12.21.2025 | Waiting On The Promise - Part 4 - Position for the Promise - Pastor Luke Faw
Position for the promise
Series: “waiting for the promise”
Can we “miss” a promise of God for our life?
Luke 2:3-7 (NLT) -- All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census. 4 And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David’s ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee. 5 He took with him Mary, to whom he was engaged, who was now expecting a child.
6 And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. 7 She gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them.
Luke 2:8-11 (NLT) -- 8 That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. 9 Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, 10 but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. 11 The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David!
Luke 2:13-14 (NKJV) -- And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: 14 “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill[e] toward men!”
1. Joy for the journey
- Celebrate the seed
Luke 2:10 (NKJV) -- but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people.
There is a command to rejoice.
1 Thessalonians 5:16 (NKJV) -- Always be joyful.
Philippians 4:4 (NKJV) -- Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!
“The key to joy is rejoicing”- Pastor Faw
Hebrews12:2 (TPT) -- We look away from the natural realm and we focus our attention and expectation onto Jesus who birthed faith within us and who leads us forward into faith’s perfection. His example is this: Because his heart was focused on the joy of knowing that you would be his, he endured the agony of the cross and conquered its humiliation, and now sits exalted at the right hand of the throne of God!
Psalm 16:11(NLT) -- You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever. In His presence is fullness of joy!
John 16:21 (TPT) -- “Just like a woman giving birth experiences intense labor pains in delivering her baby, yet after the child is born she quickly forgets what she went through because of the overwhelming joy of knowing that a new baby has been born into the world.”
John 16:22 (TPT) -- “So will you also pass through a time of intense sorrow when I am taken from you, but you will see me again! And then your hearts will burst with joy, with no one being able to take it from you!”
2. Ponder the Promises
Luke 2:19 (NKJV) -- But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart.
Luke 2:20 (NLT) -- The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them.
Psalm 1:2 (MSG) -- Instead you thrill to God’s Word, you chew on Scripture day and night.
1 Timothy 1:18-19 (TPT) -- So Timothy, my son, I am entrusting you with this responsibility, in keeping with the very first prophecies that were spoken over your life, and are now in the process of fulfillment in this great work of ministry, in keeping with the prophecies spoken over you. With this encouragement use your prophecies as weapons as you wage spiritual warfare by faith and with a clean conscience. For there are many who reject these virtues and are now destitute of the true faith,
Questions for discussion/reflection:
1. What most often disconnects you from rejoicing in the Lord?
2. What can you do to combat that ploy of the enemy?
3. Are there any promises or prophecies you are contending for in your life? If yes, please share; if no, pray about what promises God may be inviting you into.
4. How do you use these promises as weapons against the evil one?