Elisabeth

Q4. (Luke 1:38) What is the essence of Mary's positive response to the angel? What can we learn from her response for our own lives? In what sense was Mary's response an "informed consent"? When we respond to God, what do we consent to? Mary asked 'How' which indicated that she believed what was being told her would happen? Although she still didn't comprehend the 'how' she still believed it. Many times there things which I face and can't see how, but am learning that simply trusting is the better way.

It is hard for us to understand grace because we have so little grace in our nature. Grace is unmerited favour, because of our pride and stiff necks we find it goes against the natural grain of things. Our Lord Jesus bestows His grace fully, and yet although we read it, and in a certain sense accept it, we still have our old nature demanding some form of 'merit' because when the soul kneels before a Holy God and sees grace for what it is, then truely that soul is left without any hedges, completely exposed, completely at the mercy of our Lord, stripped of everything, accepting one thing only, and that being the grace of God. Oh what a wonder this is, that Holiness can be joined with sinful man. Out standing before God can only be in Christ. His sacrifice, undeserved, our punishment deserved. And He chose to give this to His children. Why? Because He did, and that is that. God is creator and sovereign, and He can bestow His grace upon sinners and can and does draw them to Him. We must ever remind ourselves that it is by grace that we are saved, not because of any merit, but because He loves us to the uttermost. Why my deceitful and vile heart do you stray from this wonderful precious eternal grace. How can it be that My Lord and Saviour intercedes even now for me. The old testament is a wonderful testimony to the grace of God, for time after time His children sinned, and yet with patience He kept them in His hand, and even now He keeps me in His hand. Praise be to God for ever and ever more.

The fulness of Christ is the church, and the church is the body of believers. Christ died for His church and one day shall come for His church (His bride). Meeting together we are blessed through worshipping our Lord, learning more and more about Him and each of us pointing to Jesus for all our needs and comforts. When we dont support or attend and worship in our local church we are witholding all the blessings that our Lord has given for us to share, we share His love and encourage one another reminding each other that we live in the hope of the return of our glorious saviour. we are to be wittnesses to the world, to shine for Jesus, we are to be so filled with Christ that others may see Jesus in us. "May the beauty of Jesus be seen in me".

I think this is because we dont believe in God and His holiness, and thereby dont believe or want to face the powers of evil. Many believers and unbelievers alike see the fruits of evil and call them evil. Christians often draw back from facing the evils of the devil, and due to weak or inadequate teaching which emphasises love and gentleness, and has no mention of evil. Paul is teaching and exhorting us to look to Christ for all power and to keep us looking forward to the day when Christ shall call all things to account. Christ is supreme and all power and dominion belongs to Him. We need to be reminded of this in our lives as so often we are thinking as in the flesh, and the flesh avails us nothing, we are nothing without Christ. Yet Christ in us (remembering the opening verses) is our hope and our power.