The Sixth Person of Christmas is the Holy Spirit

The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Luke 1:37


I really cannot even begin to fathom the complexities of the Holy Spirit.  We know that he is equal parts God, with God the Father and God the Son.  We know that he is real, as real as a person, not some ethereal, shadowy, force-like (use the force, Luke!) object.  He has a will, a mind, a heart (or emotions).

We know that he bears witness of the Christ in the hearts of man.  We know he acts as our conscience and our guide. We know that he brings comfort and peace to our hearts, minds and lives.

But we might not know him as a baby maker. 

I struggled with infertility for years, and know beyond a shadow of a doubt that my Samuel is an answer to prayer.  But . . .

I was not impregnated by the Holy Spirit!

I wonder what that moment felt like for Mary.  Did she feel anything?  When Gabriel said that the Holy Spirit will come on you, did he mean in a literal, physical sense? 

We often think of the Holy Spirit like a breath, like the very breath of God.  I like the idea that the Spirit breathed into Mary, and breathed Jesus' very life into being. 

I recently heard a Christian scholar of Jewish tradition say that in the Jewish culture, birthdays are not what is celebrated.  They backtrack nine months, and celebrate the day of conception.  If that is true, can you imagine the celebration the day that the Spirit of God joined with His chosen vessel and created the Son of God?

From the moment the Spirit breathed on Mary, life was created.  The life that would save the world.

I believe the Holy Spirit has emotions; I can't even imagine how excited he must have been at that moment!  God's plan for a Messiah was coming to fruition!  The world was going to see just how much God loved! 

And at that moment, Mary - this simple girl from Nazareth - was joined with God the Spirit in a way no one else ever was, or has been since.  Can you imagine?

The Holy Spirit is important to the Christmas story because he breathed the life of Jesus into his mother.  Without God the Spirit, God the Father's plan to bring God the Son to man would not have happened.  Yes, God could have spoken and it would have happened.  Yes, God could have simply willed it to happen. 

But that He did it in such a beautiful way is part of the gift.  The Spirit came upon Mary, and by him a mere human could carry the Son of God. 

The Holy Spirit still moves, works, breathes all around us.  Just imagine what He could do for you this Christmas season.