Beacon2Light

This holiday season brings lots of Christmas cards, photos and family updates in our mailboxes. What I would like to zero in on in this little discussion; at least I hope it will be a discussion, with you providing some back and forth; are the family updates. There are times when I have read them and cannot help but think the writer is bragging. I am not sure if this is true in any or all of the cases that I have felt this or that this is something in me; a reaction to them as I compare myself, perhaps, and a feeling that I somehow fall short. So, how does one sort out such complexities? When is the author bragging? What are the clues? And when is the reader being oversensitive and, may I say, a tad jealous? How do you discern between the two? I put myself in a precarious situation with this blog post since at least one of my readers is one who has sent a Christmas letter updating us on the family (Note to that person: I don't think I ever thought of you as bragging in s...

Could an ancient prophecy from a biblical prophet come true today? Joel Rosenberg's "The Ezekiel Option" shows how the prophecy in the Bible book of Ezekiel, chapters 38 and 39 could come true in our lifetime. For those who are prophecy buffs, he provides some tantalizing (even secular) research on the identity of Ezekiel's Gog, Magog, etc. Joel Rosenberg's books get increasingly Christian as you move through "The Last Jihad," "The Last Days," and now "The Ezekiel Option." "The Ezekiel Option" is the most overtly Christian of the series that I have read thus far. Whether you are Christian or you are just interested in prophecies from thousands of years ago, this book is for you.

An angel named Gabriel was sent by God on a special mission. The place: a city called Nazareth. His mission: to tell a young betrothed virgin woman that she was going to have a baby. This wasn’t the usual job for an angel but this was certainly no ordinary birth. Was it mission accomplished? You decide. Here is what happened: Gabriel appeared to Mary and said, ““Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!” Mary responded with characteristic fear. It’s not easy to have a heavenly messenger suddenly appear. Gabriel sought to assure her of the nature of his quest: “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end.” Con...

After Joseph found out about Mary’s pregnancy, his head began to swim, we must imagine. He who was one of the righteous among his people, had kept his vows to abstain until marriage. But his betrothed wife, Mary, apparently had not. Questions of why and whom filled his grief-striken mind. Yet Joseph loved Mary and couldn’t embarrass her in public. To make a spectacle of her would seem to be an act of revenge and that he could not do. So, he had in mind to divorce her privately. That’s what they considered it back then. Their marital agreement wasn’t just an engagement. It was virtually marriage with the ceremony and what follows left to await the right time, when all was prepared. Joseph was to prepare a place for Mary, in his father’s house. There, they would live and have a family. When he was done, at the agreed to time, he would lead a procession to receive his wife unto himself. They would enter the marriage ceremony and he would take her into their marital chamber ...

Dr. Luke, an associate and traveling companion of Paul the Apostle, recorded Mary’s reaction to this angelic visit and the wondrous truth of the Savior’s birth and her role in bringing him into the world. Here is what she said: “My soul magnifies the Lord, And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior. For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant; For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed. For He who is mighty has done great things for me, And holy is His name. And His mercy is on those who fear Him From generation to generation. He has shown strength with His arm; He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He has put down the mighty from their thrones, And exalted the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things, And the rich He has sent away empty. He has helped His servant Israel, In remembrance of His mercy, As He spoke to our fathers, To Abraham and to his seed forever.”

One could assume that Mary and Joseph intended to have their baby in Nazareth, the place where they lived. Preparations most certainly were made to that end. However, man makes plans and God laughs. The plans of God are from everlasting to everlasting and beyond all comprehension. An ancient prophecy revealed that Nazareth was far from the place of the promised Redeemer-King’s birth. The prophet Micah, under inspiration of God, boldly proclaimed hundreds of years before: “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times (Micah 5:2 NIV).” So, how did God move Mary and Joseph from Galilee to the city of David, their ancient King, the one to whom God had promised a line that would last forever? He did it through a decree. Augustus was emperor of Rome at the time and what they called Palestine was under his dominion. One day he decided i...

Shepherds often lived out in the fields with their sheep. Lots of hours, separated from the rest of the Jewish community. They were considered filthier than the average person. Obviously, their surroundings didn’t lend to as much ability to stay clean as in the cities. In addition, they were known to occupy their time by telling tales. The long hours, days and perhaps weeks, allowed the telling and re-telling of stories until they became all the more sophisticated and exaggerated. So legendary were their stories that a shepherd’s testimony wasn’t allowed in court. The Jewish community apparently felt that shepherds were somehow incapable of telling the truth. To these members of Jewish society, so looked down upon, God had a special plan. A messenger came and delivered an incredible tale of his own. Let’s review the story of what happened: It was dark, night had fallen. The shepherds were probably taking turns sleeping while some stood watch over the sheep. At any time,...