In the Darkness of Uncertainty, There is the Light of Wonder

 Luke 2:17-20.

¹⁷And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child.

¹⁸And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds.

¹⁹But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.

²⁰And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.

The Darkness of Uncertainty -

All of us live in an uncertain world. We don’t know what tomorrow will bring. Some of us have friends who are uncertain whether they will live to see another Christmas. All of us have lived through a time of economic uncertainty.

Imagine all the uncertainties for Mary and Joseph. Imagine the political uncertainty they endured while living under real oppression. They lived through relational uncertainty. It appeared that Mary whom Joseph loved and trusted had betrayed him. How about the uncertainties of their future?  Hear a few of their questions:

Are we really equipped to raise the long-awaited Messiah? How will we secure the needed finances to raise our son since this pregnancy was unplanned and unexpected? Will the people back home welcome us home in light of the rumor mill concerning my getting pregnant before being married? We didn’t know we were going to have to live as fugitives for a time… be uprooted from our families… in order to raise our family in an obscure, out of the way little town called Nazareth.

The Cure - Light of Wonder -All who heard the shepherds “wondered” at their message about who this child was (2:18). Joseph and Mary wondered and marveled at all the things spoken of their son (Luke 2:33) by Simeon and Anna.

• What is wonder? To marvel, to admire, to be amazed beyond measure. A feeling of surprise mingled with admiration, caused by something beautiful, unexpected, unfamiliar, or inexplicable.

• What about the Christmas story should cause us to marvel and wonder?

I marvel that the Lord sovereignly moves the greedy, godless rulers of the Roman empire to conduct a census for the purposes of taxation in order to fulfill the prophecy of the Messiah’s birthplace in Bethlehem.

I marvel at the humiliating and humble beginnings of the earthly life of our Lord… born in a cattle stall… laid in a feeding trough. I marvel at God’s willingness to humble His Son so in order to save proud people like me.

I marvel that the God of all there is; the God who is ringed with angels who declare His glory and move with strength and speed to do His will…this God comes to the nobodies of this world to lead them to their Savior.

I marvel that the Lord receives worship and praise from those who were considered despised and ceremonially unclean – the shepherds.

I marvel that God’s favor would rest upon completely undeserving sinners like me.

I marvel that I have a Savior to deliver me from my greatest enemies: the futility of life, the fatality of sin, and the finality of death.

I marvel that the Lord loved you and me enough to awaken us to the irresistible music of Good News of great joy that we have a Savior who is not only the Messiah. He is God incarnate. Hearing that song will cause your heart to swell with wonder and you will worship Him. For wonder always leads to worship…

Let the Christmas story reawaken in you the capacity to wonder and marvel at all the great things that God has done to save you.