Matthew 1:18-25

Can you imagine being a very young girl, 13 or 14 years of age, and finding yourself unmarried and pregnant……with the very Son Of God? 

Side by side with the unspeakable joy you are experiencing you are also placed in the very vulnerable position of being pregnant out of wedlock. Who would believe you that this Holy One growing inside of you was conceived of the Holy Spirit? At the same time the man you are engaged to has very serious questions of his own about the conception of this child. Talk about being elated and fearful at the same time.

God handpicked Joseph knowing that he was a godly and compassionate man who listened and obeyed. 

Joseph  must have felt betrayed initially but lived his life close enough to God to be able to hear from Him.  Miracle upon miracle would be witnessed by these two Jewish people. 

Never in their wildest dreams could they have imagined the road that they would be placed upon in fulfilling Scripture.

In Jewish culture, this covenant was made about a year before the consummation of the marriage. It was during the one-year period of betrothal that Mary was found to be pregnant. It would take a divorce ,according to their laws, to end this engagement.

Matthew 1:18-25

¹⁸ Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. ¹⁹ Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public example, was minded to put her away secretly. ²⁰ But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. ²¹ And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”

²² So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying: ²³ “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.”

²⁴ Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife, ²⁵ and did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. And he called His name Jesus.

Luke 1:35 

³⁵ And the angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God. 

Acts 13:23 

²³ From this man’s seed, according to the promise, God raised up for Israel a Savior—Jesus—

Galatians 4:4 

⁴ But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 

Luke 15:8-10

God searches for you…let that sink in, He searches for you. 

The One that you loved since childhood but so betrayed in the divorces and failures that became your life. That One, He looks anxiously for your return. It is so hard to imagine a love like that when everyone else has lost all respect for you. You had become in their eyes the biggest of hypocrites, that great love and that fire you had for Christ…..all covered in the failures. You are of value to the Creator of this world. There is hope. There is mercy and grace. He has been waiting for you. 

Let the blood of Christ cover you in His righteousness.

Gr. drachma, a valuable coin often worn in a ten-piece garland by married women 

Luke 15:8-10

⁸ “Or what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it? ⁹ And when she has found it, she calls her friends and neighbors together, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the piece which I lost!’ ¹⁰ Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”

Luke 15:4–7 

⁴ “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it? ⁵ And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. ⁶ And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!’ ⁷ I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance. 

Philippians 1:9-11

Knock and He will open the spiritual doors of heaven so that what you seek you will find.  Ask for understanding and He will take the teachings of Jesus, the living Word of God, and explain them to you. The simplicity of the Gospel of Jesus Christ saves!

The more time we spend in the Word the more the Holy Spirit can cultivate, prune and produce a harvest of His fruit in us to share with others to the glory of God. 

This verb, that you may approve, is used in ancient literature for the testing of gold to determine its purity, and for trying oxen to assess their usefulness for the task at hand.

fruitful

adjective

1 a fruitful tree: fertile, fecund, prolific, high-yielding; fruit-bearing, fruiting. ANTONYMS barren.

2 fruitful discussions: productive, constructive, useful, of use, worthwhile, helpful, beneficial, valuable, rewarding, profitable, advantageous, gainful, successful, effective, effectual, well spent. ANTONYMS futile.

Philippians 1:9-11

⁹ And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, ¹⁰ that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, ¹¹ being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

¹⁰ For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. 

Ephesians 2:10

⁶ which has come to you, as it has also in all the world, and is bringing forth fruit, as it is also among you since the day you heard and knew the grace of God in truth; 

Colossians 1:6

⁸  By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples. 

John 15:8

John 9:3-5

God loves all of His creation it is up to us to show them.

The Holy Spirit dwelling in man was made possible through Jesus’s death. His sacrifice eliminated the veil between God and His creation allowing His light to be manifested into the world through His Body…… believers. 

In the process of being changed into His image we are given a new heart to serve others. Mans’ separation from God was eliminated through the work of the Cross and given freely to those who choose to accept this precious gift. We were created to share this Good News.

