Word for Wednesday
And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this Child. Luke 2:17
Highway 246 in Nova Scotia runs from Wentworth Valley to Tatamagouche, through the rural communities of East Wentworth, Annandale, West New Annan, and Oliver. This highway has another name, one that is not as well known; it is called the Florida Road. As anyone who has ever travelled on it knows, that road has nothing to do with the state, or any person, named Florida. So where did the name come from? Sometime around 1850, a woman named Katherine (Kate) Ramsay, who came from Florida, married Alexander Munro, and they settled in West New Annan where they operated an inn. The inn was known as the Florida Inn, in recognition of Kate’s origins, and the highway became known as the Florida Road. The name reminds us that a woman from Florida lived there, even though it was a long time ago. Sometimes small details like that become significant. How much more significant was the incredible news of the arrival of the Messiah in Bethlehem!
Nobody who lives in or near West New Annan these days has any recollection of Kate Munro from Florida. Most never heard of her. But when a group of shepherds began broadcasting the news that the Son of God was born in Bethlehem, the news continues to be spread abroad today. Why? Because of the incredible difference that the arrival of the holy Infant made. Kate Munro was undoubtedly a good hostess at the Florida Inn. But Jesus Christ became far more than a carpenter’s helper and a good neighbour; He grew up to become Jesus of Nazareth, the Healer of Galilee, and the Saviour of the world. He confounded the religious leaders of His time, wrought great miracles including the turning of water into wine, the feeding of many thousands from a small lunch basket, the healing of hundreds of people from all manner of diseases, the calming of the raging elements on Galilee, and the raising of loved ones from the dead. When the memory of all of those miracles had faded, the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the record of His death at Calvary, of his glorious resurrection, and His ascension to Heaven, was being spread from shore to shore and from nation to nation. The shepherds of Bethlehem began spreading the news on the night that Jesus was born. And others continue spreading the news today. Are we among them?
The shepherds spread the word for two reasons: they were wildly excited about it, and they recognized its great importance. If these two things applied to us, we would be spreading the news abroad as well. Are we wildly excited about the Gospel? After all, it is a message that has delivered us from judgment and guaranteed us a home in Heaven. Do we recognize the importance of the Gospel? To an extent, we probably do, but we fail to allow it to grip our souls as it should.
If the shepherds could make known abroad the news about Jesus Christ being born, how much more ought we make known abroad the news concerning His death? – Jim MacIntosh