Category: Advent

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The Quiet Strength of Faithful Man

Joseph is described in the Bible as a righteous man who sought to follow God’s law. This means that his life was regulated by the moral standards of the Word of God. I think it is safe to say that he lived every day in the awareness of the will and guidance of God.

When an angel brought a message from heaven, he was obedient to God’s call. He was to assume his role as the fatherly provider and protector of the infant Jesus and his virgin mother Mary. Joseph was faithful.

Caleb Saenz has written, “Joseph is to be Jesus’ earthly father, but his choice to receive that calling is less a one-time acceptance and more a daily choice to follow through with his new identity and the responsibilities it entails.” There can be no doubt that Joseph took seriously those responsibilities. His influence was a righteous influence.

The degree to which Joseph’s influence shaped the human life of Jesus is a mystery. The Bible is silent on this matter. But since Jesus was also a carpenter (Mark 6:3), we may assume that he learned this trade from Joseph. Like Joseph, our Lord was a “righteous” carpenter. May not the quiet strength, the healthy masculinity, and the courage we see in the human Jesus be, in some sense, attributable to the faithful example of Joseph?

Hebrews 5:8 tells us that Jesus “learned obedience.” How can it be said that the Son of God needed to “learn” anything? Yet in his humanity Jesus experienced the developmental stages of childhood in submission  to his parents (Luke 2:39-40, 51-52). And the man whom God appointed to be the human guardian to the child Jesus was a faithful, humble, righteous man, a carpenter named Joseph, the husband of Mary.

It seems likely that Joseph died before Jesus began his public ministry. He is absent from the references to Jesus’ family we find in the gospels. His earthly work was done. He was faithful to his calling. It was a big task — to provide, to protect, and to teach. The extent to which Joseph taught Jesus by passing on his beliefs is unknown. But he fulfilled his fatherly role as a faithful man.

Joseph is an example to us. Like him, we want to say “yes” to God’s will for our lives, whatever that means. The U.S. Army recruits thousands of volunteers every year with such challenging words as these: “As a soldier . . . you’ll experience things you never thought possible and go places most people only read about.” Joseph said “yes” to God. If we do that, God will use us too.

Joseph’s example also reminds us to evaluate our lives. Joseph was “a righteous man.” He navigated his way through a world of sin without being stained or polluted by it. When we are tempted to make moral compromises, we need the grace of God to resist temptation. “God is faithful and he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it” (1 Corinthians 10:13).

Joseph was a man of influence. He doubtless had a significant influence in the life of Jesus in his youth. You and I have influence, too. God is calling us to use it to influence others toward his Son and the salvation he offers to the world.

Joseph was not a theologian, a priest, or an apostle. But as a humble working man, a decisive man, a courageous man, and as a man of faith, he had a role in changing the world.

Pastor Randy Faulkner

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The Quiet Strength of a Courageous Man

Living quietly as a craftsman in Nazareth did not require much of Joseph in the way of courage. No defiant acts of political intrigue. No insurrection against the Roman occupation. Joseph is not described in heroic terms.

Yet when he faced the greatest crisis of his life, he displayed unusual courage. I think he behaved as a hero.

Joseph was required by Roman edict to travel to his hometown of Bethlehem (Luke 2:1-7). It was not a good time for him and his wife to make such a journey. Mary was well along in her pregnancy. This must have been disruptive and inconvenient. The journey must have been slow and unpleasant.

When they arrived, Bethlehem was filled with visitors who were there to comply with the Roman registration. The homes were crowded with relatives. The inns were overrun. There was no place for them to stay other than a stable for animals.

“While they were there the time came for the baby to be born and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger” (Luke 2:7).

We may assume this happened not long after their arrival in Bethlehem. There is no mention of a midwife, and no description of Jesus’ actual birth. Did Joseph deliver the baby?