We were given eternal life for God’s glory that the Son of God may be glorified through it. We are His masterpiece created for good works.

Let His light in you shine so that others are drawn to Him.

light ¹

noun

1 the light of candles: illumination, brightness, luminescence, luminosity, shining, gleaming, gleam, brilliance, radiance, luster, glowing, glow, blaze, glare, dazzle; sunlight, moonlight, starlight, lamplight, firelight; ray of light, beam of light; literary effulgence, refulgence, lambency. ANTONYMS darkness.

John 9:3-5

³ Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him. ⁴ I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work. ⁵ As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”

⁴ When Jesus heard that, He said, “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” 

John 11:4

¹⁰ Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith. 

Galatians 6:10

John 9:39-41

God’s salvation came in the form of a man, all man and all God. Jesus was born of a woman and conceived by the Holy Spirit. We can accept or reject God’s gift. We are bought with a great price. Jesus was born, died and rose again as a sacrifice for mans’ sin and to overcome death once and for all. The great commission is to make sure that all mankind has knowledge of the Word of God made flesh and the truth of life it offers to all who believe. 

Jesus did not come into the world to execute judgment. Nevertheless, the inevitable result of His coming is judgment, because some refuse to believe.

blind |blīnd|

verb [ with obj. ]

1 cause (someone) to be unable to see, permanently or temporarily

2 (be blinded) deprive (someone) of understanding, judgment, or perception

• (blind someone with) confuse or overawe someone with something difficult to understand

John 9:39-41

³⁹ And Jesus said, “For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind.”

⁴⁰ Then some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these words, and said to Him, “Are we blind also?”

⁴¹ Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, ‘We see.’ Therefore your sin remains.

¹⁷ For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. 

John 3:17

⁴⁷ And if anyone hears My words and does not believe, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world. 

John 12:47

²² If I had not come and spoken to them, they would have no sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin. 

John 15:22

²⁴ If I had not done among them the works which no one else did, they would have no sin; but now they have seen and also hated both Me and My Father. 

John 15:24

John 14:23-24

Two commandments Jesus left with us. The first is to love God with all that is within you and the second is to love others as much as yourself.

commandment |kəˈmandmənt|

noun

a divine rule, especially one of the Ten Commandments.

• a rule to be observed as strictly as one of the Ten Commandments.

ORIGIN Middle English: from Old French comandement, from comander ‘to command’ (see command) .

 If we keep these two commandments we will not sin. If you care for your neighbor you will not steal from him, lie to him, cause him physical harm, you will not be envious of the gifts that God has provided to him nor will you gossip or create lies that bring him harm. 

We cannot pick and choose……..if we are true believers, out of the wellspring of our heart, good things should flow showing God’s love to the world! 

Jesus explained that His manifestation to the disciples would be in response to their love and obedience. If a believer loves and obeys the Lord, he or she will experience fellowship with God. If a person does not love Jesus, he or she will not obey Him. Disobedience is a serious matter, for Jesus’ words are the words of God.

John 14:23-24

²³ Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. ²⁴ He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father’s who sent Me.

¹⁷ that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 

Ephesians 3:17

¹⁹ Then Jesus answered and said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner. 

John 5:19

³ And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. 

Revelation 21:3

Hosea 14:1-3

He is the Lord, our God, and He will not tolerate anything that we place above Him in importance in our life.

We must be very careful not to allow the pleasures of this world to become our gods. Money, power and control are elevated and sought out by society. Their pursuit stifles the heart of God in man silencing His still, small voice given to us to guide us.

Worship God  in prayer and in communion with others.

The final section of Hosea’s prophecy begins with a call to repentance that includes a model prayer. The people of Israel were to pray for God’s gracious forgiveness and renew their allegiance to Him by renouncing foreign alliances, their own military strength, and artificial gods.

Hosea 14:1-3

14 O Israel, return to the Lord your God,

For you have stumbled because of your iniquity;

² Take words with you,

And return to the Lord.

