A Confused & Concerned Rabbi

NOTE-this series is a narrative from both scripture and fiction. It’s the Christmas story as told by those closest to the event. Please read accordingly. Thank you.

The Voices of Christmas

Part Five

I am Rabbi Judah Ben Moyce, but the villagers call me Rabbi Morty, short for Mordecai, my father, who served Nazareth as Rabbi for over fifty years, as did his father.

MY CONCERN

Our village is normally a place of peace and tranquility. But lately there has been much concern about a young woman who is expecting a baby. That’s normally a reason to celebrate and a blessing for the village. But she isn’t married, at least not by me.

I am concerned and a Rabbi shouldn’t be concerned about such things.

MY CONFUSION

Even more troubling is that she claims to still be a virgin, and that her baby comes from the Holy Spirit. Perhaps most upsetting is her claim that her son will be the Messiah. How she knows she will have a son is beyond me.

Saying such things is shameful and the whole village is in an uproar.

Her explanation is that the angel Gabriel told her these things. Well, she is certainly pregnant, we can all plainly see it. Personally, in all my years as Rabbi I have never heard such blasphemy.  Consider this:

• The Messiah will be born in Bethlehem, not Nazareth.
• When he comes he will overthrow our enemies.
• He will be anointed with the Spirit of God.
• He will proclaim freedom for prisoners and preach good news to the poor.
• The Messiah will sit on the throne of David and reign over the kingdom.

This thirteen year old girl, whom we’ve known since she was born, couldn’t possibly bring the Messiah into the world. And Joseph, although a good man, is nothing more than a carpenter’s apprentice. The King of Kings who will lift up a banner to the nations just couldn’t come from these people. They are too common, too ordinary, there’s not anything special about them. It’s more than implausible, it’s impossible.

I’m confused and a Rabbi shouldn’t be confused.

They don’t appear to be royalty. That doesn’t appear to be a royal palace. It’s not really close to anything resembling the divine or the miraculous. It can’t be. 

MY BELIEF

I have always believed that when the Son of David comes he will come in royalty, with gifts befitting a King. That the cherubim and seraphim will appear to praise and glorify the Lord and to announce the birth of our Emanuel. That great signs will appear and emissaries from the nations will come to worship him. That the birth of Christ will be a merry event and celebrated around the world.

But no, not this girl, not this village, I’m just not seeing it. 

 

 

 

A Gracious Grandmother

NOTE-this December series is a narrative from scripture and from fiction. It’s the story of Christmas as told by those who were closest to the event. Please read accordingly, thanks.

The Voices of Christmas

Part Four

We have lived on this land for hundreds of years, well, I mean we and our ancestors. It’s our home and the only place I’ve ever known, the only place I’ve ever wanted to be. And why would I ever want to leave? What could possibly move me from the birthplace of my mother and grandmother and her grandmother? The answer is nothing at all.

Rueben and I have eight children, five sons and three precious jewels for daughters, may the Lord be praised. My second is Miriam, or Mary, as her name is known outside of our culture. King Solomon said that foolishness is fixed in the heart of a child, and by long experience we know his words are true.

Well, Except for Mary

She has been a wonderful child, beautiful of heart, lovely of soul, and sweet of spirit and no daughter has ever been more loving. Her constant devotion has been to give praise to the Lord and to bring honor to her dad.

When she turned seven we pledged her to Joseph, the youngest son of our village carpenter and mason. We believed it a good match, that he would become as his father, a Godly and righteous man. It was our joy to watch them grow up and were confident that they would do well in the eyes of the lord. .

Well, Except for Mary

Try to imagine our devastation when she told us she that was with child. We wept and grieved, for it couldn’t be, it was unacceptable and inexcusable. She offered an explanation but we didn’t believe her, it was just too much to believe.

She promised us that she and Joseph had not been together, which Joseph also affirmed, which for him meant that she had been with another. He was torn apart and quickly pursued dissolving the pledge. How could she do this to him? We kept thinking…

“A daughter doesn’t immerse her family in shame by violating her virtue.”

But then, something happened, Joseph changed his mind. He told us an angel had appeared to him and said that Mary ‘s pregnancy was of the Holy Spirit, and that her virtue was intact. He spoke with faith’s conviction and his eyes were full of truth. We believed him. And I marveled at my daughter for no one could have coped with the accusations, public shame, and personal devastation, not a girl anywhere.

Well, Except for Mary

It was then our families gathered and joyously listened as they shared their angel stories, and told them over and over. It was beautiful. My daughter’s son, my grandson, will be called the Son of the Most High and will inherit King David’s throne and reign over the kingdom of God. May the birth of the Christ child be merry!

