LUKE 21:15-22

Jesus says the disciples were betrayed by parents, brothers, relatives, friends, and some disciples were even put to death. This statement of His is that not a hair of their head will perish. The context of this statement speaks of some of the disciples dying, so this is not a promise that no physical harm will ever come. This could only refer to the resurrection.

The Greek word for "resurrection" means "a standing or rising up." The resurrection is a major theme of the New Testament teachings. Out of the 13 sermons in the book of Acts, 11 imply the resurrection.

The hope of the believer is the resurrection. The natural, earthly, corrupt, weak, mortal, body is said to be raised, changed and fashioned into a spiritual, heavenly, incorrupt, glorious, powerful, and immortal body. This is the completeness that has been purchased for all of us in Christ Jesus.

The Lord views everything in the light of eternity. Man tends to view things in the context of his brief life on earth. 

From man's perspective, a person who dies for his faith in Jesus has lost a great deal. From Jesus' viewpoint, a martyr hasn't lost a thing. Even the very hairs on our head are numbered.

The patience that Jesus is speaking of is the calm assurance that God knows every hurt that we feel and He will abundantly compensate us in the resurrection. This knowledge helps us to control our emotions in the face of persecution instead of letting our emotions of fear dominate us.

MATTHEW 2:16-23

Satan was the real cause of Herod's actions. Ever since the Lord first prophesied that a man would bruise his head, satan has been looking for this "seed" of the woman (Genesis 3:15).

It appears that satan is able to know when the Lord is making a major move in the earth. In the days of Moses, satan moved Pharaoh to kill all the male children of the Israelite slaves, and here he gets Herod to kill all the male children in Bethlehem. No doubt he was trying to eliminate this "seed" who was going to bruise his head.

Now, we seeing children being slaughtered. This time it's through abortion. Our young are also being attacked in many different ways. Is it possible that satan thinks this is the generation that is to bring in the second return of the Lord? Is he desperately  trying to hold off his doom by destroying this generation?

We need spiritual perception to recognize that just as in the days of Moses and Jesus, this slaughter of the innocent children is an indication of an even more important struggle in the spiritual realm. We might be the generation that sees the Lord come back. Praise the Lord!

MATTHEW 2:13-15

Herod had ruled over Judaea for nearly forty three years at the time of these events. He had the title of King at the recommendation of Antony and Octavius. 

His accomplishments included the building of the temple in Jerusalem which was one of the most magnificent structures in the world. Most people would have thought that Herod had it "made".

History reveals that Herod was extremely paranoid. He actually killed his wife and one of his sons because he feared they would take the kingdom from him. All his power and fame couldn't buy him the peace that the angels proclaimed (Luke 2:8-14). His paranoia led him to kill the innocent children in Bethlehem. His insecurity was evident. He had everything and yet he had nothing.

But, the King that Herod was trying to dispose of came humbly, not exalting Himself. He gained the acclaim of others by serving them, not oppressing them. The reign of Jesus was righteousness; not tyranny. Jesus gave the ultimate sacrifice; Himself, because of His great love for people.

Herod's only claim to fame is that he was the man who tried in vain to kill the King of Kings. Remember, it is worth nothing if we gain the whole world and lose our own soul (Matthew 16:26). 

MATTHEW 2:1-12

The greatest event in the history of God's dealings with mankind was taking place and the leaders of God's people didn't even know about it. Foreigners who were unfamiliar with the covenants of God perceived what God was doing more than His own chosen people! (Ephesians 2:12)

The apparent answer to this is that these Persian wise men were more in tune to the prophecies of scripture than the Jews were. Daniel had been promoted to be the head of all the wise men of Babylon (Daniel 2:48). While in Babylon, Daniel had come through the lions' den victoriously and had no doubt gained the reputation as the greatest wise man of all (Daniel 6).

It was during this time that Daniel wrote the prophecy of Daniel 9:24-27, which pinpointed the time of Jesus' birth. This no doubt provided the inspiration for these wise men. The star simply served as a sign that the prophesied event had come and directed them towards where the king was born.