Say to Him,

“Take away all iniquity;

Receive us graciously,

For we will offer the sacrifices of our lips.

³ Assyria shall not save us,

We will not ride on horses,

Nor will we say anymore to the work of our hands, ‘You are our gods.’

For in You the fatherless finds mercy.”

¹³ So rend your heart, and not your garments; Return to the Lord your God, For He is gracious and merciful, Slow to anger, and of great kindness; And He relents from doing harm. 

Joel 2:13

¹⁷ The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, A broken and a contrite heart— These, O God, You will not despise. 

Psalm 51:17

¹⁵ Therefore by Him let us continually offer  the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name. 

Hebrews 13:15

¹³ You have plowed wickedness; You have reaped iniquity. You have eaten the fruit of lies, Because you trusted in your own way, In the multitude of your mighty men. 

Hosea 10:13

31 Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help, And rely on horses, Who trust in chariots because they are many, And in horsemen because they are very strong, But who do not look to the Holy One of Israel, Nor seek the Lord! 

Isaiah 31:1

Micah 7:18-10

Society has it all wrong. 

Rules are not meant to be broken and there are consequences to our actions. If rules did not matter the Father would never have given Jesus as a living sacrifice to redeem  man. All things are made right with God through the blood sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross of Salvation but it does not come free. Because of HIs great love for us He will prune and fertilize those who give their lives to Him. With a great price we were brought back from death and with this comes the process of becoming just like Him who saved us. 

We are chastised because He loves us. 

sacrifice |ˈsakrəˌfīs|

noun

• an animal, person, or object offered in a sacrifice.

• an act of giving up something valued for the sake of something else regarded as more important or worthy

• Christian Church Christ's offering of himself in the Crucifixion.

• Christian Church the Eucharist regarded either (in Catholic terms) as a propitiatory offering of the body and blood of Christ or (in Protestant terms) as an act of thanksgiving.

We will learn the hard way or the easy way but we will learn!

Micah 7:18-19

Who is a God like You,

Pardoning iniquity

And passing over the transgression of the remnant of His heritage?

He does not retain His anger forever,

Because He delights in mercy. 

¹⁹ He will again have compassion on us,

And will subdue our iniquities.

⁷ keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and the children’s children to the third and the fourth generation.” 

Exodus 34:7

²⁵ “I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake; And I will not remember your sins. 

Isaiah 43:25

²⁰In those days and in that time,” says the Lord, ^m“The iniquity of Israel shall be sought, but there shall be none; And the sins of Judah, but they shall not be found; For I will pardon those whom I preserve. 

Jeremiah 50:20

¹⁶ For I will not contend forever, Nor will I always be angry; For the spirit would fail before Me, And the souls which I have made. 

Isaiah 57:16

¹¹ Say to them: As I live,’ says the Lord God, ‘I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn, turn from your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?’ 

Ezekiel 33:11

Acts 23

If God calls you to it He will provide the way to accomplish it. Our job is to listen closely to His voice giving us direction in our life. Pray to be in His will always.

Slipping out of Jerusalem when the city was quiet, the foot soldiers and cavalry probably attracted little attention. Ahead lay Antipatris, 40 miles away, by way of a winding downhill road where an ambush would have been disastrous. Antipatris was used by the Romans as a relay station for their troops. The rest of the journey was over open plain where there was no need for a large number of soldiers. The foot soldiers returned to Jerusalem, leaving the 70 horsemen to escort Paul the remaining distance to Caesarea, the capital of Judea. 

The hand of God over Paul’s life can be seen in the provision of such extraordinary protection.

Acts 23:11

¹¹ But the following night the Lord stood by him and said, “Be of good cheer, Paul; for as you have testified for Me in Jerusalem, so you must also bear witness at Rome.”

Acts 23:12

¹² And when it was day, some of the Jews banded together and bound themselves under an oath, saying that they would neither eat nor drink till they had killed Paul.

