"Then the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people'" (Luke 2:10 NKJV)The first words from heaven when Jesus was born were "Do not be afraid." The shepherds were used to the fields, the cold, everything about their line of work, but they were not used to the glory of God bursting through the darkness.Jesus came to remove ou...

"Then Joseph, being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded him and took to him his wife" (Matthew 1:24 NKJV)Joseph understood that Mary was pregnant, and he was confused. This was a surprise calling for the confused Joseph. He was so just and righteous and he knew he wasn't the father, but he loved Mary and didn't want to mistreat her. So he decided to put her away quietly.But ...

"Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people" (Luke 2:10 NKJV)Every time an angel appears, the first thing out of their mouth is "Don't be afraid." There was a little boy in a first-grade Christmas pageant who had one line: "It is I, be not afraid." But on the day of the pageant, he got nervous and said, "It's me, and I'm scared to death!"The ang...

"Then Mary said, 'Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.' And the angel departed from her" (Luke 1:38 NKJV)If we were planning the birth of the King of Kings, I highly doubt we would choose a teenage girl in Nazareth, a lowly village. We would find a royal family, a wealthy family that would provide support for the Chosen Messiah. Yet God's plan was to bypass t...

"You will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart" (Jeremiah 29:13 NKJV)In Matthew 2:1-12, the wise men were searching for Jesus, but really God was initiating the relationship with them. John 6:44 says, "No one comes to Me unless the Father Who sent Me draws them." No one seeks after God first - before you were searching for Him, He was wooing you to Himself. You must resp...