Rev. Don Erickson

We’ve already met Elizabeth and Zechariah, the parents of John the Baptist, Jesus’ cousin. Now we meet Mary through a visit from Gabriel. Mary’s a young woman betrothed to Joseph, meaning they are legally a unit, but do not yet live together. Both Mary and Joseph are descendants of David. But most would have deemed them nobody. First of all, they are from Nazareth. What kind of town is Nazareth? Well, a verse from John 1 gives us a hint. In the last part of John 1, Jesus is calling his disciples. He’s already brought Andrew and Peter on board. He then recruits Philip. Philip wants his friend Nathaniel to join, too. He tells Nathaniel about this Jesus from Nazareth. Verse 46: Nathaniel quips, what good comes out of Nazareth? In other words, Nazareth is a nothing town. Gabriel has come to Nazareth to tell Mary universe changing news. His first words to Mary (v. 28): “Favored one! The Lord is with you.” It’s nice to feel favored, isn’t it? Or to know the Lord is with you. Bu...

This may sound like a strange topic. What did the Jewish priesthood of the day have to do with Jesus’ birth? Why do they matter to us? Well, the priesthood matters to the story and to us in very interesting and meaningful ways. The Christmas story found in Luke begins with a priest. And not just any priest. This priest will be Jesus’ uncle. John the Baptist was Jesus’ cousin. And John the Baptist’s dad was Zechariah. We meet Zechariah in the book of Luke, chapter 1. Verses 5-10 helps us understand the role of the priest a bit as well as Zechariah. 5  In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, of the division of Abijah; and he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6  They were both righteous in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and requirements of the Lord.  7  And yet they had no child, because Elizabeth was infertile, and they were b...