Johann Quisumbing

God’s Will Be Done

In the beginning of the prayer that Jesus taught the Apostles were these words.

Matthew 6:10b
‘Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.’

As we continue our Christmas tale, allow me to bring to light how the Lord’s will got done.

Luke 1:26-35
Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the descendants of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary.

And coming in, he said to her, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.”

But she was very perplexed at this statement, and kept pondering what kind of salutation this was. The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.”

Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?”

The angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God.”

Let’s talk about the virgin birth. First, it was planned…

Isaiah 7:14
… the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.

Second, it was crucial for our salvation. How?

Let’s understand that God had set only one way for mankind to avoid eternal damnation and that is for one of us to pay for it through sacrifice of life. The problem is that the one who is to be sacrificed must be completely without Sin. This Sin was passed down by Adam and so, every human born of man and woman was born in sin. This is why we are not qualified to pay for the penalty of sin.

But then Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit.

1 John 3:5
You know that He appeared in order to take away sins; and in Him there is no sin.

Now, after the angel made this incredible news…

Luke 1:38
And Mary said, “Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.

There are many that may not know that this conception may actually put a dent in God’s plans. Let’s read…

Matthew 1:18
Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit.

In other words, Mary was found to be with child who was not Joseph’s. If the conception by the Holy Spirit is not believed, people can only conclude that Mary was unfaithful and cheated on Joseph. After the angel’s visit, Mary went to visit her cousin Elizabeth who was also with child (miraculously). When she returned, she was already 3 months pregnant and obviously showing. This was a problem for her, the unborn Messiah and God’s plan. How?

Leviticus 20:10
If there is a man who commits adultery with another man’s wife, one who commits adultery with his friend’s wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death.

According to the Law, Mary could have been stoned to death.

Matthew 1:19
And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly.

But sending her away was not God’s will.

Matthew 1:20-25
But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”

Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: “BEHOLD, THE VIRGIN SHALL BE WITH CHILD AND SHALL BEAR A SON, AND THEY SHALL CALL HIS NAME IMMANUEL,” which translated means, “GOD WITH US.”

And Joseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, but kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus.

In my next post, we will continue to look over God’s will being done.