The Christmas Story - A Beautiful Mess
Mary
was a young Jewish girl from a poor family.
She was rightfully engaged to a carpenter named Joseph. As she waits for her wedding day to arrive,
an angel named Gabriel visits her and tells her that she is pregnant through
the Holy Spirit, even though she is a virgin.
He says that she has been chosen by God because of her
faithfulness. However, it doesn't seem
like much of a “reward” since, on top of the social disgrace, a woman could rightfully
be stoned for such an offense in those days.
A beautiful mess.
Thankfully,
Joseph is a gracious man. When he finds
out that his fiance is pregnant, knowing the child is not his, he decides to
break up with her quietly. But before he
can do so, an angel visits him in a dream and tells him that Mary is carrying
the Messiah, conceived by the Holy Spirit.
Despite the social humiliation he will also face, Joseph takes Mary as
his wife as God told him to do.
A beautiful mess.
As
if all of this was not hard enough, Caesar Augustus decides to count those that
were left living in the Roman Empire thus requiring Joseph and Mary to travel
about 70 miles at the very end of her pregnancy. The journey right to Bethlehem takes 3 or 4 long
days with Joseph on foot and Mary riding on a donkey. One might think that God’s favored one could be
spared such a painful journey.
A beautiful mess.
Mary
and Joseph finally arrive in Bethlehem. They are most likely exhausted, especially
Mary. But once they had reached
Bethlehem, they went left and right looking for a place to stay. No rooms were left in Bethlehem. And of course, this is when Mary goes into labor! A kind innkeeper allows them to stay right in
his stable with the animals. It is here
that Mary gives birth to her first child, and lays him to sleep in the animals’
feed trough. No doubt, this was not
exactly what Mary had envisioned.
A beautiful mess.
On
the night Jesus is born, angels appear to a group of shepherds tending their
flocks in a field right near Bethlehem.
One of the angels tells them that the Messiah has been born that night,
and the shepherds decide to go right then to see the baby. Shepherds were filthy from being in the
fields for long periods of time keeping track of their sheep, and were
considered ceremonially unclean. It didn't get much lower in status in that society than shepherds… Not exactly the first visitors one would want
coming to visit their newborn baby. But the
shepherds came, and they went out spreading the good news that the Messiah was
born.
A beautiful mess.
Wise
men spotted a new star right in the sky which marked Jesus’ birth, and they
came from the east to find the right baby the prophets had foretold. Along the way, they visit King Herod, and ask
him where the right baby is. Herod, who
feels threatened by the new “king of the Jews”, gathers all of the important
people left in the area and plots to kill Jesus. As a gift, one of the wise men brings Myrrh,
a perfume used to anoint dead bodies… a symbol of the suffering Jesus would
endure 30-some years later.
A beautiful mess.
Jesus
grew up, led a sinless life, taught many people, healed the sick, was persecuted
and tested … and then in his early 30’s, condemned to a brutal death by
crucifixion to pay the debt for our sins that we could never pay
ourselves.
The biggest “beautiful mess”
of all time.
At
Christmas, as we celebrate the beautiful story of Jesus’ birth, remember how
God wove all of the messy, unexpected pieces together to bring about something
amazing when he sent his only son for us.
What's Ahead: January 9th
- Bunco Time!!
- Individual Challenge: bring a friend to MOPS
- Food/Drinks provided by all groups
Hope you have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!
See you in 2014!!!
MOPS at The Grove
The Grove Baptist Church
12300 County Line Road
Madison AL 35756
Pastor Ross Clemmons
Children's Minister Lottie Partridge
Phone: 256-233-2080
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