
Then 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 bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus.
He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give 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.” ~Luke 1
Four-year-old Kaitlyn was oblivious to everything else in the room. There were no thoughts of the decorations hung and wrapped presents. She was simply content to play with our manger scene and its nativity characters. What piqued my interest was something else she was doing as she moved Mary, Joseph, and the Babe around: She was singing “Mary, did you know?” over and over—words she had heard sung by others. As she held Mary, she poignantly asked her if she knew who her precious baby boy was.
Kaitlyn’s question for Mary is the vital one everyone needs to answer. Do we know that Jesus is the One predicted in Genesis 3 to strike Satan’s head (v. 15)—to gain victory over Satan, sin, and death by His death on the cross? Do we know that He’s the Messiah promised in Isaiah 53 and the One Micah prophesied would be born in Bethlehem hundreds of years later? (5:2).
We know that His name—Jesus—means that He will save His people from their sins (Matthew 1:21). We also know that Mary’s baby grew up and chose to die on the cross as the Savior of the world (Luke 1:31; 2:30–32).
The “Son of the Most High” (1:32) has invited us to know Him and be loved by Him. May we choose to know Jesus, our precious Savior, more and more each day!
Dave Branon
Who is Christ to you? How are you growing in your knowledge of Him and love for Him?
At Christmas this year, heavenly Father, may many more people begin to understand who Jesus is and trust Him to be their saviour.May we share what we know about Him to others
