The Women of Christmas: Mary, Part 3

“How can this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the Holy One to be born will be called the Son of God. Look, even Elizabeth, your relative, has conceived a son in her old age, and she who was called barren is in her sixth month. For no word from God will ever fail.”

“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it happen to me according to your word.” Then the angel left her.” (Luke 1:34-38 BSB)


In part 1 of our series of the Women of Christmas, we looked at the lineage of Jesus, how that was connected to Mary, and his right to be King. In part 2, we explored the grace of God that was coming and how that contrasted with the Jewish law the people had been living according to. In part 3 we are going to talk about the presence of the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit is a person. He is the third person of The Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We first learn about Him in the book of Genesis.

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep. “And the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.”(Genesis 1:2 BSB)

This sounds so familiar doesn’t it? It sounds like what the Holy Spirit would do when Jesus was conceived.

The word “hovering” in the Old Testament is the Hebrew word “rachaph.” According to Strong’s Lexicon, it means “To hover, to brood, to flutter.”

Under the word “rachaph” on Biblehub.com, there is an entry that says,

“While there is no direct Greek equivalent in the Septuagint for "rachaph," the concept of divine hovering or overshadowing can be seen in the New Testament with the Greek word "ἐπισκιάζω" (episkiazō), Strong's Greek 1982, used in Luke 1:35 to describe the Holy Spirit overshadowing Mary.”

The activity of the Holy Spirit was very reminiscent of the story of creation in Genesis. It’s like there was a Re-Genesis. Isn’t that amazing? I am always amazed by the Old Testament and the New Testament connections!

The Holy Spirit overshadowing or hovering over Mary would bring about the birth of the Son of God. In his message, “Christmas: the Wisdom of God,” Dr. Charles Stanley said about this event,

“The Spirit of God planted within that woman, the very life, the very person of the Son of God.”

What would be next?

The Holy Spirit would also be coming into the earth in a greater way than He had before. We talked earlier in the series about how under the Old Covenant, the Holy Spirit would seem to come and go. Men and women were anointed by God into the offices of prophet, priest, and king. The Holy Spirit would “come upon” them, and then would receive spiritual gifting to carry out the plans and purposes of God. But, He didn't live in them.

There was a very significant change coming. And it was for us.

In John chapter 1, speaking about Jesus, John says,

“And John bore witness saying, "I have beheld the Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven, and it remained upon Him.” (John 1:32 BLB)

The Holy Spirit came and remained on Jesus.

That word “remain" is the same word that Jesus used to teach the disciples about the Holy Spirit in John 14:17.

“...the Spirit of truth. The world cannot receive Him, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But you do know Him, for He abides with you and will be in you.” (BSB)

Abide here means to remain. He will remain. He will abide in you, never to leave.

Ephesians 1:13 says about our relationship to the Holy Spirit,

“And in Him, having heard and believed the word of truth—the gospel of your salvation—you were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the pledge of our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession, to the praise of His glory.” (BSB)


Many blessings to you as you rest and remain in the Lord this season! Thank you for reading this short series on Mary, part of The Women of Christmas.


Merry Christmas!

Beth


P.S.I am sorry I didn't get to Elizabeth and Anna. Christmas caught up with me, and the parts about Mary became longer than I had originally anticipated.


I wrote a series about the Holy Spirit starting with the baptism of Jesus. You can read about that here. The links to the rest of the series are at the bottom of the post.


If you missed the first two posts about Mary, you can go here to The Women of Christmas at Bethlisteningtohim.blogspot.com.

The Women of Christmas

Hello everyone! I hope you are all doing well! I have had it in my heart for a while to write about the "Women of Christmas." I have written about them a little bit in my series on Women in the Life of Jesus, but there is so much more to explore.

Something that the Lord has been emphasizing during this season, I believe, is the presence of the Holy Spirit. We have heard that under the Old Covenant, the Holy Spirit would only come on 3 offices, the prophet, priest, and king. I think we can add the judge to that as well because we see Him in the life of Deborah and Sampson for example.

But He would come and leave. It doesn't seem like they have the Holy Spirit permanently residing in them. I think that's why David prayed this in Psalm 51:11,

"Cast me not away from Your presence; take not Your Holy Spirit from me."

Do you remember?

But something happens when we get to the New Testament. We start having a transition. Grace is coming.

How does this involve the Women of Christmas? Which women are they? To me the Women of Christmas are Mary, Elizabeth, and Anna.

In Luke's Gospel, chapter 1 and 2, we see the story of Christmas. Luke and Matthew are the only two Gospel writers that mention the birth of Jesus, but Luke is the only one that mentions Elizabeth and Anna.

We also see mention of the Holy Spirit. Just like there was more angelic activity surrounding the birth of Jesus, it also seems as though there was more activity with the Holy Spirit.

Why? I think there is a reason. Everything is significant. It all means something.