They stayed in Bethlehem several months after Jesus was born, perhaps as long as two years (Matthew 2:16). Then a second dream came to Joseph as a message from heaven (Matthew 2:13-15). Hurry up! Escape while you can! Flee to Egypt! Herod the king is going to try to kill the child.

Joseph acted courageously and left Bethlehem during the night with his little family. This was the second of three journeys in the Christmas story. It must have been slow going with a baby, travelling through the wilderness the hundred miles to Egypt.

Historians tell us there were over a million Jews living in Alexandria at the time. Joseph and Mary may have lived as refugees among this expatriate community. In Egypt they found temporary protection from the evil despot who was motivated by Satan to destroy the baby Jesus. The fate of humanity and God’s plan of salvation hung on Joseph’s heroic obedience to God.

We do not know how long the holy family stayed in Egypt. We are told that it was until the death of King Herod (Matthew 2:19-20). The stay in Egypt had been prophesied in the Old Testament (Matthew 2:15), “Out of Egypt I called my son.”

This is an allusion to Hosea 11:1, which refers originally to the exodus of the Hebrew nation from their slavery in Egypt. Matthew applied this prophesy to Jesus, who was the typological fulfillment of all that the nation Israel had failed to be in the divine plan. Hosea wrote more than he knew. His words had a deeper significance, pointing beyond the nation Israel, to the Lord Jesus Christ. The exodus of the children of Israel in their infancy was a pointer to  Joseph’s heroic rescue of Jesus in his infancy.

After the death of king Herod, Joseph received another message in a dream. He was instructed to return with the child and his mother to the land of Israel. An additional dream guided him specifically to Galilee. Once again, Joseph obeyed. Once again, they travelled. Once again, prophesy was fulfilled, “He shall be called a Nazarene” (Matthew 2:22-23).

Nazareth was a small, obscure place. All his life our Lord was referred to as “Jesus of Nazareth.” It was there that Joseph taught his adopted son the trade of carpentry (Mark 6:3). It was there that “Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men” (Luke 2:52). This was due in large measure to the courage and heroism of Joseph.

Pastor Randy Faulkner

 

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The Quiet Strength of a Thinking Man

During this season of Advent I am thinking of Joseph. He was the man God called to be the foster father on earth of Jesus. His call came unexpectedly from two sources, from news that Mary gave him, and from a dream God sent him.

We might imagine the scene: Mary, his betrothed wife-to-be, approaching him, eyes to the ground. “Joseph, I have something to tell you.” She was pregnant. He knew this was not his doing. This seeming betrayal was the greatest disappointment of his life. The shock was beyond words. His sadness inconsolable.

As a faithful Jew, he knew enough of the Torah to know that he could either publicly expose Mary’s apparent infidelity, shaming her, and possibly risking her life, or divorce her privately. The gospel of Matthew gives us the story (Matthew 1:18-20).

Joseph was a thinking man. “He considered this,” the text says. His mind ranged back and forth. On the one hand, guided by his heart, he loved Mary and felt a need to try to protect her from public scandal. On the other hand, guided by his head, he had a reputation as a righteous man, and he must have felt a duty to safeguard his own good name. The law of Moses permitted divorce in cases like this. That is what he was inclined to do. Until . . . he received a message from heaven.

We call it divine intervention. An instance when God shows up and speaks with unmistakable clarity. The Bible is full of instances like this. When life is at its worst, when people are pulled in opposite directions and they don’t know what to do, or when they are overwhelmed with sorrow, the Lord reveals his will. God sent a messenger to Joseph with gentle guidance.

“After he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘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'” (Matthew 1:20-21).

“A son,” not “your son.” Matthew adds the interpretation from the prophet Isaiah, “They will call him Immanuel — which means God with us” (Matthew 1:23). He will be conceived by the Holy Spirit, a miraculous conception and birth. He will be “God with us,” divine and sinless. He will be a male child, fully human.

In Bible times, dreams were reliable media for transmitting divine guidance. This was the first of four dreams Joseph would receive from the Lord. In this respect he is like the Old Testament Joseph for whom he was named. He responded to the message with faith and obedience.

