Love That Covers a Multitude of Sins – 7
Subject: Mary’s Choices
by Rick Welborne
1 Peter 4:7-8 (NLT2)
7 The end of the world is coming soon. Therefore, be earnest and disciplined in your prayers.
8 Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins.
7 The end of the world is coming soon. Therefore, be earnest and disciplined in your prayers.
8 Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins.
2 Chronicles 33:1-2 (NLT2)
1 Manasseh was twelve years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem fifty-five years.
2 He did what was evil in the LORD’s sight, following the detestable practices of the pagan nations that the LORD had driven from the land ahead of the Israelites.
1 Manasseh was twelve years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem fifty-five years.
2 He did what was evil in the LORD’s sight, following the detestable practices of the pagan nations that the LORD had driven from the land ahead of the Israelites.
2 Chronicles 33:12 (NLT2)
12 But while in deep distress, Manasseh sought the LORD his God and sincerely humbled himself before the God of his ancestors.
12 But while in deep distress, Manasseh sought the LORD his God and sincerely humbled himself before the God of his ancestors.
1. I am wrong!
James 4:10 (NKJV)
10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.
10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.
2. Forgive me!
--All the Pharisee could see was his own righteousness and in his arrogance saw himself better than everyone else. All the tax collector could do was bow his head and say to the Lord, have mercy, forgive me.
3. Thank you!
Psalm 106:1 (NKJV)
1 Praise the LORD! Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.
1 Praise the LORD! Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.
I am wrong…forgive me…thank you!
--Today’s message: As we enter this first week of December and this Christmas season, I want to continue this series…Love that covers a multitude of sins.
--Jesus’ coming definitely is the ultimate when it comes to any act of love that covers all of our sins. His coming as that baby in a manger embodied all the hope we have. This sums it all up:
John 3:16-17 (NKJV)
16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.
16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.
--With Christmas so near, I could easily preach on the thought…God loved…talk about love that covers sin… His love…this one act of love (giving His Son Jesus) covers (takes care of) all our sins.
--Not only God loved…but also God gave. He didn’t give some token gift but He gave us the very best that heaven had to offer…His One and only Son. He came and died to cover our sins. Cover as a verb:
Cover - If you cover something, you place something else over it in order to protect it, hide it, or close it.
--God has placed something else over our sins to cover them…what would that be? The blood of Jesus cleanses us from all of our sins. Our sins are cast into the sea…hidden! The issue is closed as far as God is concerned.
--Not only God loved, and not only God gave, but also God saved! Jesus came to be our Savior!
Luke 2:8-11 (NKJV)
8 Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night.
9 And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid.
10 Then the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.
11 For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.
8 Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night.
9 And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid.
10 Then the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.
11 For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.
--As I studied and prayed, I felt Holy Spirit kept leading back to this young Jewish girl that would be chosen by God to give birth to this Savior of the world…Jesus the Christ! Let’s read the story:
Luke 1:26-38 (NKJV)
26 Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth,
27 to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin's name was Mary.
28 And having come in, the angel said to her, "Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!"
29 But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was.
30 Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.
31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS.
32 He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David.
33 And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end."
34 Then Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I do not know a man?"
35 And the angel answered and said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.
36 Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren.
37 For with God nothing will be impossible."
38 Then Mary said, "Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her.
26 Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth,
27 to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin's name was Mary.
28 And having come in, the angel said to her, "Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!"
29 But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was.
30 Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.
31 And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS.
32 He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David.
33 And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end."
34 Then Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I do not know a man?"
35 And the angel answered and said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.
36 Now indeed, Elizabeth your relative has also conceived a son in her old age; and this is now the sixth month for her who was called barren.
37 For with God nothing will be impossible."
38 Then Mary said, "Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her.
--I felt as I prayed about this incredibly wonderful awesome story, God led me to the choices that Mary had to make with this encounter and how that relates to the choices we have to make.
1. Mary had to choose to believe the impossible was possible with God.
--Lest you think me to be a heretic…one of the most difficult parts of Christianity for me to accept was the virgin birth of Jesus. That’s impossible! That’s even ridiculous!