The Jews had these same prophecies. They just weren't waiting in anticipation for the birth of the Messiah. The Word of God only profits us if we believe it (Hebrews 4:2). Let's not make the same mistake. Mix the truths that you know from God's Word with faith.

Luke 2:36-40

If Anna was fourteen years old when she married. She would have been 105 years old. Yet she was still fasting and praying night and day! Satan tries to convince us that God won't use us. He may cite things like age or lack of abilities, or failures that we've had. But just like Anna, there are many scriptural examples of the Lord using those who would be considered unusable by worldly standards.

Moses was eighty years old before he began to fulfill God's plan for his life and he worked right up until he was 120 years old. Abraham was in his nineties before he had the son that God had promised him.

Gideon was another one who looked unusable. He was hiding from the Midianites when an angel of God appeared and told him he was a mighty man of valor (Judges 6:11-12). He couldn't believe it at first and had to have the Lord confirm it three times.

Truly, ...God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty... (1 Corinthians 1:27-28).

If we feel foolish or weak, then we qualify. The Lord can still use us.

LUKE 2:25-35

Simeon didn't receive this knowledge through the normal method of learning. This knowledge was revealed to him directly from the Holy Spirit. This revelation knowledge which comes only from God is distinctly different than knowledge acquired through study. 

Man's knowledge is based on observation. It cannot give perfect instruction about the future. God's knowledge can. Through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit we can know things to come (John 16:13).

When dealing with God, revelation knowledge is essential. The Lord's ways are not always our ways (Isaiah 55:8). A fear of trusting the intuitive knowledge that God gives us will cause us to miss many blessings of God.

If he hadn't received it and anticipated its fulfillment, what a blessing he would have missed! He would not have been led into the temple at exactly the right moment to see the salvation of the Lord.

We need to ask for and expect to receive revelation knowledge from the Lord. God desires to impart it more than we desire to receive it. Great blessings comes to those who will not depend solely on their own understanding (Proverbs 3:5).

Luke 2:24 is the Old Testament passage being quoted from Lev. 12:6-8. There the Lord commanded a lamb and a young pigeon or a turtledove as the prescribed sacrifice. If the woman was unable to offer a lamb, then two young pigeons or two turtledoves were acceptable. Mary would not have offered the lesser offering if it had been in her power to provide the lamb.

This shows that Joseph and Mary were not well off financially, yet the Lord chose them to be the earthly parents of His only begotten Son.

The Lord doesn't choose the way man chooses. Man looks on the outward appearance but God looks on the heart (1 Samuel 16:7).

Mary and Joseph were chosen when they were without: fame, position, or money. God entrusted the most precious gift He had to a couple who would surely have been overlooked if men had been doing the searching.

God isn't looking for ability, but rather availability. One preacher said, "The world has never seen what God can do with one man who is totally yielded to Him." In response, D. L. Moody said, "By the grace of God, I'll be that man." This uneducated man went on to shake three continents for God.

God will choose us too, if we'll make ourselves available to Him (1 Corinthians 1:26-28).

Jesus said He did not come to send peace on the earth, but a sword. Then He prophesied that those who received Him would experience persecution, even from their own family (Matthew 10:34-36). How do these verses fit together?

The peace the angels were singing about was not a peace between men; they were rejoicing that there would be peace between God and man. When Jesus prophesied division and war in Matthew 10, he was speaking of relationships between men.

Through the Old Testament law, God began to release His wrath on man's sin (Romans 4:15). It wasn't the wrath of Satan that Jesus suffered on the cross.

He suffered the wrath of His Father (Isaiah 53:10-12; 2 Corinthians 5:21). The Father placed His punishment for our sins on Jesus. This ended the war between God and man. This is the peace that the angels were proclaiming.

As a result of men receiving this peace from God there have also been many cases of reconciliation between men, but that is an effect; not the actual peace that was spoken of. 

Through Jesus, we now have peace with God (Romans 5:1). God is not mad at us. He isn't even upset. We have been accepted through Jesus (Ephesians 1:6).

Believe the good news that through Jesus, the war between God and us is over.

Jesus didn't grow into being Lord and Saviour. He was born that way. Jesus was God manifest in the flesh (1 Timothy 3:16). 

