We are only into the second chapter of Luke and already we have our third angel visitation! First Gabriel appears to Zechariah and then to Mary. Now we have an angel appearing to some shepherds. This contact with the Spirit realm can be a bit scary and so each time the angel says to them "Do not be afraid, I've got some good news for you!"
The other thing that I have noticed is how much the Holy Spirit is involved in these early chapters and it is not even Pentecost yet!
John (the Baptist) will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from birth.
The Holy Spirit is involved in the conception of Jesus.
When Mary visited Elizabeth she was filled with the Holy Spirit.
Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied.
In chapter 2 we are introduced to a man called Simeon and it says the Holy Spirit was upon him, the Holy Spirit had revealed to him he would not die before seeing the Christ and he was then moved by the Spirit to go into the temple courts.
Early on in "The hungry always get fed" on page 14 it says, "We ask the Holy Spirit to control us so that we can participate in God's nature and help fulfill his purposes in this part of the world."
So with angels appearing and the Spirit of God at work we are presented with a "spiritual" reality early in this gospel of Luke. I pray that God would open our eyes to be so much more aware of the spiritual realm around us and that we would not be afraid of where this may lead.
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Just one other quick comment about these posts. When reading through Luke chapter 2 and the first chapter of "The Hungry always get fed" I thought - there are so many things we could write about.
Obviously we can't address everything so just comment on whatever speaks to you.
You may like to check out Luke 1:80 and Luke 2:40,52. If you don't have a bible close by maybe try out the BibleGateway link on the right.
Amen to being more aware of the spiritual realm & not being afraid of what this might bring.
I have a question in Luke 1:18,19. It says "but Mary quietly treasured these things in her heart and thought about them often". What does this refer to. Others were astonished but she knew in her heart? Was she not astonished? It also says in v51 "and his mother stored all these things in her heart". Did she feel very blessed by God for being the mother of Jesus? Why was she storing these things in her heart? Not sure if this is a big thing or a little thing, but just wanted to hear some others thoughts.
"but Mary quietly treasured these things in her heart and thought about them often".
To me this speaks of her reverance for the gifted position she has been placed in and her surrender to GOD's will.
By treasuring it, she is not trying to change or control it.
That line impacted on me too, Narelle.
I found Luke 2:34-35 interesting. Simeon prophesied that "This child of yours will cause many people in Israel to fall and others to stand. The child will be like a warning sign. Many people will reject him....But all this will show what people are really thinking" (CEV). That's the way Jesus seemed to be; he revealed the intentions of people's hearts to be good or bad. He left no room for fence sitting. He demands that we make a choice. Am I fence sitting? Will I allow him to reveal the dark places in my heart? Will I make the choice to abandon reason to faith and the promptings of the Holy Spirit? When it comes down to it, am I holding on too tightly to my comfort zone?
These parts about Mary "treasuring in her heart" stood out to me too. I really like Gemma's response: "By treasuring it, she is not trying to change or control it."
I love your questions Chris. I am asking these exact same questions myself.
Re Mary treasuring these things. Months before she had experienced this amazing angelic visit. It struck me that going forward - she had no more idea of how this was all going to come about - what & when & how things would unfold. She also likely went through some pretty tough times re the pregnancy - within the family etc. She was in the dark as to Gods plans going forward. So every sign - big or small would have been a wonderful confirmation that God was still with her. Treasured is exactly the right word for what she must have felt. Think of the 30 years - I wonder how often she may have felt it was all some weird promise that was never going to happen. I'm sure I would have given up or started trying to organise Jesus...
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