Daily Jewel

by Pastor Carnell, McAlester, OK

"The God of Power”
The angel answered, 'The Holy Spirit will come upon you, the power of the Highest hover over you; Therefore, the child you bring to birth will be called Holy, Son of God." – Luke 1:35

Events from the past couple of days are a stark reminder that life can change at a moment's notice! Sometimes through tragedy, other times through purpose. All of these changes occur by our actions or by the actions of others! In Nazareth, a young girl from the one of the 12 tribes of Israel, Judah to be specific had just been given the news that she was soon to be married to another from the tribe of Judah, a man named Joseph. In the Jewish custom the engagement would last around a year and once a couple was engaged, the engagement could not be broken unless it was declared through a formal divorce. We do not know how long that Mary and Joseph had been engaged, it may have been a short time or maybe the time for the official ceremony was close, but somewhere along that timeline came the news that would change their lives...MARY WAS GOING TO HAVE A BABY!
! When the angel makes this announcement to Mary he says these words..."The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will (overshadow) you..."
What Mary would discover, and what the world would soon learn is that: “The Power of the Love of God is the ability to effectively and radically change and transform lives!”
And…if you notice something here, is that: The Power of God’s Love Always Begins it’s work FROM WITHIN!!
"...God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ {in you}, the hope of glory." -Colossians 1:27

What comes to mind when you think about “power?” Tornadoes and Hurricanes come to mind. How about in terms of physical strength. A body builder with big muscles…Fast Cars…Monster Trucks…? How about the power of the mind? An example of that is that of the media. A study was done several year ago and discovered that 30% of fast food chain business came between the hours of 9-11 p.m., which coincided with the time most of the television advertising took place! But God does not think or work in those terms! Mary's life changed because of what God was going to do "inside of her."
Later, as Joseph was contemplating how to handle the situation he was approached by the angel and was told;: "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." (The words “in her” are important)
The power of God is not JUST an outward display of might and strength, (though we see it from time to time) but more importantly it is His ability to change the nature of men and women who could not or would not be changed otherwise! This Love is the POWER OF SALVATION!
Remember also…the Angel said that Jesus’ coming was to “save His people from their sin.” That is His working on the inside. It is truly, the message of Christmas!
Pastor J. T. Carnell