SojournersHeart

Hi, I am Elle from Missouri where I am in children's ministry. I don't get a lot of adult interaction and there are no Bible studies available to me locally, so I like the on-line study for something that doesn't involve yarn and glue

I have had the same reaction! I really appreciated your comments about your mother's attitude toward her breast cancer. I have never had anything that bad happen to me, but I tend to be a whiner and used to get mad at God and say things like, "Yeah, if you are such a loving God, why don't you do something about this!" Job really helped me get a handle on that.

I have always wondered about the climate around Bethlehem...so I looked it up: Jerusalem is situated at a relatively high altitude, and therefore experiences quite cold, wet winters with occasional light snowfalls. By contrast summers are dry and warm, with low humidity and temperatures averaging around 75

This was the way events were dated in the ancient world. Years were not numbered; rather events were placed in time in relation to when rulers were in office and to significant events during their term. This was Luke's way of establishing the historicity of Jesus' life.

Names had great significance, which is why God changed some names: Abram (honored father) to Abraham (father of many nations) or Jacob (usurper) to Israel (one who wrestles with God)....Simon to Peter, etc. Jesus' name was of even greater significance because His role in salvation history was pivotal. By naming His Son "Yahweh saves," God makes it clear that His own power is behind the kind of salvation Jesus brought, though the type of salvation wasn't fully revealed until Jesus' resurrection. I wonder, if God had sent a military leader instead, to effect a political overthrow, would he have chosen a name that was more militant in nature?? I think that part of the reason God revealed the name to both may have been a sign or confirmation to each other that they were getting the same message & "on the same page." Also, it was just so important, God needed them to be in agreement when it came time to make it official.

You touched on a major issue in my faith! Studying Mary has opened my eyes--if Mary's obedient path wasn't easy why should I expect to avoid suffering????

Mary didn't have very good options--she could be stoned by the village if Joseph had desired it--not her option but his--surviving that option, she could live in shame under her parent's protection, but shunned by the village. She could have gone back to Elizabeth, who was already convinced that Mary's pregnancy was miraculous rather than moral failure. The other option open to other young women in her apparent situation would be to sell herself as a servant if anyone would take her or to give up to a life of anonymity and prostitution in a large city far away, but I don't think that was really an option for Mary. I wonder, if Joseph had divorced her quietly if she would have sought the protection of Zechariah and Elizabeth. I think a good point is made in the above post, that God had already worked out the details....Perhaps that is true in our own lives and what gets us into trouble is taking things into our own hands. I think Joseph understood the spirit of the Jewish Law as Jesus later taught it--that the Law requires first that we love God, second that we love our neighbor as ourselves. Joseph's righteousness was a meeting of justice and mercy. His sense of Justice told him Mary had broken the law and was no longer worthy of his engagement, but his sense of mercy told him to spare her life and her dignity (as much as was in his power) as well, by being as lenient as he could be in following the law. In the eyes of the community, Joseph would have been justified in seeking vindication (and in fact would have expected it or even thought him week for not seeking the full extent of the law), but he was willing to set aside his pride and pain and do what was best for Mary. Sometimes when my daughter is upset because she has made a mess of things, I try to offer comfort and she says, "but I don't deserve it." Lately I have been telling her "it's not about what you deserve; it's about what you need." Joseph did not give Mary what she appeared to deserve, he wanted to give her what she needed.

Those are the words I would use to describe sewing....I hadn't thought about Jesus ever really having such an experience in common with one of my own. I will be thinking about that all day today. Wow.

In addition to learning a marketable skill, with which he likely supported himself until he began his ministry, I think Jesus also learned what it was like to be "working class" in a profession which would have brought him into contact with many people of various stations and ranks in life. Had he been born the son of a political king, he would have been sheltered from the realities and challenges of "real life." Interesting to note that while God did not place Jesus with wealthy influential human parents, he also did not place Jesus in the absolute lowest "caste" where he would have been far less likely to come into contact with religious and community leaders at all. I hadn't really thought about that before.

I have never had a problem with Mary referred to by these titles. When I watch video dramatizations of the crucifixion I always watch through Mary's eyes. What could be worse for a mother than to watch her child be tortured to death? As a mother myself, I could almost get angry with God for making her go through that. I think it is right that we honor Mary for the role she played in salvation history. I am not comfortable with the veneration of Mary--honorable titles and respect are one thing, but I just cannot reconcile prayer to and worship of Mary with the commands to worship God alone, and not to make any graven images.

Mary's response to the angel was one of complete submission, which is rare in the Biblical record. She doesn't bargain, she doesn't take things into her own hands, she just submits and lets things happen to her, knowing that it won't be easy and that it will be a huge responsibility. She submits as a servant, relinquishing all rights to self. This is as nearly perfect model of obedience, next to Christ, as we can find in the Bible. She was aware of some of the initial hardships--bearing the shame without being able to explain or defend herself before her village, being at the mercy of Joseph--then there was also the unknown. But she didn't ask to know how it would turn out or what was in it for her; she just submitted. These get right to the point in my life. I have a hard time giving up that "right to self," I guess. I get resentful that following God can be so difficult, misunderstood, and under appreciated. It is hard for me to remember that Jesus said "If anyone wants to be my disciple, let him deny himself, take up his cross and follow me." This is what we consent to. We have to remember that the cross is hard, and few of us will ever have to bear a cross as difficult as Christ's--or Mary's, or those of the early martyrs (or contemporary martyrs).