Genesis 40:20-22
Now it came to pass on the third day, which was Pharaoh’s birthday, that he made a feast for all his servants; and he lifted up the head of the chief butler and of the chief baker among his servants. Then he restored the chief butler to his butlership again, and he placed the cup in Pharaoh’s hand. But he hanged the chief baker, as Joseph had interpreted to them.
INSIGHT
-Birth in Hebrew is written as yalad & it means origin, delivery & outcome. Birth represents the beginning of life.
-Pharaoh a rival king to the Israelites was celebrating his birthday & invited all his servants. In judgement he restored the chief butler & hanged the chief baker as per Joseph’s interpretation. In the New Testament, a similar occurrence is evident where we find Herod a rival king to the Jews celebrating his birthday with his guests. Herodias’s daughter danced & was rewarded on account of John the Baptist’s life (Mat 14:6-10). Later, Joseph was promoted & provided grain to all the countries. Similarly, Christ the bread of life predicted His death & died to save the whole world. Further, Joseph was imprisoned with two men where one was saved & the other condemned, while Jesus was crucified alongside two men where one was promised eternal life & the other one was condemned. As we prepare for the Jesus’ birthday, may we prepare our hearts to receive His love & mercy that perpetuates into eternal life.
PRAYER
You are worthy Oh Lord to receive glory & praise for all You have done to us throughout the year. As we prepare to celebrate Your birth, we offer our hearts to You that You may birth new graces in them according to Your will. Transform our characters Father, that we may always walk according to Your purpose. We thank You for Your everlasting love & mercy upon us now & forever. Amen
Psalm 71:6
By You I have been upheld from birth; You are He who took me out of my mother’s womb. My praise shall be continually of You.
INSIGHT
-The psalmist praises God for receiving His support, guidance, protection, provision & sustenance from the time of his birth. This reminds us to acknowledge God as our maker & upholder who knew us before we were formed in our mothers wombs.
PRAYER
Abba Father, God of all blessing, creator of all things, giver of all grace, Sustainer of all life, we praise You. You have upheld us since birth & done so much for us that we cannot tell it all, we thank You. You have restored our physical, psychological & spiritual health in times when we were weak & vulnerable, we give You all the glory. We humbly ask You to continue supporting us & those of us who need You most, that You may heal all our wounds especially those we have harboured in our hearts for a long time. Help us to love more, to forgive more, to hope more & to give even more; that we may be a blessings to others, all for Your glory. Amen
Romans 8:22-23
For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body.
INSIGHT
-The whole creation which includes the universe; eagerly awaits in union with birth pangs for Christ to be formed in us, that the sons of God may be manifested. God the Father manifested Christ; His Son during His baptism when He said “This is my beloved Son with Whom I am well pleased.” As disciples of Christ; we know that those who walk according to the flesh cannot please God but only those who are led by the Spirit in obedience to His Word. The Holy Spirit helps us to fulfill His kingdom principles; that creation might be set free from the bondage of corruption. Through the Spirit we thus share & live by the grace of Christ until His second coming.
PRAYER
Abba Father, You are our only God. We know that nothing can separate us from Your love. May Your kingdom come & will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread & forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptations but deliver us from all evil. For thine is the kingdom; the power & the glory now & forever. Amen
John 16:21
A woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world.
INSIGHT
-Figuratively, Jesus spoke to the disciples about His death & resurrection. He knew they would be sorrowful once they were separated from Him. Like a pregnant woman by whom her rejoicing swallows birth pangs after conception, eternal life swallowed death & hades that we may be free. Further, whatever we ask in Jesus name, we will receive.
PRAYER
Our Father full of mercy & grace; have mercy on us & teach us how to pray that we may receive all we ask for in Your name. We seek Your face every moment of our lives that we may always possess Your loving compulsion. Be merciful to all the pregnant women, those who have young children, those who are yet to have kids & their families, that Your blessings may never depart from their homes. We humbly ask You go ahead of us this Christmas, that we may experience total love, peace & joy in our hearts, with our families & those around us. We praise You & bless Your name forever. Amen
Matthew 1:23
“Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.”
INSIGHT
-Virgin Mary was betrothed to Joseph & bore a Son Immanuel by the help of the Holy Spirit, that He may always dwell with us, to share His eternal love with us, to strengthen & guide us in all things. Joseph was a just man & Mary a virgin, who gained favour before the Lord. May we also yearn for righteousness that the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ may abide in us & our homes forever.
SUMMARY
-Birth in Hebrew is written as yalad & it means origin, delivery & outcome. Birth represents inception of natural life.
-Christians all over the world celebrate Christmas every year mainly to thank God for all the things He has done unto us, to give Him glory & praise for His goodness & mercy upon us, to share joy & love with our families, friends & neighbors, to reflect upon ones personal life & to ask God to continue blessing us & directing us in His will as we transit into the next year. We also celebrate our own birthdays like two kings Pharaoh & Herod. Their encounters reveal key concepts. During his birthday, Pharaoh restored his chief butler & hang the chief baker as per Joseph’s interpretation, & Herod rewarded Herodias’s daughter after her dance & killed John the baptizer of Christ (Mat 14:6-10). Joseph was later promoted & was able to provide grain to all the countries. Similarly, Christ the bread of life predicted His death & died to save the whole world. Further, Joseph was imprisoned with two men where one was saved & the other condemned, while Jesus was crucified alongside two men where one was promised eternal life. Before His death, Jesus spoke to the disciples about it & they became sorrowful like a pregnant woman experiencing birth pangs but rejoices after she conceives (Jn 16:21). We are reminded in Psa 71:6 to acknowledge God our Maker who Has upheld & sustained us since we were born. We are also called to focus on our purpose as human beings for the whole creation eagerly awaits in union with birth pangs for Christ to be formed in us & manifestation of son’s, that creation might be set free from the bondage of corruption (Rom 8:22-23). Just as God the Father manifested Christ when He said “This is my beloved Son with Whom I am well pleased”, we are reminded that, we can only please God when we are led by the Spirit in obedience to His Word. Through the help of the Holy Spirit we share & live by the grace of Christ until His second coming.
PRAYER
Holy God holy mighty One holy immortal One, have mercy on us & on the whole world. As we prepare for Your birth Jesus; we humbly ask You to birth new graces in our hearts, families & nation, to bind us together with Your love. We pray for all infants, students, parents, employers, employees, professionals, business people, unemployed, married, childless, unmarried, widows, orphans, the sick, priests, pastors, leaders, governments all over world, that You may bestow new blessings in all of us & our institutions in the coming year. Journey with us Father in Your mercy & peace as we travel to various destinations; that we may have a blissful time. You are the King of kings & Lord of lords, we praise You & worship You now & forever. Amen
To be continued in January 2018
Merry Christmas & a Blessed New year