In the beginning, Genesis 1:1-3

Today, as we are on the cusp of beginning a new year, we are going to begin a new series on the book of Genesis.  Genesis is a book of beginnings. The word Genesis literally means origins.  It is a record of the beginning of time, the beginning of the earth, the beginning of the animal kingdom, the beginning of man, the origin of marriage, the origin of sin. There are many other firsts that we will see as we study through this book. But I call this a series in Genesis, because it will not be a complete exegesis of every chapter and verse, but an expose of significant passages that form the foundation of the gospel.

The foundations of our theology are established in Genesis. For example, the doctrines of the trinity -God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit, the creation of everything that exists by the expression of God’s will, the fall of man, redemption, judgment, and the kingdom of God.  The foundation of the gospel is presented in Genesis, and without a firm faith in the truth of Genesis as the word of God,  I believe it is impossible to be saved.  Hebrews 11:6 says, “But without faith [it is] impossible to please [Him], for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and [that] He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”

That being said, it is important to know that though Moses is said in scripture to be the human author of Genesis, the inspiration of the word was by the Holy Spirit.  2Peter 1: 21 “for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke [as they were] moved by the Holy Spirit.”

And 2Tim. 3:16-17 says, “All Scripture [is] given by inspiration of God, and [is] profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,  that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

So in actuality, God is the author of Genesis.  He was the only one that was around to witness it. That’s important to keep in mind because if you begin to study the origins of the world in many academic institutions both religious and secular, you will very quickly be told that there were multiple authors of Genesis that altered and added to it’s account down through the centuries.  So that what we have today is a mishmash of traditions and myths and handed down stories all edited and combined together in such a way as to make it completely unreliable and actually a creation myth that is not dissimilar to other creation myths such as the Babylonian epics like the Enuma Elish. 

But of course, modern academic criticism doesn’t believe in the divine inspiration of scripture at all.  However, if we are to have Biblical faith, saving faith, then we must believe in the literal interpretation of scripture according to it’s literary context,  as we have received it.  A creationism theologian by the name of Henry Morris said, “The only proper way to interpret Genesis 1 is not to ‘interpret’ it at all. That is, we accept the fact that it was meant to say exactly what it says.”

So we don’t rely upon Moses having reliable documents or verbal traditions to guide him or to use as a reference.  We don’t rely upon ancient rabbinic editors who added or changed Genesis to suit their preferences or teach a particular view point.  We rely on God to speak through his servant Moses the truth concerning Himself and His creation, and His salvation of man, and to guard His word and establish His word for all generations to come.

The most reliable interpretation of scripture comes from scripture itself. Someone has counted over 200 quotations or allusions from Genesis in the New Testament. And probably one of the best interpretations or explanations of the creation account is found in John 1, starting in vs 1.  “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was in the beginning with God.  All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.  In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.  And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.”

So notice the correlation between John 1:1 and Genesis 1:1.  Genesis 1:1 says, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth”  And John says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.”  John is actually writing a commentary on Genesis 1:1, expounding details that were not fully made clear  in Genesis. 

But first I want you to notice that phrase, “in the beginning.” In Genesis, you might suppose that to mean that at the beginning of creation, God began to create the earth.  But according to John, there is more to the phrase “in the beginning” than simply a starting point of creation. Because John goes on to stress the eternal nature of God by saying of the Word; “He was in the beginning with God.”

There is no starting point in “in the beginning with God.”  God is eternal.  He was before all things. As was God in the beginning, so was the Word in the beginning.  Paul says in  Romans 1:20 “For since the creation of the world His invisible [attributes] are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, [even] His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse.” 

So many scriptures speak of the eternal nature of God that I cannot begin to quote them all here, but we see it in Psalm 93:2 which says, “Your throne is established from of old; You are from everlasting.” And Psalm 90:2 “Before the mountains were born Or You gave birth to the earth and the world, Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God.”  His eternal nature is essential to our salvation, because the great gift of salvation is eternal life.  And if God is not eternal, then how could He give eternal life? So our salvation is bound up in the doctrine of God being eternal.