He knew what to do. “He did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. But he had no union with her until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus” (Matthew 1:24-25).

As a thinking man, Joseph was open to divine guidance.. He accepted by faith the message from heaven. The holy angel confirmed what Mary had already told him, that she was a virgin (Luke 1:34). He did as he was directed and gave the baby the name Jesus, which means “savior,” or “deliverer.”

As you and I contemplate this, let’s be like Joseph, obedient to God’s revealed will. Let’s be like Joseph, thinking things through and responding with faith in God’s word.

Pastor Randy Faulkner

 

 

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The Quiet Strength of a Working Man

Joseph has been referred to as the forgotten man of the Christmas story. We have no record of his words. But his actions are heroic and strong. I see Joseph as an appealing figure, a man who was willing to risk public ridicule to take as his wife a pregnant teenager whose baby was not his own. Then he took the family on a secret escape at night to save the baby’s life.

Joseph’s story has the makings of an adventure tale full of intrigue. If it were made into a movie, it would be one guys would enjoy. Men enjoy action, suspense, competition and they admire heroes who risk their lives for others.

The Bible is full of examples of heroic men who were willing to take risks to serve God. Men like Moses, Elijah, David, Daniel, Peter and Paul were leaders who were intensely committed to God. I would not hesitate to put Joseph in their company. He was a manly man who obeyed the will of God for his life.

In this space for the next few weeks, I want to think about the good character of Joseph. This will help us, I trust, to prepare for the celebration of Christmas. Hopefully Joseph will cease to be a forgotten man but will receive some much-deserved recognition and emulation.

Joseph is described in the Bible as a working man. The Bible exalts labor. Work done with excellence is virtuous. Our work is a part of our calling. Joseph’s calling was to be a carpenter (Matthew 13:55). The title “carpenter” in the Greek language could also apply to a stone mason or to a builder in general.

Joseph was a craftsman who worked with his hands. He lived in Nazareth but he was not a Galilean by birth. He was originally from Bethlehem in Judea. Possibly he had moved north because that is where the jobs were. The town of Sepphoris, not far from Nazareth, was under construction at the time, archaeologists tell us. Maybe Joseph was employed in this big construction project.

Or perhaps he was known for his service to his neighbors in Nazareth as a maker of wagons, yokes, cabinets, furniture, windows, and door frames. There has always been a need for the skills of men like Joseph.

I imagine Joseph as a man with a big chest, bulging biceps, and rough, strong hands. In my mind’s eye I see him shaking sawdust out of his beard, and pouring water over his head to wash himself at the end of the day. I can see him setting his tools aside and talking with Mary as she brings him a simple meal which they enjoy together as the sun goes down.

This is background to the Christmas story. It was to this Joseph, a working man, that was entrusted the rearing of the Son of God.

Pastor Randy Faulkner

 

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Mary the Prophet

The virgin Mary was a prophet. She composed one of the songs we find in Luke’s version of the Christmas story. Hers was an echo of the ancient hymns of the Hebrew scriptures. It reminds us of the songs of Moses, Miriam, and especially, the song of Hannah. Mary’s song is a prophetic vision of a future time when God in Christ is going to put our broken world back together.

Singing is an important part of the celebration of Christmas. Connie and I got to attend, for a second time, the Christmas festival at St. Olaf College in Minnesota, where our grandson, James Randall Faulkner III, sang in one of the choirs. They sang a modern rendition of Mary’s “Magnificat” by Carolyn Jennings:

The bows of the mighty are broken, but the feeble put on strength. Those who were full are hungry and those who were hungry are filled. Strong is the arm of the Lord, who has scattered the proud in their hearts; God has put down the mighty and lifted those of low degree. … My heart o’erflows, Alleluia!

