2014 December 22 - Morning Manna

And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, to a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be. And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. 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: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. 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 (Luke 1:26-35).

Today’s Morsel:  What have you done to get ready for Jesus’ coming? When we look at history, this moment of His coming was foretold by many of the prophets of old and even by Gabriel, the messenger angel.  The Bible says that out of the mouth of two or three witnesses every word will be established.  When we look at John 1:1, 14, it says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. . . . And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.”  The Greek word for “word” is logos, which means “thought or plan.”  So in the beginning was the plan, and the plan was with God, and the plan was God.  And the plan was made flesh and dwelt among us.  The Bible said that Gabriel was sent by God, meaning it was God who dispatched Him to earth to prepare for the plan. God knew whom He would choose to be in His plan.  He knew the location of the plan, and He knew how the plan would unfold.  When Gabriel told Mary the plan, Mary said, “How shall these things be, seeing I know not a man?” Gabriel answered, “The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee.”  He said to her, “God is going to make it happen.  For with God nothing shall be impossible.”  And Mary said, “Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word” (Luke 1:37-38). In other words, she stated, “Let it be as God has planned.”  The plan was that God would come to earth to seek and to save that which was lost. Where do you fit into God’s plan?  If you don’t know, just sit tight; it will be revealed to you shortly.

Sing:  Christ by highest heaven adored, Christ the Everlasting Lord: Late in time behold Him come, offspring of a virgins womb. Veiled in flesh the Godhead see, hail the incarnate Deity! Pleased as man with men to dwell, Jesus our Immanuel, Hark! the Herald angels sing, "Glory to the newborn King."

Thought for Today: God's plan has not changed.