He is to be the Messiah, the Lord’s Anointed, and will bring good news to the poor and bind the broken hearted.

My grandson will be Yeshua, the salvation of God, and I will hold him in my arms.

So, I prayed and vowed that I would protect and care for my daughter and grandson in every way possible. God didn’t choose me to be the Messiah’s mother, he chose my daughter, and so, like my Heavenly Father, I have chosen her too.

I will love as no mother, or grandmother, has ever loved.

May the Lord grant me the strength of Samson, the wisdom of Solomon, and the fortitude of Deborah, the Judge of Israel, for I pledge my life to the two people whom all evil will set its might against.

I am Abarrane, mother of Mary and grandmother to Yeshua.

Blessed be the name of the Lord.

It’s Time For Me to Go

NOTE-this December series is a narrative from scripture and from fiction. It’s the story of Christmas as told by those who were closest to the event. Please read accordingly, thanks.

The Voices of Christmas

Part Three

You haven’t known me but I’ve known you for everything was put into being by me. I am God. You will say, “Wait, we do you know you,” but no, you haven’t, not really.

A sacrifice was essential, and it was agreed that it would be me. This meant I would:

• let go of my equality as God
• renounce divinity and sovereignty
• leave the throne of glory
• become a man born from a woman
• be obedient even to death on a cross

You have called me Lord, Sovereign and King, and those are right and true. But soon  the name you will connect with the most is:

Jesus of Nazareth

You will come to know me as Emanuel, Messiah, the Son of God

   God will become something less to achieve something more. I know it borders on the bizarre, but you are the final act in the act of creation and your needs are immense, seemingly impossible. But what is impossible with man is possible with God.

Humanity’s salvation will not be achieved by God in heaven, but by man on earth.

The plan made before man walked the earth was for me to come to you. This will be done so that you can know how much you are loved. It’s impossible for you to repair your own spiritual condition, and your condition is that you have separated yourselves from us and have no way back.

So, rather than leave you detached and distant, your God is coming near.

   The angels have praised and glorified my name. The great and fearsome cherubim and seraphim have declared my excellence. With a final divine thought I empty myself of all that makes me deity, it’s been set aside to be reclaimed on the day I return.

In one of your “blinks of an eye,” the Holy Spirit will place me in the womb of young woman in Nazareth, in Galilee. She is a virgin whom we favor for she is remarkable, full of faith and obedience. She has a heart as pure as the snows of Mt. Herman. Soon she will be my mother.

My birth will fulfill prophecies, be announced by angels and witnessed by herdsmen. It will be good news for all the people and accompanied by miraculous signs, for my birth will be miraculous.

Now, if you will excuse me, it is time for me go. In a moment of splendorous majesty, God the Father and God the Spirit have anointed me, and I have been sent.

Take heart and do not be discouraged for the Lord your God is coming to you and my coming will be joyous and most merry!

Blessed be the name of the Lord!

 

 

 

Halos and Wings: Maybe?

NOTE-this December series is a narrative from scripture and from fiction. It’s the story of Christmas as told by those who were closest to the event. Please read accordingly, thanks.

The Voices of Christmas

Part Two

    There isn’t a memory of my not being here. As far as I can determine I have always been in the presence of God. To comprehend his presence requires a language that none of you speak, it’s angelic and beyond your grasp. For you were made just a little lower. Words like glory, splendor, majesty and radiance speak of his presence, but again, they are limited in scope.

I have found that many believe that we angels look something like this: 

Little angels to be sure, but not exactly what we look like; close, really very close, but no and especially not the big, goofy one in the back.

    It’s believed that angels have bright, shiny halo’s and wings of fluffy white feathers, it’s a common belief. In truth, we can appear in almost any form.

THE LORD

The Lord is our boss and we exist awaiting his will. Most of our work is giving messages to mortals. Sometimes we look divine and sometimes not.

AND ME?

My name is Gabriel and I stand in the presence of God. I am sent to speak to those the Lord want’s spoken to. I deliver his messages and my favorites are the messages of good news.

For example, one day I was standing with the heavenly host, just plumping and fluffing my wings, when the Lord spoke my name.

(we don’t really count time in days, it’s just for your benefit) 

“Gabriel” the voice of God said.

“Yes, Lord, how may I serve you”?

“I need you to give some news to a couple of people. Are you ready”?

“Yes, Lord, always,” I said. “What is your command”?

“I need you to speak to Zechariah the priest, you will find him serving in the temple. Tell him that his wife is going to have a baby, that they will name him John, and that he will be the messenger for my anointed one”.