Mary’s song tells how God is going to turn history inside out, keeping his covenant promises to his people. She repeats the themes of the prophets of Israel who predicted a time when Messiah would come in power to disenfranchise the kingdoms of this world, dethrone tyrants, exalt the humble and invert injustice. Surely this is what we pray for when we pray the Lord’s prayer, “Thy kingdom come.”

In her prophetic anthem, Mary recites God’s word at least fifteen times. Her song mirrors the song of praise uttered by Hannah, the mother of Samuel the prophet in 1 Samuel 2. Just as Hannah spoke prophetically of a new age and kingdom, so Mary spoke prophetically about when her Mighty God would “help Israel remembering to be merciful” (Luke 1:54).  This would be through the Messiah who was even then in her very womb.

Thus, wherever the message of Jesus has gone, it has “clothed the naked, fed the hungry, served those that harmed it, comforted the sorrowful, bound up the wounded, and sheltered the destitute”  (Menno Simons, 1539). “True evangelical faith cannot lie dormant.”

It has opposed unjust practices such as the caste system, child marriage and the immolation of widows in India, human sacrifice in South America, polygamy and slavery in Africa. Those missionaries who stood for justice against evil “understood that their faith was not merely private and devotional, but had implications for all of society. … (They) dispensed Jesus’ message of grace to the world. It was Christianity, and only Christianity that brought an end to slavery, and Christianity that inspired the first hospitals and hospices to treat the sick. The same energy drove the early labor movement, women’s suffrage, prohibition, human rights campaigns, and civil rights” (Philip Yancey, What’s So Amazing about Grace?).

According to Mary in Luke 1 :46-55, there is coming a future, fuller manifestation of God’s mercy. Her words are consistent with those of the ancient prophets who foretold a time when God will bring all of civilization under the rule of his anointed Son. This will mean the end of war, universal justice, the healing of nature, and a spiritual renewal in which God will pour out his Spirit upon all flesh. God’s moral law will be the governing principle of that kingdom.

Theologian R.C. Sproul wrote, “The birth of Jesus did not happen in a vacuum. He was born after generations of promises attached to Israel’s covenant relationship with God. Age after age God had renewed his promises and now they were fulfilled in space and time.”

In the same way, those who believe in Jesus as savior and king will be welcomed into that future glorious manifestation of God’s kingdom. Mary was so sure of its fulfillment, she sang about it as if it had already come. Mary was a prophet.

She reminds us to pray this Advent prayer: “Come, Lord Jesus!”

Pastor Randy Faulkner

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Mary’s Attractive Humility

One of the most attractive features of the Virgin Mary is humility. In her famous song, known as the “Magnificat,” she praises God because “he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed” (Luke 1:48). God “has lifted up the humble,” she says in Luke 1:52.

Mary is not boasting about her humility. She is, rather,  acknowledging her lowly social position. She is a young woman engaged to a common tradesman, a carpenter. Her town, Nazareth, is not a prestigious city. It is a crossroads village on a trade route traveled by Gentile merchants and the Roman army. The people of Judah scorned “Galilee of the Gentiles,” saying, “Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?”

There is something other than status consciousness or class distinction evident in Mary’s song. It is faithful submission to the will of God for her life. It is a sense of wonder. She is amazed by the honor entrusted to her that she would be the mother of the Savior of the world.

Alexander Maclaren said of Mary, “Think of that simple young girl in her obscurity having flashed before her the certainty that her name would be repeated with blessing till the world’s end and then thus meekly laying her honors down at God’s feet.”

Indeed. That is what Mary does. She glorifies the Lord, not herself. The angel says to her, “You are highly favored. The Lord is with you” (Luke 1:28), and “The Holy Spirit will come on you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God” (Luke 1:35). Mary’s response is wonderment and obedient surrender. “I am the Lord’s servant. … May your word to me be fulfilled” (Luke 1:38).

Think of what would happen because of Mary’s humble submission to God. She would bear the whispered ridicule of neighbors. She would risk losing the love of Joseph until the angel appeared to him too (Matthew 1:18-25). She would endure the journey to Bethlehem in late pregnancy, on a beast of burden or in a rickety cart over unpaved roads. She would go into labor and give birth to her firstborn Son in a stable, of all places. Humility on display!

