2 Samuel 7:-18-29
Psalms 80, 146, 147
Galatians 3:1-14
Luke 1:57-66
Luke 1:65-66
“All the neighbors were filled with awe, and throughout the hill country of Judea people were talking about all these things. Everyone who heard this wondered about it, asking, ‘What then is this child going to be?’ For the Lord’s hand was with him.”
At first glance you might think that the child referenced in these two verses was Jesus. It easily could have been but instead it was John the Baptist. John’s father, Zechariah, had just had his voice returned to him on the declaration that his child’s name would be John. The people were filled with awe. The neighbors were chatting up a storm throughout the hill country. Can you imagine the 24/7 media blitz this would have created? A sense of wonder filled their minds. “What then is this child going to be?” Every pundit would have a proposed agenda for this child when he was only a little over a week old. Imagine now, if Jesus had been born amongst his neighbors – would it still have been the same manger birth? Would the shepherds have come in from their fields? Would the wise men have been welcomed? Would the chorus of the angels been drowned out by the flashes and lights of the news cameras? The Word tells us that the Lord’s hand was with John and we know through the prophecies that the Lord had Jesus’ birth all figured out. Seems that the Lord intended for John to get a little media boost to start out his calling. But Jesus came forth to us in a different style – away from home, and in a way that revealed his humanity and his majesty – something to ponder.
As parents, we wonder, with awe: What then are our children going to be? It is a mystery full of many unknowns. As we reflect on the births of John and Jesus, let us be reminded that the Lord’s hand is with our children (and ourselves). Let us rejoice – especially that it’s not all up to us!
Shari and Ian Watson