Holy Spirit Will Come Upon You
If a potter is not satisfied with something he is working on, he may destroy it, melt down the pieces, and start all over again. Isn’t this the significance of Christmas. Doesn’t it represent the moment in which the Divine Potter decided to start all over again? Unlike a potter who does violence to his previous piece of pottery, however, God lets the old work slowly die out as he begins his new creation.
Today, as we begin the final leg of our journey to Christmas, the Church has us go back to the Annunciation moment—the time in which the “new creation” began. In many ways the first creation failed. When it came time to celebrate their union with God, our first parents chose to separate themselves from him. At that moment sin entered the world and continues to the present day.
We read about Angel Gabriel’s visit to Mary and the confusion that entered her mind. How could she conceive of a child when she had made a vow of perpetual virginity? The Angel explained: (Luke 1:26-38).
“The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore, the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God.”
Isn’t this the story of Genesis all over again? In the beginning the Holy Spirit hovered over the waters and began to create order out of chaos. In this “new beginning” the same Holy Spirit hovers over a young virgin and plants new life in her body. This new life is God’s only Son himself. A second creation is taking place. A new, obedient Eve, conceived without sin, receives a new, obedient Adam into her womb. This creation is not contaminated with sin as was the first creation. Planted amid a dark world, a new creation begins. Little by little the rebellious creation fades into the darkness; it has served its time. The light of the new creation now begins with Mary and Jesus.
Are we overwhelmed with the significance of Christmas? Do we realize that this is the start of the second, and last, creation? God’s plan to restore the human race began by sending his Son to be one of us, and, for those who are called into his plan they, too, become new creations in Jesus Christ.
We are living in the middle of two creations. The old creation still fumbles along, trying to make it without God. The harder it works, the more it sinks into the darkness. Its own definition and plan for salvation has failed and continues to fail. At the same time, there are those who have said “Yes” to Jesus and bought into the second creation. With Jesus living in their hearts, they now rise above the old creation and become part of something brand new.
In his first letter, St. John wrote: “the world and all it contains is coming to an end, but those who do the will of God will live forever.” And, the will of God, is to accept Jesus Christ as Lord and center of our lives. In a way Jesus is like a new Noah. He has built an ark for his elect, a place of safety, which will endure the devastation of the floods to come.
As the new creation began with Mary and manifested itself to the world in a stable at Bethlehem, so it continues in the hearts of those who are willing to let the new creation be born in their hearts.
Come Lord Jesus, Come!
