(from last time)
After the evening meal Shelly said, “Now that Thanksgiving is over, it is almost time for Christmas! Let’s get on the bicycle and see if we can get home for Christmas!” They all got on the bicycle/time machine, Shelly turned the crank on the side, then they all began pedaling. As they went faster and faster, the dust billowed up around them so that they could hardly breathe. Shane yelled, “Hold your breath and keep pedaling, we are almost going fast enough! The Professor shifted the bicycle/time machine into high gear!
Then it happened… The bicycle began bouncing like a toad in a washing machine! There was a blinding flash of light and a loud noise like a turtle singing! Suddenly the cloud of dust disappeared and….
They were flying through darkness, they could not see anything, but they did not appear to be on the ground! Shane said, “What is happening? Nothing like this has eve happened before!” The Professor said, “Ooops!”
Suddenly a bright light came streaking from their right! When the light reached them, the Professor, Shane and Shelly were pulled off the bicycle/time machine and they became attached to the light as it flashed across the sky! Abruptly they stopped, and the Professor fell flat on his face! Shane and Shelly landed on their feet and they could not believe what they saw! They were in a small room that would have been dark except that in front of them was a shining creature! It looked kind of like a human, but it was far larger and more beautiful and glorious! The room was beautiful too, everything was made of gold! Even the walls were covered with gold! The Professor looked up and said…nothing, he was shaking with fear and couldn’t say anything! Shelly whispered to Shane, “I think this is an angel.” Shane answered, “It is not an angel, where are it’s wings?” Shelly said, “The Bible never says that all angels have wings.”
Just then a man came into the room from behind a curtain. This was an ordinary man, and he was holding a gold container and sweet smoke was coming out of the container. When the man saw the glorious creature, he almost dropped the container, and he was shaking with fear.
The glorious creature said, “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.” Zechariah asked, “How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.” The creature answered, “I am the angel Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news. And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their proper time.”
Shelly excitedly whispered to Shane, “I know this Bible story, Zachariah is the father of John the Baptist! Because Zechariah did not believe the angel, he could not talk at all until John was born!
Suddenly they left Zechariah and they flashed through time in a streak of light! Abruptly they stopped, and the Professor fell flat on his face! Shane and Shelly landed on their feet and they could not believe what they saw! They were in a room in an average house, there was a young teenage girl in the room, and she was startled when she saw the angel Gabriel! The Professor looked up and said…nothing, he was shaking with fear and could not say anything!
Gabriel said, “Do not be afraid Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High.”
Mary asked Gabriel, “How can this be?” She was confused because she was not married yet and she and boyfriend Joseph followed God’s law, so they were not going to have a baby until after they were married. Gabriel explained to Mary that this was not going to be a normal baby, God’s Holy Spirit would place the baby within Mary. The baby would be the Son of God, not the son of Joseph! Mary answered the angel Gabriel, “I am the Lord’s servant. May it be to me as you have said.” Shane whispered to Shelly, “You do not have to explain this to me, even I know the story of Mary the mother of Jesus!”
Suddenly they left Mary and they went flashing through time in a streak of light! Abruptly they stopped, and the Professor fell flat on his face! Shane and Shelly landed on their feet and they could not believe what they saw! They were in a bedroom, and outside it was night. There was a man sleeping on the bed, but he was restless and tossing and turning in his sleep.
Suddenly the man began to talk in his sleep, he said, “I am so confused and don’t know what to do! I love Mary and want to get married to her, but now I find that she is expecting a baby. She says that she has been faithful to me and that God’s Holy Spirit put the baby inside of her. I wish I could believe that, but it seems impossible! Things like that do not happen!”
The man rolled over and opened his eyes, but he did not completely wake up. He saw Gabriel surrounded by glorious light but thought that he was dreaming! Gabriel said, “Joseph, the descendant of King David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”
Joseph was still half asleep, but he yelled as loud as he could, “Yes, it is true! Everything that Mary said is true! The baby is from God! The angel Gabriel told me to get married to Mary! Today will be a good day to get married! This is my wedding day!”
Suddenly they left Joseph and they went flashing through time in a streak of light! They were going faster than ever when suddenly the glorious light that surrounded Gabriel left them and returned to heaven! Abruptly they stopped, and the Professor fell flat on his face! Shane and Shelly landed on their feet. The Professor said, “Ooops!” Shelly said, “Can you believe the things that we have just seen? We saw Gabriel tell Zechariah that he was going to be the father of John the Baptist. We saw Gabriel tell Mary that she was going to be the mother of Jesus. We saw Gabriel tell Joseph that Mary was going to have the Son of God and that he could still get married to Mary!”
Shane said, “I noticed that all three of them responded to Gabriel differently: Zechariah started out being afraid, but then he refused to believe the words of Gabriel and ended up getting punished. Mary started out being afraid, but she believed the words of Gabriel and said that she was God’s servant, and got to be the mother of Jesus, the Son of God! Joseph started out being confused, but he believed the words of Gabriel and got to marry the love of his life and got to help raise the baby Jesus, the Son of God!”.
It was an awesome moment, and they had a lot to think about, but soon they noticed that the bicycle/time machine was laying on the ground. They got on the bicycle/time machine and Shelly’s kitten came running out of the darkness and joined them. Shelly turned the crank on the side of the time machine, and they began pedaling. The Professor shifted the bicycle/time machine into high gear!
Then it happened… The bicycle began bouncing like a toad in a washing machine! There was a blinding flash of light and a loud noise like a turtle singing! Suddenly the cloud of dust disappeared and….
Application:
Read from the Bible:
- Luke chapter 1 verses 5-22. The story of Gabriel’s visit to Zechariah
- Luke chapter 1 verses 26-38. The story of Gabriel’s visit to Mary
- Matthew chapter 1 verses 18-25. The story of Gabriel appearing to Joseph in a dream
The three different people from the Bible responded in three different ways, and we can learn from their stories.
- Zechariah was filled with fear and refused to believe, and he received a punishment. In the same way, if a person hears the good news about Jesus but is afraid and refuses to believe during their whole life, that person will receive the punishment of being tormented in hell for all of eternity (forever).
- Mary had some fear at first, but she believed and said that she was God’s servant and would serve Him by being the mother of Jesus. In the same way, when a person hears the good news about Jesus, that person needs to decide to leave fear behind them and accept Jesus into their life immediately.
- Joseph was confused, life just did not seem to make any sense anymore, but when he heard the words of Gabriel he left his confusion behind and took action and obeyed the directions given to him. In the same way, when a person hears the good news about Jesus, that person needs to leave their confusion about life behind them and accept the new life that is offered through Jesus.
How to accept Jesus
- Believe that He is the Son of God, born as a baby (human and God combined)
- Believe that He died on the cross to pay for the sins of the world and three days later rose from the dead (Romans chapter 6 verse 23)
- Admit that you are sinful (Romans chapter 3 verse 23)
- Pray and tell Jesus that you believe in Him and ask for the forgiveness made possible by His death