This was momentous, it was huge, for we the heavenly host have known for thousands of years that a day would come when our Lord would give salvation to the world. John’s coming was the first active step towards the Messiah’s birth. And I have been chosen to deliver the message. Wow, I wouldn’t want to be around Michael tonight, I’m sure he thought he would get this one.

And then, I had no more than returned when he sent me back. He sent me to a young Jewish girl named Mary.

He said, “Tell her that she will be with child from the power of the Holy Spirit and that she is to name him Yeshua, meaning God Saves! That he will be called the Son of the Most High and will inherit the throne of David.”

Wow, talk about an important mission with an essential message. Yeshua, born to a virgin and destined to die for Yahweh’s creation. First it was Zechariah, Elizabeth and John, and now Yeshua announces the time of Emanuel, for God to be with his people!

GOD’S SON

I have served the Son of God for millenniums and now the Lord is sending his Anointed. Soon he will leave to go and do what was chosen before time, to provide salvation for the world.

THE SACRED

These assignments were crafted from the sacred and divine. There has been nothing else as important.

I tell you that I am Gabriel and I stand in the presence of God. I give witness that his grace and mercy are coming to your land. A savior will be born to you and it will be good news for all the people.

It will be good news of the most merry kind.

Blessed be the name of the Lord.

 

Day Twelve: The Last Day

The Final Blog of the Twelve Days of Christmas

DAY TWELVE

It’s the day after Christmas, a day for doing other things. Will there be shopping? Probably, but for different reasons. I’ll reflect on the season and think about the time spent with family and friends, I’ll think about the cards, gifts, and events.

I’ll think about our Candlelight service. The carols were beautiful, the Spirit was generous, and the hundreds of candles lifted up for the infant king moved me deeply.  

I’ll remember Christmas morning, with the fireplace crackling and all the fabulously wrapped presents. But, mostly I’ll think about the people who gathered around the tree.

I love Christmas.

REGARDING HIS PARENTS

Joseph and Mary had a hard trip to Bethlehem, but they made it, for the child could only be born in Bethlehem. I’ve imagined them out in the cold stable with the animals. The stable wasn’t where they wanted to be, but it was where they were.

It was a night divine, a silent night, a holy night.

I’ve considered Herod trying to eliminate the infant king. Mary and Jospeh escaped to Egypt, but other people’s sons were murdered in Herod’s death sweep. Did Mary know them, did she experience overwhelming sorrow, grief, and guilt? 

Mary and Jospeh, you were such good parents. Thank you for protecting him.

It’s largely because of you that we have a Christmas to celebrate!

TO CLOSE

Christmas means different things. For some, it’s a holiday with a few days off work. For others, it’s the most wonderful time of the year with lights, decorations and events. Maybe the magic of Christmas is the time with family and friends. It’s all good.

 

But, in the beginning, Christmas was about God coming near to help us. So, when I say, “Merry Christmas” what I’m really saying is: 

“May the God of grace fill your hearts in the celebration of his Son’s birth.

Until Next Year,”The Twelve Days of Christmas” are finished.

May the peace of the Prince of Peace be upon you.

It’s Christmas Morning!

Day Eleven: The Twelve Days of Christmas

 

A TRADITION

It’s early Christmas morning and I’m the first one up. I’m always the first one up.

• I make the coffee
• light the candles
• turn on the tree lights
• get a fire going
• start some Christmas music 

Then I wake my daughter and we sit on the sofa to watch the fire and sip our coffee and listen to the music. Since she was a little girl we have welcomed the first blessings of  Christmas. 

The rest of the family will wake up a little later. But for now, it’s just the two of us. It’s how we do Christmas. 

AND FOR MARY AND JOSEPH? 

They had arrived in Bethlehem weary and needing a warm room with a good bed. But it didn’t happen. 

Imagine the Conversation

Joseph: “We need a room please.”

Inn Keeper: “Sorry folks, but we’re all full.”

Joseph: “You don’t understand, we’ve traveled for days and my wife is expecting”

Inn Keeper: “Look, I’m sorry, but we’re booked solid and there isn’t a bed to be found.”

Joseph: “You must have something, we’ll take anything.”

Inn Keeper: “Well, it isn’t much and it isn’t clean, but you can stay in the stable.”

Joseph: Looking at his exhausted and very pregnant wife said, “We’ll take it.”

Like the journey itself, they would be back in the cold. 

IT WAS TIME

Mary was in labor. Did she have a midwife? Did she have any help at all? Was Joseph tending a fire for a little warmth? Were the sheep, donkeys and camels all looking on? We don’t know.

