How to know your child is special …

Parents like to think their children are special.

Just look at Facebook, for example. You’ll find photos and videos of children’s first time standing up, first steps, report cards, sports trophies, and just about any and everything that parents think show something remarkable about their children.

So what would you have done if you were Mary, the mother of Jesus?

Matthew 2:1-12 tells the story of the magi who come to visit. Put yourself in Mary’s place … you’re home with the baby, cleaning house and washing dishes when someone knocks on the door. You answer the knock, only to discover some important men with a huge entourage behind them. They explain they’ve heard about the birth of your baby, and ask if they could come in and see him!

For whatever crazy reason, Mary decides to allow these strangers to enter her home, and what do they do? They bow before her baby and WORSHIP him!

Have you had anyone do that to your child lately?

Not only that, before leaving the house these men give expense gifts for the child.

Could you imagine Mary’s thoughts as strangers who traveled a great distance just to come see your baby actually WORSHIP him right in front of her?

I think that might be one way to tell your child is special!

Jesus wasn’t just special to his mother, or even to these magi. He was born as a gift not just to His parents, but to the world …

“For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life,” John 3:16.

Jesus is so special that on the night of His birth, heaven couldn’t contain itself!

“That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, but the angel reassured them. ‘Don’t be afraid!’ he said. ‘I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Savior — yes, the Messiah, the Lord — has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.’ Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others — the armies of heaven — praising God and saying, ‘Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased,'” Luke 2:8-14.

Hmmm, an angel announcing the birth of your baby and heaven’s armies bursting out in excited praise about it … yeah, that might be another way to tell your child is special!

Ultimately, though, whether Jesus is “special” is a question for every human being who has ever lived, including you. What place in your life does Jesus have? Is He who the angel claimed — the Savior, the Messiah, the Lord — in your life? Or is He just Mary’s baby?

Scotty