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1 INTRODUCTION
Luke was a Greek. He was also a doctor. He was an
orderly writer, and be kept meticulous records. The
point is that this account, as written by Luke, does not
represent a fantasy, or mere mental meandering. It is an
authentic, vital, and trustworthy account. It can be
believed.
The birth of Jesus occurred at what Scripture calls “the
fullness of the time (Galatians 4:4). Rome was at the
height of her power. The Greek language was universal.
The Jewish people, who were intensely awaiting the
Messiah had been scattered all over the known world.
There has never been another event for whuch such ade^
quate preparation has been made. The world realizes its
hopelessness. Man was enslaved physically, mentally, and
spiritually. He could not free himself. He had to be
delivered.
The angel who announced the event to Mary was proof
that God still existed and was interested in human affairs
The intertestamentary period marked a time when God
i tod W* revealed Himself to His people. The appearance of
^Gabriel was auspicious. His very name means either
; “man of God” or “God is mighty.”
"lA/i i THE LESSON
in me suttn month of Elizabeth s pregnancy God sent the
ange| Gabriel to a town in Galilee named Nazareth. He had
a message foe a girl promised in marriage to a man named
Joseph, who was a descendant of King David. The girl’s
name was Mary. The angel came to her and said, ‘Peace
k® y°u and has greatly blessed
you!” Mary *as deeply troubled by the angel’s mes
sage, and she wondered what his words meant. The angel
said toher, ‘Don't be afraid, Mary; God has been gracious
to you. You will become pregnant and give birth to a son,
and yon will tuime him Jesus. He will be called great and
will becajled the Son ofthe Most High God. The Lord God
will maketiim a king, as. his ancestor Dtovid was, and he
will be the king of-the descendants of Jacob forever; his
kingdom will never end!* Mary said to the angel, ‘I am a
virgin. How, then, can this be?’ The angel answered, ‘The
Holy Spirit Will come on you, and God’s power will rest
upon you. For this reason the holy child will be called the
Son of God. Remember your relative Elizabeth? It is said
that she cannot have children, but she herself is now six
months’ pregnant, even though she is very old. For there is
nothing that God cannot do.’I am the Lord’s servant,” said <
Mary, “may it happen to me as you have said.’ And the
angel left her.” (Luke 1:26-38).
The six months refers to the pregnancy of Elizabeth.
The word angel means messenger. God had sent Gabriel to
Daniel (Daniel 8:16; 9:21), and to Zecharriah as recorded
■ in Luke 1:8-20. Now God dispatched him to Mary. It would i
* aftwiyhftUMamigrfoog Jtwro joytul oogHo the faithful of
GrOCl* v f ^
As a physician Luke would be especially interested in the
virgin birth. The fact that he referred to the virginity of
Mary twice in verse 27 is proof that he was con
vinced of it. All other believers every since have found it no
stumbling block to their faith. Mary was apparently quite
young, but was betrothed, or engaged, to Joseph who was a
; carpenter in the village. He was a descendant of David.
The word house means family.
The announcement that Mary was highly favored must
have corneas a great surprise, as did the message that the
Lord was with her. We wonder what crowded the mind of
this simple maiden, and especially when the angel
continued with the fact that she was blessed among
women. ' ,
• “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.” (V. 32), This verse contains three
facts: Jesus would be great. Infidels, agnostics. and
atheists who question Ms diety are forced to admit th»
greatness of His humanity. It is not enough to do this
however, for (2) He was to be recognized as The Son of the
Highest. This seems to be more a description of God than a
title for Jesus. God is far above all creation, all rule, all
authority - nothing is comparable to Him. The greatness of
Jesus comes in the association with the magnitude of His
Father. (3) The third.great fact of this verse is that God
would give to Him the throne of his father David. This
brings the promises, the prophecies, and the power of God
into focus. Jesus was a descendant of David after the flesh
(Romans 1:3) and David himself predicted the great
event. (Acts 2:30). The wisdom, knowledge, and power of
God can never again be questioned.
We still seek to know the certainty of the promises that
are made to us. We want certified documents. We want
some form of a written warranty. How much more was
■ this true in the world of Jesus and its restricted
communications and travel? Even the word of an angel
had to be sustantiated. It would be good if people in our day
demanded bona fide proof of messengers purporting to
have messenges from God.
Luke does not tell us hist how the wonderful event of the
2! Je2ll brou«ht about by an
action of the Holy Spirit. Whether there was some
particuiar moment or crisis when Mary became aware
that this was happening, or whether it was a sense of the
constant special closeness of God over a longer period we
do not know. In a •paot.i, nnrer-feHb^Jicited w.y
Jesus came into this world as God’s Son. AsJohn’s Gospel
jj “veraltimes, He is the “only begotten” Son. Weare
:r God's “eom” by adoption, but there is only one who is the
ft fe*uIt n»y*tlc union of God’s eternal Spirit with our
•• comi.r*<rf every person who entered
: the world did so as the results of the union of a man with a
woman The access of Jesua was a “first. "It was a unique
: phenomenon, a one-time experience It was truly as
Isaiah declared in 7:14, s sign from the Lord Hints#*.
There was something well-nigh miraculous In the
v, conception of John. The fact that Ms father Zecharriah is
described as an old man (Luke 1:7, 18) would seem to*
i *ugg«rt that it was by a miracle that Ms reproduction
capacity was restored.
Meete W^ifilack FVess i
By Audrey C. Lodato
Peat Staff Writer
Post publisher BUI Johnson was
one of 93 black publishers from
around the country to meet with
corporate officials of Philip Morris
recently in New York.