The next word I would like to address this morning is the name of God given in vs 1, which is Elohim.  Hebrew scholars tell us that this word is plural, which speaks of the Godhead, the trinity.  That plural aspect of God is further borne out by the phrase in vs 26, “Then God said, ‘Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness.’”  Once again notice that the plural pronouns are used in reference to God.  And of course that correlates with what John said about the Word being in the beginning with God and active in the creation of all things.

Someone has pointed out that you can see all three persons of the Godhead at work in Genesis; Elohim in vs 1, the Spirit of God moving on the water in vs 2, and the Word of God speaking in vs 3, “Then God said…” The concept of the Word being one of the Godhead is established in John’s account.  So believing in God as He is described in scripture is essential to our salvation as we read earlier from Hebrews 11:6 says, “But without faith [it is] impossible to please [Him], for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and [that] He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”

So then “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” God is the creator of the heavens and the earth.  The word create in the ancient Hebrew means to bring forth something out of nothing.  God didn’t use preexisting materials. God spoke the world and the heavens into existence, from nothing into something. Psalm 33:6 says, “By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, And by the breath of His mouth all their host.” The creative power of the word of God is beyond our comprehension.

John 1:3 says  “All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.” It’s important  to understand that everything was made by Him. God created everything that exists.  Everything spiritual, everything physical, everything in the heavens. Col. 1:16-17 speaking of the Son of God says, “For by Him all things were created, [both] in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities--all things have been created through Him and for Him.  He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together."

Paul refers in 2 Cor. 12 to there being three heavens. He said he was caught up into the third heaven. Theologians have determined that there are three heavens; the first is our atmosphere, the region of the clouds, the second heaven is the sphere of the stars, and the third heaven is the sphere of God.  I’m not sure how that looks, since they may not be stacked upon one another but intermingled in some way.  In other words, the third heaven may not be beyond the farthest star, but somehow between the particles which make up our atmosphere. I don’t know. There may be even more than three heavens.  But one thing’s for sure, God made the heavens and all the occupants of the heavens.

I must confess that there is a part of me that wants to believe that there is an indefinite period of time between vs 1 and vs 3.  There is something in theological circles called the Gap Theory which says that there was a space of time between vs 1 and 3 which may have been millions of years long.  I can see that as plausible just from reading those verses, and it lends itself to explaining the geophysical age of the earth.  But the Gap Theory also claims that there was a previous creation which God had destroyed and part of the judgment of God was that He condemned Satan to the confinement of the earth.  And so they see the chaos and darkness that covered the earth as evidence of that.

I don’t think that scripture supports that theory in the full dimension of what they claim. I don’t think the fossil record is from a previous creation, but rather is evidence of the flood.  I believe the Bible teaches only one creation on earth.  But I do think that it is possible that the earth and the heavens were dormant for possibly millions of years before creation, and the earth was just formless and void. 

But I have to say I cannot be dogmatic about that view in light of further study of this passage.  And that’s due to the events of day four. Because on day four God created the sun and the moon and the stars.  So that would seem to indicate that the entire universe was created on day four.  I don’t know if that includes other galaxies or not. I would tend to think that God made other galaxies prior to ours, but I don’t know that there is any support for that one way or another. But it seems that on the basis of scripture, God created our universe in the six days of creation.

I do find it odd though that the creation of the earth is described in this way by Moses, which seems to imply a separate act of creation in creating the heavens and earth, and then in vs 3 another definitive aspect of creation, that being light, which happens on day 1.  The best explanation that I can come up with is that Moses says in the beginning, an indefinite period of time, God created the heavens and the earth.  But the earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep. We know from further reading that there is earth under the water because on day two God separates the water and dry land appears. But in the beginning, for an indefinite period of time, there is globular form of water suspended in space.