Over the next few days, I would like to share a (short) series about the Women of Christmas with you.

Merry Christmas,
Beth

If you would like to read the series Women in the Life of Jesus, click on the highlighted link.

To read the Women of Christmas series, use the following links:

The Women of Christmas: Mary, Part 1

The Women of Christmas: Mary, Part 2

The Women of Christmas: Mary, Part 3 

The Women of Christmas: Elizabeth, Part 1

The Armor of God: The Belt of Truth

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can make your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this world’s darkness, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

Therefore take up the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you will be able to stand your ground, and having done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness arrayed, and with your feet fitted with the readiness of the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

Pray in the Spirit at all times, with every kind of prayer and petition.-Ephesians 6:10-18 (Berean Study Bible)



When we put on the armor, we need to be aware that we don’t create it. God did. He gave us the armor with which we fight.

Ephesians 6:10 says to "be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power."  This is not our strength. We take His power, and I believe that power comes from the verses describing the armor we put on.

We are not fighting a battle that can be seen, but one that is unseen, everyday, all around us. We are not fighting against people, but against forces we cannot see. And the armor of God is not a physical armor that we can see either. It is something that has already been paid for with the blood of Jesus.

The first piece of armor is the belt of truth. What does that piece of armor do? What is truth?

In John 1:17, and John 14:6, Jesus is called the truth. During Jesus' trial, he told Pilate that he had come to testify to the truth.

The Greek word for truth is alétheia.

Strong's Concordance defines truth as "truth, but not merely truth as spoken; truth of idea, reality, sincerity, truth in the moral sphere, divine truth revealed to man, straightforwardness."*

Helps Word Studies says this about truth:

[In ancient Greek culture, 225 (alḗtheia) was synonymous for "reality" as the opposite of illusion, i.e. fact.]*

Jesus is reality. He is the truth.

Let’s look at some scriptures that talk about truth.

For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.-John 1:17

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.-John 14:6

And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate to be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot receive Him, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But you do know Him, for He abides with you and will be in you.-John 14:16-17

However, when the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth. For He will not speak on His own, but He will speak what He hears, and He will declare to you what is to come.- John 16:13

“You say that I am a king,” Jesus answered. “For this reason I was born and have come into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to My voice.”-John 18:37

So, Jesus is the truth. He also said that we who are Believers, who are a part of His body, would have the Spirit of truth, which is the Holy Spirit, who lives in us.

The belt of truth we find in Jesus is what holds it all together. It is the first piece of armor in the armor of God. Everything else hangs upon that piece.



*Strong’s Concordance. “225. Alétheia.” Bible Hub, https://biblehub.com/greek/225.htm, June 18 2020.


*HELPS Word Studies. “225. Alétheia.” Bible Hub, https://biblehub.com/greek/225.htm, June 18 2020.


*All scripture quotations are from the Berean Study Bible, unless otherwise stated.

Seasons

This morning I started thinking about seasons. Sometimes you have to completely finish one season before you begin another. But that doesn't mean that God has not been preparing you for the next one all the time.

In December of 1997, I finished up my associates degree at the local community college. Around that same time, I started going to a church pastored by Rhema graduates. In January I started attending a four year university about 45 minutes away. I drove back and forth, commuting for an entire semester. I was in the midst of trying to figure out what I wanted to do, or more importantly what I thought God wanted me to do with myself.

I didn’t really enjoy going to school there. I didn’t know what I wanted to do. I had switched my major to communications and was just taking random classes. The classes I was taking were unfulfilling. I did make one friend who was a Christian during the time. And I got to eat lunch at this fun bagel place with one of my best friends who was attending college there too at the same time.

Also, during that time, I was developing relationships with people who would eventually help me make my way to Bible school. I started dating a Rhema Bible Training Center graduate. My pastors were Rhema graduates. And I became friends with another lady in my church who was also planning to go to Rhema.

God orchestrated all of that. Without my help.

When I look back on it, it was seriously amazing. It was one of the most pivotal moments of my life. As I followed his lead, it changed my life.

Throughout that winter and into the spring, God was preparing me to go to Rhema. But, I had to finish up the season I was in, which was being with my family, finishing up school, and getting ready to say goodbye to everyone.

After I finished the semester at the university, I filled out the application to go to Rhema. Within just a few weeks, I found out that I had gotten in!!! A new season was beginning.

Maybe you are in the middle of a transition right now. Maybe God is wrapping up one season for you, because you are about to start something new. He is preparing you for it, but you have to finish up and close out where you are nicely first.

Don’t try to jump out of that season into the next. It will go smoothly, and he will make you ready as you listen to the Holy Spirit and you follow his leading.

He is placing people in your path to help you transition from one season to the next. It might not be totally easy, but you will see his hand in it, and it will give you courage and confidence to move forward!