How could Almighty God limit Himself to the form of a man? And even if He did that, how could he possibly start as a baby? These questions are hard for humans to understand.

At the dedication of the first temple, Solomon said, "But will God in very deed dwell with men on the earth? Behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain thee; how much less this house which I have built!"

(2 Chronicles 6:18) How much less the body of a little child!

Part of the answer lies in the fact that God is a spirit (John 4:24). Spirits are not limited by time and space. In Jesus' spirit, He was the eternal God who created the universe. The physical body of Jesus was just His "earth suit" that He used to manifest Himself to mankind. All of Jesus' deity could fit inside that body.

Even though this is still hard to grasp, it helps us understand how Christ Himself can live in us as believers (Colossians 1:27). If all the glory of God could fit inside the physical body of Jesus, then all the fullness of God can dwell in us too (John 1:16). 

God Almighty was born of a virgin and placed in a feeding trough in a stable. Who would ever expect the Creator of the universe to make His entrance into the world in such a humble fashion?

Men always seek to proclaim their glory as far and wide as possible. Here is the only one who really has any glory to proclaim, and He comes humbly. It wasn't because He didn't have the power to do things otherwise.

He could have chosen to be born in a fashion that would have brought all creation to their knees in worship. He could have announced His birth to the most powerful and famous men of the day instead of lowly shepherds. He could have had the most luxurious accommodations instead of a stable. But that is not the way of our God. It would not have taken any faith on the part of men if Jesus came in such a manner that His deity was obvious.

Likewise with us, the Lord could manifest Himself to us in such a way that we couldn't miss Him, but that wouldn't please Him. God desires faith and, "without faith it is impossible to please Him" (Hebrews 11:6).

Let's please our Heavenly Father and acknowledge His presence (Hebrews 13:5).

Matthew 1:18-24, much attention is given to Mary, but Joseph was quite a man of faith, too.

Verse 18 says that Mary was "found" with child, implying that the pregnancy was observed by Joseph, not explained to him by Mary. And this was after Mary had been away visiting Elisabeth for three months! (Luke. 1:56) Surely Joseph was tempted with the same thoughts that we would have been. How could she expect him to believe that this was a virgin birth?

As special as Mary was, she had an equally special young man for a fiance.

How many men would have believed such an incredible story even if an angel had told them in a dream? It took more faith on Joseph's part than it did on Mary's.

This is the way it always is. Those who hear of the vision or call of God second hand have to exhibit an even greater faith than the person who received the word from the Lord directly.

The scriptures don't mention whether or not Mary ever attempted to convince Joseph of the truth. What would have been the use? Only God could make someone believe a story like this. It is to Mary's credit that she trusted God and to Joseph's credit that he believed God. We can only do as the Lord bids and trust God to take care of the rest.

John the Baptist had the most important job assignment ever given to any mortal in the history of the world. He was to prepare the way for the coming of the long awaited Messiah (v. 76), Luke 1:57-80.

Matthew 11:11, no one could prepare John for such an important position, so the Lord taught him personally. John was in the deserts until he was thirty years old. He was tutored directly by the Lord through the Holy Spirit.

The personal touch of the Lord became very obvious. Six months after John began his ministry, the whole nation of Israel was experiencing revival and anticipating the coming of the Christ. When Jesus came, the Jews wondered how he could know things he was never taught (John 7:15).

This special knowledge which comes directly from the Lord through the Holy Spirit is now available to every believer.

It's a part of the new covenant (Hebrews 8:11). The Holy Spirit has been sent to be our teacher, but we have to show up at class and expect to receive (John 14:26). He'll even show us things to come (John 16:13).

Mary makes a very clear distinction between her soul magnifying the Lord and her spirit rejoicing.

Our soul is the part of us that is considered to be our personality. It is our intellect, emotions and will. Our spirit is the part that gets changed at salvation and it is always operating in "love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance" (2 Corinthians 5:17; Galatians 5:22-23). That's true whether our souls (feelings and emotions) "feel" it or not.

Many believers wait until their emotions feel like praising the Lord before they enter in to worship. They think it's hypocritical to act like they are rejoicing in the Lord if they don't "feel" it. But our spirits are always rejoicing in the Lord. It's actually hypocritical to go by our feelings and not magnify the Lord with our souls when our born again spirits are already rejoicing.