I find it interesting that when scientists search for evidence of life on other planets, the primary thing they want to find is evidence of water.  Without water there can be no life as we know it. And as far as we know, the earth is the only planet that has water in any sort of liquid form.

But scientists tell us that they believe there is something in the universe called dark matter and dark energy.  I don’t even begin to understand it, but they seem to think that the mass–energy content of the universe is 5% ordinary matter, 26.8% dark matter, and 68.2% a form of energy known as dark energy.  I don’t understand any of that, except to say that according to scripture the heavens and the earth were created and yet the sun, moon and stars had not yet been created.  One noted scientist has said that dark matter is the glue that holds all the universe together.  I believe that is actually God Himself, or as Moses says here, the Spirit of God moved across the waters.  Col 1:17 says, “He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.”

Notice also what Hebrews 1:3 says, “And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. So even in the beginning of creation, God is moving, controlling, energizing His creation. Holding the waters of the earth together.  Holding the universe together. Without that power of God over His creation, the entire universe would explode and scatter across space.

Now let’s assume that in the beginning God made the matter which constitutes the heavens and the earth, and that existed for an indefinite period of time.  But when God makes the light on day one, it does not become a day until He makes light appear.  The light separates the darkness, and makes one day.  That day does not exist until there is light.

Let’s read that. Vs 3 Then God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light. God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness.  God called the light day, and the darkness He called night. And there was evening and there was morning, one day.”

So the The first day of creation is defined by the manifestation of light.  Notice I don’t say that God created light because the scripture doesn’t say God created light.  On day four God creates the lights in the heavens, the sun, moon and stars.  But on this day one, God says let there be light.  John 1:4-5 “In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

But on day one, God said, “let there be light.” If there is no sun, moon or stars yet created, then where does the light come from?  The only answer is that the light comes from God. “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.”  1John 1:5 “This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.”

Now you may say correctly that the gospel is light.  But you must also remember that Jesus said, “I am the light of the world.”  But however we try to explain it, there was light which God commanded to appear to the world and it was so.  It is the light of God, so I say it was not created, because God was not created, but it was manifested to the world. 2Cor. 4:6 “For God, who said, "Light shall shine out of darkness," is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.”

So Genesis tells us that light, day, and night each existed before the sun and the moon were created on the fourth day. This shows us that light is more than a physical substance; it also has a supernatural aspect. It says in Revelation 22:5 that in the new heavens and the new earth,  there won’t be any sun or moon. God Himself will be the light.

The other important thing to consider about this statement is that God created time.  Time is relevant only to our universe, and a day is calculated by the cycle of evening and morning.  A day is defined as evening and morning.  So the rotation of the earth in relation to the light constitutes one day.  And we have further divided a day into 24 hours. This concept of time is important to understand because God exists outside of our time space continuum. And further, it refutes the theory of Theistic Evolution, which is a belief that the day spoken of in Genesis actually refers to an age that may have lasted for thousands, if not millions of years in order to correlate to evolution. 

So the creation of the world and all that is in it happened in six literal days, as defined by evening and morning.  And that should not be something that is difficult to believe, if you believe that God created the heavens and the earth, or if you believe in the eternal nature of God.  But if you do not believe in God as eternal, then neither will you believe in His gospel.

Jesus said in John 5:46-47  "For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me, for he wrote about Me. But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?”

So if we believe what Moses said concerning the origin of the heavens and the earth, then we must believe that God Himself was before the beginning in three persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  We must believe that before creation there was a plan of God. Eph 3:11 says [This was] in accordance with the eternal purpose which He carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord.” 

We must believe the mission of Jesus was foreordained before the foundation of the world. 1Peter 1:20 says, “He indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you.”

We must believe that eternal life was promised before time began: Titus 1:2 says, “in hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began.”

