Devotional Index

December Devotional

The Cost of Obeying God

Luke 1:34-35 says: "Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God."

As we enter this Christmas season, we are drawn to the manger and the birth of Jesus. We see angels and shepherds visiting Mary and Joseph; we see them (the shepherds) rushing to tell the Messiah is born. But consider the cost to Mary and Joseph in their lives to become the parents of Jesus. Mary was a virgin giving birth in a skeptical society, which considered Jesus a product of sin. John 8:41 indicates that the Pharisees, the religious leaders of that day, accused Jesus of being born of fornication. This is over thirty years after Jesus is born, so Mary and Joseph lived with that stigma even though they knew different. Life with Jesus was not easy because of what others thought. They were poor, and came from a poor area of the country despised by the religious leaders — John 7:52 "...for out of Galilee ariseth no prophet." Even those he called to be his disciples questioned the area where he lived: Nathanael in John 1:46 said "...Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth?" Yet, in spite of these things, Mary and Joseph did that which was right in the sight of God, not caring what everyone else thought.

We live in a world that lives for the now and for convenience. There is much talk about choice, but seldom about right choices. There is talk about rights, but not about what is right. Many innocent lives have been lost because of reputation and inconvenience, rather than to do that which is right. Mary and Joseph both had a choice to make, and they made the right choice for which we honor them, and God honors them in His Word.