--I remember my cousins telling me as a rebellious 16-year-old teenager how that Jesus was born of a virgin and how I mocked and said that was impossible. I told them Joseph pulled a sneaky one on everyone.
--Of course, they told me that I was sick and that I needed help! Well, they were right…I needed divine revelation to know that the impossible is possible with God.
Luke 1:37 (NKJV)
37 For with God nothing will be impossible."
37 For with God nothing will be impossible."
--I remember telling other people what they had told me (of course in a sarcastic manner) and having people to tell me what my cousins had said was true. I was going through a crisis of faith…could this be true?
--What about you? In your situation…do you believe the impossible is possible with God? It is easy to acknowledge here in front of everyone that you believe that. What about when you are alone?
--Let’s suppose that right now in your life, you are facing a situation that without God, is totally impossible. What are you going to do…you have a choice? Look again at this verse:
28 And having come in, the angel said to her, "Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!"
--Immediately Mary was put into a situation where she had to make some choices and those choices would determine her outcome. She had to choose to rejoice…she had to choose to worship.
--She had to choose that she was highly favored by God…
Psalm 30:1-5 (NKJV)
1 I will extol You, O LORD, for You have lifted me up, And have not let my foes rejoice over me.
2 O LORD my God, I cried out to You, And You healed me.
3 O LORD, You brought my soul up from the grave; You have kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit.
4 Sing praise to the LORD, You saints of His, And give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name.
5 For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for life; Weeping may endure for a night, But joy comes in the morning.
1 I will extol You, O LORD, for You have lifted me up, And have not let my foes rejoice over me.
2 O LORD my God, I cried out to You, And You healed me.
3 O LORD, You brought my soul up from the grave; You have kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit.
4 Sing praise to the LORD, You saints of His, And give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name.
5 For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for life; Weeping may endure for a night, But joy comes in the morning.
--To get the impossible, Mary had to choose to believe the Lord was with her…do you believe He is with you? He is! She had to choose to believe she was blessed! The impossible is possible with God!
2. Mary had to choose to believe Holy Spirit could do what man could not do.
34 Then Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I do not know a man?"
--Isn’t this our dilemma in every situation…I do not know a man…I do not have anyone who can help…I do not have human resources to make this happen.
Psalm 118:8-9 (NKJV)
8 It is better to trust in the LORD Than to put confidence in man.
9 It is better to trust in the LORD Than to put confidence in princes.
8 It is better to trust in the LORD Than to put confidence in man.
9 It is better to trust in the LORD Than to put confidence in princes.
--I love the fact that when Mary was facing the impossible and needed to know how this miraculous event could take place…there was no hesitation of what the answer was:
Luke 1:35 (NKJV)
35 And the angel answered and said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.
35 And the angel answered and said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.
--Mary had to ask…Can I risk my reputation to obey God? Am I willing to risk everything to serve Him? How much would I give up to do something that I truly believed God wanted me to do?
--When we ask…How can I be free from ________, how can I see reconciliation with family, how can I do what God is requiring of me, how can I give my life totally to Him?
--The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.
--If there have been miracles in my life or miracles in my ministry here at Life Church, it has been because the Holy Spirit came upon me…God overshadowed me…It has been Jesus in me!
--It is not me but it is Holy Spirit in me that will see Jesus birthed in my life and in the lives of others. The impossible becomes possible because of Holy Spirit in me, on me, for me!
3. Mary had to choose to let it be to her according to God’s Word.
Luke 1:37-38 (NKJV)
37 For with God nothing will be impossible."
38 Then Mary said, "Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her.
37 For with God nothing will be impossible."
38 Then Mary said, "Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her.
--Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit says the Lord! We must choose to latch onto God’s Word and be filled with His Holy Spirit. The impossible becomes possible!
--God called me to preach, God called me to pastor Life Church, God called us to become a great missions church, God called us to possess the land, God has called to start another campus…
--How can I, how can we do this because we do not know a man? The answer for Mary is the answer for us…
--The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.
--Our resolve… Behold the servants of the Lord! Let it be to us according to your Word!
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