Reason for the Season.
Luke 1:30 And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God.
Luke 1:31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS.
Luke 1:32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:
Luke 1:33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.
Luke 1:34 Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?
Luke 1:35 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.
Luke 1:36 And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren.
Luke 1:37 For with God nothing shall be impossible.
As we sang some of the Christmas songs at the office this morning, I was thinking about the account of Jesus’ birth. We all know the story so well. Mary and Joseph were looking for a place to stay and could not find room at the inn. So they ended up in a stall where Jesus was born and put into a manger. No room at the inn became a phrase for a song was written about Jesus being born in a manger. It amazes me that just those few words would be prophetic about His whole life.
John 1:11 He came unto his own, and his own received him not.
In a few days we will celebrate Christmas and I wonder if this statement is still true? Will we receive Him when He shows up? The question though is: Will we recognize Him when he shows up? What does this Christ look like?
He is God but he comes as a baby. He is God but He stays in a stable. He is God but there is no room for Him at the inn.
Wise men were seeking Him out. They traveled from another country to find this king that would be born. They would lay at his feet gifts of incense and myrrh. They would see a king when everybody else saw a baby. Do we still have wise people that seek Him? Have our celebration of this season eliminated our vision to the point that we no longer see a king but just a baby? Wise men still seek Him out! Wise men still come afar to worship Him!
Mary gives us a key! How can this be? God was about to overshadow Mary with His Holy Spirit and birth within her the one that would be Emmanuel – God with us. What will happen if we cry out to God for a fresh overshadowing over our families and us? Does the world need a new encounter and does the world need us to bring a fresh manifestation of God with us? What will happen when we make Jesus visible again?
He was a baby that intimidated the rulers of His time. The political rulers felt threatened. There was no room for another king. “Kill al the newborn babies,” Herod cried. Is the message we carry a threat to the political agenda of our day? Do we birth something that will expose the lies of the politics and stop the manipulation of the hearts and minds of men?
This Emmanuel was a threat to the religious system. It took them 30 years to catch on but He was outside of their box. There was no honor from the religious folk for a man that would rather spend time with the sinners and prostitutes instead of going to their conferences. Making the claim to be the Son of God when they all struggled with an orphan mindset, does not fit the religious status quo.
This Emmanuel was a threat to the powers of darkness. “What have we to do with you Jesus,” they would cry out! “Have you come to punish us before our time.” His presence in a place would shake the foundation of darkness and they would tremble, as His words would set the captive free from pain and sickness and bondage.
As we were worshipping I heard the Spirit of God speak to me. I want to release His word as a prophetic word for next year.
“The time has come for a people that will be my Emmanuel in the earth. I will be manifested through a people that will welcome Me in this season. I will be manifested through a people that will make room for Me to come and be with them. I will birth again through them the presence that will intimidate the powers of this day. For too long have My people been intimidated by the enemy. No longer will they submit to fear and intimidation but they will rise up in this season and recognize that what they see is Me. They will seek Me and find Me and I will manifest Myself to them in this season. You shall go out and be known as a people of power. You shall go out and be known as a people of Emmanuel. My presence will go with you and will be before you day and night. Stand up and take the land. Stand up and take your inheritance.