Our born again spirits are always in tune with the Lord and walking in the joy of the Lord. Our flesh is often dominated by what it sees and feels.

Sometimes it doesn't feel like praising the Lord, but the choice rests with our souls. If we choose to praise the Lord, our emotions will follow.

There are many reasons why God's blessings don't always come to pass in a person's life, but the most frequent cause is simply unbelief on our part. There are no limitations on God's part. He is willing and able to do anything He has promised. The problem is with our believing.

The Lord has given every believer faith (Romans 12:3). It was given to us at salvation through hearing the Word of God (Ephesians 2:8; Romans 10:17). It is a fruit of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22). But, we must choose to exercise it.

Our faith is linked to our knowledge (2 Peter 1:1-4). What we think on is how we will be (Proverbs 23:7). The problem is not that we don't have faith. The problem occurs when we don't allow our faith to work because we don't keep our minds stayed on God's Word. Then our faith is choked out by the cares of this life (Mark 4:19).

Keeping our minds stayed on God's Word will release our faith and that will release the power of God in our lives. 

Mary must have been a person who put God's Word first in her life. She saw a performance of what she believed. We receive what we believe, not what we desire or even need. 

When hearing Mary's greeting, John the Baptist leaped for joy inside his mother's womb (Luke 1:39-56). A six month old fetus experienced emotion, voluntarily leaped for joy and was actually filled with the Holy Spirit.

It is no coincidence that the man Jesus called the greatest of all Old Testament prophets, was the only man in the Bible to be filled with the Holy Spirit from his mother's womb (Luke 7:28).

The anointing of God that breaks every yoke is simply the manifest presence and working of the Holy Spirit (Isaiah 10:27). The Holy Spirit is the part of the Godhead that empowers us for service.

God is not asking us to live for Him. He is asking us to let Him live through us (Galatians 2:20). The Christian life is not a changed life but an exchanged life. This can only be accomplished when the Holy Spirit is leading and empowering us.

Even Jesus didn't begin His ministry until he was anointed with the Holy Spirit and He was the sinless Son of God. How much more do we need to depend on the power of the Holy Spirit in our daily lives. We need to be conscious of the presence of the Holy Spirit in us and expect Him to supernaturally guide and empower us.

Luke 1:37, "For with God nothing shall 
be impossible."

What a statement! If we just believed this, how different our lives would be!

From birth we are trained to know our limitations. You can't have this. Don't touch that. Don't put things in your mouth. You can't touch the fire. On and on the list goes.

As we grow up, it's actually a sign of maturity to recognize our limitations and learn to live within them. There are limits to everything. It's a fact of life.

But God has no limits. When we enter into the realm of the supernatural, we have to take off all the limits. We have to renew our minds with the truth that God is not like us. He can do anything.

We have an awesome God whose power is so great that we can't even comprehend it. He created the universe and it didn't even tax His ability. Yet many times we find ourselves wondering if our situation is too hard for the Lord. We can't see how even God can pull us through.

The Lord said to Jeremiah, "Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh: is there any thing too hard for me?" (Jeremiah 32:27) The answer is a loud NO! The only thing that limits God is our unbelief. Let's honor God by believing that nothing is too difficult for Him.

Compare Mary's question and Gabriel's response with the question that Zacharias asked Gabriel and the response that he received (Luke 1:18-20). We will find the questions are similar but the responses are totally different.

Both Mary and Zacharias asked how these miracles would occur but it is evident that Mary was asking "how" in faith while Zacharias was asking "how" in unbelief. It is a clear Bible teaching that unbelief doesn't please God (Hebrews 11:6), but the Lord doesn't mind us questioning Him for the purpose of instruction so we can cooperate with His will in our lives.

Abram knew that it was God's will for him to have a son but Abram and Sarai came up with their own plan which caused them and the world much grief (Genesis 16:1-6). Abram would have avoided many problems if he had asked the Lord how He was going to accomplish this miraculous event.

If Mary had not questioned this angel, she might have reasoned that Jesus would be born through the natural union of her and Joseph. This would have been a grave mistake. It would have disqualified her from being used.