We must believe that the mystery of the gospel (the cross) was foreordained before the ages: 1 Corinthians 2:7 “But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory.”

We must believe the grace given unto us was given before the world began: 2 Timothy 1:9 “who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began.” 

And we must believe that believers in Jesus Christ were chosen in Him before the foundation of the world: Ephesians 1:4 “just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love.”

Do you believe what the word of God says concerning what happened in the beginning? Then believe also in Jesus Christ. Jesus said in John 12:46  "I have come [as] Light into the world, so that everyone who believes in Me will not remain in darkness.”

And He said in John 11:25, "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies.”

As Jesus prayed with the disciples before His crucifixion, in John 17:3  "This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.

What Child is this? Luke 2:1-20

One of my favorite Christmas carols is “What Child is this?”  And I think that this carol asks the quintessential question of all mankind, what is this Child that was born of Mary.   It’s a question that hopefully you have answered in your heart.  The answer to this question is declared by the angel, “for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.“

But to fully appreciate the anticipation of what this Child was that was to be born, you must be familiar with the prophesies that were made concerning Him, and  which progressively were made more explicitly down through the centuries revealing more and more details concerning what this Child would be. His birth was initially  prophesied at the dawn of creation. In fact, God Himself prophesied to Satan concerning One who would be born of a woman, who would crush Satan beneath His feet.  God said in Genesis 3:15 “And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, And you shall bruise him on the heel.”  

God furthered promised to Abraham, that from his seed would come One through whom all the world would be blessed. Gen 22:18  "In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”

Joseph was a further prophetic illustration concerning the question of what child is this, by being the son of his father rejected by His brethren, and yet providing salvation for the very ones that had rejected him.

Another type or prophetic symbol of the One who was to come and the purpose for which He came is found in the Passover Lamb that was slain so that the angel of death would pass over the people of God who had the blood of the lamb on their door.  The Christ would be the spotless lamb of God that was slain for the sins of the world, so that those who had the condemnation of death might be delivered from it.

In the book of Exodus, we have the prophetic typology of this seed of Abraham pictured in Moses, who would be the deliverer of His people from enslavement.  Moses was a type of the Christ to come, who spoke the word of God, who performed mighty wonders and miracles, who delivered his people from slavery, and who led them safely through the sea, and through the wilderness into the Promised Land.

David was another prophetic type of who this child would be, as David was anointed King, and God promised David that his kingdom would endure forever.  Psalm 89:3-4 says "I have made a covenant with My chosen; I have sworn to David My servant, I will establish your seed forever And build up your throne to all generations." So this child that would be born was to be the Anointed One, who will reign as King over the kingdom of God.

Isaiah answers this question of “what child is this” by several prophecies.  We looked at a couple of them last week, but I will just read them to you again to refresh your memory, and to show how God progressively reveals more and more details concerning this child through prophecy as the day of His birth drew closer.  

Isaiah 7:14 says,  "Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.” In this verse, much more detail is given, He will be called Immanuel, which means God with us.  Now it becomes even more clear that this child will be the Son of God in human form.

That truth is prophesied even more clearly in Isaiah 9:6 which says,  “For a child will be born to us, a Son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.  There will be no end to the increase of [His] government or of peace, On the throne of David and over his kingdom, To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness From then on and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will accomplish this.” 

This prophecy explicitly makes clear that this child that will be born, will be the Son of God, will be the ruling head of the kingdom of God, will be the Almighty God, the Father of Eternal Life, will be of the line of David, and His government will be forever.  

There are many other prophesies and illusions in Isaiah  to the future child that will be born, but we cannot brush past the prophesy found in Isaiah 53, which speaks even more clearly and specifically about for what purpose this child was born.  It speaks of the Christ being the Savior,  that He will grow up before the Lord, despised and rejected of men, unrecognized as the King of Glory, yet offering Himself up to be beaten, bruised, and slaughtered for our iniquities, that as vs 11 says, “As a result of the anguish of His soul, He (God the Father) will see [it and] be satisfied; By His knowledge the Righteous One, My Servant, will justify the many, As He will bear their iniquities.” 