Mary is an example to us. In a Facebook and Twitter culture that honors proud boasting, bullying insults, hatred, factions, and divisions, we need the virtue of humility now as much as ever. Mary’s Son said, “The greatest among you will be your servant. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted” (Matthew 23:11-12). Did Jesus think of his mother when he said that?

The great God who said heaven was his throne and earth his footstool said this:  “These are the ones I look on with favor: those who are humble and contrite in spirit, and who tremble at my word” (Isaiah 66:2). It is little wonder, then, that Mary was highly favored by the Lord.

    –  Pastor Randy Faulkner

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Mary the Theologian

The blessed mother of our Lord was a theologian. She expressed her belief in God in a magnificent hymn of praise. She revealed the knowledge of God that was in her head and the adoration of God that was in her heart. It has been said that her song was “a biblical theology in miniature.”

Mary’s hymn was a response to the miracle news that she was to be the mother of the savior (Luke 1:46-55). Her hymn is called the Magnificat because the Latin version of its opening words are “Magnificat anima mea Dominum.” This could be translated, as in the New International Version, “My soul glorifies the Lord.”

Mary was reflecting deeply on who God is and on what God has done. This is a good thing for us to do during this Advent season. With a spirit of joy and gratitude, Mary praises God for his attributes: “For the Mighty One has done great things for me — holy is his name. His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation.”

During this season of expectation and preparation, there can be no better theme, no better preoccupation, than for us to concentrate on God. Mary sets the example. We join her in praising God because he is powerful, the “Mighty One.”

“Holy is his name,” Mary exults. This is God’s set-apart-ness, his other-ness. “God is light and in him is no darkness,” says John (1 John 1: 5). He is separate from all that is corrupt and evil. “His mercy extends to those who fear him” brings us close to God. It makes him accessible, a welcoming God. Good news for worshipers during Advent.

Mary goes on to rejoice in what God has done for her and her people. “My spirit rejoices in God my savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. …He has performed mighty deeds with his arm.” Mary acknowledged God as her savior, indicating that she was trusting in the Lord for her own salvation.

God is a God who knows those who belong to him (2 Timothy 2:19). He takes notice of what goes on in their personal lives, and he cares (Matthew 6:25-34; 1 Peter 5:7). Mary calls our attention to this fact. She seems to be saying, “I trust this God and you should too.”

The reference to God’s mighty arm is a figure of speech, describing God’s powerful intervention on behalf of Israel. His past deliverance is the promise of a future deliverance for her nation, Mary believes. She took God’s promises literally and did not explain them away.

Mary was, in her own way, a theologian. She had a God-centered worldview. In a time when many people seem embarrassed to talk about God, seldom pray, or seek God’s will in their decision-making, Mary has given us a way of thinking and praying, singing and testifying, during Advent.

Richard Foster wrote, “In contemporary society our adversary majors on three things: noise, hurry, and crowds.” Let’s do as Mary did, slow down and reflect quietly and deeply, on God.

Pastor Randy Faulkner

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Advent: Mary’s Song

Advent: Mary's Song

Mary, the mother of our Lord Jesus, was a simple village girl from Nazareth in Galilee. The picture we have of her is one of purity, devotion, humility and above all, obedient faith. She had heard the scriptures and she believed the prophecies that God would send his Messiah to deliver his people.

When the angel Gabriel appeared to her and announced the miracle that she was to be the honored mother of the Son of God, she responded with surprise and perplexity. “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” she asked.

“The Holy Spirit, the power of the Most High will overshadow you,” the angel said in reply. She was to be the human vehicle for the incarnation of God in the infant who would be named Jesus. This miracle always prompts amazement.

We can only imagine the heart palpitations, the rush of adrenaline and the tears that must have flowed when the angel explained that Mary had found favor with God and that she would bear a son, “the Son of the Most High.” He will be a king in the line of David and his kingdom will have no end.