It's not enough just to know God's will. We need to continue to seek the Lord until we know God's plan for accomplishing that will.

It is the apostle John who reveals Peter as the one who cut off the servant's ear and also identifies the servant. It is very doubtful that Peter was aiming for Malchus' ear. It is more probable that he was making a horizontal swing at the servant's head and as the man ducked, Peter cut off his ear.

Peter was very vocal about never denying the Lord, and his actions proved that he meant what he said. There were only two swords among the disciples. Peter was willing to take on these six hundred soldiers. This spelled certain death or imprisonment.

Peter wanted to stand with the Lord, but he was not prepared spiritually. He was still strong in his own ability. If the battle would have been in the physical realm, Peter would have fought to the death as he proved. But when Jesus told Peter to put up his sword and not resist with his physical power, Peter was confused.

Peter only knew how to rely on the flesh. When Jesus refused to allow Peter to fight with his sword, he was defenseless. If he would have been praying with Jesus, as instructed, Peter would have been built up spiritually and able to stand with Jesus spiritually without denying Him. As the prophet Zechariah said, "Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts" (Zechariah 4:6).

We may sincerely desire to never deny our Lord, but it takes more than desire; it takes preparation. We all have been taught how to rely on ourselves, but we have to learn how to be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might (Ephesians 6:10). Just as in the physical realm, where muscles have to be exercised to become strong, we have to exercise ourselves unto godliness (1 Timothy 4:7).

In Luke 1:5-25, Zacharias and Elisabeth were righteous people (v. 6) who prayed for a child for many years. They felt the same disappointments and frustrations that any of us would feel and yet they kept believing God. The Lord  answered their prayers and sent His angel to announce the good news.

How did Zacharias react? He couldn't believe it! The very thing that he had been praying for was granted and he doubted that it was true. In Zacharias' case he received his miracle anyway. Perhaps his wife's faith helped them through.

We may be praying for the right things. We may even be sincere and earnest, but would we be surprised if those prayers were suddenly answered? Have we made preparations for our prayers to be answered?

Before the children of Israel were actually delivered from Egypt, they ate the passover meal by faith. Their bags were packed and ready to go. We need to anticipate our prayers being answered.

Imagine how we would feel or what we would do if the answer to our prayers was manifested this very minute. Then, as much as possible begin to think and act that way. 

We'll find out that our whole attitude will change as we focus on our answer instead of what we have been praying for.

Even the genealogies are inspired by God and profitable (2 Timothy 3:16). Matthew traces Jesus' genealogy through Joseph back to Solomon. There was a curse placed on one of Solomon's sons named Jechonias (Jeremiah 22:24-30), which Jesus avoided by being born of a virgin.

Luke mentions Jesus as being the supposed son of Joseph who was the son of Heli. It was actually Mary who was the daughter of Heli. This was done in other Old Testament instances (Numbers 27:1-11; 36:12 with Ruth 4:6). Mary's genealogy was also from David but through Nathan, a half brother of Solomon. The lineage was preserved but the curse was bypassed.

These genealogies show the infinite wisdom of God in fulfilling His promises despite the corruption of man. In fact, these genealogies are full of murderers, adulterers, and every sort of pervert know to man, and yet these same people were used of God, not because of their actions but in spite of them. This means there is still hope for us.

God has never had anyone qualified working for Him yet and we won't be the first. The history of God's dealings with man reveal that He has always used less than perfect vessels. We can rejoice and take comfort in the fact that God uses us because of our faith and not our holiness.

The Christian life is not like an insurance policy that only pays off when we die and go to heaven. Every believer has now received the grace of God and the fullness of God. We are now complete in Him (Colossians 2:9-10).

When we receive Jesus as our Lord, we are instantly changed in our spirits (2 Corinthians 5:17). Many Christians aren't aware of the change that takes place in their spirit. They continue to live within their physical and emotional realms and are oblivious to the new, born-again part of them that has received the fullness of God.

We can't see or feel our spirit. We just have to believe what the Word of God tells us because God's Word is spirit and life (John 6:63). Our spiritual salvation is complete. Nothing can be added to it. In our spirit, we are right now as we will be throughout all eternity (1 John 4:17). PRAISE THE LORD!

