“In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man named Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. An the angel came to her and said, “Rejoice, favored woman! The LORD is with you.” Luke 1:26-28
“Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the hometown of Andrew and Peter. Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the One Moses wrote about in the Law (and so did the prophets): Jesus the son of Joseph, from Nazareth!” “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Nathanael asked him.” John 1:44-46
I wonder. What was going through Gabriel’s mind as he approached the village of Nazareth? He was “on mission” once again. The LORD GOD had summoned. You could feel the electricity of heaven these days. “THE PLAN” was unfolding. The armies of heaven didn’t know the whole plan but each angelic soldier and messenger angel stood at the ready to do all that “THE MAESTRO” commanded. This plan was the utmost importance. With this battle plan, victory would be won for all of mankind. The excitement of heaven was palpable, it could hardly be contained. Gabriel knew the importance of completing his part in the “unfolding”.
But as this mighty Messenger Angel approached this insignificant farming village, did he remember “God’s ways are not our ways. His ways are higher than our ways.”? This village was a small and insignificant agricultural village. It had no trade routes. It was of little economic importance. In fact, it was located in Galilee, known to most as a heathen circle. Nazareth was in Palestine. Nathanael would one day question how THE MESSIAH could possibly come from Nazareth. “Can anything good come from there?” he asked Phillip
This is the setting of the extraodinary encounter that was about to intersect Mary’s everyday ordinary life. I would have like to have known what Mary was doing when Gariel showed up on her doorstep. Wouldn’t you? Zechariah was in a sacred place when he met Gabriel, but Mary was just in an ordinary everyday occurrence setting.
An insignificant village in Galilee became the hometown of our Savior, THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. The population probably did not exceed 500. Every one knew every one. And what was once insignificant became significant. What was a usual day was about to become an unusual day for a young teenage peasant girl. Ordinary was about to meet EXTRA-ORDINARY!
As I travel through these chapters of that first Christmas so long ago, I feel like Ebenezer Scrooge soaring back through time with the Ghost of Christmas past. Except my travel guide is the Holy Spirit of God and instead of trying to remove a humbug attitude, the Lord is igniting in me a deep love once again for the TRUE REASON FOR THIS SEASON. I see in these first Christmas people a vision of who I want to become. Parts of their stories are parts of my story. And now as I soar over this tiny insignificant agricultural village of Nazareth and look down at this young teenage peasant girl, I see at times myself reflected in the village lights. I have felt insignificant, usual, and ordinary. “Who am I to write and reflect on God’s Word? I don’t have a seminary doctorate abbreviation at the beginning of my name. Who am I to tell people about the Prince of Peace when I am a bundle of chaotic nerves, and worries, and fears?” I feel ordinary, but God has put EXTRAORDINARY inside of me. When I accepted Jesus as my Savior the Holy Spirit of God came in and took up residence in my heart.
Now as I soar above this tiny village in Galilee with the Holy Spirit of God, I see the God who makes insignificant into SIGNIFICANT. I see God turning the usual into unusual. And I see ordinary become EXTRA-ORDINARY. That’s MY GOD! That is what the whole of the First Christmas became. From the time Gabriel was sent on his first mission to the moment Wise Men and kings bowed down to worship the King of Kings wrapped up in a young child, God made ordinary EXTRA-ORDINARY.