However it went, our savior was born. I imagine Joseph cutting the cord and placing his son in his mother’s arms. But in that moment of divine new life, did all of heaven erupt in rapturous praise? Did the universe shudder in awe watching the creator come as an infant child? 

It was a silent night, a holy night, as our God came near.

TO CLOSE

It’s early Christmas morning. The fire is crackling, the coffee is fresh, and the carols are softly playing. In a minute I’ll wake my daughter, but in a minute. This is my moment to remember. 

I’m guessing the experience was different for Mary and Joseph. But however it was, it was God forever changing our world. It was good news of great joy for all the people:

“A savior has been born to you, he is Christ the Lord.”

Merry Christmas!

A Journey South

Day Ten: The Twelve Days of Christmas

 AN INTRODUCTION

I measure trips as good or bad based on the following criteria:

1. on time departures
2. on time arrivals
3. rudeness/kindness of passengers
4. professionalism of the flight crew
5. the freshness of the pretzels 

All I’m saying is that I shouldn’t have to pay a lot of money to be treated badly, alive late, and then discover that my suitcase didn’t arrive at all!

Modern day traveling can really be hard.

TRAVELING TOGETHER

Caesar Augustus declared a census be taken for the entire Roman world and everyone under his rule had to comply. That included Joseph who would have to travel to his ancestral home to register. 

But he didn’t go alone, he took Mary, his betrothed wife. From Nazareth in Galilee they traveled south to Bethlehem in Judea, just a short distance from Jerusalem.

It was about an eighty-mile trip and Mary was about eight months pregnant.

Although the bible doesn’t mention it, artists often depict her riding on a donkey with Joseph by her side. It seems unlikely that Mary would have walked. Even so, would an eighty-mile donkey ride be an easy thing for a woman in her final stage of pregnancy? 

If in December, temperatures would be in the low 40’s at night, and could drop to freezing. Their journey would take several days if they averaged 10 to 15 miles a day, and in Mary’s condition, maybe longer. I wonder, when they stopped for the night, were there places to stay, or did they pitch a tent, cook on a fire and sleep on the ground? 

It would be tough for Joseph and miserable for Mary.

They knew they were having a son and that he would be named Jesus. They would have known Micah’s Bethlehem prophecy regarding the Messiah’s birth. Did Joseph realize the time was at hand to get Mary to Bethlehem? 

A JOURNEY SOUTH

For us, eighty miles is a short and easy trip. For Joseph and Mary it was difficult and dangerous, and so very necessary. There’s was a determined effort, not just for the census, but for Emanuel’s birth, for he could be born no place else. 

His birth was announced by angels, witnessed by shepherds and honored by wise men. The infant Messiah survived King Herod, hid in Egypt, and was later raised in the safety of Galilee. And after all that, when the time came, he would die outside of Jerusalem, just a few miles from his birth place. 

TO CLOSE

They were so young. They were having their first baby and not in their Nazareth home but in a Bethlehem stable. I don’t know what their standard for a successful trip was, but by my standards, it would have been unthinkable. They were brave, strong, and deeply rooted within God’s will. 

In this holiday season we owe a debt of gratitude to Mary and Joseph.

We love your son.

Merry Christmas 

The Messiah’s Mom

Day Nine: The Twelve Days of Christmas

 

AN INTRODUCTION

I was thinking about God’s “search” for the Messiah’s mother. What qualities was He looking for? An upwardly mobile professional woman? Someone highly motivated? A woman of exceptional intelligence? I respect those, but I wonder, did they impress the Lord or was he looking for something else? For sure he searched for someone who:

•  was a virgin
• came from Nazareth
• had unimpeachable character
• possessed amazing fortitude

Consider: God was searching for someone unique: an unmarried virgin from the village of Nazareth who had strong faith and inner strength. How many young single women in Nazareth were there? How many could qualify? 

He needed to find just one, and he did, her name was Mary.

A DEEPER THING

Gabriel told her that she was favored by God. That she would have a son by a virgin birth, and that her son would be of the Holy Spirit.

Can you imagine? How did she respond?

Did Mary faint? Did she offer excuses or objections? Did she raise concerns about how Jospeh would accept it? Did she suggest to Gabriel that he look for someone else? No, she did none of those.

Was that the deeper thing God was searching for, that quiet and submissive spirit?

Mary’s response to Gabriel:

 “I am the Lord’s servant; may it be to me as you have said.”

INNER STRENGTH 

God knew that the Messiah’s Mom would need incredible strength. That her faith would need to be unshakable. Remember the temple dedication:

      “And a sword will pierce your own soul too.”