When I write or speak about something, I always want to make sure that I include some story from the Word to go with it.  I didn't think of a specific story while writing this, but I did think about Peter.  He started out as a fisherman, and then became a fisher of men.  If you want to learn more about him, you can read the blog posts that I have written that mention Peter here.

Peter had struggles, he had failures, but he had Jesus.  And Jesus, and those around him, the ones who came alongside him, and the ones who needed him, both propelled him forward.

Many blessings to you on your journey with Jesus!


Beth

Five Minute Friday: Another Comforter

Today I am participating in Five Minute Friday, where a group of writers get together and free write about a one word prompt for 5 minutes. Today's word is "another."

I once started to write a series called "Revealing the Character of Jesus", but it never went anywhere. I feel like it is because I needed to learn more about the character of Jesus myself.

That was about 3 years. Since then I feel like I have learned so much, but I just now feel like I am stepping in to understanding. I don’t know why that is, since I have been a Christian for a while. Maybe it is because I have heard a lot of the wrong things, and there was some undoing that needed to take place. Maybe it was because I interpreted Jesus incorrectly, because people say sometimes that you may be the only Bible that some people will ever read. Well, if those people have an incorrect interpretation of Jesus, that is going to be passed along too.

The best interpretation we get of Jesus is from the Scriptures. And then, we still need the Holy Spirit to give us revelation to unfold the character of Jesus. And the Holy Spirit is just like Jesus.

In John 14, Jesus tells the disciples they know the Father if they have seen him. And then he goes on to tell them that they will receive “another comforter,” the Holy Spirit who is to come live in them.

I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.-John 14:16-17 (NASB)

Another Helper. Another Comforter. Another Counselor.

Another Jesus.

The Holy Spirit will be just like Jesus. He will be “another” of what Jesus already is.

I like this passage. It gives us insight into who Jesus is. He is a comforter, a counselor, and an advocate. That’s how that word after another is translated in different versions.

To me that is comforting, knowing he gave us another just like himself.

Women in the Life of Jesus: Women in the Upper Room

But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”-Acts 1:8

There were women in the upper room on the day of Pentecost.  Acts 1 tells of Jesus’ last moments on earth.  He gives his disciples specific directions.  He tells them to go back to Jerusalem and wait for the “Promise of the Father.”(Acts 1:4)  When they get back to Jerusalem, the women join them.

Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey.  And when they had entered, they went up into the upper room where they were staying: Peter, James, John, and Andrew; Philip and Thomas; Bartholomew and Matthew; James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot; and Judas the son of James.  These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication,  with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.-Acts 1:12-14 (NKJV)

Later in Acts 1, Peter stands up and there is discussion about which disciple should take Judas’ place. They make that decision, and then it moves into Acts 2, at the coming of the Holy Spirit.  There doesn’t seem to be an interruption in the flow of action with the disciples, including the women all being together.  

When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them.  And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.-Acts 2:4 (NKJV)

After they all receive the Holy Spirit, which equips them with the power of God, Jews that have come to Jerusalem to celebrate Pentecost, hear them speaking in tongues in the languages of the regions they are from, and declaring the works of God.  This is astonishing to them, as they believe them all to be from Galilee. That’s when Peter stands up, preaches Jesus, and quotes the prophet Joel saying:

And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God,

That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh;

Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,

Your young men shall see visions,

Your old men shall dream dreams.

And on My menservants and on My maidservants

I will pour out My Spirit in those days;

And they shall prophesy.

I will show wonders in heaven above

And signs in the earth beneath:

Blood and fire and vapor of smoke.

The sun shall be turned into darkness,

And the moon into blood,

Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord.

And it shall come to pass

That whoever calls on the name of the Lord

Shall be saved.’-Acts 2:17-21 (NKJV)

And then 3000 people get saved!  Three thousand.  That is a lot for me in one moment. And the Holy Spirit came on all those who heard the message that day and the scripture above was fulfilled.

There were women there that day.  Peter repeats what Joel says, women being included in that list of what would happen when the Holy Spirit is poured out. Daughters and maidservants would prophesy!

When the Holy Spirit came upon them, they received power.  That power is the word “dunamis” in the Greek.  It means miraculous power.  In the Gospels it is often translated as miracles, wonderful works, mighty works, power, and virtue.  They received the same power that came on Jesus that day in the river Jordan.  Both men and women received that power!!

What the prophet Joel prophesied began on the day of Pentecost in Acts 2:4, and it continues to this day.  God poured out His Spirit on the Early Church that day.  They began witnessing of Jesus in Jerusalem and then Samaria.  But Jesus also said there would be witnesses "unto the ends of the earth."  That is us!  God is still pouring out His Spirit on men and women, equipping them with power to do what He has prepared for them in advance to do. And this baptism is for every Believer.

Many blessings to you as you continue to learn and grow in Him,

Beth

To read more posts in this series, go here to Women in the Life of Jesus.