4 Advent – Tuesday

Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.

– Isaiah 7:14.

We learn from Luke 1:26-38 that six months after the events told yesterday, the angel Gabriel was sent from God into a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin of the house and lineage of David, espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, also of the house of David: and the virgin’s name was Mary. And the angel came unto her and said: “Hail, thou that art highly favored, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.” And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be. And the angel said unto her: “Fear not, Mary; for thou hast found favor with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a Son, and shalt call His name JESUS. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest. And the Lord God shall give unto Him the throne of His father David. And He shall reign over the house of Jacob forever; and of His kingdom there shall be no end.” Then Mary said unto the angel: “How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?” And the angel answered and said unto her: “The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee; therefore also that Holy Thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren. For with God nothing shall be impossible.” And Mary said: “Behold, the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word.” And the angel departed from her. – This is how God brought about the fulfillment of the above-quoted prophecy. The eternal Son of God had become a true human being in the womb of the Virgin Mary, being conceived of the Holy Ghost.

PRAYER. – Lord God, Heavenly Father, I thank Thee for Thine unspeakable grace, that Thou hast regarded us poor sinners, and hast sent Thy Son into our flesh, and hast caused Him to become man for us. I pray Thee, so to illumine my heart with Thy Holy Spirit, that I comfort myself with His incarnation, suffering, and death, and know and accept Him as my Lord and eternal King, and that through faith in Him I may live with Thee and the Holy Ghost in eternal blessedness. Amen.

Now praise we Christ, the Holy One, the blessed virgin Mary’s Son, far as the glorious sun doth shine, e’en to the world’s remote confine.

He who Himself all things did make, a servant’s form vouchsafed to take, that He as man mankind might win, and save His creatures from their sin.

The grace and pow’r of God the Lord, upon the mother was outpoured; a virgin pure and undefiled in wondrous wise conceived a Child.

Hymn 104, 1-3.

Scripture Reading: 1 Corinthians 1:21-25

Theme: Preparation for God’s Unspeakable Gift

21 For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.

22 For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom:

23 But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness;

24 But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.

25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.