Sermon Tone Analysis
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Pray
When it comes to bedtime, homework, or managing meltdowns, a growing number of families aren’t relying on their peers or parents: They’re turning to parenting coaches for one-on-one instruction.
The coaches charge from about $125 to $350 a session.
They meet with parents (in person, over the phone, or via Skype) to set goals and develop a plan to reach them.
Megan and Michael Flynn used to dread bedtime.
Every night, the couple spent two stressful hours putting their preschooler and toddler to bed.
With help however, they cut that time in half.
They did it by hiring a parent coach, who concluded they needed structure.
Instead of caving into requests for book after book, they set a routine—and stuck to it.
“Nighttime routines are such a struggle for so many people,” said Megan Flynn, “and it was just nice to have somebody give us strategies for it.”
The profession, virtually nonexistent 20 years ago, is one of the latest entries in the $1.08 billion personal coaching industry in the United States.
It’s part of the broader American trend of hiring expert advisers to improve nearly every facet of life.
You can hire a sleep coach, a financial coach, or a life coach.
But the profession isn’t regulated, which leaves some parenting experts concerned about the advice offered.
Others wonder why parents would shell out hundreds of dollars for suggestions they might easily get elsewhere.
Parenting coach Tina Feigal talked about her role and said: “Who is there for these parents?
Parenting is the hardest job in the world, but there’s no training for it in advance.”
We hear this story this morning, and if you’re like me… you probably think spending $350 on a parenting coach is ridiculous.
But if have kids of your own, you know that parenting is a full-time job.
It’s certainly not easy.
By the way, if you were here last week, and you heard that my 3-year-old clogged the toilet… the good news is, after 30 minutes of taking the toilet off, spilling toilet water all over the bathroom floor and investigating for the culprit… let’s just say I found the pencil that was clogging the toilet.
But this time of year, especially, with Thanksgiving now behind us… whether we have kids or grandkids or not… we go into full-swing Christmas mode.
We rush into the shopping stores with our shopping lists, we run to the holiday parties, we make the Christmas cookies, eat the Christmas cookies, eat some more Christmas cookies, watch elf 7 times… None of these things which are necessarily bad.
Right?
But in the midst of the busyness we can miss the true meaning of Christmas.
Jesus.
You see this last week, busy as I was with Thanksgiving… My mind went to this idea of parenting and the thought: “What type of parents are fit for a king?” Have you ever pondered that before I mean what God could have chosen any parents to help raise and influence Jesus as he was a young boy growing up… what was different about Mary And Joseph?
We’re they similar to us, or were they very different?
That’s our converstasion this morning.
If you have your bibles, turn with me to Luke 1 and as we turn there, we have 2 concepts that we’ll focus on this morning as we discuss Mary and Jospeh (of course there are other things we could add, but for this morning) 1.
They had the favor of God. 2. They worshipped God.
1.
They had the favor Of God.
As we begin look to the book of Luke 1.
This morning, we know that In between the old testament and new testament periods, we have 400 years of silence.
We end the old testament in the book of Malachi, with the nation of Israel living in their homeland, but under Persian and ME-doe-Persian rule.
Then in the gospels we pick back up.
Things hadn’t changed too much; the people of Israel more less go from rule of one nation or group to that of another, here the people of Israel are under the authority of the Roman government.
And as a whole, the people were looking forward to this coming Messiah.
This savior, who would come and rescue them.
But what’s interesting… is that Jesus, This Messiah, didn’t come in the form of a man, or a world conqueror… he came in the form of a baby… and he wasn’t born in any special town, maybe Jerusalem or perhaps Jericho.
No, He was born in Bethlehem, and as you know this Messiah would not be born in a palace, or perhaps a wealthy home, for there wasn’t even room for Jesus in the inn… and here’s the crazy part… His parents were average people.
His Dad was a carpenter, his mom, relatively young, Probably in her earlier teenage years.
And yet… they had the favor of God.
Luke 1:26-38
26 In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27 to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David.
The virgin’s name was Mary.
28 The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored!
The Lord is with you.”
29 Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.
30 But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. 31 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus.
32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High.
The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”
34 “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”
35 The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.
So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.
36 Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month.
37 For no word from God will ever fail.”
38 “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered.
“May your word to me be fulfilled.”
Then the angel left her.
Now as we look at the text there are several things that we uncover.
First, we see that Gabriel the angel comes to Mary.
We also saw him visiting Zachariah earlier in chapter 1, and in this case, he told Zachariah that he and Elizabeth would be expecting a son who they were to name john who would go on before the Lord.
By the way, in verse 13, we won’t look there together, but Gabriel tells John that the Lord heard his prayer, and this is why they would conceive, which when we talk about parenting, we understand that Godly parents pray.
Then the angel goes on to explain that Mary would give birth to a son, who they are to call Jesus or Yeshua, meaning “Yahweh Saves.” .
Who will be great….
And then we’re told 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High.
The son of the most high would identify that he possesses the very nature of God.
The old testament word for God being El Elyon.
And here the word Most high, being the word Hupsistos.
Which is the Greek equivalent.
And he would go on to sit on David’s throne, his kingdom would never end.
Which if you look at the lineage of both Mary and Joseph in Matthew 1, you can see that Jesus is in the lineage of Davidon both his mother and father’s side.
Then we’re told: His kingdom will never end.”
Which speaks not only to the reign in our hearts, but of course to the eternal implications.
You see there is a lot of truths, there is prophecy being fulfilled from the old testament, there is a lot to chew on here… but in short, Gabriel is making the proclamation to Mary, that this is Jesus, the savior of the world, this is God incarnate.
So we see all of this, but then we get to this idea of the favor of God.
Which we see in verse 28 that she is highly favored!
And then it repeats in verse 30 were told - Mary; you have found favor with God
So, we see here that Mary is favored...
But what exactly does that mean.
Well, if we look at the word favored or charitoō it means: to make graceful, to pursue with grace and favor, now it also means charming, lovely and I’m sure she was just that… but the main emphasis is that Mary was a recipient of Grace.
You see, Mary was favored because of God’s grace.
John Macarthur explains it this way: “Mary was to become the recipient of God’s grace.
There was nothing intrinsically worthy about her that set her above other believers, as if she was perfectly holy; like all people, she was a sinner in needs of God’s grace.”
You see when we look at Mary and Josephs favor this morning, it starts with the grace and the gift of God.
Church, that’s the beauty of Christmas.
None of us, not even Mary, deserved this grace, or this love, or this perfect gift of Jesus.
We were dead in our transgressions and sins, yet because of His love Ephesians 2:8 tells us: 8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God. 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.
You see church, we are a recipient of Grace this morning.
I think about a story which relates to grace: Bryan Chapell tells a story about learning to use a crosscut saw with his father.
As Bryan and his father were sawing through a log that had a rotten core, a piece of wood sheared off that looked just like a horse's head.
So, Bryan took it home and then later on gave it to his dad as a present.
Chapell continues:
I attached a length of two-by-four board to that log head, attached a rope tail, and stuck on some sticks to act as legs.
Then I halfway hammered in a dozen or so nails down the two-by-four body of that "horse," wrapped the whole thing in butcher block paper, put a bow on it, and presented it to my father.
When he took off the wrapping, he smiled and said, "Thank you son, it's wonderful … what is it?"
"It's a tie rack, Dad," I said.
"See, you can put your ties on those nails going down the side of the horse's body."
My father smiled again and thanked me.
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