Have you ever heard the old story about a little boy from the country, whose heart's desire was to, one day, see a circus? Well, it wasn't long before one did come to their little town, and the boy's father gave him some money. Lickety-split, he ran out the next morning to see his first circus. He couldn't have been more excited! But it was only a couple of hours later that he came home, and he still had all his money...
“What happened,” asked his Dad, “Didn't you go to the circus?” “Sure did,” replied the boy, “The circus came right down Main Street—I saw every bit of it, and it didn't cost me a thing; nobody ever took my money!” The father threw up his hands and exclaimed, “Oh, son, you didn't see the circus at all! That was just the circus parade! You only saw a glimpse of the real thing—you missed the main event!” Oh, how important that is—especially with regards to true Christianity! And the main event is not really a happening, but a person, namely Jesus the Christ. It is absolutely crucial that we don't become satisfied with just a glimpse of the real thing!
I have said it many times—Jesus was born to die; it was His purpose and His destiny. Praise God—His destiny was to change ours! First, He would begin to change those who were directly involved in the Christmas Story, and then, to change our hearts and lives—even to the same extent, right now and right into the New Year. Take Mary, for example—a young, Jewish girl who was ready, willing, and able to do whatever God asked of her. We read in Luke 1:28-29, “And the angel came in unto her, and said, “Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be.” Just six months earlier, her cousin's husband, Zacharias, was also troubled at the same angel's announcement of yet another baby, John, who would become the Baptist. It means they were both extremely agitated and stirred up—they couldn't really figure it out. But Zacharias was rebuked for his unbelief by being struck dumb until his child would be born, and alas, Mary was not. I think the difference is in the matter of the “casting.” Normally, this word would refer to a throwing away of the idea, but here, it means to consider, reckon, or reason it through.
When Mary responds to the angelic report of her child's greatness—that He would be the Son of the Highest and rule over a heavenly Kingdom forever— she still wonders how it could possibly be, since she is not married yet. No problem today when so many think nothing of premarital relations and casual sex, but back in their day, they took God's Word seriously. You see, I think the difference between Zacharias and Mary is the unbelief—she is not saying God can't do it; she just wonders what method God will use. Praise God—“And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren. For with God nothing shall be impossible.” And Mary's response? “...Behold the handmaid of the Lord: be it unto me according to thy word...” (vss. 35-38a)
This, my friends, is the Main Event—not the actual birth of the baby Jesus, but the miraculous conception. All through the Scriptures we see everybody's absolute need for the indwelling Holy Spirit, and now we are faced with it in the New Testament as well. The Holy Spirit would come upon Mary and overshadow her, which, by definition from the Greek, means that divine power and influence would infiltrate every fiber of her being. Praise God—there is nothing that is impossible for her God! This little baby would be the way, the truth, and the life—leaving no other way to God. (see John 14:6) You will hear today, “How could God only provide one way—all religions are good, so it doesn't really matter what you believe, just believe something!” I think we hear this kind of mentality more and more as we become more and more a melting pot. With no national religion, we have become the home to so many different cultures. I'm not really saying that this is bad, but it has made tolerance the modern “buzz” word, and in the process, true Christianity has become “intolerable.” In fact, right now, there are 53 countries that are either hostile towards or restrictive of true Christianity.
The man or woman who purports that Jesus is the only way is quite likely to be called a narrow-minded bigot. Some one recently half-jokingly said that “fundamentalist” is the new four-letter word. “What kind of God would only offer one way—would that be fair?” I believe that question is a serious affront to God, for it implies that He has not done enough to provide a way of redemption for everyone. But just because many today want their own way all the time, doesn't mean the whole mess is God's fault! Rev. E. Young once wrote, “My answer to the 'one-way objection' is that God Himself, as an ultimate act of redemption, became incarnate in the person of His Son. That Son, Jesus, came into the world not to condemn it, for it was already condemned. (see John 3:16-21) He actually came to save it! He was rejected, slandered, mocked, tortured, and murdered. And God accepted that treatment of His Son as punishment for the very people who murdered Him!” You and me! Punishment for Jesus, pardon for us; if we will only believe in that Son, worshiping Him and serving Him alone. How could that possibly be unloving or unfair? How could God have done more?
Young actually continued with this thought—“The only valid, honest reason to reject Christ's claims is because many do not want to be under His moral authority. When Jesus Christ comes into a life, He claims absolute authority over it.” And, quite frankly, this is the rub! But when the Lordship of Jesus is embraced and the Holy Spirit is allowed to dwell within, that absolute authority will rule, and gladly. Now, the extent to which that may not be taking place in our lives, is the extent to which we need to submit even more, desiring His complete overshadowing—His awesome divine influence to have its sway. Yes, have its “way,” for Jesus is just that—the Way, the Truth, and the Life! And it will not just end with you—it is contagious, in the very best sense of the word. As soon as Mary had experienced the Main Event, she went to visit her cousin, Elisabeth. Luke 1:41 tells us, “And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost.” Now, it's Elisabeth, too! Even before Pentecost, the Holy Spirit is overshadowing all over the place! Praise God—it's the Main Event!
And, by the way, Mary was no slouch in these things, either! Don't forget her own song of praise and adoration—“And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. For He hath regarded the low estate of His handmaiden...” (vss. 46-48a) Praise God—many today may call her sinless, and therefore, perfect, but she didn't—she knew she personally was in need of a Saviour. If she had been without sin, that would not be true. To follow Christ—and this is true for Mary, also—is to deny self, to turn from ego and pride, and to surrender control of our own lives!
Praise God—Jesus was born to die! The Cross of Jesus Christ frightens some—in fact, many churches today have decided not to preach it, or even come against sin—it might offend someone. But in the Cross we rightly see true commitment. As A.W. Tozer put it, “One time a young man came to an old saint who taught the deeper life, the crucified life, and said to him, 'Father, what does it mean to be crucified?' The old man thought for a moment and said, 'Well, to be crucified is facing only one direction.' I like that—facing in only one direction. If he hears anything behind him, he can't turn around to see what's going on. He has stopped looking back. The crucified man on the Cross is looking in only one direction and that is the direction of God and Christ and the Holy Ghost, the direction of Biblical revelation, world evangelism, the edifying of the Church, sanctification, and the Spirit-filled life.” Tozer goes on to say that there are two other things—the crucified man is not ever going to go back and he has no further plans for the future. What exactly is the extent to which you want that? It's a blessed place, however, very few really want that kind of life today! (Matt. 7:13,14) May the Holy Spirit be conceived in your heart and life in a very powerful way, divinely influencing everything in its overshadowing. Get more than a glimpse—experience the Main Event!
