First takeaway – Christmas can get crazy around a church! Yesterday was one of those days that I have tried to make sure I do less of – running around like a crazy woman. This used to be the norm years ago. I was so involved in so many things I can remember telling my husband once that I’d like to go to church just to go to church!
Yesterday was just one of those moments where everything happened at once. Deacon board responsibilities, scheduling meals for a family with a new baby and church library responsibilities. I also had a couple of people I needed to touch base with.
So, during Sunday School I was stamping and processing new books for the church library but I did still take a few notes and as always found the history and lesson interesting. The biggest takeaway yesterday was the typical family structure during Jesus’ time. Families lived together is these housing complexes built around a courtyard. When a son got married, he added on to the father’s son. So the grandson’s house was added to this house and so on. Families lived and worked together.
This led into a discussion about our legacy. What kind of legacy are we leaving with our family? Are we sharing about what Jesus has done in our life? The difference he has made? Do we talk about the importance of having a relationship with Jesus with our kids? Leaving a foundation to build on takes a whole different meaning when you consider it’s the house they will be living in for the rest of their lives.
Our sermon series right now is on characters from the Christmas story and this week we were on “Gabriel – the Message that Changed the World.” Gabriel is a messenger angel of God. The first mention of Gabriel in the Bible occurs in Daniel in the Old Testament. He’s pretty busy in the Christmas story. Gabriel’s first mission (in Luke) to speak to John the Baptist’s parents fulfilled the prophecy of Malachi 3:1. We also covered the five things that Gabriel predicted about Mary’s son.
Pastor Mike covered some interesting facts about angels too. Angels are mentioned in the Old Testament 108 times and 165 times in the New Testament. The term “guardian angels” is never mentioned in scripture. We are strictly told in the Bible to not worship angels. (Revelation 22:8-9, Colossions 2:18) They are not humans who have passed on. Angels are separate beings from humans.
The thing to take away from any message on the Christmas story is that God had a plan to save all of mankind. He orchestrated this plan from the beginning of time. He used humans, angels and the constellations to bring about this plan. Remember, you watch any of Pastor Mike’s sermons on YouTube on the Stromsburg Baptist Church channel.
Diffusing Hope 