Her response is an example to us. She surrendered to the will of God. “I am the Lord’s servant.” In the quaint language of the King James Bible, she calls herself the Lord’s “handmaid,” or household slave. If we want the Advent season to have special meaning for us, then surely we will want to surrender our lives anew to the will of God, as Mary did.

This humble maiden expressed her devotion in a profound and beautiful hymn which is recorded in Luke’s gospel (Luke 1:46-55). Her song quotes freely from the Old Testament, indicating that Mary knew her Bible. Samuel Terrien said that Mary’s song is “a biblical theology in miniature. It begins and ends in exaltation — not of Mary — but of the Lord.”

Right away we notice how Mary glorifies the Lord. This is a song of worship. It calls attention to what God has done for his people. It is a song of gladness. “My spirit has rejoiced,” she sings. Why is she glad? Because her song is also a song of salvation.  God is “my savior,” Mary exclaims. She is expressing solidarity with the rest of humanity. She was not exempt from the need for a savior from sin. And neither are we.

That is why God sent his, and Mary’s, son. “You shall call his name Jesus, for it is he who will save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21).

Many of the songs Christians love to sing are testimony songs, songs about what the Lord has done for them. That is what Mary is singing. She is testifying about what the Lord is doing for her. “My spirit has rejoiced in God my savior” is precisely the testimony song every believer in Jesus can sing during this season of Advent.

    –  Pastor Randy Faulkner

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The Christ Candle

Some of the traditions we associate with Christmas were borrowed from pre-Christian nature religions. One is the celebration of the solstice, a festival of lights. This was to ward off the darkness of the longest night of the year, Hence, the Yule log burned brightly to commemorate the one day when the sun was at its lowest point in its apparent path across the sky and to hold at bay the long night’s darkness.

Many people who are dissatisfied with the spiritual emptiness in American culture are turning to observances of revived pagan mysticism. According to some sources, thousands of people will be observing  a secular “Yule” in pagan rituals this week.

In ancient times, these rituals were rooted in fear and superstition. Today, instead of  the fear of evil spirits, neo-pagan worshipers seek answers for pervasive spiritual exhaustion, alienation, depression and sadness. The trouble is they are looking for light in the wrong places.

Spiritual darkness

As an answer to this need, Jesus made the astounding claim: “I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness” (John 12:46). “I have come,” Jesus said. His coming to our spiritually dark world from the brightness of heaven was a rescue mission to lead us out of the kingdom of darkness (Colossians 1:13). Three times in John’s gospel, the Lord Jesus said that he is the light of the world (John 8:12, 9:5, 12:46).

The prophet Isaiah wrote that when Messiah (Christ) appeared on the scene, the world would lie in spiritual darkness. “See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the Lord rises upon you and his glory appears over you” (Isaiah 60:2). He also prophesied, as if it had already come to pass, “The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned” (Isaiah 9:2). These prophesies were fulfilled in the coming of Jesus.

I once read the account of a cave explorer who got careless and was separated from his companions. He lost his light when he accidently dropped it into a pool of water. He could see nothing, not a reflection, not a shadow, not a pinpoint of light. The absolute darkness was overwhelming and disorienting. He had to stifle an impulse to panic and sit and wait until his friends found him. He said, “That experience in the darkness made me realize that a light source is the most important single tool for a cave crawler.” What a parable of our world’s spiritual darkness and the need for the true light of Jesus Christ!

The light of the world

The apostle John introduced his gospel by affirming that “In him (Jesus, the living Word) was life and the life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it” (John 1:4-5). When Jesus offered himself to the people of Israel, he  spoke in these same terms, of light and darkness.

He said (and I paraphrase), “I am with you now. This is your opportunity. I have come to illuminate your darkness. Trust in me, the light. If you do this you will become children of light” (John 12:35-36). He was telling his own people, the beloved Jewish people of his day, “Don’t let the darkness overtake you. I have conquered the darkness. There is no need to stay in the dark.”

