Third Monday of Advent

Week 3 - Joy
Worship
Read Luke 1:46 - 56
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The Nativity begins and ends with worship.  From the moment Mary received news from the Angel Gabriel to the moment the Magi came to visit the child king, the birth of Jesus is bathed in worship.  In today’s passage, we read of Mary’s response to the news that she was the chosen one who would give birth to the long anticipated Savior of the world.  When she heard the news, her first response was worship and praise.  She praises God for choosing her as the one who would bring the Messiah into the world. She praises Him because He is mighty, Holy, merciful, powerful, and a God who keeps his promises. 
 
The response of the shepherds, the angels, and the Magi was the same as they each met their new born King.  The Angels proclaimed, “Glory to God in the highest.”  The shepherds went to see the baby and when they returned to the fields, they praised God for all they had seen and heard. The Magi, or the Wise Men, came and worshiped.  When they saw the child, they fell down and worshiped him.  Their act of worship was in giving Jesus gifts of Gold, Frankincense, and Myrrh.
 
Our hearts are formed by what we worship.  It has been said often that whatever we spend our time, money, and energy on are most likely the things we worship. What is it that you worship?  When you truly get to the heart of the matter and you are truthful with yourself, you need to ask: is it Jesus? 
It may seem easy to say, “Jesus is the reason for the season,” but it is just as easy to get pulled into the vacuum of consumerism where we quickly put Jesus on the back burner. 
Let us be reminded that we have the opportunity to put aside the frenzy of buying and shopping ‘til you drop, and we can instead truly focus on what God has given to humanity in Jesus Christ this Advent season.
 
Let us continue this season with thankfulness, praise, and worship of our King Jesus.  Let us hold onto the promises He made that “whoever believes in me shall not perish but have everlasting life,” and his imminent return is at hand.