Acts 23:25-30

²³ And he called for two centurions, saying, “Prepare two hundred soldiers, seventy horsemen, and two hundred spearmen to go to Caesarea at the third hour of the night; ²⁴ and provide mounts to set Paul on, and bring him safely to Felix the governor.” ²⁵ He wrote a letter in the following manner:

²⁶ Claudius Lysias,

To the most excellent governor Felix:

Greetings.

²⁷ This man was seized by the Jews and was about to be killed by them. Coming with the troops I rescued him, having learned that he was a Roman. ²⁸ And when I wanted to know the reason they accused him, I brought him before their council. ²⁹ I found out that he was accused concerning questions of their law, but had nothing charged against him deserving of death or chains. ³⁰ And when it was told me that the Jews lay in wait for the man, I sent him immediately to you, and also commanded his accusers to state before you the charges against him.

Farewell.

³¹ Then the soldiers, as they were commanded, took Paul and brought him by night to Antipatris. ³² The next day they left the horsemen to go on with him, and returned to the barracks. ³³ When they came to Caesarea and had delivered the letter to the governor, they also presented Paul to him. ³⁴ And when the governor had read it, he asked what province he was from. And when he understood that he was from Cilicia, ³⁵ he said, “I will hear you when your accusers also have come.” And he commanded him to be kept in Herod’s Praetorium.

Ephesians 1:15-22

Eye has not seen nor ear heard what the Lord has prepared for those who love Him and accept His salvation and made us one in Christ Jesus. What a God I serve who created all things in His majesty and to His glory and is high above all that I think and feel BUT He still bends down to have a relationship and to give understanding of His mysteries with the likes of me. Praise and glory to the Triune Godhead…Father | Son | Holy Spirit.

It is all about Jesus, his birth, death and resurrection, who overcame sin and death through the power of the Holy Spirit to give us LIFE!

The resurrection of Christ from the dead was the expression of God’s power. The Resurrection is also proof of what God can do in us and for us. Christ Jesus was not only raised from the dead, He was given a position at the right hand of God. Jesus received this position as the Son of David in fulfillment of the messianic prophecies. Jesus Christ will remain at the Father’s right hand until the enemies of God have been subjugated and it is time for Christ to return.

Paul conveys the idea of desire, even a heart’s desire, primarily expressing emotion instead of volition. Thus God’s will is not so much God’s intention, as it is His heart’s desire. This plan was created in God’s counsel which means the result of deliberate determination. But behind God’s plan was not just a mastermind but a heart of love.

Ephesians 1:15-22

¹⁵ Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, ¹⁶ do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: ¹⁷ that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, ¹⁸ the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, ¹⁹ and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power ²⁰ which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, ²¹ far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come.

²² And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, ²³ which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

⁴ since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of your love for all the saints; 

Colossians 1:4

⁵ hearing of your love and faith which you have toward the Lord Jesus and toward all the saints, 

Philemon 5

¹⁷ Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God.’ ” 

John 20:17

⁶ that you may with one mind and one mouth glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. 

Romans 15:6

⁹ For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; 

Colossians 1:9

¹⁸ to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.’ 

Acts 26:18

Though it is God’s right alone to judge the outside world it is the Church’s duty to teach and to uphold His covenant standards within her walls as the Body of Christ. Narrow is the road to salvation and only through Jesus but it is always governed by God’s great love for all His creation.

Gomer’s marital infidelity is a picture of Israel’s idolatry and unfaithfulness to its covenant with God.

infidelity |ˌinfiˈdelitē|

noun (pl. infidelities)

1 the action or state of being unfaithful to a spouse 

2 unbelief in a particular religion, especially Christianity.

ORIGIN late Middle English (in the senses ‘lack of faith’ and ‘disloyalty’): from Old French infidelite or Latin infidelitas, from infidelis ‘not faithful’ (see infidel) .

Hosea 1:2

² When the Lord began to speak by Hosea, the Lord said to Hosea:

“Go, take yourself a wife of harlotry

And children of harlotry,

For the land has committed great harlotry

By departing from the Lord.”

