The Christmas story is an incredible reminder of exactly how much God loves us. However, like many Bible stories, it’s easy for the power of the story to become watered down the more we hear it.
Embracing the Sacred Reminders of the Season
Every year, I try to take some time to read through the Christmas stories with fresh eyes. After all these years, I’m amazed at the truths the Holy Spirit continues to show me through scripture.
This year, I was reminded of the incredible role the Holy Spirit played in the first Christmas. While the Holy Spirit’s arrival was made famous during Pentecost, it is evident throughout the Gospels that there would be no Christmas without the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit and Christmas
Here are just a few of the encouraging reminders we can celebrate as Spirit-filled disciples from the story of the first Christmas:
His father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied: ”Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has come to his people and redeemed them.” - Luke 1:67-68 (NIV)
Luke reminds us that after Zachariah was silenced by God for his unbelief, he was filled with the Spirit when John the Baptist was born and he began to prophesy. His story reminds us that the Holy Spirit refines us, and even continues to use us in spite of our failures and weaknesses.
“The angel answered, 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 (NIV)
“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her. - Luke 1:3 8(NIV)
Mary’s story reminds us that it was the Holy Spirit’s work that led to her pregnancy. But what amazes me even more than the role of the Holy Spirit in Jesus’ birth is her response. Mary is unfaltering in her willingness to follow God in the midst of crazy circumstances.
“Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God…” - Luke 2:25-28 (NIV)
Simeon had been praying for the Messiah for years. The Holy Spirit had promised Simeon that he would indeed see the Savior before he died. Simeon’s story reminds us that the Spirit will give me the power to hold onto God’s promises, no matter how many years it takes to see their fulfillment.
What lessons were you reminded of after reading the Christmas story this year?