To the degree that we will renew our minds to these truths and believe them, we will experience this fullness in this life, for as a man "thinketh in his heart, so [is] he" (Proverbs 23:7).

Pray the prayer of Ephesians 1:15-23 and let the Holy Spirit reveal "Christ in you, the hope of glory" (Colossians 1:27).

Jesus was not just a man sent from God, He was God.

John 1:1 is the most important statement of the New Testament. On this truth hangs all other truths.

If Jesus was only a man, then no matter how good He was, His life could only provide a substitute for one other man. But since He was God, His life was worth more than every human life since creation. It was worth more than the sum total of the universe that He created.

Any compromise on this point will negate the work of Christ in our lives. Jesus was God manifest in the flesh (1 Timothy 3:16)! Yet this Almighty God came to live in a human body. He humbled Himself and took the form of a servant (Philippians 2:7).

Christ's humanity truly made Him one of us. He suffered the same temptations and pressures that we suffer (Hebrews 4:15). But it was His divinity that gave Him the power to save us to the most (Hebrews 7:25). We must never let His humanity blind us to the fact that Almighty God Himself became our friend (John 15:13-15). And we must never let His divinity blind us to the fact that He knows exactly how we feel and cares for us.

We need to let the Holy Spirit give us a true revelation of the deity and humanity of our Lord Jesus Christ throughout our lives.

The Lord confirmed the preaching of His Word with miracles. If Jesus and the first century Christians needed the Word confirmed with the miracles (Hebrews 2:4), then we do too. There is no scripture that says these miraculous signs have passed away.

Some people have interpreted "that which is perfect" in 1 Corinthians 13:10, as being the complete Bible. This has led them to believe that the gifts of the Spirit have ceased. Although God's Word is perfect (Psalm 19:7), it is not the "perfect thing" that is referred to here. 1 Corinthians 13:8 does say that tongues shall cease, but it will not happen until "that which is perfect is come."

In 1 Corinthians 13:12, Paul says, "when that which is perfect is come, we shall see face to face." This speaks of seeing the Lord face to face, instead of vaguely, as through a dark glass, as it is now. 

Some might argue that this is speaking in a symbolic sense, instead of literally face to face. But the next comparison in this verse says that then, "when that which is perfect is come," we shall know all things even as we are also known. There is no other way to interpret this, except as a description of when we will stand before the Lord, after this life. Then we will be face to face, and know all things even as also we are known.

Verse eight says that at the time prophecies fail and tongues cease, knowledge will vanish away. This is talking about the next life, or the new heavens and earth, because one of the signs of the end times is that knowledge shall increase (Daniel 12:4).

So the "that which is perfect" that Paul speaks of, cannot be the Bible. It has to be either our glorified body, or Jesus at His second coming. Either way, these verses establish that until "that which is perfect is come," tongues and prophecy will remain. They are still valid gifts, and even today, it is God's will to accompany the preaching of His Word with miracles.

Mark 16:18 speaks literally of supernatural protection if we pick up a snake, or symbolically of protection in our fight against the devil. Since the other four signs in this list are literal, it is most probable that this means physically taking up snakes.

The apostle Paul experienced this supernatural protection from a viper when he was shipwrecked on the island of Melita (Acts 28:3-5). This is the only recorded example of this type of protection in the New Testament.

There is no record of the disciples picking up snakes just to prove they were believers. That would be tempting God (Luke 4:9-12). Same with, drinking any deadly thing, is a promise that if we pick up snakes accidentally or are forced into that position because of our stand for Christ, we can believe for supernatural protection.

The power that is now working in believers is the same power that worked in Christ to raise Him from the dead. Everything we have as believers in Christ comes from our union with Him. What is true of Him is true of us too. 

We have come to share in Christ's throne, to take part in the authority that the throne represents, and to exercise divine power and dominion. 

There is no place in the New Testament that tells us to ask God to do something about the devil. We, (the church) are told to do something about the devil. This is because we have been given authority over the works of the enemy. God desires that the church be aware of this, and walk in victory.