Introduction: Angels of Christmas. We will be taking a look at the many places where ____________ were active during the Christmas record.

As we start I thought it might be good to give you a little background on Angels. Here is some insight as to what the Bible teaches us about Angels:

I. He was sent by _________ – v. 26

Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth,

Gabriel is one of three Angels that are given proper names:

The name Gabriel means: _______ of God.

I have already mentioned that Gabriel is the __________ Angel, and here we find that “in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God…” Gabriel was sent by the highest authority – God!

Nathanael said, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” (John 1:46)

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II. He was sent to a ________ girl – v. 27

to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin's name was Mary.

What do we discover in this verse?

“betrothed”, which means…

Joseph - I’ll be spending an entire message on Joseph, so I’ll not go into detail about him this morning.

Finally, we read, “The virgin’s name was _______.”

III. He was sent with a ________ – v. 28-34

What do you think would go through your mind if you were visited by an angel?

A. His message ________ her - v. 28-29

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.

B. His message caused her _______ – v. 30-33

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

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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."

Gabriel noticed that Mary was afraid, and so he immediately…

The BIGGIE MESSAGE! It’s a great announcement ever. Here it is:

And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS.

Gabriel doesn’t end his message here. He continues to tell her,

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. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end."

C. His message made her _________ – v. 34

Then Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I do not know a man?"

Here we have the great, “How” question?

IV. He was sent with an _________ – v. 35

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.

A. God ________ this – v. 35

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The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you;

B. God has ______ this – v. 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.

Can you accept this TRUTH today?

C. God can do ____________ – v. 37

37 For with God nothing will be impossible."

The 1901 American Standard Version of the Bible - “For no word of God shall be void of power.”

There is someone here today who needs to hear these words! And who needs to hide this promise in their heart.

Conclusion: How does this story close? It closes with Mary ____________ to the will of God for her life. I believe that there is a lesson here for each one of us. Are we willing to fully surrender to the will of God for our lives? In verse 38, we read,

Then Mary said, "Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her. What a ________ story? Don’t you find this ________ reading? Doesn’t it prepare you for Christmas? It does me!

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