“The Three Wise Women of
Christmas: Elizabeth”
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord
Jesus Christ. Amen. For our Advent sermon series this year, we are focusing on the “Three
Wise WOMEN of Christmas,” Mary, Elizabeth, and Anna. As I mentioned last
week, we hear a lot about the three wise MEN, and they have a prominent place in
the traditional nativity scene. But, really, we know almost nothing about
the wise men. In contrast, the Bible gives us many details about the three
wise WOMEN who play such a prominent role in the Christmas story. Hebrews says, “Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you.
Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith.” In the
witness and faith of Mary, Elizabeth, and Anna, we have a powerful testimony and
example of faith for us to imitate. We continue this morning with the
second wise woman of Christmas, who after the Virgin Mary was the second human
to know the Good News of the incarnation, Mary’s cousin, Elizabeth. “At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country
of Judea, where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth.” In
the Christmas story, there are actually two amazing births which take place,
Jesus, AND his cousin, John the Baptist. Six-months-before-the-angel-Gabriel-appeared-to-the-Virgin-Mary to tell
her, “You will be with child and give birth to a Son, and you are to give him
the name Jesus,” this same angel had appeared to Elizabeth’s husband Zechariah
and announced, “Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him
the name John.” The important difference between these two miraculous births was, of
course, that Mary, as Martin Luther says, “conceived a child and became a
mother, not by virtue of a man, but by the Holy Spirit.” In the case of
Elizabeth and Zechariah, Luke tells us, “They had no children, because Elizabeth
was barren; and they were both well along in years.” The miracle in their
case was that the Lord enabled them to conceive a child in the natural way.
As Gabriel tells Mary, “Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in
her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. For
nothing is impossible with God.” “At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country
of Judea, where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. When
Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was
filled with the Holy Spirit.” Elizabeth’s wisdom did not come from within herself. The text
says that she was “filled with the Holy Spirit,” enlightened, with what James
describes as, “the wisdom that comes down from above.” That is why
Elizabeth says to Mary, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the Child
you will bear! But why am I so favored, that the mother of MY LORD should
come to me?” Elizabeth recognizes the Child in Mary’s womb as the Messiah,
and Mary as the mother of our Lord, because she was “filled with the Holy
Spirit,” she received enlightenment from above. Satan falsely promised wisdom to the first woman, Eve, if only she
would disobey God and eat the forbidden fruit. “When you eat of it your
eyes will be opened, and you will be like God.” But, instead of gaining
wisdom and enlightenment, Adam and Eve’s rebellion plunged the entire world,
including us, into spiritual ignorance and darkness. As the Gospel of John
declares, “This is the verdict . . . men loved darkness rather light because
their deeds were evil.” Many people celebrate Christmas with lots of lights, but they’re really
in the dark. Because, they celebrate without knowing what it’s really all
about. In order to understand and believe the real significance of
Christmas, we must, like Elizabeth, be “filled with the Holy Spirit,” receive
“the wisdom that comes down from above.” For, it is only by such enlightenment
from above that we know what Christmas is really all about, because like
Elizabeth through the Holy Spirit’s enlightenment from above we understand and
believe WHO the Child born of Mary is: “Blessed is the Child you will bear!
But why am I so favored, that the mother of MY LORD should come to me?” Christmas isn’t just a fun-filled winter festival, a nostalgic family
tradition, an enchanting fable, about a baby born in a stable once upon a time.
Christmas is the Good News of God come down to earth and made man, “incarnate by
the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary.” Christmas is the Good News of
YOUR salvation. For, the Babe of Bethlehem was born for YOU, to live in
your place a perfect life, to die on the cross as a sacrifice for your sins, to
rise again so that you will rise to eternal life. “God rest you merry,
gentlemen, let nothing you dismay; Remember Christ our Savior was born on
Christmas Day; To save us all from Satan’s power when we were gone astray; O
tidings of comfort and joy!” Like Elizabeth, be WISE this Christmas season. Be WISE by
understanding and believing the “real reason for the season.” “Blessed is
the Child you will bear! But why am I so favored, that the mother of MY
LORD should come to me?” Elizabeth was also wise in another way that you may not have thought
about. The angel Gabriel announced to Zechariah, “Do not be afraid,
Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son,
and you are to give him the name John. He will be a joy and delight to
you.” It was extremely painful for Zechariah and Elizabeth to be childless.
It that culture, being childless was cruelly considered to be a punishment from
God. That’s not the teaching of the Bible, but that’s how people thought
back then, and how we still often think today when bad things happen, to others
or ourselves, that somehow it is a punishment from God. Yet, Elizabeth did not believe that God had forsaken her. She
trusted in the Lord, and his promises, and took her troubles and sorrows to him
in prayer. Luke reports, “After this Zechariah’s wife Elizabeth became
pregnant . . . ‘The Lord has done this for me,’ she said. ‘In these days
he has shown his favor and taken away my disgrace among the people.’” Martin Luther comments: “So the pain that Elizabeth and Zechariah had
previously suffered over having been childless was transformed into an even that
much more abundantly precious thing. God gave them so much blessing for
their disappointments that it was immeasurable, surpassing all that could have
been hoped. For, when God comes, he compensates so abundantly that he
gives us more than we could have hoped or thought.” “Your prayer has been
heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son . . . he will be a joy and
delight to you.” Like Elizabeth, be WISE in YOUR times of pain and sorrow. Trust
in the Lord and turn to him for comfort, turn to him with your troubles in
prayer. As Paul says in Philippians, “Do not be anxious about anything,
but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your
requests to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding,
will keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” Amen. Return to Top | Return to Sermons | Home | Email Church Office
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