¹⁶ And the Lord said to Moses: “Behold, you will rest with your fathers; and this people will rise and play the harlot with the gods of the foreigners of the land, where they go to be among them, and they will forsake Me and break My covenant which I have made with them. 

Deuteronomy 31:16

¹⁷ Yet they would not listen to their judges, but they played the harlot with other gods, and bowed down to them. They turned quickly from the way in which their fathers walked, in obeying the commandments of the Lord; they did not do so. 

Judges 2:17

¹³ “For My people have committed two evils: They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, And hewn themselves cisterns—broken cisterns that can hold no water. 

Jeremiah 2:13

Jeremiah 7:12-13

Calling yourself a Christian does not make you a Christian. Being a doer of God’s word and not a hearer of His word makes you a follower of Christ and a member of His Body. God will not be mocked.

God’s love for His people does not prevent Him from chastising them for their wickedness.

Shiloh was the site of the tent of meeting and ark of the covenant in the days of the judges. Leaders in the family of Eli had abused their priestly position for personal gain, and idolatry was rampant in the land. When the Israelites attempted to use the ark as a victory-giving talisman, the ark was captured.

Shiloh was a sobering object lesson for Judah. Once the center of Israel’s religious life and the site of the tabernacle, Shiloh lay in ruins in Jeremiah’s day, and its people had been taken captive by the Assyrians. Why? Because the northern kingdom of Israel had turned away from the Lord to idols. Jeremiah warned that the same outcome awaited the people of Jerusalem—and for the same reason.

Jeremiah’s message of judgment must have sounded incredible. Jerusalem was the site of the temple, the magnificent house of worship that David had envisioned and Solomon had built to the glory of God. How could God allow His temple and its city to be destroyed? Yet if anyone doubted Jeremiah’s warning, all they had to do was travel a little more than 20 miles north to Shiloh.

Apparently, few people heeded the prophet’s word, because Jerusalem fell to the Babylonians within a few short years. The temple was burned and most of the people were either killed or deported.

This tragic outcome challenges us to consider whether idols exist in our own lives. We don’t bow down to images of wood and stone, but if we allow anything to take the place of God, then we are practicing idolatry. This can happen in our work, in our relationships, and, like the people of ancient Judah, even in our houses of worship. In that case, God may take away the thing that we hold so dear in order to redirect our attention and affection to where they belong—on Him. The first commandment is still in effect: “You shall have no other gods before Me”.

Jeremiah 7:12-13

¹² “But go now to My place which was in Shiloh, where I set My name at the first, and see what I did to it because of the wickedness of My people Israel. ¹³ And now, because you have done all these works,” says the Lord, “and I spoke to you, rising up early and speaking, but you did not hear, and I called you, but you did not answer, ¹⁴ therefore I will do to the house which is called by My name, in which you trust, and to this place which I gave to you and your fathers, as I have done to Shiloh. ¹⁵ And I will cast you out of My sight, as I have cast out all your brethren—the whole posterity of Ephraim.

¹⁰ So the Philistines fought, and Israel was defeated, and every man fled to his tent. There was a very great slaughter, and there fell of Israel thirty thousand foot soldiers. 

1 Samuel 4:10

⁶⁰ So that He forsook the tabernacle of Shiloh, The tent He had placed among men, 

Psalm 78:60

⁶ then I will make this house like Shiloh, and will make this city a curse to all the nations of the earth.” ’ ” 

Jeremiah 26:6

¹⁵  And the Lord God of their fathers sent warnings to them by His messengers, rising up early and sending them, because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place. 

2 Chronicles 36:15

²⁴ Because I have called and you refused, I have stretched out my hand and no one regarded, 

Proverbs 1:24

⁴ So will I choose their delusions, And bring their fears on them; Because, when I called, no one answered, When I spoke they did not hear; But they did evil before My eyes, And chose that in which I do not delight.” 

Isaiah 66:4

¹³ Woe to them, for they have fled from Me! Destruction to them, Because they have transgressed against Me! Though I redeemed them, Yet they have spoken lies against Me. 

Hosea 7:13