A sword in her soul? Mary would hear the ugly words, the demeaning comments and feel the hate towards her son. She probably watched the scourging. At calvary, did she wince at the hammer strokes upon the spikes? How could she be there and watch her son get nailed to the old rugged cross?  

Only a mother could do it, and not any mother, but one who was heaven’s choice. 

“And a sword will pierce your own soul too.”

IN CLOSING

I think of her as being lovely and beautiful, and perhaps she was. But God’s criteria had little to do with appearance. No, what God needed was a woman with phenomenal inner qualities: a deep faith, an abiding spirit, and indomitable strength. 

In this season of Emanuel, I am thankful for Mary.

She gave birth to her son and then raised him to die.

Merry Christmas

Facing An Unfair Future

Day Eight: The Twelve Days of Christmas

AN INTRODUCTION

Imagine this: Your fiancé is pregnant and for sure you know the baby isn’t yours. How do you feel about it? What are you going to do? You were promised to each other since childhood and purposed to spend your lives together. Now, your hopes for that life are over.

Devastated, you ask yourself,

“How could she?”

EVEN WORSE

 In tears, she promises that she hasn’t been with anyone. In disbelief you ask,

“Then how can you be pregnant?”

 She says,

“The baby is from God, of the Holy Spirit, the angel told me.”

In anguish you respond,

“Really, that’s what you’re saying? You’ve lied and betrayed me, we’re finished”

THE RIGHT THING?

Knowing what’s right is easy, it’s choosing what’s right that’s hard. How about this as a possible scenario:

“Joseph, instead of being angry and hateful, how about being kind and righteous? Don’t disgrace Mary with a public termination of the betrothal?”

Could you have made that choice? Could I? Believe it or not, that’s exactly what Joseph did. Then an angel said to him in a dream,

“Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit”

“She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

Can you imagine Joseph going to Mary, of how that conversation would go:

“Hey Mary, you’re never going to believe what happened to me last night?”  

Actually, it wasn’t hard at all

We celebrate the story of the infant king’s virgin birth. But 2,000 years ago, in a  little Galilean village, there was a moment when the story might never have happened. Joseph was facing what he thought of as an unfair future. But it wasn’t. 

A lesser man would have walked away. But Joseph wasn’t a lesser man.

IN CLOSING

Like his Dad, Jesus chose righteousness over vengeance. He forgave and through his forgiveness brought salvation to our world. For the name “Jesus” means,

“The Lord saves.”

 In this season of Christ’s birth, I am grateful for Joseph.

Merry Christmas

Were You Born In a Barn?

Day Six: The Twelve Days of Christmas

 INTRODUCTION

My school had a milk program. Each day a student from each class was selected to be milk monitor and occasionally, they chose me. It was an honor because I would bring in a box of milk cartons so the kids would have milk with their peanut butter sandwiches.

DIVINE MESSENGERS

Heaven had a program too. When God his messengers when he wanted to send important messages we know them as angels. One day God sent a messenger to some shepherds to announce the Messiah’s birth. Luke 2:8-11:

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone all around them, and they were much afraid. 

 The angel said, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today, in the town of David, a Savior’s been born, he is Christ the Lord.”

RECEIVING THE MESSAGE

 Most likely, they were just poor, ordinary men. Or they may have been priests, or shepherds who served the priests, by caring for the sheep used in the temple sacrifices. Either way, when the angel appeared they were frightened but the angels wasn’t sent to frighten them, but to tell them that they had been chosen to see the infant king. Think about it. An angel bathed in heavenly light brought the message to men reeking of sheep. The Lord chose keepers of flocks to visit the Lamb of God.

SHEPHERDS SEARCHING

Where did they find the baby Jesus? In a warm house, a five star hotel or in a royal palace? No, they found him in a stall used for keeping animals.

Were they chosen because the new born King had the smell of the barn?  

In our home, whenever I left the door open my dad would say, “Rick, were you born in a barn, shut the door, I’m not heating all of Texas.” I wonder if Joseph ever said to Jesus, “Hey Jesus, were you born in a barn, shut the door, I’m not trying to heat all of Galilee.”

Well, back to the Shepherds.

SHEPHERDS BECOMING MESSENGERS

 Luke 2:17-18:

“When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.”

TO CLOSE

I loved being milk monitor, it was an honor and I did my best. The shepherds did a pretty good job too. They were monitors to a message of hope for the world. It was the message of angels, that good news of great joy had come for all the people.

A Savior has been born to you, he is Christ the Lord.

Merry Christmas