But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard. (Luke 1:13)
And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. (Luke 1:30)
The first Christmas was marked by several visitations from heaven. The first visitation was to a man named Zacharias and the second was to Mary, the mother of our Lord Jesus. Each of these visitations had a specific purpose but the underlying message was the same: fear not.
Even though the message was the same, the recipients of the message had very different situations. When the angel visited Zacharias, he and his wife were living in the failures of the past. They were barren and had passed their season of being fruitful (Luke 1:18), but the word of the Lord to Zacharias was, “Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son” (Luke 1:13). The message of hope for Zacharias was this: his past was redeemed. When the angel of God visited Mary, she seemed unprepared for what lay ahead of her (Luke 1:34); the word of the Lord to her was: it will be the work of the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:35). The message of hope for Mary was this: her future was secure. This Christmas season, let us not live in the shadow of our past failures or in the uncertainty of what the future holds. The message of Christmas has never changed: our past has been redeemed and our future has been secured. This is why the message of Christmas will always be “…good news of great joy…” (Luke 2:10).
Declaration: This Christmas season, I confess that my past, however flawed and scarred it may be, has been redeemed by Christ and my future, however uncertain it may look, has been secured by Christ. Because of Christ, the past has NO hold on me and the future has lost its power to intimidate me.
Scripture: …But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid! For behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. (Luke 2:10, 11)