There are many other prophesies concerning the Messiah, the Anointed One of God who was to come to mankind as a baby in a manger. But not to remain a baby, but to grow up and live a righteous life, to teach the word of God, to save man from the condemnation of sin by the offering of Himself as our substitute.  So that when the angels announce His birth on that much anticipated night, they say “today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”

But this is not just a theological spiritual exercise, but the birth of Christ is a historical, actual, physical event that is well documented both in scripture and by secular writings.  At the outset of Luke chapter 2 you see a census being taken of all the inhabited earth. It was a census by the decree of Caesar Augustus who was over the Roman Empire, which was the dominant government of the civilized world. It’s interesting to think that for the next century or two, you could have looked at that census and found the name of Jesus of Nazareth, born of Joseph and Mary.  In fact, Justin Martyr, writing in the middle of the second century, said that in his own day (more than a hundred years after the time of Jesus) you could look up the record of the same census Luke mentioned.

Joseph and Mary were required to travel from Nazareth to Bethlehem to register, which was a journey of about 80 miles, at the very time when Mary was about to give birth. Joseph was a carpenter.  Mary was a young woman who was scandalized by gossip that she was the mother of an illegitimate child, even though the baby was conceived of the Holy Spirit.  After an arduous trip they were strangers in a tiny town that had no room for them in the one inn the town could boast of.  And so desperate to find shelter for his wife who was soon to bear a child, Joseph found what many think was a cave hollowed out as a shelter for livestock, and he made a bed for the baby in a manger. Mary had the baby with presumably no midwife to help, and she swaddled Jesus in cloths and laid Him in a manger.

What a contrast in imagery!  This Jesus, the long anticipated Messiah, the God’s Anointed One of countless prophesies,  of the royal line of David, destined to be King over all the earth, inconspicuously born in a tiny town of Bethlehem, in a feeding trough, to a young woman and a carpenter, in the most common of common circumstances.  As Isaiah said 700 years before, “He has no stately form or majesty that we should look upon Him, Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him.”

But though the townspeople of Bethlehem are oblivious to the birth of the King in a manger on the outskirts of the village, yet God chose to announce it to some common shepherds out in the country, who were keeping watch over their flocks that night.  

And Luke says “And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened.”  I suppose they were.  A lot of people claim to have seen angels, but one thing that seems common to all Biblical accounts of someone seeing an angel is that they are terrified.  We saw that at the tomb of Jesus in our study the other week. “They went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had gripped them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.”

But however terrifying angels may appear, they are the messengers of God. I don’t know in what form these angels came that appeared to the shepherds. They could have been in blinding light, their forms in flames, their appearance like lightening, they might have had wings, or they might have looked like ordinary young men, they might have been standing or they might have been hovering in the air.  We don’t really know.  But we do know that Luke says the glory of the Lord shone around them.  That probably means there was a very bright light that shone from them and around them.  We also know that there were more than one, for Luke says that the angels went away from them into heaven.

Popular tradition says that the angels sang.  But the Bible doesn’t say they sang.  However, Luke records them as saying, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people;  for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.  This [will be] a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.  And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.”

As I mentioned previously, the angels announcement answers the question, “what child is this?” Saying that there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.  Notice that the angels give titles for Jesus.  First they say this child that is born is a Savior.  This was a title that was used for deity, which refers to Him as a deliverer. The second title is Christ.  Christ is the Greek word for the Hebrew word Messiah.  The Messiah is the promised Anointed One of God. The Son of David, who would reign on the throne forever. And the third title they give is Lord.  Adonai in the Greek.  Again, another title of deity.  Master, ruler, sovereign. And of course we know that previously the angel Gabriel said to Joseph that His name would be Jesus.  Jesus means Jehovah Saves.  Jesus is the Savior, the Messiah, and the Lord.

