“For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.”
The eternal Son of God did not originate at the incarnation of Jesus… The incarnation of Jesus, however, began at conception. Jesus was conceived without a human father by the marvelous work of the Holy Spirit. In Luke 1, the angel Gabriel tells Mary she is going to have a baby. Mary rushes to tell her relative Elizabeth the news. Elizabeth, who is also expecting a baby (John the Baptist), hears Mary’s greeting and before Mary could share the news, the child in Elizabeth’s womb leaped for joy. Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and said “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!” (Luke 1:42).
Wow! Did you get that? Before Mary even said a word about being pregnant, Elizabeth proclaimed it and she knew the baby was going to be special! Oh, but don’t miss something even more amazing… the first person to recognize the incarnation of Jesus was the unborn child in Elizabeth’s womb!
More than 2,000 years ago, a baby was born to a virgin. Because that baby was the sinless Son of God, yet fully human, his death made a way for us to be reconciled to God. This Advent, don’t miss the wonder of the incarnation of Jesus that even an unborn child recognized!
Pray and reflect in the Lord’s presence. Spend time reflecting and proclaiming the wonder of the incarnation of Jesus. Pray Psalm 40:5, "Many, LORD my God, are the wonders you have done, the things you planned for us. None can compare with you; were I to speak and tell of your deeds, they would be too many to declare."