12/27/2017
Pastor's Pen December 31, 2017
A Time For Reflection
We now celebrate the end of 2017, but more than that, the arrival 2018. Question: Did I learn anything in this past year? Am I better off than before, or worse?
In Luke 1:26-28, it tells the story of the coming of the Messiah. “Now in the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin legally promised in marriage to a man named Joseph of the house of David. And the name of the virgin was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.”
The condition of man prior to God stepping into his life
In the above scripture, we see that the angel Gabriel was sent from God to Galilee. (The word Galilee means, heathen circle, the region of Palestine. To a virgin named Mary, the word Mary, in Hebrew means Maria or Mariam. The beauty of this is, was that she was promised to a man named Joseph. In Hebrew which means: "he increases," This means, endless life, eternal life.
The condition of Mary, the place where she lived, describes the condition of every human being on this planet. In Jn 1:28 it reads, “The messenger from God said, greeting favored one! The Lord is with you.” This was because she was promised a Joseph (he increases).
The Lord dispatched a messenger to every human being because He promised to us a heavenly Joseph the Redeemer; Jesus the Son of God, Jn 3:16, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Rev 2:7a, “Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
Pastor Leo Schifano