Children of light

When Jesus told the people that by believing in him they would be sons and daughters of light, he was saying that his light could shine through them. “You’ll not only have the light, you will be the light!” Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, “How utterly absurd it would be for these disciples . . . to try to become the light of the world! No, they are already the light, and the call has made them so.”
So what are they to do? As Jesus’ disciples what are we to do? The purpose of light is to shine! In old England lighted lanterns were hung in some of the church steeples at night. Others were hung in front of people’s homes for navigation and safety in the streets. The night watchman on his rounds would call out at dusk, “Hang out your lights!” That is the call of Christ to us this Christmas and every day. “Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16).

Advent candles symbolize this for many people. They are a tradition dating back about 1500 years. Four weeks, four candles, representing the themes of the Advent season: the prophecy candle, the Bethlehem candle, the shepherds’ candle, and the angels’ candle. In the center of the wreath is the Christ candle, which is lit on Christmas eve, with the words of John’s gospel, “I am the light of the world.”

If you light a candle this Christmas, let it remind you that you are celebrating, not merely the winter solstice, or the promise of longer days to come, but Christ the true light of all mankind. Remember too, that his light shines through you!

Merry Christmas!

Pastor Randy Faulkner

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Mary’s Sword of Sorrow

“Then Simeon blessed them and said  to Mary his mother . . . a sword will pierce your own soul too” (Luke 2 :35).

These words cloud the Christmas story. A sword is a symbol of pain, suffering and violence. These prophetic words were spoken in the temple by Simeon at the dedication of the baby Jesus. I wonder if these words hung over Mary as her son was growing to manhood. Doubtless she later heard his repeated predictions of the death he would die.

Maybe this was one of the things she pondered in her heart (Luke 2:19, 51). I think it was a detail she shared with Luke the historian if he interviewed her about the life of Jesus for the writing of his gospel (Luke 1:1-4).

Joseph and Mary brought the infant boy to the temple to be consecrated. This was in accordance with the law of Moses: “You are to give over to the Lord the first offspring of every womb” (Exodus 13:12). Joseph and Mary brought a sacrifice of two doves for the occasion (Luke 2:24, Leviticus 12:8). Simeon and the aged Anna were two eyewitnesses to the naming of the child.

When Simeon recognized who the child was, he uttered his cryptic and disturbing prophecy. “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that  will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your heart also” (Luke 2:34-35).

Simeon’s mysterious words refer to the way Jesus would raise those who believe in him. He will also be the final judge against those who reject his offer of salvation. In the final judgment there will be no place to hide. Everything will be revealed.

We cannot know the effect of these words on Mary. Luke says she and Joseph “marveled” at what was said. We can only imagine the sense of foreboding in her heart as she pondered the prophecy. The reference to a sword meant that Mary was destined to experience deep anguish of soul because of the world’s response to her son.

Simeon’s words about the sword came true at Calvary, where Mary watched her son die. She stood at the foot of the cross. She saw the crown of thorns, the scourge, the nails, the piercing of his side with a spear. She witnessed the cruelty of the soldiers. She heard the mocking insults of the religious leaders. She heard his dying words of loving concern for her as he entrusted her to the care of John the beloved disciple (John 19:26-27).

We honor Mary’s grace, dignity, courage, and obedience. She was found among Jesus’ most faithful disciples. After his resurrection she was associated with them in the prayer gatherings at the beginning of the Christian movement (Acts 1:14). God had used her to be the earthly mother of his son. Then he used her to strengthen the worship and testimony of the early church.

All that Mary witnessed, the ministry, the suffering, the death, and the resurrection of Jesus, was in keeping with God’s sovereign plan. Simeon’s words to Mary at the beginning prove it. Mary’s life magnified Jesus. She knew he was the son of God. She believed in him. Her example teaches us to do the same.

Pastor Randy Faulkner