Then suddenly with the angel that made this announcement is a multitude of the heavenly host.  Hundreds, if not thousands of angels appear, the armies of heaven, all praising God and saying, “glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.” That peace from God is not the same kind of peace that John Lennon called for.  It doesn’t mean the end of war. It’s the peace brokered by Jesus Christ on behalf of man, when we were at enmity with God. Jesus became our peace.  He satisfied the justice of God so that we might become adopted into the family of God.  That’s why Isaiah prophesied that He would be the Prince of Peace. Jesus arbitrated our peace with God.

“When the angels had gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds [began] saying to one another, "Let us go straight to Bethlehem then, and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us."  So they came in a hurry and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the baby as He lay in the manger.” 

Vs17 When they had seen this, they made known the statement which had been told them about this Child.  And all who heard it wondered at the things which were told them by the shepherds.”  I find it very interesting that God relied upon common shepherds to be the witnesses of the incarnation and to make it known.  Do you know that the word pastor comes from the word shepherd?  Shepherd is from word which means to pasture, which is where the word pastor comes from.  Your pastor is supposed to be a shepherd, one who cares for and tends to the flock of God.  But a pastor is also supposed to be a preacher, a proclaimer of the good news.  And so I suppose it’s fitting that God chose these shepherds to proclaim the good news, the gospel, that Jesus the Messiah, the Lord, had been born in Bethlehem.  That is the same job that God has given pastor’s today, to proclaim the good news, the gospel to all men.  

The gospel is just this, that Christ was born to be our Savior, our Lord, and our King.That He was born to free us from our sins, and to procure our peace with God, that we might be made a part of God’s kingdom. If anyone believes in Jesus Christ as Lord, and receives Him as their Savior, they can be saved and be delivered from the condemnation of death and receive instead everlasting life.  

Today we celebrate and proclaim the Lord’s birth as Christmas. Christmas means God’s gift to man.  For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. Receive Him today, and be saved.

Luke says that all who heard the shepherd’s message wondered, or were amazed. Luke doesn’t say that they  believed.  He doesn’t say that the ones who heard came to worship Jesus.  But they wondered.  Many people wonder about Jesus today. They wonder if He was truly the Son of God.  They wonder if His message is really the truth.  They wonder if He is the only way to God, as He claimed. They wonder if it might be true, or some of it might be true, but maybe none of it’s true.  They wonder if it really matters.  And they die without coming to saving faith in who Jesus is and what He has done to save man. Don’t let your life pass you by and you never truly believe. Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved.  He that doesn’t believe is condemned. 

But some believed. Luke says in vs 19”But Mary treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart.”  Did you know that Mary needed to be saved?  The Roman Catholic Church says that Mary was sinless, that she never died, she was assumed into heaven.  They have made a deity out of Mary which is a terrible sin of idolatry against God.  Mary was a virgin, but she was a sinner.  The Bible says for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. But Mary believed what the angels said concerning her Child.  She believed that she had been conceived of the Holy Spirit.  

Back in Luke 1vs 30 The angel Gabriel said to Mary, "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 name Him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David;  and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end." Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I am a virgin?"  The angel answered and said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God.”  

So Mary believed these things, pondering them in her heart. How do we know that Mary believed? You simply have to read what is known as Mary’s Magnificat, which is found in Luke 1 vs 46.  I won’t take the time to read all of it, but in the first two verses she praises God as her Savior.  And Mary said: "My soul exalts the Lord,  And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.”

The shepherds also believed. Vs 20 “The shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them.”  They were praising God that today in the city of David there has been born for them a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” That belief, that faith, is all that is required for salvation, to have peace with God.

Today the shepherds have declared unto you that in the city of David, there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.  Do you believe in your heart in Jesus Christ your Lord and Savior? Do you receive the gift of God? I pray that you do.