“The main thrust,” explained
Johnson, “was to get a better
understanding and more viable
working relationship between the
black press and Philip Morris Cor
poration.”
In wide-ranging discussions, con
ference participants sought to
broaden what was referred to ss “a
long-term and mutually beneficial
partnership,” build even closer
cooperation, and assess the effects
of anti-smoking campaigns.
Data from Philip Morris indicate
that 35 percent of all cigarettes are ■
purchased by blacks.
Philip Morris is the nation’s
largest tobacco company.
Vice President and Director of
Corporate Affairs, Stanley S. Scott,
was the conference convener. Scott,
a former editor of The Memphis
World, stated, "Your markets are
our markets. We need to discuss
with you both our successes and
our challenges, and to reassure you
that we will never take you for
granted.”
According to Frank Resnik, Presi
dent and Chief Executive Officer of
Philip Morris U.S.A., the company
had been the first national adver
tiser to use black newspapers.
He said that Philip Morris had also
been the first cigarette company to
hire blacks in sales.
Dr. William Lee, First Vice Presi
dent of the National Newspaper
Publishers Association, agreed that
Philip Morris had been a better
Stanley S. Scott
.Philip Morris vice president
menu iu DiacK papers Uian many
other corporations.
Johnson thought the conference
accomplished its goals “to a
degree.’’
He added, "Here is a major cor
poration who apparently under
stands the influence and strength of
the black press, who said, let’s sit
down and work closely together to
•
develop a more amicable working
relationship.”
In dosing, Scott remarked,
“Philip Morris is proud and happy to
count this valued American re
source as a friend."
“Jingle Bell Jaunt'
Invites Participants
Attention, walkers, runners,
joggers, and crawlers! You are in
vited to participate in the “Jingle
Bell Jaunt” in Uptown Charlotte and
Fourth Ward on Sunday, December
15.
This family even lets you ihoose
either a one- or three-mile course
starting at the Salvation Army
Corps Community Center, 314 N.
Poplar St. For the three-mile
“jaunt,” there’s a water station at
Trade and Tryon.
This is a non-competitive activity.
Holiday costumes and extra bells
are encouraged. Special recognition
will be given for the best indivi
dual costume and the best group
costumes Everyone is invited to the
Holiday Festivities immediately
following at the Salvation Army
Community Center, where refresh
ments and Christmas goodies will be
served.
Registration for adults is $4.50; for
children under 10, $2.50 Proceeds
will benefit the American Lung
Association of North Carolina and
the Central Branch YMCA Out
reach Program.
The first 500 adults and 100
children registered by December 9
will receive long-sleeved T-shirts
and jingle bells.
For information on how to re
gister, call 537-5776.
Holiday Season Is Time Of
1 hanksgivmg, Worship, Unity
By Ruby Hooper. R.D.
Special To The Post
The holiday season is a time of
thanksgiving, worship, family unity,
and, of course, good food. At this
time of year, overindulgence and
improperly handled and prepared
food can lead to discomfort or
illness. However, food-related ill
ness can be easily prevented
during the holidays and throughout
the year.
By following simple, common
sense steps, we can prevent the
nausea and upset stomach that are a
result of eating improperly
handled food.
I recommend the following ways
to safeguard your holiday meals:
Purchase food that is of good qua
lity’, thaw food in the refrigera
tor; have clean work surfaces, clean
fijpks, cleag utensils and other work
equipment; wash hands thoroughly
before beginning work and as often
as necessary while preparing or
serving foods; avoid direct hand
contact with food that is ready to
eat; provide serving spoons, knives,
forks, or tongs to eliminate con
tamination of food by others; keep
foot hot or cold (avoid leaving
meats, gravies, casseroles, vege
tables, creamed desserts at room
temperature for extended periods of
time); store food to be refrigerated
no more than three inches deep to
permit it to chill rapidly; wash all
fresh produce and fruit thoroughly
before serving.
Any food can be a source of
infection, but the foods we tradi
tionally eat at this time of year can
be very dangerous if not handled
carefully before, during, and after
preparation.
Meat, seafood, poultry, dressings,
gravies, puddings, cream pies, and
other dishes should not be left at
room temperatures for long periods
of time.
Food should be kept either hot or
cold, not only to maintain its appeal,
but to keep it safe for those who eat
it. Bacteria grows very rapidly at
luke warm temperaturesr but keep
ing food hot or cold will help to
control bacterial growth. Those who
eat food served to them by others
have a right to expect it to be safe to
eat.
It may take two or three hours for
a turkey to thaw in the refrigera
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tor but this is the safest method.
After washing the turkey it is im
portant to clean the sink thoroughly
with cleanser to avoid the risk of
contamination of other foods or
equipment with salmonella bac
teria. All poultry and meat are a
potential source of salmonella, which
can cause a serious stomach upset.
Turkey dressing is safest to eat
when baked separate and not used
as stuffing inside the turkey cavity.
Dressing, after being mixed, should
be kept in the refrigerator until time
for it to be baked.
A turkey should not be put in the
oven and left overnight at a low
temperature. This can be very dan
gerous because it creates an ideal
medium for bacterial growth f4
1 owing the directions on the wrap
per that comes with the turkey is the
smart thing to do. 9
—r~
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Drs. Jerry A. Jones
and
Clarence O. Ellis
Specialize In Gastroenterology & Internal Medicine
For more information call:
(704) 372-0004
or come by:
2021 East 7th Street Charlotte, N.C
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