MEDITATIONS
FROM THE GOSPELS
December 26 , 2007
Reading: Genesis 49:8-12; Luke 2:8-14.
"Glory
to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill to men.” Luke 2:14
Genesis is often referred to as the Book of Beginnings. While this is
wonderfully true it is also a book of death and death-bed scenes. Many of the
well known early characters from Adam to Jacob, including Abraham, Noah, Isaac
and Ishmael are recorded, but none with as much detail as Jacob.
Jacob’s blessings of his twelve sons are full of prophecy concerning the
Nation of Israel, God’s chosen people, but none more significant than that of
his fourth son, Judah.
The consistency found in the bible is one of the major proofs of the
inspiration and infallibility of the scriptures. They contain 39 books in the
Old Testament and 27 books in the New Testament,
“The scepter shall not depart from Judah,
nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until
This verse contains two prophecies 1)The
scepter shall not depart from
Our second reading in Luke 2 is part of one of the most read portions of
scripture, especially this time of the year. Shepherds were doing that which
they did every night—taking care of their flocks. Nothing indicated that things
would not proceed as usual until a once in a lifetime, rather a once in
history event happened. The night sky lit up with a brilliance never before
seen (it was the glory of the Lord), and an angel appeared and spoke to them.
They were petrified, as would be any person in their sandals. After the angel
delivered his message that the promised Messiah had been born, a “multitude of
the heavenly host” (hundreds, thousands, who knows?) joined him and praised
God, saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward
men.”
What is it, you may ask, that joins the blessing of Jacob on his son
Judah, and the song of praise announced by the angels that night in the field?
The answer is simple, one is the fulfillment of the
other. The two names “
“
“Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth
be glad” Ps 96:11.
That night in the fields around
“Tonight, heaven celebrates and peace and tranquility is brought to
earth because the King of Peace has been born!” Our souls can only begin to
imagine the reverberations that spread through heaven when all that the
Patriarchs and Prophets foretold began to unfold in a stable that night.
“Sing, O heavens, for the LORD has done it!
Shout, you lower parts of the earth;
Break forth into singing, you mountains,
O forest, and every
tree in it!
For the LORD has redeemed Jacob,
And glorified
Himself in
“And every creature which is in heaven and
on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea, and all that are
in them, I heard saying:
‘Blessing and honor and glory and power
Be to Him who sits
on the throne,
And to the Lamb,
forever and ever!’”